Wednesday, December 24, 2008

The Burt Lancaster Westerns

Burt Lancaster, with his animal grace and acrobatic skills put some of that in every role in his 86 films, from 1946-1991--yet in was in his Westerns that one felt he had a comfort level and intensity not often matched. Most people would have assumed that he had made dozens of westerns, remembering one or more of his roles--yet he only made 14 of them. His production company, HECHT-LANCASTER produced (5) of them.
1) VENGEANCE VALLEY (1951) playing Owen Daybright, the good brother to Robert Walker's villainous one.
2) APACHE (1954) as Massai, blue eyes and all, making love to Jean Peters, and being pursued by John McIntire.
3) VERA CRUZ (1954) as Joe Erin, stealing the film from the less flashy Gary Cooper, with supporting roles by Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, and Cesar Romero.
4) THE KENTUCKIAN (1955) playing Elias Wakefield, with Walter Matthau as the heavy with a bull whip.
5) GUNFIGHT AT THE O.K. CORRAL (1957) as Wyatt Earp, with KirK Douglas as Doc Holliday.
6) THE UNFORGIVEN (1960) as Ben Zachary, with Audrey Hepbrun, Audie Murphy, Doug McClure, Joseph Wiseman, Lillian Gish, John Saxon, and Charles Bickford in support.
7) THE HALLELUJAH TRAIL (1965) as Col. Thaddeus Gearhart, with Lee Remick.
8) THE PROFESSIONALS (1966) as Bill Dolworth, with Lee Marvin, Robert Ryan, Woody Strode, Ralph Bellamy, Jack Palance, and
Claudia Cardinale.
9) THE SCALPHUNTERS (1968) as Joe Bass, with Ossie Davis, Shelley Winters, and Telly Savalas.
10) LAWMAN (1971) as Jared Maddox, with Lee J. Cobb, Robert Ryan.
11) VALDEZ IS COMING (1971) as Valdez, with Susan Clark.
12) ULZANA'S RAID (1972) as McIntosh, with Douglass Watson, Bruce Davison , and Richard Jaeckel.
13) BUFFALO BILL & THE INDIANS (1976) as Ned Buntline, with Paul Newman, Geraldine Chaplin, Harvey Keitel.
14) CATTLE ANNIE AND LITTLE BRITCHES (1981) as Bill Doolan, with Diane Lane, Amanda Plummer, Scott Glenn, Rod Steiger, and John Savage.

Here's a few images to take you back to the West, to Burt's great roles.































































2 comments:

Jannie Funster said...

I never knew Audrey Hepburn was in a western.

Glenn Buttkus said...

I think THE UNFORGIVEN was her only one. It was a bit hard accepting her as an Indian too, but then again Anthony Quinn was Mexican, not Greek, enit?

Glenn