I just watched a little movie from 1951 called Callaway Went Thataway. The film takes advantage of the growing popularity of television to tell the story of two television producers (Fred MacMurray and Dorothy McGuire) who find success when they repackage old cowboy movies starring Smokey Callaway into a daily TV show. When network big-wigs want to usher the real Smokey Callaway out of retirement and make new, made-for-tv "Callaway Went Thataway" movies, he's nowhere to be found. MacMurray and McGuire hire an actual cowboy named Stretch to take his place so that they all might ride the gravy train of advertising revenue and character merchandising. (See, George Lucas? You didn't invent it!) Trouble ensues when the actual Callaway shows up and demands his piece of the pie.
The movie isn't particularly famous, but it was great fun, it still resonates today, and it was nice and short. Apparently, Hopalong Cassidy was the model for Callaway, having turned B-movie stardom into TV-generation riches.
Callaway and Stretch are both played to perfection by Howard Keel, who previously played a cowboy in Annie Get Your Gun and went on to play cowboys in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and, later, TV's Dallas. (Well, he was more of a mountain man in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. But whatever. He was rugged, and he sang purty.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Where do you find these old movies? Are they all on TMC?
When I was a young child I loved The Wild Wild West and Alias Smith and Jones, but now I can't remember the distinction between the two. Where they two different TV shows or one a movie and one a TV show?
I expect you to know O Wise One!
TMC = The Movie Channel (eck.)
TCM = Turner Classic Movies (best channel on TV!)
Post a Comment