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Milestone Western Movie Anniversaries 2024

Momentous Western Movie Milestones

By Darlene Cah

Raise a mug of strong cowboy coffee and toast these legendary Western movies celebrating their impressive milestone anniversaries! These classics not only stand the test of time, but they get better with time. Long live Westerns!

The Quick Gun (1964)

60th Anniversary

Stars Audie Murphy

Gunslinger, Clint Cooper (Murphy) was kicked out of his hometown for a killing he claims was self-defense. Now he’s on his way back to make amends and to reunite with his love, but on the way, he learns his former outlaw gang plans to rob the bank and destroy the town. Clint is desperate to alert the townsfolk, but will they heed his warning, or will Clint have to fight this battle alone?

Trivia

  • The Quick Gun is based on the short story, “The Fastest Gun” by Steve Fisher.
  • For his performance in the role of Clint Cooper, Audie Murphy earned $37,500.
  • Charles Meredith plays Reverend Staley, one of Clint Cooper’s few supporters. This was Meredith’s final film. He passed away at age 70 seven months after the movie was released.

Streets of Laredo (1949)

75th Anniversary

Stars William Holden, Macdonald Carey, Mona Freeman, William Bendix

In 1878, three outlaws, Jim (Holden), Lorn (Carey), and Wahoo (Bendix) keep themselves busy robbing stagecoaches. But everything changes when they save a spunky young girl named Rannie Carter (Freeman) from vicious rustlers. Later, the three outlaws are separated; Lorn continues down the criminal path, while Jim and Wahoo become Texas Rangers. Being on the right side of the law is a change that suits Jim and Wahoo, while Lorn flourishes as a greedy, notorious villain. After a few years, Rannie reappears as a beautiful young woman—and Jim falls in love with her. But Rannie only has eyes for Lorn. Now, Jim and Lorn find themselves at odds—not just as a lawman and a criminal but as romantic hopefuls vying for the same woman. Will friendship save them—or is a showdown inevitable?

Trivia

  • Streets of Laredo is a remake of the 1936 film, The Texas Rangers, starring Fred MacMurray, Jack Oakie, Jean Parker, and Lloyd Nolan.
  • Paramount planned to shoot the film on location in Texas, however, they ended up in Gallup, New Mexico with some scenes shot in Simi Valley, California.
  • The title is derived from the classic Western song, “The Streets of Laredo,” which you’ll hear underscored throughout the film.

No Name on the Bullet (1959)

65th Anniversary

Stars Audie Murphy

When cool, calculating, and notorious hired killer John Gant (Murphy) enters the tiny town of Lordsburg, Arizona, tensions start to flare. Townspeople with secrets begin to wonder if he’s there for them, and they start turning on each other. Will Gant kill his target—or will the paranoid citizens do it for him?

Trivia

  • About ten years after No Name on the Bullet was released by Universal, the studio replicated the plot in “Stopover,” an episode of The Virginian, with singer/actor Herb Jefferies in Murphy’s role.
  • R.G. Armstrong plays Asa Canfield, father of Luke Canfield, portrayed by Charles Drake. In real life, Armstrong was a mere five months older than Drake.
  • Though billed as a B-Western, fans and critics consider No Name on the Bullet to be Audie Murphy’s best work. Some industry insiders cite its “philosophical edge” as setting it apart from other Westerns.

Ride Lonesome (1959)

65th Anniversary

Stars Randolph Scott, Pernell Roberts, James Best, Lee Van Cleef, James Coburn

Bounty hunter Ben Brigade (Scott) is on a mission to bring his prisoner, Billy John (James Best), to Santa Cruz. Billy tells Ben that it’s only a matter of time before his vicious older brother, Frank (Van Cleef), finds them, kills Ben, and sets Billy free. Billy doesn’t know he’s mere bait, and Ben eagerly awaits Frank’s arrival. Because Ben Brigade may be escorting one brother to justice, but he has a score to settle with the other brother—and that justice may not involve a court of law.

Trivia

  • Ride Lonesome was James Coburn’s film debut. He plays Whit, a naïve young cowboy and outlaw, Sam Boone’s sidekick.
  • Ride Lonesome was among the 400 films nominated for the American Film Institute’s Top 100 Most Heart-Pounding American Movies. Sadly, it did not make the final cut, where it would have been in the company of other great Western thrillers, including Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, High Noon, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, and The Magnificent Seven.
  • A versatile actor, Scott starred in everything from musicals to war movies, but he’s best known for his Westerns. Of the genre, he once said, “They have been the mainstay of the industry ever since its beginning. And they have been good to me. Westerns are a type of picture which everybody can see and enjoy.”

Zandy’s Bride (1974)

50th Anniversary

Stars Gene Hackman, Liv Ullmann, Harry Dean Stanton

A rough and tough American rancher, Zandy Allan (Hackman) needs a wife, so he sends for a Swedish mail-order bride, Hannah Lund (Ullmann). But they get off to a bumpy start. When Zandy first lays eyes on Hannah, he realizes she lied about her age; instead of being in her early 20s, Hannah is 32! Though disappointed, he goes ahead with the marriage. He’s not looking for love; he expects Hannah to work hard, help run the ranch, and bear him children (preferably a son). What he didn’t expect was that Hannah would insist on being treated with respect and she’d have a tough streak a mile wide. Now this unlikely pair must learn to be husband and wife if they’re to thrive on the harsh frontier.

