The Savage
Encyclopedia
The Savage is a 1952
Western
film directed by George Marshall
and starring Charlton Heston
. Much of the film was shot in the Black Hills
of South Dakota
.
Indians. He is rescued by a group of Sioux Indians and is raised by Chief Yellow Eagle as a Sioux and renamed Warbonnet. Jim grows to maturity, but soon his loyalties between his tribe and his white heritage are divided. Gold is discovered in the Black Hills and the Sioux expect the sovereignty of their territory to be respected because of an earlier treaty. Warbonnet’s allegiance is questioned when he urges Yellow Eagle not to go to war.
Warbonnet is sent to Fort Duane to determine whether the U.S. government intend to honor the treaty. On his way, he helps save a party of U.S. cavalry, led by Lt. Hathersall, from an attack by Crow Indians. Because of this he is received warmly by Col. Robert Ellis at the fort. However Capt. Vaughant calls him a savage. After several days Warbonnet leaves the fort when he learns that his Sioux sister, Luta, has been captured by soldiers. He meets his friend Long Mane who tells him that the soldiers were killed by a party of Crow and that Luta was taken captive. Warbonnet leads a party of Sioux on a raid on the Crow camp and rescues his sister. However, Luta is then killed in an attack by Vaughant and his troops.
Warbonnet is now convinced that the whites will not honor the treaty and agrees to lead the soldiers at Fort Duane into an ambush. Meanwhile, Col. Ellis has received orders from Washington that all the Indians are to be moved to reservations, by force if necessary. Acting as a scout, Warbonnet leads Vaughant’s men to a Crow camp. Vaughant wants to destroy the camp and kill all the occupants. Using explosives, Warbonnet and Corp. Martin flush the fleeing Crow out of the forest where they are subdued by Lt. Hathersall and his men. Vaughant, furious at this, tries to shoot Warbonnet, but in a scuffle with Corp. Martin, Vaughnt is killed. Warbonnet and Yellow Eagle have planned to attack the remaining column, but when Yellow Eagle orders no prisoners to be taken, Warbonnet questions the wisdom of the attack, especially when he learns that a wagon train of women and children have joined the column for protection.
Warbonnet helps the wagon train escape the planned ambush but is injured by an arrow. That night, a feverish Warbonnet meets with Yellow Eagle to try and persuade him to abandon his war plans. Warbonnet’s mother, Pehangi, convinces Yellow Eagle that Warbonnet is right. But Yellow Eagle, in accordance with Sioux law for betraying him, throws a lance at him, injuring him. Warbonet is taken back to the fort where he persuades the colonel that the Sioux will not pursue their war on the whites.
1952 in film
The year 1952 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* January 10 - Cecil B. DeMille's circus epic, The Greatest Show on Earth, premieres at Radio City Music Hall in New York City....
Western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
film directed by George Marshall
George Marshall (director)
George E. Marshall was an American actor, screenwriter, producer, film and television director, active through the first six decades of movie history....
and starring Charlton Heston
Charlton Heston
Charlton Heston was an American actor of film, theatre and television. Heston is known for heroic roles in films such as The Ten Commandments, Ben-Hur for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, El Cid, and Planet of the Apes...
. Much of the film was shot in the Black Hills
Black Hills
The Black Hills are a small, isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, USA. Set off from the main body of the Rocky Mountains, the region is something of a geological anomaly—accurately described as an "island of...
of South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
.
Plot synopsis
A young boy, Jim Aherne Jr., is the only survivor of a raid on a wagon train by CrowCrow Nation
The Crow, also called the Absaroka or Apsáalooke, are a Siouan people of Native Americans who historically lived in the Yellowstone River valley, which extends from present-day Wyoming, through Montana and into North Dakota. They now live on a reservation south of Billings, Montana and in several...
Indians. He is rescued by a group of Sioux Indians and is raised by Chief Yellow Eagle as a Sioux and renamed Warbonnet. Jim grows to maturity, but soon his loyalties between his tribe and his white heritage are divided. Gold is discovered in the Black Hills and the Sioux expect the sovereignty of their territory to be respected because of an earlier treaty. Warbonnet’s allegiance is questioned when he urges Yellow Eagle not to go to war.
Warbonnet is sent to Fort Duane to determine whether the U.S. government intend to honor the treaty. On his way, he helps save a party of U.S. cavalry, led by Lt. Hathersall, from an attack by Crow Indians. Because of this he is received warmly by Col. Robert Ellis at the fort. However Capt. Vaughant calls him a savage. After several days Warbonnet leaves the fort when he learns that his Sioux sister, Luta, has been captured by soldiers. He meets his friend Long Mane who tells him that the soldiers were killed by a party of Crow and that Luta was taken captive. Warbonnet leads a party of Sioux on a raid on the Crow camp and rescues his sister. However, Luta is then killed in an attack by Vaughant and his troops.
