The Searchers
Page 45
“Pat was an able guy”: Author’s interview with Dan Ford, March 22, 2009.
“that capon son of a bitch”: O’Hara, p. 179.
“There is no communal life”: Inter-Office Memorandum, February 1, 1955; the account that follows is from Pat Ford’s extensive notes (JFP).
“We hope to portray … with as much barbarism”: JF, “Notes on The Searchers,” January 26, 1955 (JFP).
“Their villages … are scenes of utter squalor”: PF, Notes on The Searchers, January 26, 1955.
“The Indians were to be treated fairly”: Eleanor S. Whitney, Invitation to Joy, p. 5.
“It is important that the costumes”: JF, “Notes” (JFP).
“rough … rugged … cold”: JF memo, p. 3, January 26, 1955 (JFP).
“in the style of Donald O’Connor”: Kathleen Cliffton interview, Side 1, p. 7, Box 11, F20 (JFP). See also Joseph McBride, “The Pathological Hero’s Conscience: Screenwriter Frank S. Nugent Was the Quiet Man Behind John Ford,” Written By, May 2001.
“The Grapes of Wrath … is just about as good as any picture”: Nugent review, NYT, January 25, 1940.
“a very exorbitant salary”: Dave Jampel, “Films More Mature Today, Says Screenwriter Nugent,” Mainichi Daily News, 1961 (FSN).
“My opinion of this script”: Nugent to Zanuck, May 20, 1942 (FSN).
“Dear Frank”: Zanuck to Nugent, May 17, 1944 (FSN).
He even tried unsuccessfully: Nugent to Lester Markel, March 14, 1944 (FSN).
“to get the smell and feel of the land”: Anderson, p. 242. British film critic Lindsay Anderson corresponded with Nugent, Dudley Nichols, and Nunnally Johnson in the early 1950s and published their accounts of screenplay writing for Ford.
“groping like a musician”: Anderson, p. 244.
“He used to fight your grandfather”: James W. Bellah interview, p. 5, Box 11, F16 (JFP).
“just a little right of Attila”: Ronald L. Davis, John Ford, p. 204.
“I liked your script, boys”: McBride, p. 497.
“There’s no such thing as a good script”: Bogdanovich, p. 107.
his favorite “body and fender man”: JF interview, Tape 28 (JFP).
“The difference between his Westerns”: Kevin Nugent interview.
“Character is not shown so much”: Frank Nugent, “Notes on Screenwriting,” January 30, 1947 (FSN).
“Ford never has formally surrendered”: Nugent, “Hollywood’s Favorite Rebel,” Saturday Evening Post, July 23, 1949.
“There is a situation or a condition”: Nugent, “Opening Scenes,” pp. 20–21.
“It is no accident”: Ibid., p. 22. The quotes that follow are also from Nugent’s explanation of how The Searchers begins.
“I know John Wayne is a certain type of man”: Jampel article.
“the bedded-down meadow lark”: LeMay, The Searchers, p. 7.
“Yes … we got a chance”: Ibid., p. 47.
“A Texan is nothing but a human man”: Ibid., p. 53.
“a world of sadness and hopelessness”: Nugent, “Revised Final Screenplay,” p. 9.
“Fella could mistake you for a half-breed”: The actual film dialogue. In the screenplay: “Mistook you for a half-breed,” ibid., p. 4.
“She’s your nothin’ ”: Ibid., p. 49.
Using a letter that Martin writes to Laurie: Ibid, beginning on p. 59.
“Frank worked awfully hard”: Scott Eyman interview of Jean Nugent, p. 1.
“He’d come home at night exhausted”: Kevin Nugent interview.
“What you did was simple”: Harry Carey Jr., In the Company of Heroes, p. 7.
“There was absolutely no chain of command”: Ibid., p. 8.
“I was dropped by the best studios”: Vera Miles quote is repeated constantly, but never with attribution. See http://good-old-hollywood.buzzsugar.com/Vera-Miles.
Natalie’s mother consented: Suzanne Finstad, Natasha: The Biography of Natalie Wood, p. 199.
“They wanted you for that”: “Fess Parker: An Interview with Michael Barrier,” 2003–4, www.michaelbarrier.com/Parker/interview_fess_parker.html.
“You’d like to play the part”: Eyman, p. 444.
another impossibly handsome young actor: see Hunter’s biographical information at www.jeffreyhuntermovies.com.
“nowhere near the type”: Hunter’s account is from Picturegoer, September 29, 1956.
Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney was one of those improbable: Eyman, pp. 442–43. For Whitney’s authorized biography, see Jeffrey L. Rodengen, The Legend of Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney.
They formed a new film company: Vaz, p. 355.
“not for self-aggrandizement”: Thomas M. Pryor, “Hollywood Newcomer,” NYT, April 1, 1956.
“Jack Ford is back and raring to go”: Merian Cooper to C. V. Whitney, January 29, 1955 (CVW).
“I wish to again emphasize to you”: Whitney to Cooper, February 25, 1956 (CVW).
“My husband admired Ford so much”: Eyman interview with Marylou Whitney, p. 3.
“HAVE BEEN WORKING INTENSIVELY ”: Whitney to JF, February 21, 1956, Box 12 (JFP).
“It seems that the market is being flooded”: Whitney to Ford, March 23, 1955 (JFP).
Sonny Whitney “could afford to be a very nice man”: Pat Ford interview (D’Arc).
“A man with that many millions”: Box 21, Tape 23 (JFP).
17. The Valley, Part One
“My favorite location is Monument Valley”: Peter Cowie, John Ford and the American West, p. 186. For the influence of Charles M. Russell, see also William Howze, “The Influence of Western Painting and Genre Painting on the Films of John Ford.”
Geologists don’t know exactly: Arthur Frankel e-mail to the author, August 5, 2010.
Willa Cather wrote: Willa Cather, Death Comes for the Archbishop, pp. 94–95.
The Navajos loved canned tomatoes: For this and other details of the Gouldings’ early years in Monument Valley, see Sam Moon, Tall Sheep: Harry Goulding, Monument Valley Trader, pp. 46–48.
“It was their lands”: Ibid., p. 29.
Harry “just wandered in”: Pat Ford interview (BYU).
Pat’s father was entranced: For the story of meeting JF, see Moon, p. 145–49.
about ninety seconds of the footage: James D’Arc, When Hollywood Came to Town, p. 208.
It had a double bed: Moon, p. 199.
“It gives me a chance to get away”: Burt Kennedy, “A Talk with John Ford,” Action! September–October 1968, p. 6.
bad weather in Arizona: Daily Production Reports, June 13, 1955, Box 6, F. 22 (JFP).
the Super Chief was the appropriate: For a description of the Super Chief, see www.american-rails.com/super-chief.html.
“A shooting schedule”: Cooper to Whitney, June 15, 1955 (CVW).
They carved roadways: Warner Brothers Presents, March 12, 1956, TV show, narrated by Gig Young (see Searchers DVD).
“The women were installed”: A Turning of the Earth (documentary).
“Wind was an enemy”: Frank Perrett, C. V. Whitney Productions press release, undated, p. 4 (WB).
“adobe, whitewashed but with the bricks showing”: JF Notes, February 10, 1955 (JFP).
Lana Wood recalled: Finstad, p. 171.
The men earned $15 a day: “AGREEMENT between C.V. Whitney Pictures and District Tribal Council (MHL).
“A lot of people came”: Susie Yazzie interview with the author, March 24, 2008.
“When we first went into the Indian reservations”: Bill Libby, “The Old Wrangler Rides Again,” 1964, in JF Interviews, p. 55.
“People have said that on the screen”: Ibid., p. 71.
“We’ll get it off”: The Hosteen Tso story is from Moon, pp. 149 and 153–55.
“the valley was buried”: Eyman, p. 207.
“At Monument Valley I have my own personal tribe”: Ibid., p. 351.
“They were a very dignified people”: Bogdanovich, pp. 94–95.
“My sympathy was always”: Tag
Gallagher, John Ford: The Man and His Films, p. 254.
like a horror movie: Slotkin, Gunfighter Nation, p. 361.
“It was a job”: McBride, p. 295.
“The Indian children looked on him”: Chuck Roberson, The Fall Guy, p. 169.
a two-year-old Navajo girl: CVW Productions press release, undated (WB).
he filmed eleven setups: Daily filing from Shooting Schedule and Daily Production Reports of CV Whitney Pictures (JFP).
Ford also shot scenes: Some of the few surviving outtakes contain this ride, which appears in A Turning of the Earth, Nick Redman’s 1998 documentary.
“They had bodies like iron”: Carey, p. 159.
“I like the cowboys”: JF Interview, undated, audio file (MHL).
Lee Bradley … Frank McGrath … Jack Pennick: See A Turning of the Earth.
“We were his personal soldiers”: Roberson, p. 66.
