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The Train Robbers Was A Canary In The Coal Mine For The Death Of John Wayne Westerns

The 20-year-long persistence of the superhero genre in contemporary blockbuster cinema has cause many pundits to draw a genre parallel between comic book movies and Westerns. In 2015, the Guardian published an essay comparing the two cinematic trends, largely as a predictor as to when the superhero film would finally cease its continued ascendency. That same year, Steven Spielberg compared the genres, once again using the moribund Western as an indicator of the ephemerality of any genre. Seven years since then, superhero movies have churned out several enormous hits, including several of the biggest box office bonanzas of all time. In 2022, however, the entertainment landscape has changed a lot, companies are merging into weird, gross entities, and high-profile superhero projects now stand the chance of being canceled. Pundits have been predicting it for years, but superhero movies may finally be on the downhill slope. Only time will tell.
 
“The Train Robbers,” a Burt Kennedy film from 1973, is from a time when the Western genre, at least as a dominant form in the pop consciousness, was most assuredly on the outs. “The Train Robbers” starred a 69-year-old John Wayne as an aging rogue who volunteers to retrieve a store of gold once stolen from a train by Ann-Margret’s late husband. In terms of structure, the film was classic Hollywood — coming right when audiences were souring to classic Hollywood. “The Train Robbers” came the year after “The Godfather,” and grittier, more “film school” movies were on the rise.
The makers of “The Train Robbers” knew that classic Westerns were already a retro genre when they were making it, and, according to Scott Eyman’s 2015 book “John Wayne: The Life and Legend,” they tried to outrun their fate by underspending. Needless to say, the big budget didn’t help.
The $200,000 payday

Warner Bros.The $4.6 million budget of “The Train Robbers” translates to about $30 million in 2022 dollars. It was, essentially, a mid-budget movie. Wayne’s star had fallen, and his salary was only guaranteed to be $200,000 — about $1.3 million, adjusted. Wayne was also set to get a percentage of the gross. This relatively low payout was a declarative statement. Warner Bros. had little faith in the picture and in the star.
“The Bank Robbers” was photographed by veteran cinematographer William H. Clothier, an old friend of Wayne’s whom he met on the set of 1955’s “The Sea Chase.” After that film, Clothier would sign onto John Wayne’s own production company, Batjac Productions, and he and Wayne would end up making a total of 22 films together. “The Bank Robbers” came right after Clothier had turned 70, and when Wayne was about to turn 70. Clothier, it seems, was very ready to retire. In Eyman’s book, Clothier had said that he enjoyed his work, but was simply too tired to keep doing the same thing all the time. Clothier’s attitudes seems to belie the overall fatigue that “The Bank Robbers” instilled in everyone. He said:
“I like turkey, I have it at Thanksgiving and New Year’s but I don’t want it seven days a week. If I’m working on a picture at Batjac, I’m picked up at six in the morning to go on location. Duke and I are either the first or second ones on the set. We work until the sun goes down, then I have to go into town to see the rushes. Hell, it’s strenuous to get up at 6 a.m. if all you do all day is sit in a rocking chair!”The Duke wasn’t having fun
Warner Bros.But more harmful to “The Train Robbers” than Clothier’s fatigue was Wayne’s. Clothier recalls that Wayne hadn’t been happy making movies for a number of years. Wayne had a lung removed due to cancer in 1964 and had a reputation for being a heavy drinker. He wasn’t in a spot to have a lot of fun getting up in the morning to shoot out in the desert. Clothier and Wayne were very close — they were able to make shockingly dirty jokes with one another — and Clothier could see that Wayne wasn’t having a blast.
“The Train Robbers” had great production value, but it was, in Eyman’s words, a “programmer.” That is: the film was only meant to fill out the Warner Bros. film slate. There was no ambition or originality to the project. It wasn’t an important piece of art with something to say. It was just a genre going through the motions. “The Train Robbers” was produced by Wayne’s son Michael, and even he knew that the film was automated and even a little cynical. Michael Wayne admitted that he attempted to get something meaningful together, and tried to make it look slick and entertaining, but when the story is dull, no amount of slickness will cover it up. Wayne said:
“I worked very hard on ‘The Train Robbers’ to try to make it into something, when basically the story wasn’t that good. I was trying to make up for the story in production values and cast.”The times, they are a-changin’.
Paramount“The Train Robbers” came out to warm critical acclaim and complete audience indifference. It cost just enough to make and distribute that it was all but guaranteed to lose money for Warner Bros. … which it did. According to Eyman’s book, “The Train Robbers” put the studio in the red to the tune of $7.6 million. The film was made with a dull story, starring an uncommitted star, shot by a photographer on the cusp of retirement, and produced by the star’s son … who also had little faith in the project. It was pretty clear that Westerns were done.
The film’s writer/director, Burt Kennedy, even went so far as to write a note of apology to Michael Wayne. The note read “Really feel rotten about ‘Train Robbers’ falling on its ass. Guess it just wasn’t any good.”
Had “The Train Robbers” been good, who is to say what would have happened. But it’s also safe to say that the movie landscape had evolved past the need for old-world oaters like the ones Wayne was making. By the mid 1960s, Westerns had taken a turn for the arty in the hands of filmmakers like Sergio Leone, and what constituted a hit had changed drastically. In 1972, “The Godfather” had caused an enormous splash with a box office of $86 million. The same year as “The Train Robbers,” “The Exorcist” made $82 million. This was a new generation of filmmakers appealing to a new generation of filmgoers. Westerns had no place.
Should a mid-budget MCU-connected film ever come out that seems to elicit audience indifference and apologies from the filmmakers, we might know for sure that superhero films are done, or will be soon.
Cough, “Morbius,” cough cough.

