woody strode stagecoach

Rams owner Dan Reeves didn't like that Strode's marriage was interracial: his first wife, Luana, was descended from a Hawaiian queen. There's a lot in the film if we care to notice. No sentimentality or hopeful message. It featured African American athlete turned actor Woodrow Wilson "Woody" Strode in his major . He signed with the Los Angeles Rams in 1946 alongside Kenny Washington, an electrifying rusher and college teammate at UCLA. He wrestled professionally before rapt audiences. . They reunited 20 years later when he played the title role in Ford's rather neglected 1960 western . When Strode tried to help him, Duke knocked his co-star away. A small donation would help us keep this available to all. Acting wasnt his first passion, however, as football at Jefferson High School and UCLA brought him initial fame. "It's heart and guts. What a cast! The way Ford employs the African-American Pompey is observant. Boston Globe December 20, 1981: 1. I will not go into details because the suspense should not be spoiled. He could beat Glenn Morris, the 1936 Olympic gold-medal decathlete, in . As the film opens, U. S. Senator Ransom Stoddard (James Stewart) arrives in Shinbone by the new railroad with his wife Hallie (Vera Miles) to attend the funeral of a man named Tom Doniphon (John Wayne). Woody played for the Los Angeles Rams after their move from Cleveland. Western icon John Wayne had a legendary collaboration with director John Ford that lasted five decades and transformed both mens careers. The film was based upon the 1959 novel Comanche Captives by Will Cook . He attended UCLA, where he played multiple sports and starred for the track and field team. But even worse is the poster for the film (above) on which Strode appears, although his name is listed fourth and in tiny letters even smaller that the third person billed actress Billie Burke, who has a small supporting role with just a few lines. He was a decathlete and football star who was one of the first Black American players in the National Football League in the postwar era. Strode is perhaps best remembered as the stoic slave gladiator in Spartacus (1960) who tells Kirk Douglas: I dont want to be your friend. And I did it myself. He broke this barrier with his teammate Kenny Washington and Cleveland Browns players Bill Willis and Marion Motley. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism. Valuing his toughness, Ford cast Strode as Rutledge over future Oscar winners Sidney Poitier and Harry Belafonte. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Of course being a director from what is still called The Golden Age of Hollywood and despite the fact that Ford considered himself a political progressive (though he was close friends with actors he worked with who were often right wing reactionaries, like John Wayne and James Stewart), his films were not above dealing in negative racial stereotypes often. His name was the only one of the four "professionals" that was left off of the movie poster; nevertheless, the film was a major box-office success that established him as a recognizable star. We need him!, In the end, Wayne told Strode: We gotta work together. Strode played a single season with the NFL before moving to Canada to play, according to Britannica. His 1968 starring role as a thinly-disguised Patrice Lumumba in Seduto alla sua destra (released in the U.S. as Black Jesus) garnered Strode a great deal of press at the time, but the film is largely forgotten now. His world-class decathlon capabilities were spearheaded by a 50ft (15m) plus shot put (when the world record was 57ft (17m)) and a 6ft 5in (1.96m) high jump (the world record at time was 6ft 10in (2.08m)). Of these "Liberty Valance" was the most pensive and thoughtful. But no pro team would draft African Americans. Everyone in Shinbone hates Liberty Valance, but they're powerless against him and his two sidekicks, one of them a giggling fool. [26][27][28] In 1982 at the age of 68, he wed 35-year-old Tina Tompson,[28] and they remained married until his death of lung cancer on December 31, 1994, in Glendora, California, aged 80. Strode takes it up from there: Bob Waterfield and some guys came looking for us because theyd made arrangements for us back at the hotel, he explained. When World War II broke out, Strode was playing for the Hollywood Bears in the Pacific Coast Professional Football League. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. And so the studio actually tried to trick audiences into thinking that the film was about the white characters. John Ford put classic words in my mouth.". If the money was right, I'd play Mickey Mouse.