I’ll tell you, Lucas, if I had somewhere to run, I’d run. But I don’t, so I’ll stand.
In the mood for some classic western revenge? With a big Hollywood star?
“Tell him: Valdez is coming.”
When Burt Lancaster tells you something, HE MEANS IT. Lancaster was one of Hollywood’s great leading men – noted for his athletic physique, blue eyes and distinctive smile (which he called “The Grin”).
Lancaster was nominated four times for Academy Awards and won once — for “Elmer Gantry” in 1960. He also won a Golden Globe for that performance and BAFTA Awards for The Birdman of Alcatraz (1962) and Atlantic City (1980).
In the early 70’s, Lancaster jumped on a horse and starred in two great westerns..the first based on a classic Elmore Leonard book!
Elmore has written dozens of great novels, including his Hollywood spoof “Get Shorty!” But in this case, Leonard wrote a book filled with cowboys, indians, and a pissed off “Valdez!”
Valdez Is Coming!
Check out this classic newspaper ad:
And check out the trailer:
Here’s the plot: Burt Lancaster plays a Mexican-American sheriff – who must resort to violence against a powerful rancher in order to get just compensation for the pregnant Indian widow of a wrongly killed black man.
The town sheriff, Bob Valdez, is forced to kill someone accused by Frank Tanner of being a murderer. Valdez asks Tanner for monetary help for the man’s wife, but he is ridiculed and almost killed by Tanner’s henchmen. Veteran character Actress Susan Clark co-stars with Lancaster.
Susan Clark was a popular actress at the time, starring in a number of films like “Coogan’s Bluff” with Clint Eastwood and “Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here” with Robert Redford.
Of course, you don’t try to kill Burt Lancaster and get away with it. Valdez recovers and the revenge begins. Valdez wounds one of the henchmen and sends him back to Tanner with the message, “Valdez Is Coming!”
When MGM producer Ira Steiner took Elmore Leonard’s novel to Lancaster, the actor agreed to co-produce and co-star as Tanner with Marlon Brando starring as as Valdez!
After the picture was postponed to allow Lancaster to do “Airport,” the actor decided he wanted to play the title role – so check out this terrific revenge western!
And if one pissed off lawman isn’t enough for you, well I’ve got you covered with more Burt Lancaster!
Lawman!
A lawman from Bannock arrives in Sabbath to arrest all the cattlemen whose wild celebration the year before resulted in the accidental death of an old man.
Check out this classic movie trailer:
What a cast! Veteran character actors Robert Ryan and Lee J. Cobb, plus Robert Duvall in a role a year before “The Godfather.”
Bannock Marshal Jared Maddox: I’m a lawman. Do you know what a lawman is, Crowe? He’s a killer of men. That’s what the job calls for. There are new ways to put it, but it reads the same. That’s the difference between us, and it’s all the difference I need.
Sheree North co-starred with Lancaster in this one…including a number of love scenes that were more adult than westerns normally showed…
North was in a number of big movies at the time, including “The Shootist”, which was John Wayne’s final film!
In 1971, United Artists distributed this film on a double bill with “The Organization” starring Sidney Poitier – which Sheree North was also in!
A Cold Hole In The Ground!
Harvey Stenbaugh: Marc was a good man with a gun.
Sabbath Marshal Cotton Ryan: He was a big mouth who thought he was a good man with a gun. There’s a cold hole in the ground between the two.
Needless to say, Burt Lancaster’s “Lawman” is a cold-blooded killer – just as focused and determined for revenge as Valdez was…
But when he wasn’t tracking down guys and killing them, he was sleeping with his co-stars…no wonder Lancaster had such a sly grin!
Categories: 70's Cinema, Action Films, Books / Media, Grindhouse, Movies, Obscure Movies, Revenge Movies, Talent/Celebrities, Uncategorized
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