Warbonnet is now convinced that the whites will not honor the treaty and agrees to lead the soldiers at Fort Duane into an ambush. Meanwhile, Col. Ellis has received orders from Washington that all the Indians are to be moved to reservations, by force if necessary. Acting as a scout, Warbonnet leads Vaughant’s men to a Crow camp. Vaughant wants to destroy the camp and kill all the occupants. Using explosives, Warbonnet and Corp. Martin flush the fleeing Crow out of the forest where they are subdued by Lt. Hathersall and his men. Vaughant, furious at this, tries to shoot Warbonnet, but in a scuffle with Corp. Martin, Vaughnt is killed. Warbonnet and Yellow Eagle have planned to attack the remaining column, but when Yellow Eagle orders no prisoners to be taken, Warbonnet questions the wisdom of the attack, especially when he learns that a wagon train of women and children have joined the column for protection.
Warbonnet helps the wagon train escape the planned ambush but is injured by an arrow. That night, a feverish Warbonnet meets with Yellow Eagle to try and persuade him to abandon his war plans. Warbonnet’s mother, Pehangi, convinces Yellow Eagle that Warbonnet is right. But Yellow Eagle, in accordance with Sioux law for betraying him, throws a lance at him, injuring him. Warbonet is taken back to the fort where he persuades the colonel that the Sioux will not pursue their war on the whites.
Cast
- Charlton HestonCharlton HestonCharlton Heston was an American actor of film, theatre and television. Heston is known for heroic roles in films such as The Ten Commandments, Ben-Hur for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, El Cid, and Planet of the Apes...
- Jim Aherne, Jr./Warbonnet - Susan MorrowSusan MorrowSusan Morrow was an American actress.-Personal life:Born as Jacqueline Ann Teresa Bernadette Immoor, she was the elder sister of Judith Exner and the first wife of comedian Gary Morton. They were married on December 17, 1953; the marriage was annulled on July 11, 1957...
- Tally Hathersall - Peter HansenPeter Hansen (actor)Peter Hansen is an American actor, best known for his role as a lawyer, Lee Baldwin, on the soap opera General Hospital. He played the role from 1965 to 1986 and again from 1992 to 2004...
- Lt. Weston Hathersall - Joan TaylorJoan Taylor (actor)Joan Taylor is a retired American film actress.-Early life:She was born in Geneva, Illinois. Her father Joseph Emma was from Sicily and became a movie manager and a Hollywood prop man...
- Luta - Richard RoberRichard RoberRichard Rober was an American film actor known for his rugged roles in films. Rober died in an auto accident in 1952 at age 42. He appeared many B-movies and film noir-type films including Call Northside 777 , Sierra , and The Well .-Filmography:-External links:...
- Capt. Arnold Vaughant - Don PorterDon PorterDonald Porter was an American actor who appeared in a number of films in the 1940s, including Top Sergeant and Eagle Squadron, but is perhaps best known for his role as Russell Lawrence, the widowed father of 15-year old Frances "Gidget" Lawrence in the 1965 ABC television series...
- Running Dog - Ted de CorsiaTed de CorsiaTed de Corsia was a radio and movie actor.He is probably best remembered for his role as a gangster turned state's evidence in The Enforcer...
- Iron Breast - Ian MacDonaldIan MacDonald (actor)Ian MacDonald was an American actor and producer during the 1940s and 1950s. Some of his notable films included:* Warlock * The Lonesome Trail * Taza, Son of Cochise * Hiawatha...
- Chief Yellow Eagle - Milburn StoneMilburn StoneMilburn Stone was an American television actor, a nephew of Broadway comedian Fred Stone and the son of a shopkeeper, best known for his role as "Doc" on the CBS western series Gunsmoke. He also played a doctor, CDR Blake, in the 1943 film Gung Ho!.Stone was born in Burrton in Harvey County in...
- Corp. Martin - Angela Clarke - Pehangi
- Michael TolanMichael Tolan-Life and career:Tolan was born Seymour Tuchow in Detroit, Michigan. He graduated from Wayne State University in Detroit and studied under Stella Adler and at Stanford University. He appeared primarily in stage roles in his early career, with only minor parts in films of the early 1950s...
- Long Mane - Howard Negley - Col. Robert Ellis
- Orly Lindgren - Jim Aherne, Jr. (as a boy)