''Fools' Parade'' is a 1971 American crime-drama period film directed by

Andrew McLaglen Andrew Victor McLaglen (July 28, 1920 – August 30, 2014) was a British-born American film and television director, known for Westerns and adventure films, often starring John Wayne or James Stewart. According to one obituary "His career ...

, with top-billed stars

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality h ...

and

George Kennedy George Harris Kennedy Jr. (February 18, 1925 – February 28, 2016) was an American actor who appeared in more than 100 film and television productions. He played "Dragline" opposite Paul Newman in ''Cool Hand Luke'' (1967), winning the Academ ...

, and second-tier stars Strother Martin,

Kurt Russell Kurt Vogel Russell (born March 17, 1951) is an American actor. He began acting on television at the age of 12 in the Westerns on television, western series ''The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters (TV series), The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters'' (19 ...

, William Windom,

Mike Kellin Mike Kellin (born Myron Kellin, April 26, 1922 – August 26, 1983) was an American actor. Early life Kellin was born in Hartford, Connecticut, the son of Sophia and Samuel Kellin, Russian-Jewish immigrants. His younger sister, Shirley Ann ...

and

Anne Baxter Anne Baxter (May 7, 1923 – December 12, 1985) was an American actress, star of Hollywood films, Broadway productions, and television series. She won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe, and was nominated for an Emmy. A granddaughter of Fra ...

. It was based on the novel of the same name by

Davis Grubb Davis Alexander Grubb (July 23, 1919 – July 24, 1980) was an American novelist and short story writer, best known for his 1953 novel '' The Night of the Hunter'', which was adapted as a film in 1955 by Charles Laughton. Biography Born in M ...

. The film is also known as ''Dynamite Man from Glory Jail''.

Plot

In 1935, the one-eyed murderer Mattie Appleyard who refers to his obviously unmatched glass eye with the persona "Tighe" (

), bank robber Lee Cottrill ( Strother Martin), and a young convict by the name of Johnny Jesus (

) are released on the same day from the West Virginia State Penitentiary, located in the fictional town of Glory. Appleyard is issued a check for $25,452.32 for his 40 years of prison work, an enormous amount in the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. The released prisoners Appleyard and Cottrill have been long planning to establish and work together in their own independent retail grocery store that is to be located in a distant West Virginia coal camp community that, to that time. is only served by a coal company store. All three of the released men are escorted by prison Captain and

Sunday School A Sunday school is an educational institution, usually (but not always) Christian in character. Other religions including Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism have also organised Sunday schools in their temples and mosques, particularly in the West. Su ...

teacher "Doc" Council (

) to the local train station in the fictional Glory, West Virginia. Sometime after departing from Glory on the train, Appleyard realizes that his check is only redeemable in person back at the local bank in Glory. Council has previously plotted with Glory banker Homer Grindstaff ( David Huddleston) to ensure the check is never cashed and accepts a cash advance from Grindstaff for the anticipated killing of Appleyard, Cottrill and Johny Jesus. Council then tells Grindstaff that this blood money, in part, will go toward missionary funding and vacation bible school. Council and his accomplices, Steve Mystic (

) and a "nice religious boy" and cracked ice-sucking radio singer by the name of Junior Kilfong (

Morgan Paull Morgan Paull (December 15, 1944 – July 17, 2012) was an American actor most notable for playing Dave Holden in the Ridley Scott film ''Blade Runner''. Early life Morgan Paull was born to a wealthy family in Wheeling, West Virginia and ...

), travel to another stop down the line in order to kill Appleyard, Cottrill, and Johnny Jesus at night. Mystic has previously told Kilfong at some point that Appleyard, Cottrill, and Johnny Jesus are all atheists, and somewhere at a depot down the line from Glory, the uncertain Kilfong asks Mystic to confirm to him that the three released prisoners are atheists. Informed of the plot by guilt-ridden conductor Willis Hubbard ( Robert Donner), the three former prisoners thwart the plan. Kilfong ends up shooting mining supply salesman Roy K. Sizemore ( William Windom). Council kills the wounded Sizemore and places the blame on Appleyard, who escapes with Sizemore's supply of dynamite. The next day, Council goes to the bank to update Grindstaff. As they talk, Appleyard walks in with some of the dynamite strapped to his chest and the remainder in a suitcase. Appleyard threatens to blow them all up "and half this city block" if the banker does not cash his check. Grindstaff reluctantly complies. Appleyard and his friends, who followed him back to Glory, split up, planning to meet again later. While waiting at the rendezvous, Cottrill is talked into boarding a

houseboat A houseboat is a boat that has been designed or modified to be used primarily as a home. Most houseboats are not motorized as they are usually moored or kept stationary at a fixed point, and often tethered to land to provide utilities. How ...

owned by a down-on-her-luck prostitute named Cleo (

) for a drink of whiskey. Also aboard is Chanty (

Katherine Cannon Katherine Cannon (born September 6, 1953 in Hartford, Connecticut) is an American actress. Career Cannon's early roles included ''Hawaii Five-O (1968 TV series), Hawaii Five-O'' (episode: "Time and Memories", 10/7/1970); ''Fools' Parade'' (1971 ...

