The Man from Laramie
Encyclopedia
The Man from Laramie is an American
Technicolor
Western film directed by Anthony Mann
and starring James Stewart
in the fifth and final of their Western collaborations, and their seventh collaboration overall. It was adapted from a story of the same title by Thomas T. Flynn first published in The Saturday Evening Post
in 1954, and thereafter as a novel by publisher Ward Lock in 1955.
It was one of the first Westerns to be shot in CinemaScope
to capture the vastness of the scenery.
Will Lockhart (James Stewart
) becomes entangled in the happenings of Coronado, an isolated western town, after delivering supplies there from Laramie
. He immediately ends up at odds with the Waggomans, an influential ranching family. Lockhart is quietly searching for information about someone selling repeating rifles to the local Apache
s; his brother, an Army cavalry trooper, was killed in an Apache attack at Dutch Creek.
Cattle baron Alec Waggoman (Donald Crisp
) is haunted by dreams of a stranger who intends to kill his son. He is also gradually losing his eyesight and cannot count on his son Dave (Alex Nicol
), a vicious and arrogant man who refuses to learn how to run the ranch the way his father wants it done.
Lockhart is told by Barbara Waggoman (Cathy O'Donnell
), Alec's niece, that he can collect salt for free and haul it away for freight but Dave Waggoman accuses him of stealing, shoots twelve of Lockhart's mules and burns his three wagons. Lockhart returns to town, engages first Dave and then ranch foreman Vic Hansbro (Arthur Kennedy
) in a fistfight. Alec Waggoman shows up and offers Lockhart restitution for his lost property.
Vic considers himself a second son to Alec and is engaged to marry Barbara Waggoman. But when push comes to shove, Alec sides with his son, being a blood relative. Alec holds Vic responsible for the damage Dave caused to Lockhart's wagons and mules (for which the old man paid $600 in restitution) and threatens to withhold it from Vic's pay. After this confrontation, Vic rides after Dave and catches him trying to contact the Apaches to sell them another two hundred repeating rifles for which the Apaches have paid in advance. Vic shoots Dave and then lets Alec believe that Lockhart was responsible.
Lockhart takes refuge with a rival rancher, Kate Canady (Aline MacMahon
), who wishes she and Waggoman could declare a truce. Alec goes over some old bills and finds a bill for wire fence that is very overpriced. He suspects that it conceals a rifle purchase and sets out to discover for himself whether it was true that his son Dave was involved in selling rifles to the Apaches. Vic attempts to talk him out of it, but the old man is determined to find out the truth. Just before he reaches the wagon, he is pushed off his horse and down a hill by Vic. Assuming the old man is dead, Vic rides away.
Lockhart finds Alec and takes him to Kate to tend to his wounds. Vic is anxious because Waggoman is still alive and can identify him. He tries again to kill Alec but is thwarted by Lockhart, who pursues Vic on horseback. Lockhart finds Vic using a smoke signal
to call for the Apaches to come for their rifles. Lockhart is unable to shoot him down in cold blood, but forces Vic to help him push the wagon off the hilltop and destroy the rifles. Vic rides away but is attacked and killed by the band of Apaches who paid for the rifles.
Lockhart leaves town, but admits to Barbara Waggoman that he is Captain Lockhart, a cavalry officer in the U.S. Army. Barbara intends to leave Coronado and head back east. Lockhart tells her she will be passing through Laramie on the way and to ask anyone where to find Captain Lockhart.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
Western film directed by Anthony Mann
Anthony Mann
Anthony Mann was an American actor and film director, most notably of film noirs and Westerns. As a director, he often collaborated with the cinematographer John Alton and with James Stewart in his Westerns.-Biography:...
and starring James Stewart
James Stewart (actor)
James Maitland Stewart was an American film and stage actor, known for his distinctive voice and his everyman persona. Over the course of his career, he starred in many films widely considered classics and was nominated for five Academy Awards, winning one in competition and receiving one Lifetime...
in the fifth and final of their Western collaborations, and their seventh collaboration overall. It was adapted from a story of the same title by Thomas T. Flynn first published in The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post is a bimonthly American magazine. It was published weekly under this title from 1897 until 1969, and quarterly and then bimonthly from 1971.-History:...
in 1954, and thereafter as a novel by publisher Ward Lock in 1955.