“He never shot in continuity”: Clothier interview, p. 15, Box 11, F21 (JFP).
The man who emerged: For a physical description of JF, see Carey, p. 19.
“It was a feeling of reverence”: Carey interview, p. 13 (JFP).
The two men had been partners: See Carey’s account of JF and Hoch, p. 18.
“Winnie, what do you think?”: Ibid., p. 67.
“images that are so detailed”: Ruthurd Dykstra, “The Search for Spectators,” Kino, p. 1.
“he avoided the temptation”: Winton Hoch, p. 1, Box 12, F3 (JFP).
“Too many directors”: Ken Curtis, p. 4, Box 11, F22 (JFP).
“He didn’t want any rehearsing”: Pippa Scott interview with author, March 24, 2009.
“The actors get tired”: Bogdanovich, p. 99.
“He never let us get into the scene”: Curtis Lee Hansen, “Henry Fonda: Reflections on 40 Years of Make-Believe,” Cinema, p. 15.
“Oh God, how the man would cheat”: Ace Holmes, Box 12, F5, p. 20 (JFP).
“He had all his people there”: Chuck Hayward, Box 12, F1, p. 2 (JFP).
18. The Valley, Part Two
The average film director: For a discussion of master shots, over-the-shoulder shots and coverage, see 4 Filmmaking website: http://production.4filmmaking.com/cinematography1.html.
“John Ford shoots a picture”: Wingate Smith, Box 12, F15, p. 3 (JFP).
“If you give them a lot of film”: Gallagher.
There were thirty-three drivers, five five-ton trucks: Daily Production Report, June 13, 1955, Box 6, F22 (JFP).
Sonny Whitney … arrived by Cessna: Whitney telegram, June 14, 1955 (CVW).
“Crockery flew”: Eleanor Searle Whitney, p. 5.
“I would surely like to give her”: Whitney to Cooper, May 3, 1955 (CVW).
The superrich … “look upon everything”: E. S. Whitney, p. 122.
“Whitney had been a polo player”: Pat Ford interview by D’Arc.
Sonny “came riding up and he was proud”: Terry Wilson, Box 12, F19, p. 19 (JFP).
Smart Set column in the New York Journal-American: October 14, 1955.
“We were scared to death”: Pat Ford interview.
“Two things make Western pictures”: George Stevens, Conversations with the Great Moviemakers, p. 243.
Two stuntmen went down: Production Notes, June 22, 1955 (JFP).
“I don’t think he was terribly well”: Pippa Scott interview.
“he liked to push people”: McBride, pp. 567–68.
Even Ford’s beloved stuntmen felt his wrath: Roberson, p. 160.
“When will you learn to ride”: Ibid., p. 161.
“The whole relationship was something”: Scott interview.
He lit one Camel after another: Carey, p. 36.
“My father would say”: Patrick Wayne interview.
“When I looked up at him in rehearsal”: Carey, p. 170.
“Was she … ? Did they … ?”: Nugent, Revised Final Screenplay, p. 41.
“He didn’t say a word”: Carey, p. 172.
“He was very sweet with me”: Scott interview.
“I was his godson”: Pat Wayne interview.
“He used no technical terms”: Louis Pollock, “Alone–but Not for Long,” Motion Picture 46:550, November 1956.
“When I crossed my arm”: From The American West of John Ford, CBS documentary, December 5, 1971, p. 30 (JFP).
“Everybody thinks I’m crazy”: Olive Carey, pp. 21–3 (JFP).
July Fourth, they took a break: The description of the festivities is from the Carey interview and McBride, p. 555.
“More than having received the Oscars”: JF Interviews, p. 71.
19. The Studio
RKO-Pathé Studio in Culver City: For a description of the studio’s history, see www.seeing-stars.com/studios/culverstudios.shtml.
“Captain, the Reverend Samuel Johnson Clayton!”: Revised Final Screenplay, pp. 12–14.
“She slugged me”: Pippa Scott interview.
“I remember being very unnerved”: A Turning of the Earth (documentary).
He once told Fred Zinnemann: McBride, p. 161.
some of the scenes “could have been shot”: Bosley Crowther, NYT, May 31, 1956.
Some of the captives … “have been enslaved”: JF Story Notes, February 15, 1955 (JFP).
“It’s hard to realize they’re white”: Screenplay, p. 74.
“Helluva shot”: Peter Bogdanovich, Who the Hell’s in It, p. 289.
“‘I’m sorry, girl’ he tells her”: Screenplay, p. 111.
