''Cimarron'' is a 1960 American

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film based on the

Edna Ferber Edna Ferber (August 15, 1885 – April 16, 1968) was an American novelist, short story writer and playwright. Her novels include the Pulitzer Prize-winning '' So Big'' (1924), '' Show Boat'' (1926; made into the celebrated 1927 musical), '' C ...

novel '' Cimarron''. The film stars

Glenn Ford Gwyllyn Samuel Newton "Glenn" Ford (May 1, 1916 – August 30, 2006) was a Canadian-American actor who often portrayed ordinary men in unusual circumstances. Ford was most prominent during Hollywood's Golden Age as one of the biggest box-offi ...

and

Maria Schell Maria Margarethe Anna Schell (15 January 1926 – 26 April 2005) was an Austrian-Swiss actress. She was one of the leading stars of German cinema in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1954, she was awarded the Cannes Best Actress Award for her performance ...

and was directed by

Anthony Mann Anthony Mann (born Emil Anton Bundsmann; June 30, 1906 – April 29, 1967) was an American film director and stage actor. Mann initially started as a theatre actor appearing in numerous stage productions. In 1937, he moved to Hollywood where ...

and Charles Walters, though Walters is not credited onscreen. Ferber's novel was previously adapted as a film in 1931; that version won three

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

. ''Cimarron'' was the first of three epics (along with ''

El Cid Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (c. 1043 – 10 July 1099) was a Castilian knight and warlord in medieval Spain. Fighting with both Christian and Muslim armies during his lifetime, he earned the Arabic honorific ''al-sīd'', which would evolve into El C ...

'' and ''

The Fall of the Roman Empire The fall of the Western Roman Empire (also called the fall of the Roman Empire or the fall of Rome) was the loss of central political control in the Western Roman Empire, a process in which the Empire failed to enforce its rule, and its vas ...

'') that Mann directed. Despite high production costs and an experienced cast of western veterans, stage actors and future stars, the film was released with little fanfare.

Plot

Sabra Cravat joins her new husband, lawyer Yancey "Cimarron" Cravat, during the Oklahoma land rush of 1889. They encounter Yancey's old friend William "The Kid" Hardy and his buddies Wes Jennings and Hoss Barry. On the trail, Yancey helps Tom and Sarah Wyatt and their eight children, taking them aboard their wagons. It seems to Sabra that her husband knows everyone in Oklahoma. A small crowd cheers Bob Yountis and his henchman Millis when they attack an Indian family. Yancey joins his friend Sam Pegler, editor of the ''Oklahoma Wigwam'' newspaper, in resisting Yountis. Yountis warns Pegler against using the paper for his crusading as he had done in Texas. Sabra is angry that Yancey risked his life for an Indian but she helps the others, including peddler Sol Levy and printer Jesse Rickey, in righting the Indians' overturned wagon. Sam and his wife Mavis reveal more about Yancey's past as a cowboy, gambler, gunman and lawyer. When 50,000 settlers race across the prairie to claim land, Tom falls and Sarah claims a dry, worthless patch. Pegler is trampled to death, and Dixie beats Yancey to the land that he wanted, so he asks Jesse to stay to help him run the paper. In the new town of Osage, which consists of tents and half-built storefronts, Yountis and The Kid terrorize Levy in the street. Yancey tries but fails to persuade the Kid to change. One night, Yountis leads a lynch mob against the Indian family. Yancey arrives too late to stop it, but he kills Yountis and brings Arita and her baby Ruby home. Meanwhile, Sabra gives birth to a boy whom they name Cimarron, Cim for short. Four years later, Osage is thriving. Tom has built an oil-drilling apparatus but he is a laughingstock. Wes, Hoss and The Kid, wanted outlaws, try to rob a train but are all killed soon after. When Yancey destroys the $1,000 reward check, Sabra is furious because he does not consider their son's security. Yancey leaves to be part of the

Cherokee Strip The Cherokee Outlet, or Cherokee Strip, was located in what is now the state of Oklahoma in the United States. It was a 60-mile-wide (97 km) parcel of land south of the Oklahoma-Kansas border between 96 and 100°W. The Cherokee Outlet wa ...

, but Sabra refuses to join him. Years later, he returns and Sabra and Cim forgive him. Tom finally strikes oil, but Yancey is disgusted to learn that Tom bought the

rights Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory ...

to oil found on Indian land. However, Yancey's campaign to win the Indians justice is a huge success, and he is invited to become governor of the

Oklahoma Territory The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as t ...

. Sabra is disappointed to discover that Cim and Ruby have grown close. In Washington, D.C., Yancey finds Tom with a group of influential men and learns that the price of his appointment is his integrity. When Yancy tells Sabra that he can't be governor, she sends him away forever. Cim and Ruby marry without warning and set off for Oregon, though Sabra tells him that he is throwing his life away. Ten years later, on the occasion of the ''Oklahoma Wigwam'''s 25th anniversary,

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

is declared. Later, Sabra hears that Yancey has been killed in the war.