It was one of the first Westerns to be shot in CinemaScope
CinemaScope
CinemaScope was an anamorphic lens series used for shooting wide screen movies from 1953 to 1967. Its creation in 1953, by the president of 20th Century-Fox, marked the beginning of the modern anamorphic format in both principal photography and movie projection.The anamorphic lenses theoretically...
to capture the vastness of the scenery.
Plot summary
James Stewart (actor)
James Maitland Stewart was an American film and stage actor, known for his distinctive voice and his everyman persona. Over the course of his career, he starred in many films widely considered classics and was nominated for five Academy Awards, winning one in competition and receiving one Lifetime...
) becomes entangled in the happenings of Coronado, an isolated western town, after delivering supplies there from Laramie
Laramie, Wyoming
Laramie is a city in and the county seat of Albany County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 30,816 at the . Located on the Laramie River in southeastern Wyoming, the city is west of Cheyenne, at the junction of Interstate 80 and U.S. Route 287....
. He immediately ends up at odds with the Waggomans, an influential ranching family. Lockhart is quietly searching for information about someone selling repeating rifles to the local Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
s; his brother, an Army cavalry trooper, was killed in an Apache attack at Dutch Creek.
Cattle baron Alec Waggoman (Donald Crisp
Donald Crisp
Donald Crisp was an English film actor. He was also an early motion picture producer, director and screenwriter...
) is haunted by dreams of a stranger who intends to kill his son. He is also gradually losing his eyesight and cannot count on his son Dave (Alex Nicol
Alex Nicol
For the Distinguished Service Cross recipient, see Alexander Nicol.Alex Nicol was an American actor and director. Nicol appeared in many Westerns including The Man from Laramie...
), a vicious and arrogant man who refuses to learn how to run the ranch the way his father wants it done.
Lockhart is told by Barbara Waggoman (Cathy O'Donnell
Cathy O'Donnell
Cathy O'Donnell was an American actress, best known for her many roles in film-noir movies.-Early life:She was born Ann Steely in Siluria, Alabama...
), Alec's niece, that he can collect salt for free and haul it away for freight but Dave Waggoman accuses him of stealing, shoots twelve of Lockhart's mules and burns his three wagons. Lockhart returns to town, engages first Dave and then ranch foreman Vic Hansbro (Arthur Kennedy
Arthur Kennedy (actor)
Arthur Kennedy was an American stage and film actor known for his versatility in supporting film roles and his ability to create "an exceptional honesty and naturalness on stage" especially in the original casts of Arthur Miller plays on Broadway.- Early life and education :Kennedy was born John...
) in a fistfight. Alec Waggoman shows up and offers Lockhart restitution for his lost property.
Vic considers himself a second son to Alec and is engaged to marry Barbara Waggoman. But when push comes to shove, Alec sides with his son, being a blood relative. Alec holds Vic responsible for the damage Dave caused to Lockhart's wagons and mules (for which the old man paid $600 in restitution) and threatens to withhold it from Vic's pay. After this confrontation, Vic rides after Dave and catches him trying to contact the Apaches to sell them another two hundred repeating rifles for which the Apaches have paid in advance. Vic shoots Dave and then lets Alec believe that Lockhart was responsible.
Lockhart takes refuge with a rival rancher, Kate Canady (Aline MacMahon
Aline MacMahon
Aline MacMahon was an American actress. Her career began on stage in 1921. She worked extensively in film and television until her retirement in 1975. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Dragon Seed .-Early life:Aline Laveen MacMahon was born...
), who wishes she and Waggoman could declare a truce. Alec goes over some old bills and finds a bill for wire fence that is very overpriced. He suspects that it conceals a rifle purchase and sets out to discover for himself whether it was true that his son Dave was involved in selling rifles to the Apaches. Vic attempts to talk him out of it, but the old man is determined to find out the truth. Just before he reaches the wagon, he is pushed off his horse and down a hill by Vic. Assuming the old man is dead, Vic rides away.
