Hollywood Hoofbeats

by Petrine Day Mitchum

  Hendrickson also taught Maria Bello and Ryan Kwanten to ride. Tim McGraw grew up around horses and needed little coaching. He looks completely at home on Biscuit, Hendrickson’s bay Quarter Horse gelding whose credits include Seabiscuit and the ESPN television movie Ruffian, in which he is ridden by Sam Shepard.

  Trainer Rex Peterson, who often works with Hendrickson, brought veteran equine actor Monkey to double Ribbon in some scenes where the hero horse had to look fierce. A black Thoroughbred who doubled Justin, the star of 1994’s Black Beauty, Monkey is trained to rear and paw the air. Even though Monkey is just acting when he performs those behaviors, as a safety precaution, Lohman was doubled in such scenes by Julie Adair, a member of an illustrious family of stunt performers.

  Peterson was prepared to recreate a sequence from the original film in which Flicka gets tangled in barbed wire. That sequence was not filmed, but a fight between Flicka and a mountain lion was recreated. The realistic-looking sequence was safely accomplished through the green-screen technique, in which the opposing animals are filmed separately and meet only in the editing room.

  The rodeo scenario was a new invention for the remake. It was during this sequence that tragedy befell the production. The scene involved eight professional cowboys and four seasoned, domestic-bred rodeo horses working in a controlled environment under the supervision of four of the American Humane Association’s Certified Animal Safety Representatives. One of the horses unexpectedly pulled away from his handler and tripped on its thirteen-foot lead rope. The horse fell to the ground, breaking its neck before anyone could reach it.

  This unfortunate incident occurred just two weeks after another freak accident claimed the life of another horse. In a scene where a stunt double ropes Flicka, his mount took a misstep and fractured his rear right leg above the hock. Hendrickson, who was directing the second unit sequence, stopped filming as soon as he saw the horse falter. The horse never fell, but Hendrickson could see that his leg was broken and called for the veterinarian. The doctor identified the injury as an extremely rare type of break that could not have been predicted. Because of the location and severity of the fracture, the leg could not be cast and it was decided that euthanasia was the most humane option.

  The two equine fatalities were investigated by Los Angeles Animal Services, per legal protocol, and pronounced unavoidable accidents. In both cases, the Animal Safety Representatives had examined the ground before the scenes and did so again afterward. They found no holes or rocks that could have contributed to the accidents.

  As a result of these unfortunate incidents, Flicka received a modified end credit disclaimer from the American Human Association, stating simply that they monitored the animal action. It is a harsh truth of working with horses that accidents can occur at any time, even under the most controlled circumstances.

  The sadness felt by all involved in the production of Flicka is mitigated by the wonderful horse work and uplifting message. Ultimately, Katy’s wild spirit becomes the basis of a stronger bond with her father, and her passionate advocacy on behalf of America’s wild mustangs reminds us all that these horses are a national treasure to be protected for generations to come.

  Ribbon, the star of 2006’s Flicka, looks like the wild horse he portrays as he leads a herd of movie horses—and one mule—enjoying their down time on wrangler Rusty Hendrickson’s Montana ranch. The bay on the right is Biscuit, one of the 2003 Seabiscuit stars; the black on the left is Cimarron, Ribbon’s frequent double; the chestnut is Apollo, who was ridden by Jeff Bridges in 2010’s True Grit, and the bay bringing up the rear is Leroy, a veteran cast horse ridden by many actors over the years, including in such films as True Grit and 2013’s Django Unchained.

  Misty of Chincoteague

  First published in 1947, author Marguerite Henry’s Misty of Chincoteague is one of the most beloved children’s books ever written and is still in print. In 1961, a movie based on the book was released, entitled Misty. The story centers on a young brother and sister and the lessons they learn from wild ponies. At its heart is a real-life event that has been going on for centuries. Wild ponies that live on Virginia’s Assateague Island are rounded up in late summer to swim across a narrow straight to nearby Chincoteague Island. There many of the weaned colts and yearlings are auctioned off to benefit the volunteer fire department that maintains the herd in good health. While historical evidence supports the legends that the ponies are descendants of Spanish horses from a shipwrecked galleon or descendants of pirate ponies, they are also likely kin of horses released on the island by Virginia settlers to avoid paying taxes on their livestock.