[3], Strode went to Europe to make Scipio the African (1971) and did some more Westerns: The Last Rebel (1971), and The Revengers (1972) (a "regular knockdown, dragout western said Strode[3]). Acting wasn't his first passion, however, as football at Jefferson High School and UCLA brought him initial fame. While in college, Strode and Washington held summer jobs at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, mostly running errands on various sound stages; he noted that most days involved standing around and waiting for someone to order something. Strode would become an assistant to some of the studios biggest stars including Bette Davis, James Cagney, Ann Sheridan, Errol Flynn, Olivia De Havilland and Jane Wyman. "I've never gotten over 'Sergeant Rutledge,'" Strode told The New York Times years later. After the war, he worked at serving subpoenas and escorting prisoners for the L.A. County District Attorney's Office. Then came Lewis Milestones war film Pork Chop Hill (1959) and steady work would follow. I said, All right, where are the pluckers?" Then Strode realised, I was out in the world market with a bald head. How much did Woody Strode weigh when playing? [7], With her he had two children, television director Kalai (a.k.a. Strode last appeared on screen posthumously in 1995. Strode's Associated Press obituary praised his work in Westerns and period dramas, but didn't mention the trail he blazed on the gridiron. He portrayed an assortment of African chiefs and guards until Cecil B. DeMille cast him in The Ten Commandments (1956), as the King of Ethiopia. Broken ribs and an ailing shoulder spurred Strode to retire in 1949. As they were preparing to shoot, Ford came up to Stewart and asked, What do you think of Woodys costume?. "Never used it, but I could walk into the White House with it now. In response, Ford said: Whats wrong with Uncle Remus? The director then called the crews attention and shouted: One of ourplayersdoesn't like Woody's costume. He was billed as the Pacific Coast Heavyweight Wrestling Champion and the Pacific Coast Negro Heavyweight Wrestling Champion in 1962. "I know Gus well." "Shawn." "Him too. Additionally, the. Finally, it became way of life.[3], He had roles in Bride of the Gorilla (1951), African Treasure (1951) (another Bomba film), an episode of Dangerous Assignment (1952), Caribbean (1952), and Androcles and the Lion (1952), playing the lion, "the toughest job I ever had" he said later.[20]. Farmers want statehood. Your donation is fully tax-deductible. UsefulNotes/Notable Actors from Hollywood's Golden Age. Woody Strode was a Black Indian (his grandmother was Black Cherokee and his grandfather was Black Muscogee) and an outstanding athlete. Another well-known role was Pompey, John Waynes servant in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962). It was "one of the first mainstream Hollywood films to address racism frankly," the Hollywood Reporter's Seth Abramovitch wrote last year. He simply does not have to say a word.". "I once played a part written for an Irish prize fighter. "To me, it's truly the beginning of more awareness of who they were, what they did, and why they were so important," Glauber told The New York Times ahead of the Canton ceremony in August. "These four men created a foundation on which generations built," Lonnie Bunch, the founding director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, once said. Woody Strode has not been elected into the Hall of Fame. In a long flashback involving most of the film, Ford recalls the events leading up to that day. Once dubbed "the Jackie Robinson of cinema" by Jet Magazine, Strode shared a backfield with Robinson and Washington in 1939. But Stewart, an Oscar winner known for such timeless hits as The Philadelphia Story, Vertigo and Mr. "[7], "That was a classic," he later said. ), TCM Remembers 1995 in Chronological Order, American actors who appeared in spaghetti westerns. He was in 87 movies over the length of his career, though Strode . And late Hollywood legend James Stewart got to watch their dynamic up close. Woody Strode was born on the 25th of July, 2014. '"[12] He also said, "On the Pacific Coast there wasn't anything we couldn't do. 1951: The Lion Hunters; Bride of the Gorilla. The scripts for these were variable but Strode later said "Me, I didn't care. Strode was a prolific performer, starring in his first . He became part of Hollywood lore after meeting director John Ford and becoming a part of the Ford "family," appearing in four Ford motion pictures. Robinson played college football