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Disc #3
Episode #9: The Backshooter
written by Richard Carr
directed by Herschel Daugherty
AD IMF Lee H. Katzin
film editor IMF Paul Krasny
music by IMF Rudy Schrager
guest: Louis Hayward, Slim Pickens, Holly McIntire, Terry Becker, IMF Robert Yuro, George Keymas, Steve Gravers, IMF Roy Engel, IMF Frank Maxwell
It’s a solo Rowdy Yates adventure, i.e., Clint Eastwood dominates the human drama in a small town. Yates first has a horse accident, shoots his horse and is helped by bandit Sam Jefferson who asks him one small favor: to bring his own body to town to get the $5,000 reward and give it to his wife. Things gets messy when Jefferson is shot in the back by a mysterious rider. Yates stops at the sheriff office and delivers the body. The executive of Wells Fargo tells Yates he must obtain the 24 hours confirmation to pay him the money while the blacksmith warns the accomplices of Jefferson that their friend was gunned down in the back by Yates. On his way to pinpoint the wife of the late Jefferson, Yates encounters hostily from the townspeople but struggles by all cost.
It’s a tight bandit revenge story coupled with a two-faced executive fooling Yates.
The film-making is inspired and dynamic.
"Head them up! Move them Out!"
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Here comes the opening credits for film star Clint Eastwood.
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Here comes the opening credits for Paul Brinegar.
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Hey Jimbo, my boy, do you reckon?
"Head them up! Move them Out!"
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Episode #10: Corporal Dasovik
written by Lionel E. Siegel
directed by IMF Bernard Kowalski
guest: Nick Adams, John Drew Barrymore, IMF Ron Soble, Howard Caine, IMF Barry Atwater (again), IMF Cyril Delevanti, IMF George Sawaya
After the death of his superior officer Lt. Albright, young and unexperienced Corporal Dasovik must continue the tough assignment of his predecessor, meaning escorting Indian prisoners to the Lawpai reservation while crossing the hot desert but things turns wrong because of a mutiny inside the blue soldiers led by long hair Harry Eccles and the intrusion of Indian renegades on their way to kill traitor Chief Ollocot. Meanwhile Gil Favor is shot down by a bunch of blue soldiers stealing his cows in order to feed their outfit and the prisoners.
The way the writer treats or mistreats leading character Gil Favor shows the revisionist leaning of the new production team. Besides the blue soldiers are depicted as a bunch of thugs, dirty, badly-shaved, with beard or long hair but in 1964! Picture a mini Wild Bunch done on television. The Indians are played by standard American actors. The outcome is moral and explains the behavior of mutineer Harry Eccles: the fear of commanding is showned as a curse or a burden.
"Head them up! Move them Out!"
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Episode #10: Corporal Dasovik
Actor John Drew Barrymore foreshadows the look of actor Robert Redford during his Jeremiah Johnson period.
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Episode #11: The Photographer
written by Clyde Ware
directed by Vincent McEveety
film editor IMF Paul Krasny
music by IMF Rudy Schrager
guests: Eddie Albert, Ben Cooper, IMF William O’Connel (again), Richard Slattery, Morgan Woodward
It’s a light Rowdy Yates entry who teams up with a crazy photographer fascinated by the sociology of real bandits. The first scene that introduces the realm of photographer Mr. Dickson is surreal: the cattle men of Gil Favor are frozen in their camp! Gil Favor orders Rowdy Yates to escort photographer Taylor Dickson to an Indian ceremony at Shoshones when they end up caught up by a band of mean outlaws. Dickson is a fancy talker and eventually persuades the bunch to pose for him but Yates resents the artistically initiative and only wishes to leave in a hurry to avoid a violent death. Two bandits shine as original characters: menacing leader Maddox and weird gunslinger Poet who recites holy scripts and Shakespeare’s works all the time.
Oddly enough, one season 2 episode of Mission: Impossible will be entitled the same way.
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The more I watch that particular season the more I understand that Geller was launching the rough basis of his future Mission: Impossible.
In short, Rawhide season 7 is Mission: Impossible in the old west!
[updated]
Rawhide rides into Film Noir!
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Posted: |
Apr 11, 2014 - 1:54 AM
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By: |
Rollin Hand
(Member)
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Disc #4
Episode #13: The Meeting
written by IMF Robert Lewin
directed by IMF Michael O’Herlihy
music by IMF Rudy Schrager
guest: Gavin MacLeod, IMF Richard Karlan, Harry Dean Stanton, Len Wayland, Ric Roman, Don Quine
Arriving to town to sell his herd to his friend Hugh ‘Brew’ Brewster who can only and oddly pay him the modest amount of $24 a head, Gil Favor is abducted by criminals Bowie Fiske and Joe Spanish who bring him to a remote and desolate farm where he’s locked up in a room with another trail boss named Horace Denver when the left-hand man of big boss Rian Powers steps into and gives them a welcoming present of $3,000 in gold. Rian Powers explains his scheme to his members: dominating the beef industry by blackmailing the buyers, controlling the price, the market and the other trail units. Favor pretends to go along with the master plan unlike argumentative Denver who ends up gunned down by Powers at the meeting.
