The Boy from Oklahoma
| The Boy from Oklahoma | |
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| Directed by | Michael Curtiz |
| Written by | Michael Fessier (story: The Sheriff Was Scared) Frank Davis (screenplay) Winston Miller (screenplay) |
| Starring | Will Rogers, Jr. Nancy Olson Lon Chaney, Jr. Anthony Caruso Wallace Ford Merv Griffin Sheb Wooley Slim Pickens Tyler MacDuff |
| Music by | Max Steiner |
| Release date(s) | February 27, 1954 |
| Running time | 87 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Boy from Oklahoma is a 1954 Western movie directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Will Rogers, Jr. The film became the basis for the 1957 Warner Bros. television series Sugarfoot, in which Will Hutchins replaced Rogers as lead character Tom Brewster. The movie features Lon Chaney, Jr. and includes one of future TV talk show host Merv Griffin's few theatrical film roles. In the movie version, Rogers as Brewster substitutes facility with a twirling rope, similar to Will Rogers, Sr.'s, for the usual unerring speed and accuracy with firearms typically found in cinematic cowboy heroes.
Three of the original cast members from the movie, Louis Jean Heydt, Sheb Wooley, and Slim Pickens, were transplanted directly into the subsequent TV show's pilot, "Brannigan's Boots," playing their roles from the movie; the first episode of Sugarfoot follows the film's script fairly faithfully. Dennis Hopper succeeded James Griffith as Billy the Kid in the television version, Merry Anders took over the part of Katie Brannigan from Nancy Olson, and Chubby Johnson replaced Wallace Ford as Wally Higgins for the small screen.
Reviewing the DVD release in 2013, Gene Triplett of The Oklahoman called the film an "amiable oater" with a plot that "may sound like potential corn on the cob to some" but turns out to be "unexpectedly well-crafted entertainment".[1]
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Cast[edit]
Will Rogers, Jr. ... Sheriff Tom Brewster
Nancy Olson ... Katie Brannigan
Lon Chaney, Jr. ... Crazy Charlie
Anthony Caruso ... Mayor Barney Turlock
Wallace Ford ... Postmaster Wally Higgins
Clem Bevans ... Pop Pruty, Justice of the Peace
Merv Griffin ... Steve
Louis Jean Heydt ... Paul Evans
Sheb Wooley ... Pete Martin
Slim Pickens ... Shorty
Tyler MacDuff ... Billy the Kid
James Griffith ... Joe Downey
Cast of "Brannigan's Boots" - pilot of Sugarfoot[edit]
Will Hutchins ... Tom 'Sugarfoot' Brewster
Merry Anders ... Katie Brannigan
Jack Elam ... Toothy Thompson
Louis Jean Heydt ... Paul Evans
Dennis Hopper ... Billy the Kid
Arthur Hunnicutt ... Pop Purty
Chubby Johnson ... Wally Higgins
Slim Pickens ... Shorty
Ainslie Pryor ... Mayor Barney Turlock
Kurt Russell ... Boy
Sheb Wooley ... Pete
References[edit]
- ^ Gene Triplett, "DVD review: 'The Boy from Oklahoma'", The Oklahoman, March 22, 2013.
External links[edit]
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