Ride the Pink Horse
Encyclopedia
Ride the Pink Horse is a 1947 American crime
film noir
produced by Universal Studios
. It was directed
by the actor
Robert Montgomery
from a screenplay
by Ben Hecht
, which was based on a novel of the same name by Dorothy B. Hughes
. The drama features Robert Montgomery
, Wanda Hendrix
, Andrea King
, Thomas Gomez
, among others. Gomez was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor
Oscar
for his performance.
An ex-GI known only as Gagin travels to San Pablo, a rural New Mexican
town, to revenge the death of his old war time buddy. As a man devoid of identity, some of the villagers refer to Gagin as "the man with no place."
) arrives on a bus in San Pablo, a small rural town in New Mexico
during its annual fiesta. He plans to confront and blackmail money from a mobster named Frank Hugo (Fred Clark
) as retribution for the death of his best friend Shorty.
While Gagin waits for Hugo's arrival in his hotel room, an FBI agent Bill Retz (Art Smith) approaches and asks him to turn over any incriminating information he may have on Hugo so the federal government can prosecute him. Gagin denies having any information and says he's in town only as a tourist.
Gagin has other plans than the prosecution of the mobster and when he's not able to shake the FBI agent, he takes refuge at an old carousel
owned by the Pancho (Thomas Gomez
). At the carousel he meets Pila (Wanda Hendrix
) an Indian
teenage peasant who refuses to leave his side despite his efforts to discourage her.
When Pila witnesses an attempt to kill Gagin, she and Pancho nurse his wounds, but when she leaves him alone for a moment he wanders back to Hugo's hotel in a delirious state. Pila catches up with Gagin as he reaches Hugo's room. Both are interrogated by Hugo and his henchmen until Retz intervenes. After giving Retz the evidence he was using to blackmail Hugo, Gagin leaves town.
, the antique "Tio Vivo Carousel" built in 1882 in Taos, New Mexico
, was the model for the carousel in the novel Ride The Pink Horse. The same carousel was purchased by the producers and shipped from Taos to the set of Universal where it was reconstructed for use in the film. The burning of the Zozobra
("Old Man Gloom") effigy during the Fiestas de Santa Fe
, figures prominently (and incidentally sets the exact date of the events).
, film critic for The New York Times
at the time, liked the film and especially Robert Montgomery's direction, and wrote, "...Mr. Montgomery, as director and star of this story, has contrived to make it look shockingly literal and keep it moving at an unrelenting pace. And he has also managed to lace it with grisly action and rugged sentiment without deceit. Indeed, he has artfully fashioned a fascinating film within the genre. He has done something else exceptional; he has given the other actors a real chance." Crowther also praised the work of Fred Clark and Wanda Hendrix.
as a 1964 TV movie called The Hanged Man
, starring Robert Culp
and directed by Don Siegel
.
Crime film
Crime films are films which focus on the lives of criminals. The stylistic approach to a crime film varies from realistic portrayals of real-life criminal figures, to the far-fetched evil doings of imaginary arch-villains. Criminal acts are almost always glorified in these movies.- Plays and films...
film noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
produced by Universal Studios
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
. It was directed
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by the actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
Robert Montgomery
Robert Montgomery (actor)
Robert Montgomery was an American actor and director.- Early life :Montgomery was born Henry Montgomery, Jr. in Beacon, New York, then known as "Fishkill Landing", the son of Mary Weed and Henry Montgomery, Sr. His early childhood was one of privilege, since his father was president of the New...
from a screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
by Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht was an American screenwriter, director, producer, playwright, and novelist. Called "the Shakespeare of Hollywood", he received screen credits, alone or in collaboration, for the stories or screenplays of some 70 films and as a prolific storyteller, authored 35 books and created some of...
, which was based on a novel of the same name by Dorothy B. Hughes
Dorothy B. Hughes
Dorothy B. Hughes was an American crime writer and literary critic. Hughes wrote fourteen crime and detective novels, primarily in the hardboiled and noir styles, and is best known for the novels In a Lonely Place and Ride the Pink Horse .Born Dorothy Belle Flanagan in Kansas City, Missouri, she...
. The drama features Robert Montgomery
Robert Montgomery (actor)
Robert Montgomery was an American actor and director.- Early life :Montgomery was born Henry Montgomery, Jr. in Beacon, New York, then known as "Fishkill Landing", the son of Mary Weed and Henry Montgomery, Sr. His early childhood was one of privilege, since his father was president of the New...
