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Cahill U.S. Marshal

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not to be confused with U.S. Marshals.

Cahill U.S. Marshal
Theatrical poster
Directed byAndrew V. McLaglen
Written byBarney Slater (story)
Screenplay byHarry Julian Fink
Rita M. Fink
Produced byMichael Wayne
Starring
CinematographyJoseph F. Biroc
Edited byRobert L. Simpson
Music byElmer Bernstein
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Bros.
Release date
  • July 11, 1973 (1973-07-11)
Running time
103 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$3,100,000 (US/ Canada rentals)[1]

Cahill U.S. Marshal is a 1973 American Western film in Technicolor[2] starring John Wayne as a driven lawman in a black hat. The film was directed by Andrew V. McLaglen[3][4] and filmed on location in Durango, Mexico. The supporting cast features George Kennedy, Neville Brand, Marie Windsor, Royal Dano, Denver Pyle, Jackie Coogan, Harry Carey Jr., Paul Fix and Hank Worden.

Plot

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While J. D. Cahill (John Wayne), a widower and U.S. Marshal, is away from home, his two sons Danny (Gary Grimes) and Billy (Clay O'Brien) aid Abe Fraser (George Kennedy) and his gang to escape temporarily from jail and to rob a bank. The town's sheriff is shot and killed and another townsfolk is knifed and killed during the robbery. Billy hides the stolen money while his brother and the rest of the gang return to their jail cells as an alibi.

When Cahill returns, he and Danny look for the perpetrators with the help of half-Comanche tracker Lightfoot (Neville Brand). Cahill arrests four suspects and although they are innocent of the town bank robbery, they are found guilty and scheduled to be hanged. While on the trail of the kids, Cahill and Lightfoot are ambushed by Brownie (Dan Vadis).

Lightfoot hurts Brownie but is eventually killed. Cahill's sons try to give the gang's share of the money to Fraser, Frasier however wants all the money and prepares to kill them when he is shot by Cahill who used his sons to lure Frasier out into the open. The Cahills reconcile and leave for town to stop the hangings of the initial suspects.

Cast

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Production

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The film was produced by John Wayne's production company Batjac Productions and shot on location in Durango, Mexico.[5]

Reception

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In a 1975 interview with writer Tony Macklin for Film Heritage, Wayne said the film had "a good theme" but "wasn't a well-done picture" because it "needed better writing" and "a little more care in the making."[6]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Big Rental Films of 1973", Variety, 9 January 1974 p 19
  2. ^ Variety film review; June 20, 1973.
  3. ^ "Cahill U.S. Marshal". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  4. ^ Canby, Vincent (July 12, 1973). "Cahill United States Marshal (1973) Film: 'Cahill, United States Marshal' Stars Wayne". The New York Times.
  5. ^ Eyles, Allen (1979). John Wayne. A.S. Barnes. p. 329. ISBN 978-0498024870.
  6. ^ Macklin, Tony (February 15, 2009). "Audio Interview with John Wayne". Retrieved July 28, 2015.
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