September 13, 2026
I revisited an old classic Western last night with my honey and here is what she had to say about it: "It's about kindness and compassion." This took me a little by surprise because—a. it is a Western and Kathy is not a big fan of the genre, and—b. I had never heard "kindness and compassion" used to describe the movie I introduced today at The Scottsdale Museum of the West.
Rodney: "He is my friend!"An Escape from The Hatred
As the story goes, back in 1983, Michael Blake was living in his car and washing dishes at a Chinese restaurant in Bisbee, Arizona when he finally finished his story about a Civil War army officer who goes out West to experience the frontier before it vanishes. There was only one problem: thirty publishers turned it down before Fawcett printed a modest paperback version in 1988. Kevin Coster read it in one sitting and paid Blake $75,000 for the film rights and made a commitment to not only star in it, but to direct it as well, which, by the way, directing was something he had never done before. Oh, and at the time Westerns were dead and studios wanted small and safe and this was neither (over three hours long and with Sioux and Commanche subtitles!). Costner plowed ahead and all the snotty suits in Hollywood started calling the project "Kevin's Gate." After a brutal, five month shoot in South Dakota where Costner had to put up an extra $3 million of his own money to finish principal photography, the movie Dances With Wolves finally premiered on November 21, 1990 and became an instant blockbuster, earning $424 million, plus 12 Academy Award nominations. It won seven, including Best Director for Costner, Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay by the unemployed dishwasher.
If there is one thing that has permeated our 24/7 news cycle and constant social media presence it is the non-stop hatred. And, I have to agree with Kathy that the story that the Bisbee dishwasher tells in Dances With Wolves is filled with kindness and compassion. Just as an example, when the mule skinner is killed with a flurry of deadly arrows Timmons can think only of his mules. "Don't hurt my mules, " he pleads. It is very touching and compassionate. I met Michael Blake at a history event in Prescott not long after we bought True West magazine and he seemed very down to earth. I told him what a great movie he had created and he seemed touched by the praise. At that time he was living his dream life in Vail, Arizona, east of Tucson on I-10 where he had a horse ranch. He passed in 2015 after a long bout with cancer.
"Sometimes Hollywood hit movies are not released, they escape."
—Old Vaquero Saying
No comments:
Post a Comment
Post your comments