, Wanda Hendrix
Wanda Hendrix
Wanda Hendrix was an American film and television actress.Born Dixie Wanda Hendrix in Jacksonville, Florida, Hendrix was performing in her local amateur theater when she was seen by a talent agent who signed her to a Hollywood contract...
, Andrea King
Andrea King
Andrea King was an American film and stage actress. She was sometimes billed as Georgette McKee.-Early life:Andrea King was born Georgette André Barry in Paris, France...
, Thomas Gomez
Thomas Gomez
Thomas Gomez was an American actor.Born Sabino Tomas Gomez in New York City, Gomez began his acting career in theater during the 1920s and was a student of the actor Walter Hampden...
, among others. Gomez was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
Oscar
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
for his performance.
An ex-GI known only as Gagin travels to San Pablo, a rural New Mexican
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
town, to revenge the death of his old war time buddy. As a man devoid of identity, some of the villagers refer to Gagin as "the man with no place."
Plot
Gagin (Robert MontgomeryRobert Montgomery (actor)
Robert Montgomery was an American actor and director.- Early life :Montgomery was born Henry Montgomery, Jr. in Beacon, New York, then known as "Fishkill Landing", the son of Mary Weed and Henry Montgomery, Sr. His early childhood was one of privilege, since his father was president of the New...
) arrives on a bus in San Pablo, a small rural town in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
during its annual fiesta. He plans to confront and blackmail money from a mobster named Frank Hugo (Fred Clark
Fred Clark
Frederick Leonard Clark was an American film character actor.-Career:Born in Lincoln, California, Clark made his film debut in 1947 in The Unsuspected. His 20-year film career included almost 70 films, and numerous television appearances...
) as retribution for the death of his best friend Shorty.
While Gagin waits for Hugo's arrival in his hotel room, an FBI agent Bill Retz (Art Smith) approaches and asks him to turn over any incriminating information he may have on Hugo so the federal government can prosecute him. Gagin denies having any information and says he's in town only as a tourist.
Gagin has other plans than the prosecution of the mobster and when he's not able to shake the FBI agent, he takes refuge at an old carousel
Carousel
A carousel , or merry-go-round, is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders...
owned by the Pancho (Thomas Gomez
Thomas Gomez
Thomas Gomez was an American actor.Born Sabino Tomas Gomez in New York City, Gomez began his acting career in theater during the 1920s and was a student of the actor Walter Hampden...
). At the carousel he meets Pila (Wanda Hendrix
Wanda Hendrix
Wanda Hendrix was an American film and television actress.Born Dixie Wanda Hendrix in Jacksonville, Florida, Hendrix was performing in her local amateur theater when she was seen by a talent agent who signed her to a Hollywood contract...
) an Indian
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
teenage peasant who refuses to leave his side despite his efforts to discourage her.
When Pila witnesses an attempt to kill Gagin, she and Pancho nurse his wounds, but when she leaves him alone for a moment he wanders back to Hugo's hotel in a delirious state. Pila catches up with Gagin as he reaches Hugo's room. Both are interrogated by Hugo and his henchmen until Retz intervenes. After giving Retz the evidence he was using to blackmail Hugo, Gagin leaves town.
Cast
- Robert MontgomeryRobert Montgomery (actor)Robert Montgomery was an American actor and director.- Early life :Montgomery was born Henry Montgomery, Jr. in Beacon, New York, then known as "Fishkill Landing", the son of Mary Weed and Henry Montgomery, Sr. His early childhood was one of privilege, since his father was president of the New...
as Lucky Gagin - Wanda HendrixWanda HendrixWanda Hendrix was an American film and television actress.Born Dixie Wanda Hendrix in Jacksonville, Florida, Hendrix was performing in her local amateur theater when she was seen by a talent agent who signed her to a Hollywood contract...
as Pilar - Andrea KingAndrea KingAndrea King was an American film and stage actress. She was sometimes billed as Georgette McKee.-Early life:Andrea King was born Georgette André Barry in Paris, France...
as Marjorie Lundeen - Thomas GomezThomas GomezThomas Gomez was an American actor.Born Sabino Tomas Gomez in New York City, Gomez began his acting career in theater during the 1920s and was a student of the actor Walter Hampden...
as Pancho - Fred ClarkFred ClarkFrederick Leonard Clark was an American film character actor.-Career:Born in Lincoln, California, Clark made his film debut in 1947 in The Unsuspected. His 20-year film career included almost 70 films, and numerous television appearances...
