Tagged: Cowboy Boots
Dazed and Confused: Matthew McConaughey’s Ted Nugent T-Shirt and Peach 1970s Levi’s
Matthew McConaughey in Dazed and Confused (1993)
Vitals
Matthew McConaughey as David “Woods” Wooderson, Texas stoner
Central Texas, Spring 1976
Film: Dazed and Confused
Release Date: September 24, 1993
Director: Richard Linklater
Costume Designer: Katherine Dover
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Alright, alright, alright…
Richard Linklater’s nostalgic coming-of-age comedy Dazed and Confused ws set fifty years ago today on May 28, 1976, during the last day of school for Lee High School, outside Austin, Texas. Linklater drew from his own experiences growing up in Huntsville, even lending actual names of classmates to the characters—eventually resulting in a lawsuit that would be swiftly dismissed. Many of the ensemble cast were then little-known actors who rose to considerable stardom, including Ben Affleck, Adam Goldberg, Cole Hauser, Milla Jovovich, Nicky Katt, Jason London, Parker Posey, and Renée Zellweger, but it’s perhaps Matthew McConaughey that emerged most memorably in his breakthrough role as David “Woods” Wooderson. Continue reading
John Wayne’s Blue Cowboy Bib Shirt in The Searchers
John Wayne in The Searchers (1956)
Vitals
John Wayne as Ethan Edwards, obsessive Confederate Army veteran
West Texas and New Mexico Territory, Fall 1868 through 1873
Film: The Searchers
Release Date: May 26, 1956
Director: John Ford
Costume Designer: Charles Arrico (uncredited)
Background
Ten days after its Chicago premiere, John Ford’s Western epic The Searchers was released 70 years ago today on May 26, 1956—which coincided with its star John Wayne’s 49th birthday. Successful upon its release, The Searchers remains considered not just one of the greatest Westerns but also one of the best films of all time, influencing generations of contemporary and future filmmakers including David Lean, George Lucas, Sam Peckinpah, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, and Wim Wenders. Continue reading
Bonnie and Clyde: Michael J. Pollard’s Type I Denim Jacket as C.W. Moss
Michael J. Pollard as C.W. Moss in Bonnie & Clyde (1967)
Vitals
Michael J. Pollard as C.W. Moss, slow-witted mechanic-turned-bank robber
Texas to Missouri, Spring 1933
Film: Bonnie & Clyde
Release Date: August 13, 1967
Director: Arthur Penn
Costume Designer: Theadora Van Runkle
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
My last post centered around one of the many quick-and-dirty Depression-set crime films released in the wake of Bonnie & Clyde‘s popularity, so let’s refocus today’s sartorial attention back on the groundbreaking 1967 drama that started it all. Starring Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty (who also produced the film), Bonnie & Clyde fictionalized the exploits of real-life Texas outlaws Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker, whose two-year crime spree of mostly unprofitable robberies left a trail of at least twelve dead lawmen and civilians until they were ultimately killed by law enforcement in May 1934.
Robert Benton and David Newman’s Academy Award-nominated screenplay emphasized the twenty-something couple’s youth, capitalizing on the prevailing countercultural sentiment of the late 1960s in the stylized spirit of French New Wave cinema. Presumably even younger than Bonnie or Clyde is their first on-screen accomplice: small-town gas station attendant C.W. Moss (Michael J. Pollard), whose simplicity often suggests excessive exposure to fuel fumes. Moss served as a composite for several real-life associates of the gang, specifically eventual turncoat Henry Methvin and Dallas teenager W.D. “Deacon” Jones.
