''Bugles in the Afternoon'' is a 1952 American

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

William Cagney William Jerome Cagney (March 26, 1905 – January 3, 1988) was an American film producer and actor, remembered for roles in the Monogram Pictures films '' Lost in the Stratosphere'' and '' Flirting with Danger'', both filmed in 1934. Career H ...

and starring

Ray Milland Ray Milland (born Alfred Reginald Jones; 3 January 1907 – 10 March 1986) was a Welsh-American actor and film director. His screen career ran from 1929 to 1985. He is remembered for his Academy Award and Cannes Film Festival Award-winning ...

, Helena Carter,

Hugh Marlowe Hugh Marlowe (born Hugh Herbert Hipple; January 30, 1911May 2, 1982) was an American film, television, stage and radio actor. Early life Marlowe was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was born Hugh Herbert Hipple. He was of primarily Engli ...

and

Forrest Tucker Forrest Meredith Tucker (February 12, 1919 – October 25, 1986) was an American actor in both movies and television who appeared in nearly a hundred films. Tucker worked as a vaudeville straight man at the age of fifteen. A mentor provided fund ...

, based on the 1943 novel by

Ernest Haycox Ernest James Haycox (October 1, 1899 – October 13, 1950) was an American writer of Western fiction. Biography Haycox was born in Portland, Oregon, to William James Haycox and the former Martha Burghardt on October 1, 1899.Corning, Howard M. (1 ...

. The story features the

Battle of the Little Big Horn The Battle of the Little Bighorn, known to the Lakota and other Plains Indians as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, and also commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, was an armed engagement between combined forces of the Lakota Sioux, Nort ...

Plot

A rivalry between two U.S. cavalry officers results in Capt. Kern Shafter being court martialed for striking a fellow officer, Lt. Edward Garnett, with a saber. Shafter claimed to be defending the honor of his fiancée. The court martial found Shafter guilty as charged and was dismissed from the US Army. After his dismissal from the Army, Shafter drifted for a while and then decides to enlist in the Army as a private. He chose to enlist at Fort Abraham Lincoln in the Dakota territory. On the trip Fort Lincoln, he meets a woman Josephine Russell when they were both waiting to board a stagecoach to Fargo. When they reached Bismarck in the Dakota territory, Shafter heads to

Fort Abraham Lincoln Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park is a North Dakota state park located south of Mandan, North Dakota, United States. The park is home to the replica Mandan On-A-Slant Indian Village and reconstructed military buildings including the Custer House. ...

and enlists in the 7th Cavalry. He is assigned to a company commanded by an old friend and former sergeant major, Capt. Myles Moylan, and given the rank of sergeant. He is pleased until he learns that Lt. Garnett is there at Fort Lincoln as well and is now a captain and commander of one of the companies assigned to the fort. Shafter makes friends with Private Donovan who was formerly a sergeant until he punched a sergeant major. The two of them are assigned to investigate the murder of local miners by Sioux tribesmen, leading to a dangerous encounter. When these risky missions continue, Capt. Moylan begins to realize that Garnett is deliberately putting Kern at risk. Moylan puts into motion an effort to clear Shafter. The feud escalates when Shafter discovers that Garnett also has romantic designs on Josephine. Unaware of the history between the two men, or of Garnett's true character, she feels that Shafter should be dealing with issues more reasonably. She is angered when Shafter strikes Garnett. The soldiers leave with Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer to engage the Sioux. Garnett deliberately puts Shafter, Donovan, and another soldier in danger by sending the three on a scouting mission, claiming there are no Sioux warriors in the vicinity. The three see their company fall back as they discover a large Sioux war party in their scouting area. After his friend Donovan is fatally wounded, Shafter is able to get back to his command, only to witness Custer's entire command killed in battle. Garnett pursues Shafter during a different skirmish with the Sioux, and the two scuffle until Shafter is knocked out by Garnett. When Garnett is about to drop a large rock on Shafter, a Sioux warrior fatally shoots Garnett. Capt. Moylan arrives and kills the warrior, and informs Shafter he saw the end of the fight with Garnett. The two then regroup with their command to fight the Sioux. Shafter is shot during this battle. Shafter and Moylan survive. Thanks to Moylan, Kern's reputation and rank of captain are restored and Josephine now sees Shafter as the man she wants.

Cast

as Sgt. Kern Shafter * Helena Carter as Josephine Russell *

as Capt. Edward Garnett *

as Pvt. Donovan *

Barton MacLane Barton MacLane (December 25, 1902 – January 1, 1969) was an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter. He appeared in many classic films from the 1930s through the 1960s, including his role as General Martin Peterson on the 1960s NBC ...

as Cap.

Myles Moylan Myles Moylan (December 17, 1838 – December 11, 1909) was a United States Army officer with an extensive military career, which included the battle of Gettysburg, and the battle of the Little Bighorn. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his ...

