Western RoundUp: Western Film Book Library – Part 6

Western RoundUp: Western Film Book Library – Part 6

It’s been over a year since my last Western Film Book Library contribution, and I’ve made some interesting additions to my library in the meantime, so this seems like a good time for a fresh look at some Western genre books !

For those new to this topic, my past columns are linked to additional book recommendations at the end of this column.

The Heroine or the Horse: Leading Actresses in the Films of the Republic by Thomas Burnett Swann is one of the earliest titles I acquired while building my first film book library as a teenager. It was published by A.S. Barnes & Co. in 1977. Despite its age, used copies of this book are available online at great prices.

The heroine or the horse does not focus solely on westerns, but since westerns were a specialty of Republic Studios, a significant number of the films reviewed in the book are of that genre.

Some chapters group multiple actresses for discussion, such as B. a chapter on John Wayne’s main actresses; Another chapter on “Superstars” features actresses like Hayworth, Crawford and Stanwyck. Vera Hruba Ralston, who married studio head Herbert Yates, gets her own chapter, as does favorite author Adela Mara. The book contains varying amounts of biographical background mixed with information on the films the actresses have made at Republic.

This 134-page book is filled with black and white photographs. When I first read it, I was completely unfamiliar with many of the films and actresses featured in the photographs, making it both educational and an enticing guide to films I might one day see. Today I know most of the actresses discussed much better, but there are still many films mentioned in the book that I would like to see; Republic B movies aren’t always readily available!

Those great cowboy sidekicks, like several other books I’ve reviewed here over the years, was a find at the Lone Pine Museum of Western Film History. It was written by David Rothel, who also wrote the wonderful book about Tim Holt that I recommended here in 2019.

The book can be found with very different covers, including the two mentioned above, as it has been reprinted a number of times since it was originally published in 1984. It was last reissued by Riverwood Press for the Lone Pine Museum in 2013; this edition has 354 pages.

The book is divided into three sections, with the first focusing on the “Big Three”: George “Gabby” Hayes, Smiley Burnette, and Al “Fuzzy” St. John. The second chapter covers more familiar faces like Richard “Chito” Martin, Andy “California” Clyde, Lee “Lasses” White, Fuzzy Knight, Raymond Hatton and more. The final chapter of “Strays” has even more actors who acted as western sidekicks during their careers, including Gordon Jones, Slim Pickens, Guinn “Big Boy” Williams and Sterling Holloway.

The book’s photo spreads are very nice, as seen above, and the photos also make the book a great resource for anyone trying to place a familiar face from a western. The book contains a lot of good biographical information not found anywhere else, including really interesting primary source interviews with actors and relatives. Western filmographies are also included.

The Movies and Career of Audie Murphy, America’s True Hero by Sue Gossett is another treasure in Lone Pine. The museum does a remarkable job of stocking not only newer books but also older titles like this paperback from Empire Publishing, originally published in 1996 and reprinted in 2003.

In addition to some biographical background, the book covers all of Murphy’s films in three to four page pages that include the credits, a plot synopsis, and additional information such as a film’s critical reception. I particularly liked that the locations of each film are included, as this topic is always of particular interest to me.

While some material such as plots can be found online these days, the book was written by someone who clearly admires Murphy and has many good photos, making it a nice career review and companion to Robert Notts The last of the cowboy heroes, which was discussed in my 2021 book summary. It’s worth noting that director Budd Boetticher and two of Murphy’s sisters were among those thanked for their support in the book’s opening endorsement.

John Wayne Was Here: The Filming Locations and Favorite Haunts of an American Icon by Roland Schaefli was a key resource for me in my search for the Rio Grande (1950) Places in the Moab area that I shared pictures of earlier this summer.

John Wayne was here is an impressive 313 page book published by MacFarland and after using it this year I can say that it is the Book for anyone interested in Wayne’s locations as well as significant places in Wayne’s off-screen life up to and including his burial site in Corona del Mar, California.

To the Rio Grande The book even provided the exact highway mile markers we would need outside of Moab, Utah. The book was remarkably helpful in our site research, and it’s also an interesting read with lots of photos.

Where God Put the West: Movie Making in the Desert – A Moab-Monument Valley Movie History by Bette E. Stanton is one of two film location books I found at the gift shop in Arches National Park this summer. It was published by the Canyonlands Natural History Association.

I really enjoyed this 184 page book which as the title suggests covers the film history of Moab and Monument Valley. Being in both places now made the book particularly meaningful to me. It goes into considerable historical detail, with fairly small print, and includes unique photographs I haven’t seen anywhere else, such as the cast of Rio Grande on site at White Ranch outside of Moab.

The book contains some excellent western film stories and will also come in handy for future film location visits.

Cinema Southwest: An Illustrated Guide to the Movies and Their Locations by John A. Murray is the other book I found in Arches National Park and like the previous title it was published by the Canyonlands Natural History Association.

This 196-page book has heavy pages and glossy photos, including many in color. It groups locations for seven states, from California to Texas. While the Southwestern US filming locations naturally mean that most of the films discussed are westerns, non-westerns are also covered.

Cinema Southwest contains a number of what I consider to be “newer” films, but the amount of information on older films is so extensive that I found the book worth my effort. Like the previously mentioned location books, it also contains useful information for visitors, e.g. B. An accurate description for readers of how to get to Movie Road in the Alabama Hills outside of Lone Pine.

One tidbit I was intrigued to learn from this book was that it was Clint Eastwood plateau drifter (1973) was filmed at Mono Lake, a place I’ve driven past countless times in my life. The film is now on my watch list!

For more western movie book ideas, check out my July 2019, November 2019, May 2020, January 2021, and July 2021 lists.

…

– Laura Grieve for Classic Movie Hub

Laura can be found on her blog, Laura’s Miscellaneous Musings, where she has been writing about film since 2005, and on Twitter at @LaurasMiscMovie. A lifelong film buff, Laura loves classics like Disney, film noir, musicals and westerns. She regularly reports on classic film festivals in Southern California. Laura will be writing all about westerns at the Western RoundUp for CMH.