Tombstone Photos

Tombstone, Arizona may be known as the wildest of the Wild West, but today it is a fun place to visit.

I first visited Tombstone in the late 1980s and had a great time there. That is why I, without hesitation, immediately jumped in an paid for the clampout when the Lost Dutchman Chapter's website opened to registration a few months ago.

Tombstone didn't disappoint this year. It may be more touristy these days, but much can be learned there as well having a great meal, enjoying adult beverages at several saloons and shopping.

I took a stagecoach tour of the town and one thing I learned was that the courthouse has gallows on the premises. So those convicted didn't have to go very far to get hanged. Another tidbit: several shootings took place inside the Bird Cage Theater.

Below are some photos of Tombstone that I took over the weekend (photos 5 and 6 are inside of Big Nose Kate's Saloon):

"Stagecoach" (1939) Filming Locations

Above, the East and West Mittens and Merrick Butte in Monument Valley. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Stagecoach (1939), directed by John Ford, is one of those seminal movies that has become iconic in American movie history.

It was the movie that made John Wayne a star after he spent most of the 1930s in B movie purgatory. But, those years enabled him to hone his acting skills. 

Stagecoach, as most of us are aware, was the first movie to take advantage of the vistas of Monument Valley. Ford was going to film Stagecoach somewhere else until Harry Goulding of Goulding's Trading Post arrived in Hollywood with a binder of photographs of Monument Valley that convinced Ford to shoot the movie there. 

The Enlightened Mindset website has posted an article by Happy Sharer on filming locations for Stagecoach. I have some doubts over some of them, such as Sedona, Arizona, Durango, Colorado and Old Tucson studios. I have seen the movie many times and I've not seen anything in it that would identify those sites. Perhaps a more learned movie scholar can post a comment below pointing out where in the movie those and other locations appear. Unfortunately, the article does not elaborate where in the movie the sites cited appear.

All in all, the article is a bit of a disappointment, but is worth taking a look. There are few photos with the article and the ones in it are not helpful.

The article begins with:

Introduction

The 1939 classic Western movie Stagecoach is one of the most iconic films of all time. Directed by John Ford, the film features an ensemble cast including John Wayne, Claire Trevor, and Thomas Mitchell, and tells the story of nine strangers who find themselves on a stagecoach ride through dangerous Apache territory. The movie was a commercial and critical success, and it helped launch John Wayne’s career as an action star.

This article explores the historic setting of Stagecoach, taking a look at where the movie was filmed. It will revisit the iconic locations of Stagecoach and uncover the movie’s filming locations. Finally, it will trace the path of Stagecoach’s filming locations from Monument Valley to Durango, and revisit the filming locations of the movie.

To read more, go here. 

Now Is The Time To Visit Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park

Above, the Mittens and Merrick Butte. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Right now is a good time to pay a visit to the famous Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park that straddles the border of Arizona and Utah.

Monument Valley was made famous by director John Ford and actor John Wayne beginning with Stagecoach (1939). 

From the Goulding's Lodge website:

When the Great Depression hit in the 1930s, the Navajo Reservation suffered immensely. Harry heard of a movie production company scouting out locations in the Southwest to use in films. He believed that bringing movie production to Monument Valley would help the local Navajos with much-needed income.

So Harry and Mike set out on a journey to Hollywood, California with their last $60. By luck and perseverance, Harry met the famous director John Ford. When Ford saw Harry’s photos of Monument Valley, he knew it was the perfect location for his next movie. The Gouldings received an advanced payment, and in a few days, John Ford and his crew began filming Stagecoach starring John Wayne.

Above, yours truly bundled up during the van tour.

The temperature during the day is in the 70s and the nighttime temperature is in the 40s. I went in November 2016 and the daytime temperature was rather brisk with nighttime temperatures dipping down into the 20s. 

Above, the Goulding's Tours tour van in 2016. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

There are numerous places to see in the tribal park and there are tours available to see them. Tripadvisor has posted a list of the ten best Monument Valley tours and excursions. I took a van tour from Goulding's Lodge (they do pick up passengers at the campground). To access their list, go here.

Above, my RV at Goulding's Lodge Campground. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Along with tours, there are several places to stay in the Monument Valley vicinity. They include hotels and campgrounds. I stayed at Goulding's Lodge Campground in 2016. Tripadvisor lists them here.

Since the best time to visit Monument Valley is in September-October, I am going there next week.

"A Lady Takes A Chance" (1943) On Blu-ray

This week, my ordered Blu-ray of A Lady Takes A Chance (1943) arrived in the mail.

The movie, a romantic comedy, stars Jean Arthur, John Wayne, Charles Winninger and a young (with hair, probably a toupee) Phil Silvers.

From Blu-ray.com:

A city girl on a bus tour of the West encounters a handsome rodeo cowboy who helps her forget her simpy city suitors.

It had been a long while (likely since the 1970s) since I've seen this movie. I decided to order it and it was as I remembered it.

The Blu-ray is quite good as the transfer is from a 4k scan of a black & white nitrate negative from the Paramount Pictures film archives (even though the movie was produced by RKO Radio Pictures). The distributor of the Blu-ray is Kino Lorber.

