TCM Schedule for Thursday, May 13 -- TCM Spotlight -- Race and Hollywood

This morning it's more Donna Reed, and tonight we return to the subject of Native Americans in Hollywood. Enjoy!


6:00am -- Raiders Of The Seven Seas (1953)
A legendary pirate captures a Spanish galleon and tries to claim a countess as his bride.
Cast: John Payne, Donna Reed, Gerald Mohr, Lon Chaney
Dir: Sidney Salkow
C-88 mins, TV-G

Donna Reed's last husband Grover Asmus started a program called the Donna Reed Foundation that led to the Donna Reed festival held yearly in Denison, IA. It's a celebration of Donna, and includes classes, performances. Many stars attend such as Shelley Fabares, Debbie Reynolds, and Loren Janes.


7:30am -- Gun Fury (1953)
A cowboy trails the outlaws who kidnapped his fiancee during a stagecoach robbery.
Cast: Rock Hudson, Donna Reed, Phil Carey, Roberta Haynes
Dir: Raoul Walsh
C-82 mins, TV-PG

Rock Hudson suffered an attack of appendicitis on the last day of filming.


9:00am -- They Rode West (1954)
A Calvary doctor defies orders to treat Native Americans.
Cast: Robert Francis, Donna Reed, May Wynn, Phil Carey
Dir: Phil Karlson
C-84 mins, TV-PG

First of four films by Robert Francis -- handsome, clean-cut, solid-bodied, rather quiet and sporting a typical 50s brush-cut, the up-and-comer showed exceptional poise and restraint in his next few co-leads, finding an early niche as loyal military types. And, then, on July 31, 1955, he was suddenly killed along with a friend after a private plane he was piloting crashed. He had just taken off from the Burbank airport when the plane suddenly lost power and crashed into an abandoned parking lot. All on board were killed instantly.


10:30am -- Three Hours to Kill (1954)
After escaping a lynch mob, an innocent man returns to find out who framed him for murder.
Cast: Dana Andrews, Donna Reed, Dianne Foster, Stephen Elliot
Dir: Alfred Werker
BW-77 mins, TV-PG

The woman on the cover of Rush's Permanent Waves album is modeled after Reed.


12:00pm -- The Big Gusher (1951)
Two oil-field roughnecks try to protect their land from a con artist until they can strike oil.
Cast: Wayne Morris, Preston Foster, Dorothy Patrick, Paul E. Burns
Dir: Lew Landers
BW-68 mins, TV-PG

BLAZING GUSHER OF THRILLS! (original print ad - all caps)


1:15pm -- Flame of Stamboul (1951)
A U.S. agent guards defense plans at a conference in Istanbul.
Cast: Richard Denning, Lisa Ferraday, Norman Lloyd, Nestor Paiva
Dir: Ray Nazzaro
BW-68 mins, TV-PG

Richard Denning finished his career as the Governor of Hawaii on the television show Hawaii Five-O.


2:30pm -- Smuggler's Gold (1951)
The head of a smuggling ring sucks his niece's fiancé into his operation.
Cast: Cameron Mitchell, Amanda Blake, Carl Benton Reid, Peter Thompson
Dir: William Berke
BW-64 mins, TV-G

One of the earliest films of Amanda Blake, Miss Kitty from Gunsmoke (1955-1974).


3:45pm -- The Case Against Brooklyn (1958)
A rookie cop takes on criminals who have the local government in their pocket.
Cast: Darren McGavin, Maggie Hayes, Warren Stevens, Peggy McCay
Dir: Paul Wendkos
BW-81 mins, TV-PG

Based on the book "I Broke the Brooklyn Graft Scandal" by Ed Reid.


5:15pm -- Good Day for a Hanging (1958)
A reformed bank robber has to choose between his former gang and doing the right thing.
Cast: Fred MacMurray, Maggie Hayes, Robert Vaughn, Joan Blackman
Dir: Nathan Juran
BW-86 mins, TV-PG

Fred MacMurray was the likeness inspiration for the original Captain Marvel (the one that emerged when Billy Batson said "Shazam") for artist Charles Clarence Beck in 1940. The original publisher of the comic book character was Fawcett Publications.


6:45pm -- The Hired Gun (1957)
A bounty hunter tries to prove his beautiful quarry innocent of murder.
Cast: Don Borisenko, Tass Tory, Jay Shannon, Michael Zenon
Dir: Lindsay Shonteff
BW-64 mins, TV-G

This may be one of the least promising, lowest star-power films that I have ever seen on TCM -- excluding anything associated with Ed Wood.


What's On Tonight: TCM SPOTLIGHT: RACE AND HOLLYWOOD


8:00pm -- The Unforgiven (1960)
Indians try to reclaim a rancher's adopted daughter.
Cast: Burt Lancaster, Audrey Hepburn, Audie Murphy, John Saxon
Dir: John Huston
C-121 mins, TV-14

Before filming began, director John Huston and star Burt Lancaster took actress Lillian Gish out to the desert to teach her how to shoot, which she would have to do in the film. However, Huston was astounded to discover that Gish could shoot more accurately, and faster, than both he and Lancaster, who thought themselves expert marksmen. It turned out that early in her career Gish was taught how to shoot by notorious western outlaw and gunfighter Al J. Jennings, who had become an actor after his release from a long prison sentence for train robbery and was in the cast of one of her films. She found that she liked shooting and over the years had developed into an expert shot.