Trivia

  • The name game: Zandy’s Bride is also known as its TV title For Better, for Worse in the U.S., and is based on the 1942 novel, The Stranger, by Lillian Bos Ross.
  • Zandy’s Bride producer, Harvey Matofsky bought the rights to Ross’ book, The Stranger, from French fashion model and actress, Capucine, whom he met at the home of Director Federico Fellini. Capucine came to own the rights when the talent agent and producer, who discovered her and brought her to the States, Charles K. Feldman died and left the property to her.

Sitting Bull (1954)

70th Anniversary

Stars Dale Robertson, Mary Murphy, J. Carrol Naish, John Hamilton

Major Robert Parrish (Robertson) is a cavalryman who is sympathetic to the plight of the Sioux Indians. His reputation as an “Indian sympathizer” impacts his career and even leads his fiancée, Kathy (Murphy) to break off their engagement. But President Ulysses S. Grant (Hamilton) recognizes that the Indians trust Parrish, so he sends him to talk to Sitting Bull (Naish). Grant is hopeful that Parrish can iron out a land dispute with the Sioux Chief and avoid further bloodshed. However, a corrupt Indian Agent and General Custer interfere and cause trouble. Can Parrish carry out his mission to broker peace?

Trivia

  • Sitting Bull was shot just outside Mexico City, purportedly to save money on production costs. They used Mexican locals as extras. This did not sit well with the Sioux tribe whose representatives pressured producer Wilfred R. Frank to film on the Standing Rock Indian reservation. They cited that shooting in Mexico was “not befitting our great Sioux Chief,” and that the Sioux of the Dakotas wanted to take part in the movie of Sitting Bull’s life. Their petitions were in vain—and so were the money-saving efforts by Frank’s studio. According to Iron Eyes Cody, the Mexican studio overcharged W.R. Frank’s production by hundreds of thousands of dollars.
  • Dale Robertson and co-star, Mary Murphy were an item! The couple married in June 1956. It was Robertson’s second marriage. A mere six months later, he and Murphy attained an annulment, with Murphy claiming Robertson did not want children. He had one daughter by his first wife and would have two more girls with his third wife. Robertson married for a fourth time in 1980 until his death in 2013.
  • Originally, Boris Karloff was slated for the role of Sitting Bull, but in the end, it went to J. Carrol Naish, who had previously portrayed the Sioux Chief in Annie Get Your Gun (1950).

BONUS TRIVIA!

  • The real Chief Sitting Bull and sharpshooter Annie Oakley became good friends after he saw her perform with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. He affectionately named her “Little Sure Shot.”

War of the Wildcats (1943)

81st Anniversary

Stars John Wayne, Martha Scott, Albert Dekker, Gabby Hayes

In 1906, Catherine Allen (Scott), a young schoolteacher heads out West for a new start. It’s the early days of the oil boom, and she meets two men who couldn’t be more different. Jim “Hunk” Gardner (Dekker) is a greedy, self-assured oilman. Dan Somers (Wayne) is a quiet, determined cowboy. Tensions rise as both men fall for Miss Allen—and pursue Indian land where oil may soon be found…

Trivia

  • War of the Wildcats was previously named In Old Oklahoma. In fact, if you search “War of the Wildcats” on some sites, “In Old Oklahoma” comes up in the results!
  • See that dance hall girl in the background? Look harder! That’s Rhonda Fleming in her first-ever film in an uncredited role.
  • Sidney Blackmer plays Theodore Roosevelt in War of the Wildcats. Between 1937 and 1953, the actor portrayed T.R. eight times in various films. We’re guessing he knew a lot about the 26th President of the United States! Test your knowledge! Take our Theodore Roosevelt Trivia Quiz.

The Fighting Kentuckian (1949)

75th Anniversary

Stars John Wayne, Vera Ralston, Oliver Hardy

The Fighting Kentuckian

In 1818 Alabama, Kentucky militiaman John Breen (Wayne) leads his regiment home following the battle of New Orleans. Along the way, Breen finds love with Fleurette de Marchand (Ralston) and a new fight against men trying to steal land from French refugees. Now Breen’s in an all-out war for life, love—and justice!

Trivia

  • The Fighting Kentuckian is just one of the few times Oliver Hardy appeared in a movie without his comedy partner of 23 years, Stan Laurel. In fact, Ollie wanted to turn down the role, but Stan, who was suffering from diabetes complications at the time and couldn’t work, insisted his buddy take the job.
  • Oliver Hardy did not need a dialect coach to learn a Southern accent. Born and raised in Georgia, his was 100% authentic.
  • In the course of his 37-year film career, stuntman Chuck Roberson worked with John Wayne on 31 movies (The Fighting Kentuckian being one of the early collaborations), Roberson doubled for the Duke in several films including Big Jake, The Cowboys, and Rooster Cogburn.

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