George Reeves George Reeves (born George Keefer Brewer; January 5, 1914 – June 16, 1959) was an American actor. He is best known for portraying Superman in the television series '' Adventures of Superman'' (1952–1958). His death at age 45 from a g ...

as Lt. Smith *

James Millican James Millican (February 17, 1911 – November 24, 1955) was an American actor with over 200 film appearances mostly in western movies. Millican was the son of Fred S. Millican, a circus owner, and Dorothy Millican. Millican was a clos ...

as Sgt. Hines * Gertrude Michael as May * Stuart Randall as Bannack Bill * William 'Bill' Phillips as Tinney *

Hugh Beaumont Eugene Hugh Beaumont (February 16, 1909 – May 14, 1982) was an American actor. He was best known for his portrayal of Ward Cleaver on the television series '' Leave It to Beaver'', originally broadcast from 1957 to 1963; and as private detec ...

as Lt. Cooke (uncredited) *

Walter Coy Walter Darwin Coy (January 31, 1909 – December 11, 1974) was an American stage, radio, film, and, principally, television actor, arguably most well known as John Wayne's character's brother in ''The Searchers'' (1956). Early years Originally ...

as Capt. Benteen (uncredited) * Charles Evans as Gen.

Terry Terry is a unisex given name, derived from French Thierry and Theodoric. It can also be used as a diminutive nickname for the names Teresa or Theresa (feminine) or Terence (given name), Terence or Terrier (masculine). People Male * Terry Albrit ...

(uncredited) * Sheb Wooley as

Custer George Armstrong Custer (December 5, 1839 – June 25, 1876) was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the American Indian Wars. Custer graduated from West Point in 1861 at the bottom of his class, b ...

(uncredited)

Production

Development

The film was based on a novel by Ernest Haycox which was published in 1944 and was serialised in ''The Saturday Evening Post''. The ''New York Times'' called it "competent". In May 1944

purchased the screen rights intending to make it a vehicle for his brother

James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor, dancer and film director. On stage and in film, Cagney was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He ...

. It would be the first of six films William Cagney would make for

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...

. The others would be ''

Blood on the Sun ''Blood on the Sun'' is a 1945 American war film directed by Frank Lloyd and starring James Cagney and Sylvia Sidney. The film is based on a fictional history behind the Tanaka Memorial document. The film won the Academy Award for Best Productio ...

'', ''

Only the Valiant ''Only the Valiant'', also known as ''Fort Invincible'', is a 1951 American Western (genre), Western film produced by William Cagney (younger brother of James Cagney), directed by Gordon Douglas (director), Gordon Douglas and starring Gregory P ...

'', ''Port Royal'', ''The Stray Lamb'' and an untitled mystery romance. In August 1944 Ring Lardner Jnr was assigned to write the script, which. was intended to star James Cagney. The movie was meant to follow ''Blood on the Sun'' but was put back when Cagney elected to make ''

The Time of Your Life ''The Time of Your Life'' is a 1939 five-act play by American playwright William Saroyan. The play is the first drama to win both the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. The play opened on Broadway theatre, Broa ...

'' instead. By March 1949 the Cagney deal with United Artists had ended and William Cagney signed a three-picture deal with Warner Bros; the films were to be ''Only the Valiant'', '' A Lion in the Streets'' and ''Bugles in the Afternoon''. In September 1950 William Cagney announced Harry Brown was writing the script. In February 1951 Warners announced that Harry Brown and Geoffrey Home had written the script and that filming would start in May. They hoped for

Errol Flynn Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (20 June 1909 – 14 October 1959) was an Australian-American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia ...

to play the lead. In April Roy Rowland, who had signed a long-term deal with Cagney Productions, was going to direct; he left for Utah to scout locations and Cagney were still hopeful Flynn would star. In April William Cagney announced he had signed Ray Milland to star and that Helena Carter, David Brian and Robert Preston would co star. (Carter had previously made ''Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye'' with Cagney., )

Ward Bond Wardell Edwin Bond (April 9, 1903 – November 5, 1960) was an American film character actor who appeared in more than 200 films and starred in the NBC television series ''Wagon Train'' from 1957 to 1960. Among his best-remembered roles are Ber ...

was also mentioned. Then by May Brian – who had refused to make the film and was put on suspension – was replaced by

borrowed from

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

and Bond – who had to go make ''

The Quiet Man ''The Quiet Man'' is a 1952 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by John Ford. It stars John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Barry Fitzgerald, Ward Bond and Victor McLaglen. The screenplay by Frank S. Nugent was based on a 1933 '' Saturday ...

'' was replaced by

. By June

joined the cast, presumably in the role intended for Preston.

Filming

Filming took place in June 1951. Parts of the film were shot in Johnson Canyon, Long Canyon, Asay Creek,

Kanab Kanab ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Kane County, Utah, Kane County, Utah, United States.Find a Co ...

Canyon, Aspen Mirror Lake, and Strawberry Valley in

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

. In late June, the unit returned from Utah.

References

External links

* * * {{Roy Rowland 1952 films 1952 Western (genre) films American Western (genre) films Cultural depictions of George Armstrong Custer Films based on American novels Films based on Western (genre) novels Films directed by Roy Rowland Films scored by Dimitri Tiomkin Films set in 1876 Films set in Montana Films set in North Dakota Films shot in Utah Films with screenplays by Harry Brown (writer) Warner Bros. films Western (genre) cavalry films 1950s American films