at UCLA before he shifted to baseball full time and made history. Liberty Valance cannot abide anyone standing up to him, and the shingle is an affront. By the mid 1960s Strode had become a respected craftsman and began to make his biggest imprint in Spaghetti Westerns, particularly in Sergio Leones Once Upon a Time in the West (1968). But it must have made a real impact on Ford himself, since, in the early 1970s, he planned to come out of retirement with a new film about the life of the first black graduate of West Point, Henry Flipper. "You'd have thought I was marrying Lana Turner, the way the whites in Hollywood acted," he later said. More info, The cantankerous and eccentric John Ford had filmed other Westerns with John Wayne in colour from The Searchers to She Wore a Yellow Ribbon. Strode also played the powerful gladiator who does battle with Kirk Douglas in Spartacus (1960) ." Born July 25, 1914 Died December 31, 1994 (80) Add to list Awards 2 wins & 3 nominations Photos 37 Calgary beat the Ottawa Rough Riders 12-7 in Toronto. The pioneering Black character actor relocated from the United States to Europe for a while to pursue bigger and more interesting roles. Nationality: American. February 11-March 6, 2022. Country. Strode had begun his association with Ford back in 1939, with an uncredited role in his classic western 'Stagecoach'. And on occasion, he was even known to actually physically attack them when he was not playing his patented sadistic practical jokes on them, or when he wasnt on one of his regular drinking binges, which would last for days. This is all to be seen: The role of a free press, the function of a town meeting, the debate about statehood, the civilizing influence of education. On top of this, Reese actor Lee Van Clef who went on to star in Clint Eastwood Spaghetti Westerns said that Ford resented the meddling and so would take out his annoyance on Wayne, whose casting as Doniphon was demanded by the studio. On top of that, in the early 1930s, Ford also made several films with long-lambasted black character actor Stephin Fetchit, likeJudge Priest and Steamboat Around the Bend, in which he played degrading and embarrassing supporting roles, often as a slow-witted, lazy buffoon. Strode and Washington, an All-American in 1939, linked up the following year with the Hollywood Bears of the minor Pacific Coast Professional Football League. He could beat Glenn Morris, the 1936 Olympic gold-medal decathlete, in all of his events except sprints. And according to the actor, Ford froze, then walked away. Stewart said: It looks a bit Uncle Remussy to me. This was a reference to the controversial fictional narrator of 19th century African-American folktales, who was later the main character in Disneys 1946 movie Song of the South a film that Disney does not make available today due to its racist stereotyping. Now Hallie has started to like this lawyer-man from the East, who starts up a one-room schoolhouse to teach people how to read. His magnificent Western landscapes are always there, but as environment, not travelogue. He Wasn't the Star But He Stole the Movie", "Teammates Recall Jackie Robinson's Legacy", "The man who made the stars shine brighter: An interview with Woody Strode", "Woody Strode, Ace Negro Player, Has No Axe to Grind", "Isle families trace ties to '39 Pineapple Bowl", "Woody Strode; Ex-Athlete, Character Actor in Movies", "Like the series, 'Psych' movie a comedic romp", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Woody_Strode&oldid=1141910544, This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 14:07. The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City last year enshrined him in the Hall of Great Western Performers. His big break came in 1960. Valance gives him a choice: Leave town, or face him in a shootout on Main Street. But they should be.". Publicity Listings He appeared once on Johnny Weissmuller's 19551956 syndicated television series Jungle Jim and was in an episode of Private Secretary. Strode was in City Beneath the Sea (1953) directed by Budd Boetticher, and The Royal African Rifles. Woody Strode spent decades in Hollywood working with larger-than-life names, including John Wayne, Elvis Presley and Kirk Douglas. In comparison, Ford had made combat documentaries for the Office of Strategic Services and had been wounded at the Battle of Midway, while Ranse star Stewart had been a bomber pilot who served with distinction. 