It’s a proto-Syndicate episode like the gangsters’ reunion “The Tram” in which a wealthy and legal eagle big shot summons America’s most wanted outlaws for a great scheme to come. The story is unfolded slowly like a mystery, supported by an inspired film-making. It’s treated like a icy episode of The Wild Wild West. Gil Favor is given the job of the main executive. Actor Gavin MacLeod plays the Machiavellian mogul and he’s known for his recurring foe part on Hawaii Five-O.
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Posted: |
Apr 12, 2014 - 1:58 AM
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By: |
Rollin Hand
(Member)
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Episode #14: The Book
written by Cliff Gould
directed by Bernard Kowalski
AD Lee H. Katzin
Film editor Paul Krasny
guest: IMF Pat Hingle, IMF J.D. Cannon (again), IMF Leonard Stone (again), IMF Valentin de Vargas, Malcolm Atterbury, IMF Walker Edmiston, Timothy Carey
In a small town, three hustlers/bone-pickers bet on fast shooters during organized street contests. One night, hustler Pop Starke looses the match against Carl Hatcher and owns him the money of the bet. Rowdy Yates enjoys a game of shooting targets at the carnival and Pop Starke notes his performances on his book. Veteran gunfighter, drunk cynical and one-hand Austin Ware is on the payroll of Leroy Means but has a talk with Yates at the saloon. Ernie Torres, the new cattle man of Yates, decides to take his place against Austin Ware and wins by default. Disgusted Yates picks up the book of Starke and tear it out while walking out of the saloon!
It’s another Rowdy Yates story but done in a delirious and baroque tradition of The Wild Wild West (i.e., the full folklore with circus, calliope music, fighters, exotic characters, fireworks, beggar with a monkey, balloons) and director Bernard Kowalski’s expressionist sense of composition (contrasted scale of shots, short shots, tilted angles) is noteworthy, especially during the preliminary showdown and the shooting match. Writer Cliff Gould will work later on Mannix and produced the first season of QM’s The Streets of San Francisco. The music of composer Rudy Schrager is stock music from previous episodes (“Canliss”). Apart from the main titles in Latin Wide, the production titles are set in Clarendon (1845).
Note the hierarchy of the onscreen producers credits, meaning Bruce Geller and Bernard Kowalski or Bernard Kowalski and Bruce Geller. Here, it’s Bruce Geller first and some details prove it: for instance, the use of optical zooming and the sociological and criminal study of dubious men. The producers duo seem more focused on the guest characters than on the leading characters: in short, it’s an anthology. Sociological-wise, this town is the polar opposite of “No Dogs or Drovers” because this is corruptionville!
Highly recommended!
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Posted: |
Apr 16, 2014 - 5:23 AM
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By: |
Rollin Hand
(Member)
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Episode #18: Texas Fever
written by John Dunkel
directed by Harmon Jones
guest: Royal Dano (again), Judi Meredith, Frank Maxwell (again), Christopher Dark, Douglas Kennedy, Willard Sage
The herd of Gil Favor is forbidden to cross the San Bruno Valley by a militia of ranchers led by Sheriff Avery when old ranch master Sam Wentworth intervenes to help Favor. A mysterious shooter causes trouble and cattle man Pete Nolan fails to be hanged at the last minute and is sent to jail for his trial. Rowdy Yates must find an evidence: the friend of Sam’s young wife.
It’s a dreary marital relation-oriented entry with a generation gap between husband and wife. The detail of the mysterious shooter reminds “The Backshooter”.
It’s the first episode produced by season 4 (1961-1962) veteran Endre Bohem and supported by new associate producer Robert L. Friend and it shows: a traditional opening titles with the return of the original Rawhide logo and the return of actor Sheb Wooley as Pete Nolan who looks genuine 1950’s and who escapes from a necktie party! Two other former supporting actors join back: Rocky Shahan as Joe Scarlet and Robert Cabal as Hey Soos. The president of CBS was furious about how Geller and Kowalski turned the series in and decided to go back to the core of his favorite series: cows and trails. Notice the season 1 alumnus writer John Dunkel. Back then, actor Clint Eastwood was considered as a kid: don’t laugh! Oddly enough, the end titles is identical to the Geller/Kowalski era as well as the production team: see cinematographer Howard Schwartz who saves the day.
Don’t worry Bohem only produced a total of nine ‘domestic’ episodes so expect more from Geller/Kowalski to end the season: “Retreat” (with Steve Ihnat aka Stefan Miklos), “Mrs. Harmon”, “El Hombre Bravo” and “The Gray Rock Hotel” (with Steven Hill aka Dan Briggs).
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