Born 110 years ago today on May 12, 1916, Jones was only 16 years old when the 23-year-old Clyde and 22-year-old Bonnie recruited him into their scrappy band on Christmas Eve 1932. After a car theft gone wrong resulted in the murder of Temple, Texas family man Doyle Johnson the next day, Jones became inextricably linked with the Barrow gang for more than a year until his eventual arrest in November 1933, six months before his more famous friends were gunned down in Louisiana. Continue reading
Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw: Marjoe Gortner’s Blue Cutoff Western Shirt
Marjoe Gortner and Lynda Carter in Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw (1976)
Vitals
Marjoe Gortner as Lyle Wheeler, wannabe outlaw
New Mexico, Summer 1975
Film: Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw
Release Date: April 28, 1976
Director: Mark L. Lester
Costume Designer: Cornelia McNamara
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
People typically cite two major reasons to watch the low-budget ’70s crime flick Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw… neither of which are Marjoe Gortner’s wardrobe. Is that going to stop me from writing about it for the film’s 50th anniversary? No, of course not.
Released in Los Angeles on April 28, 1976, this was also Lynda Carter’s big-screen debut, finally hitting screens nearly six months after she became an instant sensation when Wonder Woman premiered on ABC. Made with the same exploitative “guilty pleasure” watchability that defined so much of American Independent Pictures’ contemporary output, Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw is known to many for Carter’s sole (but frequent) nude screen appearance—often in varying states of undress playing the, uh, titular Bobbie Jo Baker, who abandons her dead-end job and alcoholic mother to join the charismatic car thief Lyle Wheeler on a crime spree through the southwest. Prior to his Rocky fame, Sylvester Stallone was producers’ first choice to play Lyle until ex-child preacher Marjoe Gortner was cast.
Yep, you read that right. Continue reading
The Wild Bunch: Ben Johnson as Tector Gorch
Ben Johnson as Tector Gorch in The Wild Bunch (1969)
Vitals
Ben Johnson as Tector Gorch, tough outlaw
Texas to Mexico, Spring 1913
Film: The Wild Bunch
Release Date: June 18, 1969
Director: Sam Peckinpah
Costume Designer: James R. Silke
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Today is the 30th anniversary since the death of one of my favorite actors: Oklahoma-born cowboy, rancher, and Oscar winner Ben Johnson. The son of a rodeo champion who later won a world championship himself, Johnson’s screen cowboy credentials were bona fide. He caught the eye of director John Ford while working as a stuntman in the 1940s, swiftly translating his presence into acting.
Due to his horsemanship and manner, Johnson typically appeared in war films and westerns like 3 Godfathers (1948), She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), and Shane (1953)—the latter being his last film during his brief hiatus to compete in the Rodeo Cowboys Association and be named Team Roping World Champion, which he later described as the greatest honor in his life. He was soon back on screen, eventually diversifying his roles including the sagacious “Sam the Lion” in Peter Bogdanovich’s coming-of-age drama The Last Picture Show (1971), for which he won the Academy Award, BAFTA, and Golden Globe among a host of other accolades.
Amidst this, Johnson also joined the grizzled cast of the revisionist western The Wild Bunch (1969), which starkly reimagined the romance of classic westerns through director Sam Peckinpah’s characteristically violent lens. Continue reading
Justifed: Raylan’s Grayscale Plaid Shirt and Henley in “The Collection”
Timothy Olyphant as Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens on Justified (Episode 1.06: “The Collection”)
Vitals
Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens, old-fashioned Deputy U.S. Marshal
Between Lexington, Kentucky and Cincinnati, Ohio, Spring 2010
Series: Justified
Episode: “The Collection” (Episode 1.06)
Air Date: April 20, 2010
Director: Rod Holcomb
Creator: Graham Yost
Costume Designer: Ane Crabtree
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
I’ve recently been rewatching Justified with my wife—her first time seeing the series—and it renewed my interest in how Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant) dresses while both on- and off-duty working the Eastern District of Kentucky.
Debuting sixteen years ago this month in March 2010, Justified‘s first season especially blended a case-of-the-week format with the series mythology revolving around how the Givens family feud with Harlan County families like the Crowders and Bennetts translated to Raylan’s crusade against arch criminal Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins) as well as his ongoing drama with his ex-wife Winona (Natalie Zea).