109 minutes. Woody Strode weighed 205 lbs (92 kg) when playing. Woody Strode passed away on December 31, 1994 from lung cancer in Glendora, California. Born July 28, 1914, in Los Angeles, California, Woody Strode (Woodrow Wilson Woolwine Strode) was first of the star football athletes to become a successful film actor. Valance and his two sidekicks hold up a stagecoach on the way to town, and when one of the passengers, Ransom, stands up to him Liberty nearly whips him to death. John Ford and John Wayne together created much of the mythology of the Old West we carry in our minds. He graced the screen alongside Sean Connery, Kirk Douglas, Burt Lancaster, and John Wayne, plus Joe Namath when the Jets quarterback toyed with acting in the afterglow of his Super Bowl triumph. "On every play, if you're a (skill player) like Motley, Washington, or Strode, you can get pounded on the ground and beaten up," Greenburg said. We used to sit in the best seats at the Coconut Grove (a nightclub in the Ambassador Hotel) listening to Donald Novis sing. [24], In 2021, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. Additionally, the director kept mocking Wayne for not enlisting in World War II, which made the star feel guilty in his later years. His illiterate students include Hallie. Canton called this summer, feting Strode and the rest of the Forgotten Four at Johnson and Glauber's urging. Filmography - 1939: Stagecoach. In the twilight of his film career, Woody Strode reflected on the opportunities he was denied and others he seized. He was also in Key West (1973), Loaded Guns (1975), The Manhunter (1975), We Are No Angels (1975), Winterhawk (1975), Keoma (1976), episodes of The Quest (1976) and How the West Was Won (1977), Oil (1977), Martinelli, Outside Man (1977), Kingdom of the Spiders (1977), Cowboy-San! At UCLA he was a track star, a football phenomenon and a performer on the Royce stage. "And this is not being facetious, but Mr. Ford defended me; and I don't know that this is going on. An able stuntman, Strode shot fire arrows and went so far as to bring his own 80-pound bows to set, he told The New York Times in 1971. View agent, publicist, legal and company contact details on IMDbPro, Movie Images: My Favorite Film Characters of All-Time! The roles he was offered fell within those limited, though notable range. DON'T MISSJohn Wayne: The Searchers set revelation that saw John Ford speechless[THE SEARCHERS]How the West Was Won: Idiot drunk producer, near-death and more[HOW THE WEST WAS WON]John Wayne: Why Elvis turned down Dukes offer to co-star in Western[ELVIS]. As James Stewart explained it, Woody Strode, the actor who was playing Waynes characters best friend, was part of the scene. I'd play a Viking with blue contact lenses and a blond wig if I could. Strode was in Storyville (1992), and Posse (1992), working with director Mario Van Peebles. He was reluctant until they offered him $500 a week. He wrestled intermittently, once defeating Gorgeous George. Prior to 1946, he played semi-pro football. Strode was next cast in Spartacus (1960) as the Ethiopian gladiator Draba, in which he has to fight Spartacus (played by Kirk Douglas) to the death. Keyshawn Johnson wrote a book about them. "But the producers answered, 'Not necessary. Strodes best known role was the gladiator Draba in Stanley Kubricks Sparticus (1960). Trapped for life. Look instead at a debate that continues between the lawyer and the farmer about guns. Tom could stand up to Valance, but it would suit him to have Stoddard out of the way so that he could bring Hallie home to that porch with its rocking chair. He is a member of famous Actor with the age 80 years old group. Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore. Stagecoach (1939 trailer screenshots) (11 F) Media in category "Stagecoach (1939 film)" The following 4 files are in this category, out of 4 total. We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. Three men stand at the center of the story: Stoddard, Doniphon, and Valance. In movies and life, Strode's range was remarkable. Then he asked someone to blow a whistle, which they did, and he called out, Everybody, would you please gather around? So they did. However, by the early 1960s, when Ford was in his late 60s and nearing the end of his long career, the director seemed to have mellowed with age, discovering and exploring a more humanist side to himself. I've done everything but play an Anglo-Saxon. Posed for one of two paintings commissioned by, Reportedly, his favorite film from his career was, Played college football for the UCLA Bruins, the most integrated collegiate team in the nation in 1939, which included future NFL running back. I had the greatest Glory Hallelujah ride across the Pecos River that any black man ever had on the screen. My dream is to play a Mexican bandit in the international market."