''Thunderhead, Son of Flicka'' is a 1945 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
Louis King
Louis King (June 28, 1898 – September 7, 1962) was an American actor and film director of westerns and adventure movies in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. and starring
Roddy McDowall
Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 4 October 1998) was a British actor, photographer and film director. He began his acting career as a child in England, and then in the United States, in ''How Green Was My Valley'' (1 ...
,
Preston Foster
Preston Stratton Foster (August 24, 1900 – July 14, 1970), was an American actor of stage, film, radio, and television, whose career spanned nearly four decades. He also had a career as a vocalist.
Early life
Born in Ocean City, New Jersey ...
, and
Rita Johnson
Rita may refer to:
People
* Rita (given name)
* Rita (Indian singer) (born 1984)
* Rita (Israeli singer) (born 1962)
* Rita (Japanese singer)
* Eliza Humphreys (1850–1938), wrote under the pseudonym Rita
Places
* Djarrit, also known as Rita, a ...
. It is a sequel to the 1943 film ''
My Friend Flicka
''My Friend Flicka'' is a 1941 novel by Mary O'Hara, about Ken McLaughlin, the son of a Wyoming rancher, and his mustang horse Flicka. It was the first in a trilogy, followed by ''Thunderhead'' (1943) and ''Green Grass of Wyoming'' (1946). The p ...
'' (
parodied
A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its subj ...
in 2006 as ''
Flicka
''Flicka'' is a 2006 American family adventure drama film loosely based on the 1941 children's novel ''My Friend Flicka'' by Mary O'Hara. The film is directed by Michael Mayer and written by Mark Rosenthal and Lawrence Konner. The novel had prev ...
''). The film was adapted to screen by Dwight Cummins and Dorothy Yost from
Mary O'Hara
Mary O'Hara (born 12 May 1935) is an Irish soprano and harpist from County Sligo. She gained attention on both sides of the Atlantic in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Her recordings of that period influenced a generation of Irish female singer ...
's novel, ''Thunderhead'' (1943), second in a trilogy with ''
My Friend Flicka
''My Friend Flicka'' is a 1941 novel by Mary O'Hara, about Ken McLaughlin, the son of a Wyoming rancher, and his mustang horse Flicka. It was the first in a trilogy, followed by ''Thunderhead'' (1943) and ''Green Grass of Wyoming'' (1946). The p ...
'' (1941) and ''
Green Grass of Wyoming
''Green Grass of Wyoming'' is a 1948 American Western film directed by Louis King and starring Peggy Cummins, Charles Coburn and Robert Arthur.
The screenplay, written by Martin Berkeley, is based on the third book in the popular, "My Friend ...
'' (1946).
Plot
Ken McLaughlin's (
Roddy McDowall
Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 4 October 1998) was a British actor, photographer and film director. He began his acting career as a child in England, and then in the United States, in ''How Green Was My Valley'' (1 ...
)
mustang
The mustang is a free-roaming horse of the Western United States, descended from horses brought to the Americas by the Spanish. Mustangs are often referred to as wild horses, but because they are descended from once-domesticated animals, they ...
mare
A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...
Flicka gives birth to an all-white colt that, unknown to Ken's dad, Rob (
Preston Foster
Preston Stratton Foster (August 24, 1900 – July 14, 1970), was an American actor of stage, film, radio, and television, whose career spanned nearly four decades. He also had a career as a vocalist.
Early life
Born in Ocean City, New Jersey ...
), was actually sired by a neighboring rancher's
thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...
racehorse, Appalachia, rather than Rob's own
stallion
A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded (castrated).
Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" nec ...
, Banner. The colt, nicknamed "Goblin", proves to be difficult, but Ken trains him to race. Ken's mother, Nell (
Rita Johnson
Rita may refer to:
People
* Rita (given name)
* Rita (Indian singer) (born 1984)
* Rita (Israeli singer) (born 1962)
* Rita (Japanese singer)
* Eliza Humphreys (1850–1938), wrote under the pseudonym Rita
Places
* Djarrit, also known as Rita, a ...
), officially names the colt Thunderhead after the billowing white clouds she sees overhead. Thunderhead is entered into his first race with Ken as the jockey, but he suffers an injury, ending his racing career.
Meanwhile, the Albino, a wild mustang stallion that has been raiding local ranchers' herds for years, steals Rob's best mares and kills Banner, putting the family near bankruptcy. The Albino is also Thunderhead's grand-sire. Rob, Ken, and the ranch hands search for the mares, but during the night, Thunderhead gets loose and runs off.
Tracking Thunderhead on foot to a secluded valley, Ken discovers the Albino's herd, including his father's horses. The Albino attacks Ken, but Thunderhead fights and kills the Albino, saving Ken's life.
Rob and the others arrive as Thunderhead rounds up the Albino's herd, heading them to the McLaughlin ranch. But once there, Thunderhead is uneasy. Rob tells Ken that Thunderhead is a king now and wants to roam his realm. Ken removes Thunderhead's halter, freeing him.
