The Tenderfoot (1964)
Encyclopedia
The Tenderfoot is a three-part live action
television miniseries comedy Western
film produced in 1964 for Walt Disney
's Wonderful World of Color. It is based on James H. Tevis' book Arizona in the 50s. It was directed by Robert L. Friend and Byron Paul.
Starring Brandon De Wilde
of Shane
(1953) and Disney veteran Brian Keith
, The Parent Trap (1961), in the title roles. It aired in 3 parts over 3 consecutive weeks beginning on Sunday, October 18, 1964. It also starred James Whitmore
, Richard Long
, James Daly, and Nehemiah Persoff
in principal roles.
The Tenderfoot was aimed at teens and featured character actors of the period. Also appearing was 15-year-old Disney regular Roger Mobley
. This was typical of past Disney live action TV productions, most notable being The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh (1964).
On-location
filming occurred on California
's Santa Catalina Island
and Channel Islands
. Highlights include the roundup of wild mustangs and a climactic horse race.
Brandon De Wilde had previously appeared in All Fall Down (1962) with Warren Beatty
and Hud
(1963) with Paul Newman
. Brian Keith would be a scene stealer
and filmed with De Wilde for Disney again the following year in Those Calloways
, as his father.
Song "The Tenderfoot" by Disney Legend Richard M. Sherman
.
The Tenderfoot would be released theatrically through Europe in 1966. It aired on the Disney Channel
as an edited-down 2-hour feature in the 1990s.
Tevis' Arizona in the 50s, written in 1880 and not published until 1953 and out of print for the last 50 years, has recently been edited by Betty Barr and Dr. William J. Kelly and rereleased.
. According to Mose, Kit learned everything from him and it should really be him that is famous. Mose consoles himself by staying drunk and avoiding Indian fights. Captain Ewell (James Whitmore) is a veteran Indian fighter and Paul Durand (Richard Long) is a misfit soldier and ladies man. Carson and Ewell take a quick liking to the young Tevis and both agree to make him Mose' junior scout. Together they all wind up in a search for buried treasure with Captain Malcione (Nehemiah Persoff) as the primary villain.
Live action
In filmmaking, video production, and other media, the term live action refers to cinematography, videography not produced using animation...
television miniseries comedy 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 produced in 1964 for Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
's Wonderful World of Color. It is based on James H. Tevis' book Arizona in the 50s. It was directed by Robert L. Friend and Byron Paul.
Starring Brandon De Wilde
Brandon De Wilde
Andre Brandon deWilde was an American theatre and film actor. He was born into a theatrical family in Brooklyn. Debuting on Broadway at the age of 7, De Wilde became a national phenomenon by the time he completed his 492 performances for The Member of the Wedding and was considered a child...
of Shane
Shane
Shane is a 1953 American Western film from Paramount. It was produced and directed by George Stevens from a screenplay by A.B. Guthrie Jr., based on the 1949 novel of the same name by Jack Schaefer. Its Oscar-winning cinematography was by Loyal Griggs...
(1953) and Disney veteran Brian Keith
Brian Keith
Brian Keith was an American film, television, and stage actor who in his four decade-long career gained recognition for his work in movies such as the 1961 Disney family film The Parent Trap, the 1966 comedy The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming, and the 1975 adventure saga The Wind and...
, The Parent Trap (1961), in the title roles. It aired in 3 parts over 3 consecutive weeks beginning on Sunday, October 18, 1964. It also starred James Whitmore
James Whitmore
James Allen Whitmore, Jr. was an American film and stage actor.-Early life:Born in White Plains, New York, to Florence Belle and James Allen Whitmore, Sr., a park commission official, Whitmore attended Amherst Central High School in Snyder, New York, before graduating from The Choate School in...
, Richard Long
Richard Long (actor)
Richard Long was an American actor better known for his leading roles in several ABC television series, including The Big Valley, Nanny and the Professor and Bourbon Street Beat.-Early life:...
, James Daly, and Nehemiah Persoff
Nehemiah Persoff
Nehemiah Persoff is an American film and television character actor. He was born in Jerusalem, Palestine Mandate.Born in what is now part of Israel, Persoff emigrated with his family to the United States in 1929...
in principal roles.
The Tenderfoot was aimed at teens and featured character actors of the period. Also appearing was 15-year-old Disney regular Roger Mobley
Roger Mobley
Roger L. Mobley in Evansville, Indiana, is a former child actor in film and television, working primarily for Walt Disney Productions during the late 1950s and early 1960s...
. This was typical of past Disney live action TV productions, most notable being The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh (1964).
On-location
Filming location
A filming location is a place where some or all of a film or television series is produced, in addition to or instead of using sets constructed on a movie studio backlot or soundstage...
filming occurred on California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
's Santa Catalina Island
Santa Catalina Island, California
Santa Catalina Island, often called Catalina Island, or just Catalina, is a rocky island off the coast of the U.S. state of California. The island is long and across at its greatest width. The island is located about south-southwest of Los Angeles, California. The highest point on the island is...
and Channel Islands
Channel Islands of California
The Channel Islands of California are a chain of eight islands located in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California along the Santa Barbara Channel in the United States of America...