[20]. But by 1946, Strode was 32 and the oldest member of the Rams as a rookie. And I went on, and it went around the company: Stewart has never, hes always right up there., The day before the movie finished shooting, the cast was preparing to do the funeral scene. What is it whats the idea? And I said, I dont know!, And I didnt know, Stewart added. TVTropes is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. Caleb Williams: 'I'd probably go to the Dolphins' if given c LSU's Nabers won't face charges after weapon arrest, Willie Taggart hired as Ravens' RBs coach, Florida loses defensive coordinator Patrick Toney to NFL, LSU's Nabers charged with illegal carrying of a weapon, Revamped AAC releases 2023 slate with 6 new schools. http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Creator/WoodyStrode. Robinson debuted in the majors with the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947, breaking the color barrier in that sport several months after his Bruins teammates reached the NFL. Red Haircrow, Other Works The role set his Hollywood career in motion. He also did professional wrestling and reportedly tussled with the renowned Gorgeous George. At 6-foot-4 and 210 pounds, Strode was an athletic marvel in his prime. The expansion Browns, trying to build a winner in the upstart All-America Football Conference, added Motley and Willis and went on to claim four straight league championships before the AAFC and NFL merged. Which is sort of remarkable, because they love each other. When a meeting is held to vote on statehood, Pompey sits outside on the porch. "Race is not a factor in the world market," he said in 1981. He went on to depict myriad gunslingers at home and abroad. He stayed in Europe to make another Western The Unholy Four (1970) and went back to Hollywood to do a TV movie Breakout (1970) and two Westerns The Deserter (also known as "The Devil's Backbone") (1971), and The Gatling Gun (1971). Strode landed a major starring role as an expert archer and soldier of fortune in the 1966 Western The Professionals. Strode and teammate Kenny Washington were among the best-known college football players in the nation. Though he made films in every genre, from dramas to historical epics, romances and even comedies, Ford has been justifiably associated with the western film and is considered one of the greatest and most influential directors in that genre, directing so many that Ford once said of himself, My Name is John Ford. How tall was Woody Strode? He shared a story from the set of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Fords 1962 film about an attorney (Stewart) who, robbed and left for dead by a notorious outlaw, is saved by a rancher (Wayne) and has to start over from scratch. I'd play a Viking with blue contact lenses and a blond wig.". I couldn't do it. In 1964, there was his penultimate work, the nearly three-hour-long roadshow western epic Cheyenne Autumn, complete with an intermission, a70MM Super Panavision print, released by Warners, which told the true story of a Cheyenne tribe who travel by foot across 1,500 miles back to their ancestral hunting grounds, while US Army troops are ordered to send them back by force if necessary. Cuenta con una puntuacin bastante buena en IMDb: 7.8 estrellas de 10. Reveling in the win postgame, Strode rode a horse into the lobby of the team hotel. I'd do that if I could. Strode, a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, died of lung cancer in Los Angeles in 1994 at the age of 80. In fact Ford started out his film career as a actor and stuntman in silent films, including D.W. Griffiths notorious The Birth of Nation as one of the Klansmen who comes to the rescue to save the lives of white people under threat by violent renegade black men. He was a decathlete and football star who was one of the first Black American players in the National Football League in the postwar era. Who Is Woody Strode's Wife? Whistlin' Dan: 1932: Stagecoach Man in saloon : 1939: Sundown Tribal Policeman: 1941: Star Spangled Rhythm Rochester's motorcycle chauffeur: 1942: Bride of the Gorilla Nedo - Policeman: 1951: Lion Hunters Walu: 1951: "You can't tell the story of the National Football League without telling the story of these four men," he added. Born in Los Angeles in 1914, Woodrow Wilson Woolwine Strode died at age 80 on New Year's Eve 1994. Also, he appeared in several episodes of the 19521954 television series Ramar of the Jungle, where he portrayed an African warrior.
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