as Frank Hugo - Art Smith as Bill Retz
- Richard Gaines as Jonathan
- Rita Conde as Carla
- Iris Flores as Maria
- Tito Renaldo as Bellboy
- Grandon Rhodes as Mr. Edison, Hotel Desk Clerk
- Martin Garralaga as Barkeeper
- Edward Earle as Locke
- Harold GoodwinHarold GoodwinHarold Goodwin was an American film actor who performed in over 225 films.Born in Peoria, Illinois, Goodwin began his film career while still in his teens in the 1915 film short Mike's Elopement. One of his most popular roles of the silent era was that of Jeff Brown in the 1927 Buster Keaton...
as Red - Maria Cortez as Elevator Girl
Background
According to Alain SilverAlain Silver
Alain Silver is a US film producer, film director, and screenwriter; music producer; film critic, film historian, DVD commentator, author and editor of books and essays on film topics, especially film noir and horror films.-Education:...
, the antique "Tio Vivo Carousel" built in 1882 in Taos, New Mexico
Taos, New Mexico
Taos is a town in Taos County in the north-central region of New Mexico, incorporated in 1934. As of the 2000 census, its population was 4,700. Other nearby communities include Ranchos de Taos, Cañon, Taos Canyon, Ranchitos, and El Prado. The town is close to Taos Pueblo, the Native American...
, was the model for the carousel in the novel Ride The Pink Horse. The same carousel was purchased by the producers and shipped from Taos to the set of Universal where it was reconstructed for use in the film. The burning of the Zozobra
Zozobra
Zozobra is the name of a giant marionette effigy which is built and burned every autumn during Fiestas de Santa Fe in Santa Fe, New Mexico, usually during the second week of September. As his name suggests, he embodies gloom; by burning him, people destroy the worries and troubles of the previous...
("Old Man Gloom") effigy during the Fiestas de Santa Fe
Fiestas de Santa Fe
Fiestas de Santa Fe is a festival held every autumn in Santa Fe, New Mexico, usually during the second week of September.-History:Fiestas de Santa Fe has been held annually since 1712 to celebrate the Reconquest of the city in 1692 by Spanish colonists led by General Don Diego de Vargas...
, figures prominently (and incidentally sets the exact date of the events).
Noir analysis
A common theme in noir films is war and post-war disillusionment; the disillusionment felt by many soldiers in returning to a peacetime economy was directly mirrored in the sordidness of the urban crime film. In these films a serviceman returns from the war to find his sweetheart unfaithful or a good friend dead. The war continues, but now the antagonism turns with a new viciousness toward the American society itself. This is the theme of Ride the Pink Horse, yet in a different environment. Ex-GI Gagin's quest to revenge his friend's death leads him to a small village in rural New Mexico, extending the noir motif that murder and mayhem needs the polluted city landscape to create film noir.Critical reaction
Bosley CrowtherBosley Crowther
Bosley Crowther was a journalist and author who was film critic for The New York Times for 27 years. His reviews and articles helped shape the careers of actors, directors and screenwriters, though his reviews, at times, were unnecessarily mean...
, film critic for The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
at the time, liked the film and especially Robert Montgomery's direction, and wrote, "...Mr. Montgomery, as director and star of this story, has contrived to make it look shockingly literal and keep it moving at an unrelenting pace. And he has also managed to lace it with grisly action and rugged sentiment without deceit. Indeed, he has artfully fashioned a fascinating film within the genre. He has done something else exceptional; he has given the other actors a real chance." Crowther also praised the work of Fred Clark and Wanda Hendrix.
Adaptation
The film was later remadeRemake
A remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...
as a 1964 TV movie called The Hanged Man
The Hanged Man (1964 film)
The Hanged Man is a TV film directed by Don Siegel, in which a gunman seeks to avenge the death of his friend, whom he believes was murdered. It is considered the second television film in broadcast history. It debuted on NBC on November 18, 1964....
, starring Robert Culp
Robert Culp
Robert Martin Culp was an American actor, scriptwriter, voice actor and director, widely known for his work in television. Culp first earned an international reputation for his role as Kelly Robinson on I Spy , the espionage series in which he and co-star Bill Cosby played a pair of secret agents...
and directed by Don Siegel
Don Siegel
Donald Siegel was an influential American film director and producer. His name variously appeared in the credits of his films as both Don Siegel and Donald Siegel.-Early life:...
.
Awards
Nominations- Academy AwardsAcademy AwardsAn Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
: Oscar; Best Actor in a Supporting RoleAcademy Award for Best Supporting ActorPerformance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
, Thomas Gomez; 1948.
External links
- Ride the Pink Horse original trailer at Google Videos