“I wonder, did they box themselves in a corner?”: Author’s interview with James D’Arc.
Ford had shot 187,402 feet of film: Daily Production Report (JFP).
Max Steiner took over: Steiner’s biography is from Thomas Kiefner, “Max Steiner,” in Film Music: The Neglected Art, February 13, 2008.
“as a kind gesture”: James D’Arc notes to The Searchers music CD.
“that is completely haunting”: JF Story Notes, January 28, 1955, p. 2 (JFP).
Ford turned to Stan Jones: Jones’s bio is from Carey, pp. 91–94, and Stan Jones, www.westernmusic.com/performers/hof-jones-stan.html.
“You’ve got a guy alone”: Bogdanovich commentary on The Searchers DVD.
“I am sorry you are not altogether satisfied”: Whitney to Steiner, December 9, 1955, (CVW).
The Searchers “goes down as my favorite”: Whitney to JF, December 9, 1955 (CVW).
“The picture is brutal in spots”: Walter MacEwen to Jack Warner, December 5, 1955 (WB).
Whitney was eager to get paid: See Warner to Whitney, October 25 and November 11, 1955; Whitney to Warner, November 2, 1955 (CVW).
“Frankly I have been very disappointed”: Cooper to Warner, March 10, 1956 (BYU).
20. The Movie
“a myth based on other myths”: Tag Gallagher, “Angels Gambol Where They Will,” The Western Reader, p. 272.
“icons of savage violent beauty”: Ibid.
“I wish Uncle Ethan was here”: Searchers screenplay, p. 20.
“You speak good American”: Ibid., p. 83. But in the screenplay Scar does not make his classic reply.
“These shots … are among the treasures”: Roger Ebert, “The Searchers,” November 25, 2001.
“organic, not imposed on him”: This and subsequent quotes are from Robert Warshow, “Movie Chronicle: The Westerner,” in The Western Reader, p. 36.
“The pictures … end with his death”: Ibid., p. 40.
“What these apologists forget”: Jon Tuska, The American West in Film, pp. xix, 61, 58, and 237.
Native Americans themselves: JoEllen Shively’s PhD thesis: Cowboys & Indians: The Perception of Western Films Among American Indians and Anglo-Americans.
“asking Indians to watch a John Wayne Western”: Tom Grayson Colonnese, “Native American Reactions to The Searchers,” in Eckstein and Lehmann, p. 335.
Scar cannot let go: Ibid., p. 342.
“Come along, Mrs. Pauley”: Screenplay, p. 63. Martin’s kick is in the script, p. 65.
“The film is not an aberration”: McBride and Wilmington, p. 148.
“When Ethan picks up Debbie”: Michael Munn, John Wayne: The Man Behind the Myth, p. 176.
“Undoubtedly one of the greatest”: Hollywood Reporter, March 13, 1956.
“one of the greatest”: Motion Picture Herald, March 17, 1956.
“a rip-snorting Western”: NYT, May 31, 1956.
“strange but fascinating”: Film Bulletin, March 19, 1956.
“the lapses in logic” Time, June 25, 1956, p. 60.
“Racism was so endemic”: McBride interview.
“an unmistakable neurotic”: Anderson, p. 156.
“How can I hate John Wayne”: Lesley Stern, The Scorsese Connection, p. 38.
“You know, I just don’t understand”: McInerney, p. 55.
“Ethan Edwards … was probably the most fascinating character”: JW voice-over in The American West of John Ford (documentary), 1971.
21. The Legacy
“It made a lot of money”: McBride and Wilmington, p. 45.
“The worst piece of crap”: Pappy, p. 290.
“The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance is a serious assault”: Tara Brady, “In praise of an old Hollywood master,” Irish Times, June 7, 2012.
“Young people, including film students”: Peary, p. ix.
“I am not a poet”: Ibid., p. xvi.
A pivotal article: Joseph McBride and Michael Wilmington, “Prisoner of the Desert,” Sight and Sound, Autumn 1971.
“I wanted to be Scar”: From The Searchers: An Appreciation (documentary).
“So you wanna be a picture maker”: By John Ford (documentary).
“He was a great artist”: A Turning of the Earth (documentary).
As executive producer of Cowboys & Aliens: Rick Marshall, “Cowboys & Aliens’ Co-Writer Says Flick’s ‘Originality’ Sets It Apart,” April 27, 2011.
“Ford’s in my mind”: “War Horse and the Influence of John Ford on Steven Spielberg,” November 27, 2011.
“an unholy alliance of critics”: Byron, p. 45.