Cast
*
Roddy McDowall
Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 4 October 1998) was a British actor, photographer and film director. He began his acting career as a child in England, and then in the United States, in ''How Green Was My Valley'' (1 ...
as Ken McLaughlin
*
Preston Foster
Preston Stratton Foster (August 24, 1900 – July 14, 1970), was an American actor of stage, film, radio, and television, whose career spanned nearly four decades. He also had a career as a vocalist.
Early life
Born in Ocean City, New Jersey ...
as Rob McLaughlin
*
Rita Johnson
Rita may refer to:
People
* Rita (given name)
* Rita (Indian singer) (born 1984)
* Rita (Israeli singer) (born 1962)
* Rita (Japanese singer)
* Eliza Humphreys (1850–1938), wrote under the pseudonym Rita
Places
* Djarrit, also known as Rita, a ...
as Nelle McLaughlin
*
James Bell as Gus
*
Patti Hale
Patti Hale (born Diana Schultz; November 30, 1933) is an American retired actress and singer currently living in Nevada.
Born Diana Schultz in Toledo, Ohio, she began her show business career in local radio shows as well as theatre productions. ...
as Hildy (as Diana Hale)
*
Carleton Young
Captain Carleton Scott Young (October 21, 1905 – November 7, 1994) was an American character actor who was known for his deep voice.
Early years
Born in Fulton, Oswego, New York, Young was the second and only surviving child of St ...
as Maj. Harris
*
Ralph Sanford
Ralph Dayton Sanford (May 21, 1899 – June 20, 1963) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 180 films and in at least 200 episodes on television between 1930 and 1960, mostly bit parts or supporting roles. Sanford frequently ...
as Charlie Sargent
Filming and production
The film was shot on location at various sites, including the following:
*Oregon:
Bridal Veil Falls Bridal Veil Falls, Bridalveil Falls or Bridalveil Fall is a frequently-used name for waterfalls that observers fancy resemble a bride's veil:
Australia
* Bridal Veil Falls, Leura, in the Blue Mountains National Park, New South Wales
* Govetts Le ...
at
Oneonta Gorge __NOTOC__
Oneonta Gorge is a scenic gorge located in the Columbia River Gorge area of the American state of Oregon. The U.S. Forest Service has designated it as a botanical area because of the unique aquatic and woodland plants that grow there ...
and the Multnomah County Fairgrounds near
Gresham, Oregon
Gresham ( ) is a city located in Multnomah County, Oregon, in the United States of America, immediately east of Portland, Oregon. It is considered a suburb within the Greater Portland Metropolitan area. Though it began as a settlement in the mid- ...
*California: Brent's Crags,
Hidden Valley, and
Hollywood Park Racetrack
Hollywood Park was a thoroughbred race course located in Inglewood, California, about 3 miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport and adjacent to the Forum indoor arena. In 1994, the original Hollywood Park Casino was added to the ...
*Utah:
Zion National Park
Zion National Park is an American national park located in southwestern Utah near the town of Springdale. Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert regions, the park has a unique geography and a variety ...
,
Kanab
Kanab ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Kane County, Utah, Kane County, Utah, United States.[Find a Co ...]
,
Bryce Canyon National Park
Bryce Canyon National Park () is an American national park located in southwestern Utah. The major feature of the park is Bryce Canyon, which despite its name, is not a canyon, but a collection of giant natural amphitheaters along the eastern ...
, Red Rock Canyon,
Navajo Lake
Navajo Lake is a reservoir located in San Juan County and Rio Arriba County in northwestern New Mexico, in the southwestern United States. Portions of the reservoir extend into Archuleta County in southern Colorado. The lake is part of the C ...
, Glendale Gorge,
Cedar City
Cedar City is the largest city in Iron County, Utah, United States. It is located south of Salt Lake City, and north of Las Vegas on Interstate 15. It is the home of Southern Utah University, the Utah Shakespeare Festival, the Utah Summer Gam ...
, and
Cedar Breaks National Monument
Cedar Breaks National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in the U.S. state of Utah near Cedar City. Cedar Breaks is a natural amphitheater, stretching across , with a depth of over . The elevation of the rim of the amphitheater is over ...
*Additional scenes were shot in Duck Creek, Nevada
This was the first "Color by Technicolor" feature film to be photographed entirely on
35mm 35 mm may refer to:
* 135 film, a type of still photography format commonly referred to as 35 mm film
* 35 mm movie film, a type of motion picture film stock
* 35MM 35 mm may refer to:
* 135 film, a type of still photography format ...
color
Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associ ...
film, in this case Technicolor
(Monopack) motion picture film. Earlier Technicolor features used black and white negative film photographed behind color filters, or used Monopack only for certain sequences.
Release
The movie was released on
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...
and
Blu-ray
The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...
on February 22, 2005.
References
External links
*
*
*
{{Louis King
1945 films
Films about horses
Films set in Wyoming
1940s English-language films
Films based on American novels
American sequel films
Films directed by Louis King
Films shot in Oregon
Films with screenplays by Dorothy Yost
Films shot in Utah
Films based on works by Mary O'Hara
Films shot in Wyoming
American Western (genre) films
1945 Western (genre) films
20th Century Fox films
1940s American films