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Batjac
Batjac Productions is an independent film production company co-founded by John Wayne in 1952 as a vehicle for Wayne to both produce and star in movies. The first Batjac production was ''Big Jim McLain'' released by Warner Bros. in 1952, and its final film was ''McQ'', in 1974, also distributed by Warner Bros. After John Wayne's death in 1979, his son Michael Wayne owned and managed the company until his own death in 2003, when his wife Gretchen assumed ownership. About the company Wayne and producer Robert Fellows founded Batjac in 1952 as ''Wayne/Fellows Productions''. When Fellows left the company several years later, Wayne renamed the corporation after a fictitious trading company mentioned in the film ''Wake of the Red Witch'' (1948). The company name in ''Wake of the Red Witch'' was spelled Batjak, but Wayne's secretary misspelled it as Batjac on the corporation papers, and Wayne let it stand. Having his own company was intended to give Wayne artistic control over the films ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
McLintock!
:''See also McClintock (other)'' ''McLintock!'' is a 1963 American Western (genre), Western comedy film, comedy film, starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, directed by Andrew V. McLaglen. The film co-stars Wayne's son Patrick Wayne, Stefanie Powers, Jack Kruschen, Chill Wills, and Yvonne DeCarlo (billed as special guest star). Loosely based on William Shakespeare's ''The Taming of the Shrew'', the project was filmed in Technicolor and Panavision, and produced by Wayne's company, Batjac Productions. In 1991, the film entered the List of films in the public domain in the United States, public domain in the United States because the claimants did not renew its copyright registration in the 28th year after publication. Plot Tough cattle baron and town namesake George Washington "G.W." McLintock lives as a bachelor on his ranch. His wife, Katherine "Kate" McLintock, abandoned him with no explanation and become a socialite out East two years prior; his daughter, Rebec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The High And The Mighty (film)
''The High and the Mighty'' is a 1954 American aviation disaster film, directed by William A. Wellman, and written by Ernest K. Gann, who also wrote the 1953 novel on which his screenplay was based. Filmed in WarnerColor and CinemaScope, the film's cast was headlined by John Wayne, who was also the project's co-producer. Wayne stars as a veteran airline first officer, Dan Roman, whose airliner has a catastrophic engine failure while crossing the Pacific Ocean. The film's supporting cast includes Claire Trevor, Laraine Day, Robert Stack, Jan Sterling, Phil Harris, and Robert Newton. Composer Dimitri Tiomkin won an Oscar for his original score, while his title song was also nominated for an Oscar; it did not actually appear in the theatrical release prints, nor in its much later restoration. The film received mostly positive reviews and grossed $8.5 million on its theatrical release. Plot In Honolulu, a DC-4 airliner prepares to take off for San Francisco with 17 passengers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hondo (film)
''Hondo'' is a 1953 Warnercolor 3D Western film directed by John Farrow and starring John Wayne and Geraldine Page. The screenplay is based on the 1952 ''Collier's'' short story "The Gift of Cochise" by Louis L'Amour. The book ''Hondo'' was a novelization of the film also written by L'Amour, and published by Gold Medal Books in 1953. The supporting cast features Ward Bond, James Arness and Leo Gordon. The shoot went over schedule, and Farrow had to leave the production as he was contractually obligated to direct another movie. The final scenes featuring the Apache attack on the circled wagons of the Army and settlers were shot by John Ford, whom Wayne had asked to finish the film; Ford was uncredited for this work. Plot summary Homesteader Angie Lowe (Geraldine Page) and her 6 year-old son Johnny (Lee Aaker) are doing chores when Hondo Lane (John Wayne) arrives, carrying his saddle bags and rifle, accompanied by his dog Sam. He was riding dispatch for the US Army Cavalry, had ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Alamo (1960 Film)