  Starring David Ladd, the talented son of actor Alan Ladd, and ingénue Pam Smith as brother and sister, Misty was filmed on location on the Chincoteague and Assateague Islands and features the pony swim and auction. The wild ponies were filmed for these scenes and are also shown galloping on the beach in beautiful sequences. The lead roles of Phantom and her foal, Misty, were played by real Chincoteague ponies tamed by local residents. As a foal, Misty was played by a pony named Emma, whose dark brown coat was bleached blond to match the coat of the pony in the book. Trainer Les Hilton spent several weeks working with the native ponies on location in advance of the shoot. Ladd, meanwhile, had no trouble with the film’s riding scenes as he learned horsemanship with his father and sister Alana on the family’s California horse ranch.

  The Horse with the Flying Tail

  Another horse film based on real events was Disney’s The Horse with the Flying Tail, released in 1960. The true story of a spectacular palomino jumper named Nautical, The Horse with the Flying Tail won an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film and was a hit with horse-crazy kids who dreamed of finding such a diamond in the rough. Nautical’s crowd-pleasing signature was his flamboyant flipping of his gorgeous white tail as he sailed over immense obstacles. The horse so aptly described in the film’s title began life as Injun Joe in Roswell, New Mexico. He was given a western brand on his jaw, and when he was three, he was trained to be a cutting horse. He must not have liked his job because he reportedly escaped from every corral that tried to hold him. The palomino gelding was on the verge of being destroyed when he was rescued by an ex-cavalry officer. Sold as a foxhunter in Virginia, he had some exposure on the jumper show circuit, yet an explosive temperament kept Injun Joe from major success until world-class equestrian Hugh Wiley purchased him in 1955. Wiley, a United States Navy veteran, renamed him Nautical.

  With the help of renowned United States Equestrian Team (USET) coach Bertalan de Nemethy, Wiley and Nautical formed a winning partnership. They represented the United States in major European competitions, winning England’s coveted King George V Gold Cup in 1959. The former cow pony was awarded his trophy by none other than Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, the queen mother. Returning to the States, they helped the USET win the 1959 Pan American Games gold medal. Nautical’s keen intelligence, great strength, and extreme speed combined with his flashy looks made him one of the most popular competitors of his era. According to Hugh Wiley, he loved to perform and went faster and jumped higher when he heard the roar of the crowd.

  Although various horses portrayed the palomino in different stages of his life in the film, the real Nautical appeared in scenes documenting some of his career highlights. After the success of The Horse with the Flying Tail, Nautical suffered a bout with pneumonia and was retired. He received visitors for several years at the USET stables in New Jersey. Later he moved with Wiley to Maryland and occasionally made a public appearance at a horse show, where he tolerantly accepted the adulation of young fans. He eventually passed away on Wiley’s farm.

  The Black Stallion

  Mane and tail flying, a magnificent black stallion gallops down a deserted fairytale beach with a small boy astride. The child rides bareback, with no bridle, in perfect harmony with the glorious creature. This enduring poetic image is one of the reasons revered film reviewer Pauline Kael described The Black Stallion as “maybe t
he greatest children’s movie ever made.”

  Based on Walter Farley’s novel of the same name, 1979’s The Black Stallion details the story of two shipwreck survivors, an American boy and the Arabian stallion who saves his life. Executive produced by Francis Ford Coppola, directed by Carroll Ballard, and gloriously photographed by Caleb Deschanel, The Black Stallion appealed to adults as well as children. Ballard had a strong vision that often challenged screenwriting convention. The heart of the film has an astonishing twenty-eight minutes of dialogue-free interaction between boy and horse as their bond of interdependency deepens to love.

  Kelly Reno, an unknown rancher’s son from Boulder, Colorado, starred as the boy, Alec Ramsey. The twelve-year old Reno saw a notice in a horse magazine calling for boys with riding ability to audition for a new movie. Having learned to ride as a toddler, Reno figured he qualified. Convincing his parents to drive him to the casting session in Denver, Reno was chosen for the lead role over more experienced child actors. Except for the racing sequences, Kelly did all his own riding—and falling—in the film. The Black Stallion also marked the acting debut of Cass Olé, a purebred Arabian stallion foaled in 1969. As a show horse, Cass Olé enjoyed considerable success. In the mid-1970s, he was named American Horse Shows Association’s Horse of the Year for all breeds and won the national championship in Arabian western pleasure. His stellar record, superb temperament, and majestic presence won him the part of the Black. Although Cass Olé was not completely black, his four white socks and blaze were easily dyed.