Cast

Main

as Yancey Cravat *

as Sabra Cravat *

Anne Baxter Anne Baxter (May 7, 1923 – December 12, 1985) was an American actress, star of Hollywood films, Broadway productions, and television series. She won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe, and was nominated for an Emmy. A granddaughter of Fr ...

as Dixie Lee *

Arthur O'Connell Arthur Joseph O'Connell (March 29, 1908 – May 18, 1981) was an American stage, film and television actor, who achieved prominence in character roles in the 1950s. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for both '' Picn ...

as Tom Wyatt *

Russ Tamblyn Russell Irving Tamblyn, also known as Rusty Tamblyn (born December 30, 1934) is an American film and television actor and dancer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Tamblyn trained as a gymnast in his youth. He began his career as a child actor f ...

as William Hardy / The Cherokee Kid *

Mercedes McCambridge Carlotta Mercedes Agnes McCambridge (March 16, 1916 – March 2, 2004) was an American actress of radio, stage, film, and television. Orson Welles called her "the world's greatest living radio actress." She won an Academy Award for Best Support ...

as Sarah Wyatt *

Vic Morrow Victor Morrow (born Victor Morozoff; February 14, 1929 – July 23, 1982) was an American actor. He came to prominence as one of the leads of the ABC drama series '' Combat!'' (1962–1967), which earned him an Emmy nomination for Outstand ...

as Wes Jennings * Robert Keith as Sam Pegler *

Charles McGraw Charles McGraw (born Charles Crisp Butters; May 10, 1914 – July 29, 1980) was an American stage, film and television actor whose career spanned more than three decades. Early life McGraw was born to Beatrice (née Crisp) and Francis P. B ...

as Bob Yountis *

Aline MacMahon Aline Laveen MacMahon (May 3, 1899 – October 12, 1991) was an American actress. Her Broadway stage career began under producer Edgar Selwyn in ''The Mirage'' during 1920. She made her screen debut in 1931 and worked extensively in film, thea ...

as Mavis Pegler *

Harry Morgan Harry Morgan (born Harry Bratsberg; April 10, 1915 – December 7, 2011) was an American actor and director whose television and film career spanned six decades. Morgan's major roles included Pete Porter in both ''December Bride'' (1954–1959 ...

as Jesse Rickey (Credited as Henry "Harry" Morgan) *

David Opatoshu David Opatoshu (born David Opatovsky; January 30, 1918 – April 30, 1996) was an American actor. He is best known for his role in the film ''Exodus'' (1960). Opatoshu began his acting career in the Yiddish theater. Following his tenure in th ...

as Sol Levy *

Edgar Buchanan William Edgar Buchanan II (March 20, 1903 – April 4, 1979) was an American actor with a long career in both film and television. He is most familiar today as Uncle Joe Carson from the ''Petticoat Junction'', ''Green Acres'', and ''The ...

as Judge Neal Hefner

Supporting

* Lili Darvas as Felicia Venable *

Mary Wickes Mary Wickes (born Mary Isabella Wickenhauser; June 13, 1910 – October 22, 1995) was an American actress. She often played supporting roles as prim, professional women, secretaries, nurses, nuns, therapists, teachers and housekeepers, who made ...

as Mrs. Neal Hefner *

Royal Dano Royal Edward Dano Sr. (November 16, 1922 - May 15, 1994) was an American actor. In a career spanning 46 years, he was perhaps best known for playing cowboys, villains, and Abraham Lincoln. Dano also provided the voice of the Audio-Animatronic L ...

as Ike Howes * L. Q. Jones as Millis * George Brenlin as Hoss Barry *

Vladimir Sokoloff Vladimir Aleksandrovich Sokoloff (russian: Влади́мир Алекса́ндрович Соколо́в; December 26, 1889 – February 15, 1962) was a Russian-American character actor of stage and screen. After studying theatre in Moscow, ...

as Jacob Krubeckoff * Eugene Jackson as Isaiah

Cameo / Uncredited

* Andy Albin as Water Man *

Rayford Barnes Rayford Barnes (October 23, 1920 – November 11, 2000) was an American film and TV character actor from Whitesboro, Texas. Early years Barnes was born in Dallas, Texas, and attended the University of Texas. He acted in plays at the universit ...

as Cavalry Sergeant Who Breaks Up Fight * Herman Belmonte as Dancer At Ball * Mary Benoit as Mrs. Lancey * Barry Bernard as Butler * Jimmie Booth as Wagon Driver * Danny Borzage as Townsman *

Chet Brandenburg James Chester Brandenburg (October 15, 1897 – July 17, 1974) was an American actor and stuntman. He appeared in 436 films and television programs between 1924 and 1968. Brandenburg was born in Peoria, Illinois and died in Woodland Hills, ...