According to a review in Home Theater Forum:

According to the package’s liner notes, this scan was taken from a combination of elements including the original negative as well as nitrate fine grains. Perhaps as a result of being sourced from multiple elements, the presentation here is inconsistent. At its best, the film can appear incredibly sharp, with excellent detail, great contrast, and a nearly pristine image showing almost no evidence of age or wear. At its worst, sections can appear indistinct, lacking sharpness and clarity, and showing some speckling and other age-related wear and tear.

Although the movie was made four years after Stagecoach, Wayne carried off well his comedic end of the movie. 

The John Wayne Collection DVD Set

Above, the nice tin box for the set. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The 15-movie DVD set, The John Wayne Collection, has been sitting in my shelf for years. It has been there so long that I don't remember how I got it and if it was a gift, I don't remember who gave it to me. The tin box still had the unopened wrapping on it.

This past weekend, I decided to open it and start watching. The set as five discs along with a booklet about each movie, which were produced by Lone Star Productions or Republic Pictures in the mid-1930s. I am now 2/3 through disc 4.

It is interesting to see Wayne in these B-westerns learning his acting craft before he became a star in Stagecoach in 1939. He was obviously not ready for movie acting in his first starring role in The Big Trail in 1929. Fortunately, these cheapie westerns gave him a training ground on acting. In these films, he honed his "talk low, talk slow and don't say too much" style of delivery.

This set, according to Oldies.com:

John Wayne is without a doubt the quintessential All-American hero. Strong, silent, frank and rugged, he personified the ways of the Wild West and beyond, becoming an institution both on the big screen and in real life. The challenge for many fans became pinpointing where the character ended and where Wayne began! Now for the first time, 15 of "Duke's" classic early works are all compiled in one stunning collector's tin. These five DVDs contain great westerns from his heyday in the 1930s and will guarantee hours of gun-slinging entertainment. With timeless works like Dawn Rider, The Desert Trail and West of the Divide, you can take a piece of the old west home today! Films include: Blue Steel, Lawless Range, The Dawn Rider, Lucky Texan, Man from Utah, Texas Terror, Rainbow Valley, The Star Packer, The Desert Trail, Riders of Destiny, Randy Rides Alone, The Trail Beyond, West of the Divide, Winds of the Wasteland, Paradise Canyon. Includes DELUXE BOOKLET featuring John Wayne's biography and filmography.

It is interesting that George "Gabby" Hayes and Yakima Canutt appear in most of the movies in this set. It is amusing that Lone Star tried to make Wayne a "singing cowboy" in some of these with him singing via an obviously dubbed singer's voice and many times the same sets were used in the movies with little or no changes made. It is also amusing to see the huge cowboy hats the actors wore. These were more like "50-gallon" hats instead of "10-gallon" hats.

This set was issued in 2005 by Madacy Home Video. Don't expect pristine or restored prints here, just savor seeing these oldies featuring a young Duke. This set is a must-have for any John Wayne, western or movie history buff. These were maybe "cheapie" B-movies for the Saturday matinee patrons, but they are sure entertaining.

A Brit's Visit To Monument Valley

Above, the left Mitten and rock formations in the background. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

British columnist Jimmy Cricket (yes, I know, but that's his name) paid a visit to Monument Valley and was fully enchanted with it.

The Lancashire Post as an article on Cricket's trip.

It reads, in part:

As I gazed upon it, it all came back to me. The countless times I sat in the cinema when I was growing up in Belfast watching the Cavalry ride across that landscape. It was the Hollywood director John Ford who seemed to get the best shots of Monument Valley, whether it is the Oscar winning black and white movie, Stagecoach, trundling through the Valley covered in snow, or the full Cinemascope colour of The Searchers, where John Wayne sets out to rescue his niece Debbie, who had been taken hostage by the Indians. 

As I got older I realised how awesome the scenery was.  

As my friend the late great comedy writer Eddie Braben said of John Ford: “Jimmy, every shot he took was an oil painting.”

Read more at: https://www.lep.co.uk/news/every-shot-he-took-was-an-oil-painting-the-best-of-monument-valley-1-9481593

"Stagecoach" (1939) and Monument Valley

Above, The Mittens and Merrick Butte in 1939 in Stagecoach. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Today was spent with my cousin Ralph rummaging around at Amoeba Music on Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood.

I picked up the John Ford-directed movie that brought stardom to John Wayne: Stagecoach (1939). It was also one of the first, if not the first, movie to make use of Monument Valley as a backdrop. Other locations included areas near Kernville, Chatsworth, Iverson Movie Ranch, Calabasas, Kern River, Newhall and more.

Above, The Mittens and Merrick Butte in Monument Valley in 2016. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Stagecoach is also noted for the final shootout between the Ringo Kid (Wayne) and Luke Plummer (Tom Tyler). Tyler first played the Mummy Kharis in The Mummy's Hand (1940). Along with the Mummy, Stagecoach also featured Count Dracula, John Carradine.