''The Alamo'' is a 1960 American epic historical war film about the 1836 Battle of the Alamo produced and directed by John Wayne and starring Wayne as Davy Crockett. The film also co-stars Richard Widmark as Jim Bowie and Laurence Harvey as William B. Travis, and features Frankie Avalon, Patrick Wayne, Linda Cristal, Joan O'Brien, Chill Wills, Joseph Calleia, Ken Curtis, Ruben Padilla as Santa Anna, and Richard Boone as Sam Houston. Shot in 70 mm Todd-AO by William H. Clothier, it was released by United Artists. Plot The film depicts the Battle of the Alamo and the events leading up to it. Sam Houston leads the forces of Texas against Mexico and needs time to build an army. The opposing Mexican forces, led by General Santa Anna, are numerically stronger as well as better-armed and -trained. Nevertheless, the Texans have spirit and morale remains generally high. Lieutenant Colonel William Travis is tasked with defending the Alamo, a former mission in San Antonio. Jim B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Escort West
''Escort West'' is a 1959 American Western film directed by Francis D. Lyon, and starring Victor Mature, Faith Domergue, and Elaine Stewart. The movie is set after the U.S. Civil War, when a former Confederate officer, played by Victor Mature, and his daughter help some survivors of an Indian massacre. The film was released by United Artists on January 23, 1959. It was the second of two co-productions between Batjac and Romina Productions. Their first was '' China Doll'' (1957). The movie was filmed largely on the Iverson Movie Ranch in Chatsworth, California, with additional footage shot on the nearby Bell Moving Picture Ranch. The site of the Bell Ranch location shoot remained a mystery for decades until it was discovered on an expedition by film location researchers in early 2015. The researchers found the location by using information from "Escort West" and the first Elvis Presley movie, '' Love Me Tender'', which filmed its climactic sequence at the same site, known as the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gun The Man Down
''Gun the Man Down'' is a 1956 Western film directed by Andrew V. McLaglen and starring James Arness and Angie Dickinson in her first leading role. The film was produced by Robert E. Morrison for his brother John Wayne's company Batjac Productions. It was the second theatrical feature directed by McLaglen, who was a prolific director of television westerns. Plot Three outlaws rob a bank, but one of them is wounded. His two partners kidnap his girlfriend, take his share of the money and run off, leaving him to be captured by the sheriff. One year later, after he gets out of prison, he goes in search of his double-crossing partners and his girlfriend. He finds them in a semi-deserted, run-down town, but instead of killing them right away, he decides to play cat-and-mouse with them first. Editing mistake: In a scene 10 minutes before the film's end, the three outlaws are hiding in a bouldered hollow. Dickenson's character yells out "Rem look out!", as she runs toward Renkin who sh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
China Doll (film)
''China Doll'' (a.k.a. ''Time Is a Memory'') is a 1958 romantic drama film set in the China Burma India Theater of World War II and starring Victor Mature and Li Li-Hua. It represented a return to films for director Frank Borzage who had taken a 10-year hiatus before tackling this poignant, yet "offbeat" film. The film's copyright was renewed. Plot In 1943, Captain Cliff Brandon (Victor Mature) is a cargo aircraft pilot supplying the Allied troops fighting the Japanese in China. When he is not flying or training his new crew hard, he is usually drinking in the local bar. One night, while stumbling home drunk, he encounters an old Chinese man who offers him a girl, his daughter Shu-Jen (Li Li-Hua). Brandon pays him, but when he sees the young woman, he tells the old man to keep her. When he wakes up the next morning, he finds Shu-Jen there. After Father Cairns (Ward Bond), a longtime resident of China, expresses his disapproval, Brandon tries his best to get rid of her, assigning ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Track Of The Cat
''Track of the Cat'' is a 1954 American Western film directed by William A. Wellman and starring Robert Mitchum, Teresa Wright and Diana Lynn. The film is based on a 1949 adventure novel of the same name by Walter Van Tilburg Clark. This was Wellman's second adaptation of a Clark novel; the first was ''The Ox-Bow Incident'' in 1943. ''Track of the Cat'' was produced by John Wayne and Robert Fellows for their production company Batjac Productions. Plot The squabbling Bridges family spends a harsh winter on their remote ranch in Northern California in the early years of the 20th century. Crude and quarrelsome middle brother Curt bullies his noble, unselfish eldest brother Arthur, while youngest brother Harold endures Curt's abuse in browbeaten silence. Their mother is a bigoted religious zealot and their father is a loquacious, self-pitying drunk. Bitter old-maid sister Grace is temporarily gladdened by the arrival of Harold’s fiancée, the spirited Gwen. The family's hired Ind ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Wayne
Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Golden Age, especially in Western and war movies. His career flourished from the silent era of the 1920s through the American New Wave, as he appeared in a total of 179 film and television productions. He was among the top box-office draws for three decades, and he appeared with many other important Hollywood stars of his era. In 1999, the American Film Institute selected Wayne as one of the greatest male stars of classic American cinema. Wayne was born in Winterset, Iowa, but grew up in Southern California. After losing his football scholarship to the University of Southern California from a bodysurfing accident, he began working for the Fox Film Corporation. He appeared mostly in small parts, but his first leading role came in Raoul Wal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Man In The Vault
''Man in the Vault'' is a 1956 film noir about a locksmith, played by William Campbell, who is forced to help gangsters commit a robbery. The screenplay by Burt Kennedy was based on the novel ''The Lock and the Key'' by Frank Gruber. The film was the directorial debut of Andrew V. McLaglen. Plot Willis Trent wants to rob the safety deposit box of a crooked Los Angeles businessman, Paul De Camp. He has lawyer Earl Farraday smooth-talk the guy's girlfriend, the two-timing Flo Randall, into revealing the bank box's number. Now they need a locksmith. A henchman called Herbie is sent to find one. He settles on Tommy Dancer, who works in a bowling alley. Tommy is quickly smitten with Earl's girl Betty Turner, but is a law-abiding citizen and rejects an offer of $5,000. Tommy takes Betty to the Hollywood Bowl and learns she comes from a wealthy family. Tommy's attentions to her get him a beating from Louie, another big thug. He is told Betty's face will be disfigured if he refuses to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Big Jake (film)
''Big Jake'' is a 1971 American Technicolor Western film starring John Wayne, Richard Boone and Maureen O'Hara. The picture was the final film for George Sherman in a directing career of more than 30 years. It grossed $7.5 million in the US, making it one of the biggest hits of that year. The supporting cast features Patrick Wayne, Christopher Mitchum, Glenn Corbett, Jim Davis, John Agar, Harry Carey Jr. and Hank Worden. Plot In 1909, near the Mexico-United States border, Martha McCandles runs a massive ranch with the help of her sons Jeff, Michael, and James. The Fain Gang (The Fain Brothers, the Devries Brothers, John Goodfellow, Kid Duffy, Breed O'Brien, Pop Dawson, and Trooper) attacks the ranch, brutally slaying many members of the staff. Jeff kills the Devries brothers, but is badly wounded; his son, Jacob "Little Jake" McCandles, is kidnapped before the gang flees to Mexico, leaving behind a ransom note for $1 million ($30.6 million today). Martha places the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wake Of The Red Witch
''Wake of the Red Witch'' is a 1948 American adventure film directed by Edward Ludwig, produced by Edmund Grainger and starring John Wayne, Gail Russell, Gig Young, Adele Mara and Luther Adler. It is based upon the 1946 novel of the same name written by Garland Roark. The film is one of the few A-level features produced by Republic Pictures, as it had a relatively high production budget. It became one of Republic' most successful releases. John Wayne stars as a sea captain in the early 1860s East Indies seeking revenge against a wealthy shipping magnate. Plot Two men of the sea carry an ongoing rivalry: Mayrant Sidneye, owner of the shipping company Batjak Limited, and Captain Ralls. Ralls is the ruthless captain of the ''Red Witch'', Batjak's flagship. He deliberately wrecks and sinks the ship and its cargo of gold bullion worth five million dollars. He escapes a charge of barratry when Batjak unexpectedly withdraws its complaint. Ralls and his first mate Sam Rosen become fis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