  Corky Randall was assigned the task of training Cass Olé for his starring role. Because the Black was required to work extensively at liberty, Corky taught the stallion to respond to off-camera whip cues. Cass Olé’s exceptional talent wowed the veteran trainer. “He’s the only horse I ever worked with that you could see had personality; you could see an expression on his face,” said Randall. “We didn’t have that long to train Cass Olé; it just happened to be that he was a brilliant subject and trained out of this world.”

  Five horses doubled Cass Olé in fighting, running, and swimming scenes. Two were sorrel Quarter Horses belonging to Glenn Randall Jr. (brother of Corky) and were dyed black to resemble Cass. These horses worked in a sequence in which the Black bolts from Alec’s backyard and runs through town. Two French Camargue ponies—known for their natural swimming abilities—were acquired for the water scenes. Seen swimming in the dimly lit shipwreck sequence and shot from underwater when Alec and the Black are rescued, the Camargues’ coarse heads were not an issue, but since the ponies were white, they also required dye jobs. Another double, an Arabian named Fae-jur, a particular favorite of director Ballard, came from the Jack Tone Ranch in Stockton, California. All of Cass Olé’s doubles were trained to respond to visual cues.

  Poetry in motion, Cass Olé and Kelly Reno live the fantasy in The Black Stallion (1979).

  The Black Stallion made Cass Olé an international celebrity, and he delighted his fans with many personal appearances. He even participated in the 1981 Presidential Inauguration.

  In 1983, a sequel, The Black Stallion Returns, was released. Directed by Robert Dalva, the Academy Award-nominated editor of The Black Stallion, the new film was based on Walter Farley’s second book in The Black Stallion series. Kelly Reno reprised his role as Alec, and Cass Olé returned as the Black. The plot centers on Moroccan thieves who steal the stallion from his comfortable New York stable and take him back to North Africa to race.

  Considered one of the most demanding films ever produced, The Black Stallion Returns began shooting in Zagora, Morocco, and wrapped up in Tunisia. Much of the film was shot in the Sahara Desert, where the Arabian breed began. The film featured more than 20 horses in the lead roles (including doubles), and the production’s stable housed 120 horses total. In Morocco, only the royal stable of the princess had more horses.

  A chestnut stallion named SC Billy Rubin was the Black’s racing rival. An Arabian gelding named Talishma (T-Bone) from Ginsburg Desert Wind Arabians played the Black’s love interest, Johar, a gray Arabian mare. Black Midnight, a Polish Arabian from North Dakota, was used to double Cass Olé in the scenes with Talishma.

  A stunning stallion named El Mokhtar also doubled Cass Olé. Foaled in Cairo, Egypt, in 1971, El Mokhtar was originally imported to the United States to be a breeding stallion. He was considered for the role of the Black in the first film, but his syndicate owners were not interested. At the urgings of Corky Randall, he was purchased for The Black Stallion Returns for $25,000. Since El Mokhtar had never been ridden, Randall had to train him from scratch. According to the trainer, “He just never did anything wrong.”

  Much bigger than Cass Olé, El Mokhtar had a beautiful head and very expressive eyes, seen in some of the film’s close-ups of the Black. He also possessed tremendous stamina and was used for the film’s race sequences. Near the end of the movie, El Mokhtar, as the Black, appears to be running flat out, yet he suddenly surges ahead in an astonishing display of speed.

  Just two weeks before shooting was set to wrap, El Mokhtar died tragically from complications of colic. A veterinarian was flown in from the States, but El Mokhtar could not be saved. An autopsy revealed a severely twisted intestine that even surgery, impossible on location, would likely not have remedied. The cast and crew were heartbroken. As the show must go on, Cass Olé performed the final race scene himself.

  According to director Robert Dalva, Cass Olé was as enthusiastic about his work in The Black Stallion Returns as he had been in the original film. Cass came alive when he heard the sound of the slate (a wooden marker with a clapper used to identify scenes) slapping before each take and responded well to applause. To get the stallion revved up for the pre-race sequence, Dalva directed the crowd to clap.