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John Wayne

Reveal 7 fascinating facts about John Wayne’s 1963 film ‘McLintock! ‘

A Standout Film In John Wayne’s Catalog . In the immense list that is John Wayne’s filmography, one title stands out among the rest. That movie would be McLintock! which starred Wayne and Maureen O’Hara in the lead roles.

Loosely based on William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, McLintock! is a Western in which John played the role of cattle, timber, and mining baron George Washington “G.W.” McLintock. Maureen played his estranged wife, Katherine, who moves out East after suspecting that G.W. cheated on her.However, she eventually comes back to his town, and the two find themselves tangled up in a series of messes.

7 Facts About John Wayne's 1963 Film 'McLintock!' – Country Music Family

The film also focuses on the couple’s daughter, Becky, who was played by Stefanie Powers. Once Becky comes back to town after her time away at college, she brings along a suitor named “Junior” Douglas, who was played by Jerry Van Dyke. But eventually, Rebecca ends up falling in love with a young man who lives in her father’s home named Dev, who was played by John’s son Patrick.

If you’re a fan of John’s movies, you’ve definitely seen McLintock! a time or two…or more. But there’s a few facts about the film and its creation that you’re likely clueless about.That’s what we’re here for, to tell you those facts! Are you excited to learn what they are?https://www.youtube.com/embed/VcAzj_b0bIM

1. The Movie Was Produced By John’s Son : John Wayne was always good about including his children in his projects, and ended up launching their careers in the process. While you likely already knew before reading this list that the character Dev was played by John’s son Patrick, did you know that another one of his children was involved in the film as well?

McLintock! / John Wayne / Technicolor 1963 - YouTube

It turns out that John’s eldest son, Michael, served as the sole producer of the film. Although Michael had worked on many other films in the past, McLintock! was the first that he ever fully produced.

2. John Insisted On One Of The Actresses Being Cast : One of the supporting roles in McLintock! was played by the immensely popular and beloved Yvonne De Carlo. She played Louise Warren, a widow who moves in to McLintock’s home with her two children and serves as the housekeeper and cook.https://www.youtube.com/embed/4aF4oGRM9Q0

While Yvonne appeared in a number of starring roles in earlier years, she was forced to accept supporting roles as her career declined. You probably didn’t know this before, but she may not have ever been cast in McLintock! if it wasn’t for John insisting that she be given a part.

McLintock!” – John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara | Katherine loudly… | Flickr

John wanted Yvonne to be cast in the film because her husband, stuntman Bob Morgan, had been seriously injured while working on the movie How the West Was Won, which John also starred in. The injuries put an end to Bob’s career, so why John Yvonne to have a role in McLintock! when it came time to start filming it.

3. John Wanted To Do One Stunt Because It Looked Fun : According to John’s son and the film’s producer, Michael, John really wanted to do one of his own stunts in the film. The stunt required John to jump from a hayloft down into a pile of hay below.

Michael said that his dad thought the stunt looked like a lot of fun, and he declared that he wanted to do it himself. The studio wasn’t too keen on the idea, since John was one of the brightest stars in Hollywood at the time.

John finally won the argument, and he got the chance to perform the stunt himself. However, the studio also shot the scene with a stuntman as well in case something went wrong.