One of the last standalone episodes outside of this format was the sixth episode, “The Collection”, revolving around crooked Cincinnati art dealer Owen Carnes (Peter Jason), whom Raylan increasingly suspects was murdered by his wife Caryn (Katherine LaNasa), despite being reminded that murder alone doesn’t necessarily fall under the U.S. Marshals Service’s investigative purview. Continue reading
Taxi Driver: Travis Bickle’s M-65 Field Jacket
Robert De Niro as Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver (1976)
Vitals
Robert De Niro as Travis Bickle, disturbed taxi driver and Vietnam War veteran
New York City, Spring to Summer 1976
Film: Taxi Driver
Release Date: February 9, 1976
Director: Martin Scorsese
Costume Designer: Ruth Morley
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Martin Scorsese’s violent meditation on loneliness, Taxi Driver, was released 50 years ago today on February 9, 1976—one day after its New York City premiere. Fresh off of his Academy Award win for The Godfather Part II, Robert De Niro received a second career nomination for his portrayal of “God’s lonely man” Travis Bickle, a troubled Marine Corps veteran who combats his insomnia by driving a taxi through the decaying streets of 1970s New York.
After his poorly conceived attempts to woo a sophisticated political campaign volunteer are understandably rejected, Travis refocuses his attention on the pre-teen prostitute Iris (Jodie Foster), whom he attempts to dissuade from her current profession. Meanwhile, Travis’ paranoia grows to the point that he drops just under a thousand dollars on a quartet of handguns that range in power and concealment—his scattered plans ranging from political assassination to a brothel massacre, all the while practicing his heavily armed bravado in his disorganiz-ized home:
“You talkin’ to me?”
Hell or High Water: Jeff Bridges’ Texas Ranger Western-wear
Jeff Bridges in Hell or High Water (2016)
Vitals
Jeff Bridges as Marcus Hamilton, experienced Texas Ranger nearing retirement
West Texas, Summer 2016
Film: Hell or High Water
Release Date: August 12, 2016
Director: David Mackenzie
Costume Designer: Malgosia Turzanska
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
One of the best to ever do it, Jeff Bridges turns 76 today. Born December 4, 1949, the actor was born into a family of talent including his parents Lloyd and Dorothy and older brother Beau, but he established his own path when he received his first Academy Award nomination for The Last Picture Show, released two months before his 22nd birthday. Bridges’ seventh and latest Oscar nod recognized his more grizzled, elegiac performance in the Taylor Sheridan-penned neo-Western crime thriller, Hell or High Water. Continue reading
No Country for Old Men: Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh
Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men (2007)
Vitals
Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh, relentless psychopathic killer (“but so what? there’s plenty of them around”)
Texas, Summer 1980
Film: No Country for Old Men
Release Date: November 9, 2007
Director: Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
Costume Designer: Mary Zophres
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
The Coen brothers’ masterful adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s novel No Country for Old Men was released eighteen years ago today on November 9, 2007. The film won in four of its eight nominated categories at the Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay, and Supporting Actor for Javier Bardem’s chilling performance as the amoral and awful-coiffed Anton Chigurh. Continue reading
Al Lettieri in The Getaway: From Chalk-striped Suit to Corduroy and Chambray
Al Lettieri in The Getaway (1972)
Vitals
Al Lettieri as Rudy Butler, menacing and duplicitous armed robber
Texas, Spring 1972
Film: The Getaway
Release Date: December 13, 1972
Director: Sam Peckinpah
Men’s Costumer: Kent James
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
From The Godfather and The Getaway to McQ and Mr. Majestyk, if you needed a swarthy, mean, and snakishly charming son-of-a-bitch in the early ’70s, chances are you would call Al Lettieri. A bona fide tough guy who channeled his real-life connections to less reputable characters into his dynamic performances, Lettieri was only 47 years old when he died of a heart attack fifty years ago today on October 18, 1975.
Adapted from pulp author Jim Thompson’s 1958 crime novel of the same name, The Getaway was released in the final weeks of 1972—Lettieri’s breakthrough year, following the release of The Godfather in March. Continue reading
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