), a sixteen-year-old whom Cleo has taken in, hoping to sell her virginity for $100. Appleyard and Johnny show up, only to be tracked down by Council and his bloodhound. The three friends get away in a skiff, leaving behind the suitcase of dynamite. Johnny is worried about what Council will do to Chanty, so they turn around and go back after Council leaves. Before leaving, Council has told Cleo about Appleyard's money. At gunpoint, Appleyard gives her the suitcase that she believes contains the money in exchange for Chanty. After they leave, Cleo tries to shoot the locked suitcase open and blows herself up. The fugitives are later trapped on a boxcar by Council. The train is a "fools' parade" as described by Appleyard, going nowhere beyond the local train yard. Luckily for them, guilt-ridden train conductor Willis Hubbard returns and helps them escape. However, he is too afraid of Council to tell the police what he knows. Council, Mystic, and Kilfong track them to an abandoned house. Council decides he does not want to share the loot, so he kills his two confederates. He then shoots a window out, wounding Appleyard. Johnny throws a stick of dynamite at Council, only to have Council's bloodhound fetch it back. Appleyard hastily throws it out the window, killing Council. The men are arrested and Appleyard's money confiscated, but Hubbard confesses the truth, and Grindstaff is arrested. Appleyard and his friends are exonerated, and Appleyard is allowed to cash his check.

Cast

as Mattie Appleyard *

as "Doc" Council *

as Cleo * Strother Martin as Lee Cottrill *

as Johnny Jesus * William Windom as Roy K. Sizemore *

as Steve Mystic *

as Chanty *

as Junior Kilfong * Robert Donner as Willis Hubbard * David Huddleston as Homer Grindstaff *

James Lee Barrett James Lee Barrett (November 19, 1929 – October 15, 1989) was an American author, producer and screenwriter. Biography Barrett was born in 1929 in Charlotte, North Carolina and graduated in 1950 from Anderson University (South Carolina). ...

as Sonny Boy *Dort Clark as Enoch Purdy *Kitty Jefferson Doepken as Clara *Dwight McConnell as Station Master *Richard Carl as Police Chief *Arthur Cain as Prosecuting Attorney

Production

''Fools' Parade'' was filmed entirely in Marshall County, West Virginia. Davis Grubb, author of ''Fools' Parade'', was born and raised in

Moundsville Moundsville is a city in Marshall County, West Virginia, United States, along the Ohio River. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia metropolitan area. The population was 8,122 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Marshall County. T ...

, where most of the filming took place. The production crew used the

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the first common carrier railroad and the oldest railroad in the United States, with its first section opening in 1830. Merchants from Baltimore, which had benefited to some extent from the construction of ...

throughout filming, mainly at the Moundsville station, which was demolished in 1980.

Reception

Tony Mastroianni of the ''

Cleveland Press The ''Cleveland Press'' was a daily American newspaper published in Cleveland, Ohio from November 2, 1878, through June 17, 1982. From 1928 to 1966, the paper's editor was Louis B. Seltzer. Known for many years as one of the country's most in ...

'' said it "leans heavily on Stewart's skill, personality and built-in folksiness. Time and again he gives you the impression of an interesting character that really isn't there in the role." From the review in The Movie Scene: "James Stewart ... is central to the movie working, but it also features some nice and unexpected performances from the other stars such as Kurt Russell and George Kennedy. It also has a surprisingly good storyline which has a couple of layers of unexpected depth. Yet because some of it is played out for laughs it left me unsure...the light-hearted moments (seem) a bit strange..."

References

External links

* * * * *
''Fools' Parade''
at '' TVGuide'' (1987 write-up was originally published in ''

The Motion Picture Guide ''The Motion Picture Guide'' is a film reference work first published by Cinebooks in 1985. It was written by Jay Robert Nash, Stanley Ralph Ross, and Robert B. Connelly. It was annually updated through new volumes and had a CD-ROM version, whic ...

'') {{Andrew V. McLaglen 1971 films 1971 comedy-drama films American comedy-drama films American comedy thriller films Columbia Pictures films 1970s English-language films Films based on American novels Films directed by Andrew McLaglen Films set in 1935 Films set in West Virginia Films shot in West Virginia 1970s comedy thriller films 1970s American films