''A Thunder of Drums'' is a 1961 American

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film directed by Joseph Newman and starring

Richard Boone Richard Allen Boone (June 18, 1917 – January 10, 1981) was an American actor who starred in over 50 films and was notable for his roles in Westerns, including his starring role in the television series ''Have Gun – Will Travel''. Early lif ...

, George Hamilton,

Luana Patten Luana Patten (July 6, 1938 – May 1, 1996) was an American actress who appeared in films produced by Walt Disney Pictures, such as ''Song of the South'' (1946), ''Fun and Fancy Free'' (1947), and ''Melody Time'' (1948). Later in life, she pla ...

and

Arthur O'Connell Arthur Joseph O'Connell (March 29, 1908 – May 18, 1981) was an American stage, film and television actor, who achieved prominence in character roles in the 1950s. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for both ''Pic ...

. The screenwriter

James Warner Bellah James Warner Bellah (September 14, 1899 – September 22, 1976) was an American Western author from the 1930s to the 1950s. His pulp-fiction writings on cavalry and Indians were published in paperbacks or serialized in the '' Saturday Evenin ...

adapted it from his 1946 short story "Command".

Plot

In 1870 1st Lt. Curtis McQuade (Hamilton), a

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

officer without field experience, arrives from the East at Fort Canby, the remote, understaffed post where he was born as the son of the then-post commander. He attempts to adjust to this new life under the once-disgraced

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Maddocks (Boone), a wily but embittered veteran of Indian fighting who served under McQuade's father. They immediately clash when Maddocks demonstrates to the cocksure McQuade that the general knowledge of the West he gained as a child at Canby is not enough to permit him to command men in the field. On the day McQuade reports, Maddocks is burying four troopers from a patrol led by Lt. Porter (Chamberlain), killed in a running fight with a large band of "hostiles" believed to be

Comanche The Comanche or Nʉmʉnʉʉ ( com, Nʉmʉnʉʉ, "the people") are a Native American tribe from the Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the federally recognized Comanche Nation, headquartered in La ...

s. They have also brought back a severely traumatized little girl, the only survivor of the massacre of a family at a distant ranch. The funeral casts gloom on the otherwise festive visit of Tracey Hamilton, also from the East and soon to wed Maddocks' second-in-command, Lt. Tom Gresham (Douglas). McQuade had previously been romantically involved with Tracey and immediately renews their affair. Gresham is assigned to lead another patrol to the suspected location of the hostiles but on the evening of his departure discovers the affair and an ugly scene ensues. When Maddocks learns the next day that Gresham deviated from his orders, he leads McQuade and the troop in search of him without success. Finally one night they discover the bodies of Gresham and his men when they stop to bivouac. McQuade is shaken that his indiscretion may have caused Gresham to be dispirited and unwary but Maddocks is more pragmatic, disgusted that Gresham allowed himself to be fatally distracted. Prohibited by standing orders from conducting a retaliatory attack, Maddocks divides what is left of his troop, sending McQuade and nine men, including wise and seasoned 1st Sgt. Rodermill (O'Connell), to a nearby

mesa A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge or hill, which is bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas characteristically consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks capped by ...

as bait to lure the hostile band into attacking first. The tactic works but McQuade's small group is hard-pressed by their attackers. Maddocks arrives with the main body in time to win the engagement but Rodermill is killed. McQuade discovers that their opponents were not Comanches at all, but

Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño an ...

s, which Maddocks knew all along, having learned to "out-think them all." Maddocks is satisfied that a change in McQuade's attitude means that he is on the road to becoming a good officer. Upon his return to Canby, McQuade finds Tracey leaving, taking the little girl to her relatives in the East. Maddocks consoles McQuade with the thought that bachelors make the best soldiers because "they have nothing to lose but their loneliness."

Cast

Production

The film starred a number of young actors under contract to MGM including George Hamilton, Richard Chamberlain, Carole Wells and James Douglas. George Hamilton made the movie "to avoid the Ivy curse" and play a different kind of role.George Hamilton & William Stadiem, ''Don't Mind If I Do'', Simon & Schuster 2008 p 149 The movie is notable for starring three well-known actors in relatively minor roles.

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. Known for his "granite features and brawny physique," he gained international fame for his starring roles in action, Western, and war ...

of Death Wish fame and rock musician

Duane Eddy Duane Eddy (born April 26, 1938) is an American rock and roll guitarist. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, he had a string of hit records produced by Lee Hazlewood, which were noted for their characteristically "twangy" sound, including "Rebel- ...

star as troopers, while

Richard Chamberlain George Richard Chamberlain (born March 31, 1934) is an American actor and singer, who became a teen idol in the title role of the television show ''Dr. Kildare'' (1961–1966). He subsequently appeared in several TV mini-series, such as ''Shōg ...

portrays Lieutenant Porter.

Slim Pickens Louis Burton Lindley Jr. (June 29, 1919 – December 8, 1983), better known by his stage name Slim Pickens, was an American actor and rodeo performer. Starting off in the rodeo, Pickens transitioned to acting and appeared in dozens of movies and ...

and

also had roles. It was Robert Enders' first movie as an independent producer for MGM. A Thunder of Drums is the second time the story hit the moving pictures. "

The Best of the Post ''The Best of the Post'' is a syndicated anthology drama television series adapted from stories published in the '' Saturday Evening Post'' magazine. It was produced by John J. Enders and hosted by John Conte. A total of 26 half-hour episodes, ...

, season 1, episode 1, Command" (hard to find but available online), told the same story with more familiar names.

Box office

According to MGM records, the film recorded a loss of $42,000..

References

External links