ODDITIES

Glenn Ford wearing a bright red poncho in DAY OF THE EVIL GUN (1968)

PARTY SCHOOLS

The list of top party schools was released and my alma mater, good ol' WVU, West Virginia University,  was once again in the top ten....at number 4!

SPAGHETTI MOMENTS IN NON-SPAGHETTI WESTERNS

Don Randi's music for Glenn Ford's 1973 western Santee (which by the way was "Co-Produced" by Edward Platt, the ol' Chief hisself from the GET SMART tv show and featured John Hart, the other LONE RANGER  who couldn't carry Clayton Moore's mask) sounds spaghetti-like in several places.

The title song of the 1959 Jack (Billy The Kid) Buetel western MUSANG! sung by the amazing Champ Butler (so amazing I couldn't find any info on him) sounds like it could have been lifted from the credits of many a spaghetti.  This modern western was co-written and directed by the late great Tom Gries (100 RIFLES & THE RAT PATROL.)  Another favorite who departed this earth way too soon....at the age of 55.

The 1972 Robert Mitchum south of the border "American" oater THE WRATH OF GOD (not to be confused with the 1968 spaghetti WRATH OF GOD with Montgomery (Brett Halsey) Ford seems and feels more spaghetti to me than Mitchum's  1978 VILLA RIDES which was actually filmed in Almeria.  Some of the movie is set in a town that is a mirror image of Los Albaricoques and co-star Ken Hutchison evoked memories of Lou Castel in A BULLET FOR A GENERAL.

GREAT STUNT(S)

Jack Mahoney, yes he's billed as Jack and not Jock or Jock O'Mahoney, in OVERLAND PACIFIC with the beautiful Peggie Castle (loved her as the "Miss Kitty" rip-off in LAWMAN with John Russell and Peter Brown) and the under-appreciated and oft over-looked William Bishop (both died way before their times....Castle a couple of months before her 46th birthday and Bishop at only 41.....pulls off a stunt during a fight that I've never seen before or since.....

Mahoney gets into a fist-fight with Jenks the stage driver played by "B" western regular Fred Graham.  Ol' Jack ends up in front of a hitchin' rail and is knocked backwards by Graham.  As ol' Jack falls backwards his butt lands on top of the hitchin' rail and as his upper torso snaps downward and backwards almost touching the ground,  he catches the under side of the boards on the wooden sidewalk with the toes of his boots and then he springs upward and forward, in one fluid motion, like a giant cat.....and continues the fight.  Any guesses who wins?

GOOF-O-RAMA

When Ben Cooper clubs the deputy over the head in GUNFIGHT AT COMANCHE CREEK (with Audie Murphy and Jan Merlin) you can clearly tell the gun is made of rubber by the way its barrel bounces back and forth....

Separated at Birth

Nello Pazzafini and Lon Chaney, Jr  (see Chaney in ALBUQUERQUE with Randolph Scott)

be kind.......I'm just getting used to this blog stuff