  Cass Olé with Vincent Spano in The Black Stallion Returns.

  Although a born actor, Cass Olé did have his uncooperative moments. The most dramatic incident took place at one in the morning, on a remote location, miles from any village or highway. The moonless night was especially dark, and the crew was working in a small circle of light created by a generator. Dalva had been shooting a scene in which the villain, Kurr, kidnaps the Black. He had six takes in the can but wanted one more. Corky Randall noticed that Cass Olé was getting tired but told Dalva the horse could probably handle one last take. Kelly Reno was aboard Cass bareback with only a thin wire in the horse’s mouth for control. Cass was asked to proceed to his mark, but as soon as he hit it, he spun left and galloped into the night. Reno couldn’t control Cass with just the wire and opted to bail off the runaway. To everyone’s relief, Kelly came walking back into the light, unharmed—but he had no idea where Cass had gone.

  The crew turned the lights out into the desert but could see no sign of the black horse. Corky Randall told Dalva he knew Cass was out there in the dark, “watching and laughing.” Finally, the crew piled into Land Rovers and began searching for the stallion. Figuring Cass would be looking for food, they headed to the nearest village. “I was sitting on top of this Land Rover,” says Dalva. “It was just starting to get light. I saw Cass appear from behind some bushes. He was hungry, he was tired, and he was glad to see us.” Turns out Cass had galloped about 7 miles from the location.

  Cass Olé died on July 22, 1993, at the age of twenty-four and was mourned by his many fans.

  Ten years after Cass Olé’s death, Disney Studios released The Young Black Stallion, a prequel to The Black Stallion made specifically for showing in IMAX. Based on a novel by Walter Farley and his son Steven Farley, produced by Fred Roos, and directed by Australian Simon Wincer, the film is set in the North African desert at the end of World War II. The movie begins with the birth of the Black and follows his adventures with a young girl named Neera.

  Neera is played by Biana Tamimi, a native Texan who began riding at age five. Tamimi’s excellent skills on horseback enabled her to perform much of the riding in the film, although stunt doubles spared the young actress unnecessary
risk.

  Biana Tamimi as Neera with Thee Cyclone, dyed black for his role as the title character in The Young Black Stallion.

  During the making of The Young Black Stallion, forty horses were employed, including twenty-one Arabians leased from Jack Maritz, a South African breeder. His mare, Jara, was filmed giving birth to a foal meant to be Shetan, as the Black is known by the Arabian people in the film. The baby Shetan was played by a long-legged colt named Cricket. Including Cricket, nine horses were required to play Shetan. For the lead horse, Australian horse master Heath Harris chose the three-time South African National Champion Stallion Thee Cyclone. Originally bred in Michigan by Frank and Pat Bradish, the pure Egyptian Arabian was just six months old in 1994 when he was imported to South Africa. In addition to his breeding class championships, he had many under saddle wins, including National Champion Country English Pleasure. Conditioned by ranch work, Cyclone was physically fit for the demanding role of Shetan. There was only one problem with the classically beautiful stallion: he was bay. Like so many movie stars, Cyclone had to change his hair color for his star turn. Thee Cyclone’s main double, a mare named AE Juliette, was also bay and required a dye job to match the stallion in racing scenes.

  Two other mares, Isabella and Madonna, stood in for Cyclone during trekking scenes across the desert with Neera and scenes in which the horses interact with the young girl. A young stallion named Exclusive worked with Biana Tamimi in some of these scenes as well. According to the actress, Exclusive was a bit wild and made her nervous. Her favorite was a stallion named Rambo, whom she rode in some of the racing scenes. She also rode a mare named Nyala in many of the racing shots. The only nonpurebred Arabian horse used was an Arabian/Thoroughbred cross named Jibber Jabber, who did most of the rearing stunts. In one of his scenes, Shetan is visible from Neera’s window, rearing dramatically on a mountaintop, and her grandfather realizes the horse she has been talking about is not a dream. The oldest horse in the movie was Bint Fore, a twenty-nine-year-old former broodmare who came out of retirement for a bit part pulling a cart. She limped a little, but her age-related lameness fit the character, and the mare enjoyed the attention.