4. There Isn’t A Bit Of Mud To Be Found In The Famous Brawl Scene : Sometimes, films have to substitute other substances for their real-life counterparts, such as blood, or even ice cream. In the case of the famous mudhole brawl scene that takes place in McLintock! the “mud” wasn’t mud at all!

In reality, the substance used in the mudhole brawl scene was a material called bentonite. This material is typically used while drilling oil wells, and resembles chocolate syrup in terms of appearance and consistency. On the movie screen, it stands in as a good substitute for mud, which is usually much thicker.

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John Wayne

The Gunsmoke cast had no idea John Wayne was going to introduce the first episode

The whole cast was at James Arness’ house when the Duke walked out.

Before anybody ever laid eyes on James Arness as Matt Dillon, the first episode of Gunsmoke moseyed out with a face so familiar to Westerns, he really needed no introduction. That didn’t stop him from saying in that sober, serious way of his, “I’m John Wayne. You may have seen me before, or I hope so. I’ve been kicking around Hollywood a long time.”

The introduction went on, but this was really all it took to get any Western fans to stay firmly planted in the saddle for the premiere, and out of all the fans in the audience when that very first episode aired, you should know that perhaps most surprised of all to see Wayne’s face on the front of his own show was Gunsmoke star Arness. He dispelled a myth in an interview with the Archive of American Television, confirming he not only had nothing to do with Wayne’s involvement, he and the rest of the cast didn’t even know it was going to happen!

“I didn’t ask him,” Arness said of John Wayne’s introduction. “Not at all. In fact, I was really surprised when they said that he had done that. He [filmed] that, we didn’t know about it at all. They did that intro some where else on some picture he was doing, and I don’t think actually, that we knew about it until it came on the air that night. I think they were kinda holding it as a surprise.”

Two big western stars meet again as “Gunsmoke” star Jim Arness stopped by to visit his old friend John Wayne. During the visit on the set of Wayne’s current movie the actors recalled that back in 1952 Arness was under contract to Duke. Wayne was asked to a thing called “Gunsmoke” but sold the producers on Jim instead.

Arness then went on to paint a picture of what exactly it was like to see one of his own heroes tipping his hat before the start of Arness’ new show. He said, “We were all actually over at my house, all the gang from Gunsmoke, watching this… and here’s Duke Wayne with this intro.”

Just imagine Amanda Blake, Dennis Weaver and Milburn Stone, sitting shoulder to shoulder on a couch when the screen flickers to reveal John Wayne. It must’ve been quite the surprise, indeed. Arness used a different word to describe the experience: “It was absolutely marvelous.”

In a later interview, he used the same word when discussing his favorite John Wayne movie of all time, The Quiet Man. Arness said, “I watch television all the time, mostly PBS and old movies like The Quiet Man, my favorite Wayne movie. It’s marvelous. I just loved the man and still do.”

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John Wayne

Inside John Wayne’s ‘Wild Goose’ WWII Houseboat

Actor John Wayne loved both land and sea. However, he took his love for the water to another level when he purchased a boat that he spent a lot of time on. The Wayne houseboat is a beautiful piece of history that fans continue to admire long after the actor’s death. Here’s a look inside of Wild Goose.

John Wayne owned a WWII houseboat called ‘Wild Goose’

John Wayne aboard Wild Goose, his houseboat, wearing a collared shirt, captain hat, sitting next to American flag

The Daze with Jordan the Lion YouTube channel takes viewers on a tour inside of the Wayne houseboat. The actor spent a lot of time on the houseboat and owned it for 18 years. However, he sold it shortly before he died in 1979. Jordan explained that Wayne had some of his favorite moments of all time on the Wild Goose. He even convalesced on the boat after he knew that he was going to die.

The Wayne houseboat was a decommissioned World War II Naval minesweeper. However, he wasn’t the original owner. Billionaire Max Wyman purchased the boat, but he wanted to sell it when he grew tired of it. Wayne purchased it off his hands and had to have the ceilings raised to accommodate his height without bumping his head.

Jordan went to the other side of the boat to take a quick look at the kitchen, where the Duke had meals prepared for him. Next, he went into the engine room. The host explained that the ship’s engine was originally a locomotive or train engine that they repurposed when the military had the ship. The ladder at the end of the room leads to the bar area.

The host exited the engine room to head to the second level of the ship, using gold-detailed stairs to get there. He explored a second Bride room, where guests can purchase Wayne and Wild Goose merchandise. Jordan explained that the Wayne houseboat’s captain is still alive and participates in the dinner cruises.

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