10:15pm -- Dances With Wolves (1990)
A soldier stationed in North Dakota leaves his post to join a nearby Sioux tribe.
Cast: Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene, Rodney A. Grant
Dir: Philip C. Pfeiffer
C-181 mins, TV-14

Won Oscars for Best Cinematography -- Dean Semler, Best Director -- Kevin Costner, Best Film Editing -- Neil Travis, Best Music, Original Score -- John Barry, Best Sound -- Russell Williams II, Jeffrey Perkins, Bill W. Benton and Gregory H. Watkins, Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium -- Michael Blake, and Best Picture

Nominated for Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading Role -- Kevin Costner, Best Actor in a Supporting Role -- Graham Greene, Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Mary McDonnell, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration -- Jeffrey Beecroft and Lisa Dean, and Best Costume Design -- Elsa Zamparelli

Viggo Mortensen was originally cast to play John Dunbar. Mortensen will, however, be playing John Dunbar in the upcoming sequel to this movie, The Holy Road (2011), as Kevin Costner has stated that he will not be reprising his character.


1:30am -- Black Robe (1991)
A young priest journeys to 17th century Quebec to take over a mission.
Cast: Lothaire Bluteau, Aden Young, Sandrine Holt, August Schellenberg
Dir: Bruce Beresford
C-101 mins, TV-MA

The ferocity of the torture scenes prompted accusations of racism from Native Americans. However, Brian Moore, who had done extensive research on the subject, had actually toned down the documented violence for both his book and his screenplay.


3:15am -- Run Of The Arrow (1957)
A bitter Confederate veteran joins a Sioux tribe to keep his war against the Union going.
Cast: Rod Steiger, Sarita Montiel, Brian Keith, Ralph Meeker
Dir: Samuel Fuller
C-86 mins, TV-PG

At the time of its release, many critics commented favorably on director Samuel Fuller's "artistic" decision to concentrate on the feet of the participants in the actual "run of the arrow" rather than showing them in their entirety. In an interview, Fuller said there was a very simple reason for his decision: star Rod Steiger had badly sprained his ankle just before the scene was to be shot and wasn't able to walk, let alone run, so Fuller got one of the Indian extras who was built somewhat like Steiger to run in his place, which is why he shot only feet instead of close-ups or medium shots.

Joining TCM host Robert Osborne in presenting the films will be Professor Hanay Geiogamah, director of the American Indian Studies Center at UCLA. The films and introductions will explore a different topic each night, including the evolution of Native American depictions by director John Ford (May 4), non-Indians in Indian roles (May 6), Indians as enemies (May 11), white men living among Indians (May 13), Indians as “noble savages” (May 18), Native Americans facing racism (May 20), Native American actors and filmmakers (May 25) and images from outside Hollywood (May 27).

Among the notable works featured during the NATIVE AMERICAN IMAGES ON FILM collection are Best Picture Oscar® winners One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) and Dances with Wolves (1990); John Ford’s Stagecoach (1939) and The Searchers (1956); the acclaimed independent films Black Robe (1991) and Smoke Signals (1998); Michael Apted’s Thunderheart (1992) and his thematically linked documentary Incident at Oglala (1992); and the groundbreaking silent documentary Nanook of the North (1922).

“We are very proud that each year we can use our huge film library to show how racial and cultural identities have been portrayed in films through the decades,” says TCM host Robert Osborne. “Movies have always had such a tremendous impact – both positive and negative – on how different minority groups are viewed. Utilizing our expansive library, we have the opportunity to dig into such subjects more deeply than anyone else on television. This has made our RACE AND HOLLYWOOD festivals an important part of the ongoing dialogues within society. We look forward to continuing this important endeavor with the participation of Professor Hanay Geiogamah, someone who has helped shape the way Native Americans have been treated and portrayed on the screen, television and the stage.”

In addition to his work as a professor and director of the American Indian Studies Center at UCLA, Geiogamah is a playwright, director and historian. He serves as artistic director for the American Indian Dance Theater and the Native American Theater Ensemble. He is also managing editor for the American Indian Culture and Research Journal. Geigamah’s plays include Body Indian, Foghorn, 49, Coon Cons Coyote and Land Sale. Which have been performed throughout the United States and Europe. Geigamah also worked as a producer on several original movies presented by TCM sister network TNT, including Geronimo (1993), Tecumseh: The Last Warrior (1995) and Crazy Horse (1996). He recently co-executive produced the feature film The Only Good Indian, which premiered at last year’s Sundance Film Festival.

Past editions of TCM’s RACE AND HOLLYWOOD series explored how Hollywood has portrayed African-Americans (2006), Asians (2008) and Latinos (2009). In addition, TCM looked at Hollywood’s depiction of gay images in film (2007).

The ferocity of the torture scenes prompted accusations of racism from Native Americans. However, Brian Moore, who had done extensive research on the subject, had actually toned down the documented violence for both his book and his screenplay.

That's why I've never been able to bring myself to see Black Robe. When I was a parochial school kid, I couldn't get over what they did to Isaac Jogues. What I learned later is that what they did to Jean de Brebeuf was even worse.

Some years ago I watched the 1990s verion of The Last of the Mohicans and that was hard enough to take. By current standards it isn't anywhere near the most violent of movies, but given that I grew up on movies that usually turned away when axes fell and bullets were shot, it was especially difficult for me to watch.