Lockhart finds Alec and takes him to Kate to tend to his wounds. Vic is anxious because Waggoman is still alive and can identify him. He tries again to kill Alec but is thwarted by Lockhart, who pursues Vic on horseback. Lockhart finds Vic using a smoke signal
Smoke signal
The smoke signal is one of the oldest forms of communication in recorded history. It is a form of visual communication used over long distance.-History and usage:...
to call for the Apaches to come for their rifles. Lockhart is unable to shoot him down in cold blood, but forces Vic to help him push the wagon off the hilltop and destroy the rifles. Vic rides away but is attacked and killed by the band of Apaches who paid for the rifles.
Lockhart leaves town, but admits to Barbara Waggoman that he is Captain Lockhart, a cavalry officer in the U.S. Army. Barbara intends to leave Coronado and head back east. Lockhart tells her she will be passing through Laramie on the way and to ask anyone where to find Captain Lockhart.
Cast
- James StewartJames Stewart (actor)James Maitland Stewart was an American film and stage actor, known for his distinctive voice and his everyman persona. Over the course of his career, he starred in many films widely considered classics and was nominated for five Academy Awards, winning one in competition and receiving one Lifetime...
as Will Lockhart - Arthur KennedyArthur Kennedy (actor)Arthur Kennedy was an American stage and film actor known for his versatility in supporting film roles and his ability to create "an exceptional honesty and naturalness on stage" especially in the original casts of Arthur Miller plays on Broadway.- Early life and education :Kennedy was born John...
as Vic Hansbro - Donald CrispDonald CrispDonald Crisp was an English film actor. He was also an early motion picture producer, director and screenwriter...
as Alec Waggoman - Cathy O'DonnellCathy O'DonnellCathy O'Donnell was an American actress, best known for her many roles in film-noir movies.-Early life:She was born Ann Steely in Siluria, Alabama...
as Barbara Waggoman - Alex NicolAlex NicolFor the Distinguished Service Cross recipient, see Alexander Nicol.Alex Nicol was an American actor and director. Nicol appeared in many Westerns including The Man from Laramie...
as Dave Waggoman - Aline MacMahonAline MacMahonAline MacMahon was an American actress. Her career began on stage in 1921. She worked extensively in film and television until her retirement in 1975. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Dragon Seed .-Early life:Aline Laveen MacMahon was born...
as Kate Canady - Wallace FordWallace FordWallace Ford was an English film and television actor who, with his friendly appearance and stocky build later in life, appeared in a number of film westerns and B-movies....
as Charley O'Leary - Jack ElamJack ElamWilliam Scott "Jack" Elam was an American film actor best known for his numerous roles as villains in Western films and, later in his career, comedies .-Early life:...
as Chris Boldt - James MillicanJames MillicanJames Millican was an American actor with over 200 film appearances mostly in western movies.-External links:*...
as Tom Quigby - Frank DeKovaFrank DekovaFrank Dekova was an Italian-American character actor.-Biography:Dekova was born in New York City and taught at a school in New York before joining a Shakespeare repertory group...
as Padre - Eddy WallerEddy WallerEdward C. "Eddy" Waller was an American film and television actor. He was born in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin.-Career:...
as Dr. Selden (uncredited)
James Stewart and Anthony Mann
James Stewart starred in five classic western films by director Anthony Mann. In all five, he plays a man who is haunted by the past. The films are famous for their groundbreaking use of the landscape to portray the characters' feelings. Mann once said, "When you're filming a western, people don't want to see the inside of a cabin."- Winchester '73 (1950)
- Bend of the RiverBend of the RiverBend of the River is a 1952 American Western film directed by Anthony Mann and starring James Stewart in their second collaboration. The film is based on the novel Bend of the Snake by Bill Gulick.-Plot:...
(1952) - The Naked SpurThe Naked SpurThe Naked Spur is a 1953 American western movie directed by Anthony Mann and starring James Stewart in their third collaboration. The screenplay was written by Sam Rolfe and Harold Jack Bloom, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay - a rare honor for a Western. The...
(1953) - The Far CountryThe Far CountryThe Far Country is a 1954 American western movie directed by Anthony Mann and starring James Stewart in their fourth western collaboration...
(1954) - The Man from Laramie (1955)