help please! final shot
is Ron Howard imitating John Wayne's walk?
'The world is changed by unreasonable men' - George Bernard Shaw
in an interview, George plimpton explains how John Wayne gave him lessons on how to walk.they made a movie together. Plimpton was no actor, but a writer trying out different jobs. Wayne's advice was to "just put one foot in front of the other and don't think on it" If Howard was acting with Wayne, i suppose he got same acting advice on walking.
shareIn an interview I saw many, many years ago, Wayne was asked about his walk. He claimed that Harry Cary had taught him how to walk when he was first starting out as an actor. Cary said he should point his toes at the ground. Try it, you WILL walk like the Duke. I assume it had something to do with wearing spurs, as a way of preventing them from catching and tripping the cowboy, but I'm a city kid so I could be all wet. Harry Cary was a silent cowboy star, and Wayne's mentor. See "The Angel and the Badman" and "The Searchers".
LWI
Harry Carey was not in "The Searchers," as he was already dead at this time. His son, Harry Carey Jr, was in "The Searchers," as was Harry's wife Olive Carey. Both Harry Careys were in "Red River" with John Wayne.
In "The Searchers," John Wayne paid tribute to Harry at the end of the movie as he walked away from the camera with Harry's walk. This was for the benefit of Olive, who was on set at the time.
You are correct about the Searchers, but it was posing by holding his elbow. My point was that Wayne was paying tribute to Harry Carry. I was also mistaken, it was NOT Harry Carey who gave John Wayne those walking instructions, another early western star, whose name escapes me. Sorry, I get confused sometimes.
L
The answer to this question is in Harry Carey, Jr's autobiography. I regret that the name of the man who helped John Wayne develop his walk has also escaped me, but it was not Harry Carey, Sr. I would look it up for you but this is a book I don't own. I borrowed it from the library.
Sorry about that.
Not an issue, but thanks. I looked it up, may have been Olive Cary's (Harry's wife) father, but I've forgotten again. Old age does that to you.
l
I believe John Wayne once said he copied his walking style from Bob Steele.
shareI have seen quite a few places that it was Paul Fix who "helped" Duke develop his walk along with Yakima. Duke used to practice in the mirror all of his little Duke personality traits. Keith Payne
shareI've also heard that it was Paul Fix, who appeared in one of the Duke's early Lone Star westerns that I have on DVD (can't recall the name) along with former "Our Gang" star Mary Kornman.
hkfilmnews.blogspot.com
porfle.blogspot.com
Paul Fix was in quite a few old B Westerns with Duke. He greatly influenced, not only his walk, (told him to point his toes which would make his body swing as well as his hips...much like a woman), but his acting, and along with the stuntmen, his horsemanship, and general "western" type actions and reactions to things said and done. Paul was one of Duke's true mentors along with Harry Carey,Sr., Yakima Canutt and eventually Pappy Ford.
Porfle, I believe the film you were alluding to is The Desert Trail 1935. Because of their friendship and his liking of Paul's writing, Duke, as part of his contract signing with Republic in 1943-1945 stated that Paul was to be dialogue director for each of his films. And Paul was the "script doctor" for most of Duke's movies in the forties. And I we know, he became an esteemed part of Pappy Ford's Stock Troup and Later Duke's. You don't find too many of Duke's movies without Paul Fix in some part somewhere. Paul also wrote a great many scripts and was in over 200 movies with about 77 or so of them Westerns.
Also, as you probably know, Dobe Carey, (Harry Carey's son), married Paul's Daughter Marilyn and now, (I believe in their mid 90s), in 2012 they are both still living in a retirement home together. KEITH
Don't overlook Paul Fix's role in the 60s TV series "The Rifleman" with Chuck Connors.
shareOh, Paul Fix was in films way back in the 30s, I believe. He also played in many TV shows. Also, his daughter, Marilyn, married Harry Carey, Jr. (DOBE), who just recently left us at 91 years of age...think it was 91. He was the last of the TRUE John Ford Stock Troop. Yep, first time I remember seeing Paul, he was in the Rifleman. But he was in hundreds of movies and TV shows. Great actor and stunt guy. He was one of the longest members of the Stock Troop, I believe.
And to get back to the beginning of this. Duke said, many times that Paul told him to point his toes when he walked which would cause him to swing his arms and hips almost like a woman........sure did work for Duke! KEITH PAYNE
Thanks for the info, hawkswill. I just watched TALL IN THE SADDLE for the first time, and Paul Fix not only co-stars but gets screenwriting credit. The young Duke seems to be working on his walk in this one, too.
hkfilmnews.blogspot.com
porfle.blogspot.com
LOL Porfle, I did a whole screen cap series of Duke and Ward's fight scene from Tall in the Saddle. It is cool. I can send you the link if you would like to see it. Yep, Duke was trying out some of the things he practiced in the mirror all the time. Heh, new book out about them all called Three Bad Men on facebook. Go there and ask questions if you want..,,the 18 book author is a friend of mine. Just tell him Keith, the female, sent you. And if you want the book, I will get you a 10% discount....but don't mention it on the site, LOL...we are not offering it to anyone but JWMB right now. He will also inscribe what you want in it and sign it! My email is [email protected] or just go to Facebook and type in Three Bad Men John Ford John Wayne Ward Bond. HAGO, KEITH Paul Fix did TONS of screenplays for lots of different shows........he is one of the first of Pappy's Troop. You knew Harey Carey, Jr, (Dobe), who just died was married to Marilyn, Paul's daughter, didn't you?
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