. Highlights include the roundup of wild mustangs and a climactic horse race.
Brandon De Wilde had previously appeared in All Fall Down (1962) with Warren Beatty
Warren Beatty
Warren Beatty born March 30, 1937) is an American actor, producer, screenwriter and director. He has received a total of fourteen Academy Award nominations, winning one for Best Director in 1982. He has also won four Golden Globe Awards including the Cecil B. DeMille Award.-Early life and...
and Hud
Hud (film)
Hud is a 1963 western film whose title character is an embittered and selfish modern-day cowboy. With screenplay by Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank, Jr., based on Larry McMurtry's 1961 novel Horseman, Pass By, it was directed by Martin Ritt and stars Paul Newman, Melvyn Douglas, Patricia Neal and...
(1963) with Paul Newman
Paul Newman
Paul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
. Brian Keith would be a scene stealer
Scene stealer
A scene stealer is a character in a film or dramatic performance that dominates the audience's attention, often through charisma, humour or powerful acting, thus "stealing the scene" or "stealing the show". The term usually applies to a supporting character, such a sidekick, best friend,...
and filmed with De Wilde for Disney again the following year in Those Calloways
Those Calloways
Those Calloways is a 1965 American film adaption of a book by Paul Annixter. Annixter and his wife Jane were writers of books for young readers. The film was produced by Disney and directed by Norman Tokar...
, as his father.
Song "The Tenderfoot" by Disney Legend Richard M. Sherman
Richard M. Sherman
Richard Morton Sherman is an American songwriter who specializes in musical film with his brother Robert Bernard Sherman....
.
The Tenderfoot would be released theatrically through Europe in 1966. It aired on the Disney Channel
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
as an edited-down 2-hour feature in the 1990s.
Tevis' Arizona in the 50s, written in 1880 and not published until 1953 and out of print for the last 50 years, has recently been edited by Betty Barr and Dr. William J. Kelly and rereleased.
Plot
Jim Tevis (Brandon De Wilde), shortly after arriving in 1856 Arizona from the East, meets up with Mose Carson (Brian Keith), self-proclaimed big brother of legendary frontier scout Kit CarsonKit Carson
Christopher Houston "Kit" Carson was an American frontiersman and Indian fighter. Carson left home in rural present-day Missouri at age 16 and became a Mountain man and trapper in the West. Carson explored the west to California, and north through the Rocky Mountains. He lived among and married...
. According to Mose, Kit learned everything from him and it should really be him that is famous. Mose consoles himself by staying drunk and avoiding Indian fights. Captain Ewell (James Whitmore) is a veteran Indian fighter and Paul Durand (Richard Long) is a misfit soldier and ladies man. Carson and Ewell take a quick liking to the young Tevis and both agree to make him Mose' junior scout. Together they all wind up in a search for buried treasure with Captain Malcione (Nehemiah Persoff) as the primary villain.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Brandon De Wilde Brandon De Wilde Andre Brandon deWilde was an American theatre and film actor. He was born into a theatrical family in Brooklyn. Debuting on Broadway at the age of 7, De Wilde became a national phenomenon by the time he completed his 492 performances for The Member of the Wedding and was considered a child... (as Brandon deWilde) |
Jim Tevis |
| Brian Keith Brian Keith Brian Keith was an American film, television, and stage actor who in his four decade-long career gained recognition for his work in movies such as the 1961 Disney family film The Parent Trap, the 1966 comedy The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming, and the 1975 adventure saga The Wind and... |
Mose Carson |
| James Whitmore James Whitmore James Allen Whitmore, Jr. was an American film and stage actor.-Early life:Born in White Plains, New York, to Florence Belle and James Allen Whitmore, Sr., a park commission official, Whitmore attended Amherst Central High School in Snyder, New York, before graduating from The Choate School in... |
Captain Ewell |
| Richard Long Richard Long (actor) Richard Long was an American actor better known for his leading roles in several ABC television series, including The Big Valley, Nanny and the Professor and Bourbon Street Beat.-Early life:... |
Paul Durand |
| Donald May | Thatcher |
| Christopher Dark Christopher Dark Christopher Dark was an American actor.Born Alfred Francis DeLeo in New York and died in Hollywood, California .Dark is best remembered as Hank Jaffe in the film World Without End .... |
Pike |
| Rafael Campos | Juarez |
| James Daly | Uncle Max |
| Roger Mobley Roger Mobley Roger L. Mobley in Evansville, Indiana, is a former child actor in film and television, working primarily for Walt Disney Productions during the late 1950s and early 1960s... |
Dave Jones |
| Nehemiah Persoff Nehemiah Persoff Nehemiah Persoff is an American film and television character actor. He was born in Jerusalem, Palestine Mandate.Born in what is now part of Israel, Persoff emigrated with his family to the United States in 1929... |
Captain Malcione |