as Townsman * Janet Brandt as Madam Rhoda * Paul Bryar as Mr. Self, Politician * Robert Carson as Senator Rollins * John L. Cason as Suggs *

William Challee William John Challee (April 6, 1904 – March 11, 1989) was an American actor. Biography Challee was born in Chicago and was a student at Lake View High School. Challee appeared on Broadway by 1926 and by 1931 in early Group Theatre produc ...

as The Barber * Mickie Chouteau as Ruby Red Feather * Fred Coby as Oil Worker * Gene Coogan as Butler / Townsman * Jack Daly as Wyatt's Man * John Damler as Foreman * Richard Davies as Mr. Hodges *

George DeNormand George DeNormand (1903 – 1976) was an American actor and stuntman. DeNormand was an amateur middleweight boxer in the 1920s. He was a prolific though often uncredited actor and stunt double in movies such as ''The Raven'' and ''Bride of Fran ...

as Townsman At Celebration *

James Dime James Dime (December 19, 1897 – May 11, 1981), nicknamed ''Sheik of Spring Street'', was a Yugoslavian-American professional boxer and actor known for '' The Last Hurrah'' (1958), '' So Big'' (1953), '' Steel Town'' (1952), ''Anne of the In ...

as Townsman *

Phyllis Douglas Phyllis Hodges Boyce (née Callow, July 24, 1936 – May 12, 2010) was an American actress, appearing in movies and television serials. She was often credited as Phyllis Douglas. Born the daughter of director Ridgeway Callow, Boyce was one of t ...

as Sadie *

Ted Eccles Theodore Edward Eccles (born June 9, 1955) is an American actor. Career Eccles performed much of his best known roles as a child actor. He appeared in several television series and feature films in the 1960s and 1970s. Eccles may be best known ...

as Cimarron Cravat – Age 2 * LaRue Farlow as Dancer *

Franklyn Farnum Franklyn Farnum (born William Smith; June 5, 1878 – July 4, 1961) was an American character actor and Hollywood extra who appeared in at least 1,100 films. He was also cast in more films that won the Academy Award for Best Picture than any o ...

as Townsman At Schoolhouse * George Ford as Townsman At Celebration *

Coleman Francis Coleman Chambers Francis (January 24, 1919 – January 15, 1973) was an American actor, writer, producer and director. He was best known for his film trilogy consisting of ''The Beast of Yucca Flats'' (1961), ''The Skydivers'' (1963) and '' ...

as Mr. Geer * Ben Gary as Reporter * James Halferty as Cimarron Cravat – Age 10 * Sam Harris as Ball Guest * Lars Hensen as Dancer At Ball *

Clegg Hoyt Clegg Hoyt (December 10, 1910 – October 6, 1967) was an American film and television actor. He appeared in over 100 films and television programs, and was perhaps best known for his silent role as the Sportscaster's sidekick, George, in the 19 ...

as "Great" Gotch *

Irene James Irene James (born 1952) is a Welsh Labour politician who represented the constituency of Islwyn in the National Assembly for Wales The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, uni ...

as Townswoman *

Colin Kenny James Colin Ramsey Kenny (born December 10, 1943) is a former Canadian Senator. A member of the Liberal Party, he was appointed to the Senate in 1984 by Pierre Trudeau to represent the Rideau region of Ontario. On January 31, 2018 it was anno ...

as Townsman At Schoolhouse * Paul Kruger as Party Guest * Jimmy Lewis as Hefner Boy * Dawn Little Sky as Arita Red Feather *

Eddie Little Sky Eddie Little Sky (August 15, 1926 – September 5, 1997), also known as Edward Little, was an indigenous North American actor of the Oglala Lakota tribe. He had parts in 36 feature films and over 60 television shows,''Indian Country Today'', r ...

as Ben Red Feather * Buzz Martin as Cimarron Cravat as Young Man *

Kermit Maynard Kermit Maynard (September 20, 1897 – January 16, 1971) was an American actor and stuntman. Early years Born in Vevay, Indiana, he was the son of Mr. and Mrs. William Maynard and a lookalike younger brother of actor Ken Maynard; they were f ...

as Setter * Mathew McCue as Townsman * J. Edward McKinley as Beck * Walter Merrill as Reporter * Jack Perry as Townsman * John Pickard as Ned, Cavalry Captain * Ralph Reed as Bellboy * William Remick as Reporter * Gene Roth as Connors * Jack Scroggy as Walter *

Charles Seel Charles Seel (April 29, 1897 – April 19, 1980) was an American actor. He acted in over 30 films from 1938 to 1974 and appeared in over one hundred titles for television from 1952 to 1974. He was also credited as Charles Seal and Charles F. S ...

as Charles * Bernard Sell as Townsman At Celebration * Jack Stoney as Man At Lynching *

Harry Tenbrook Harry Tenbrook (born Henry Olaf Hansen, October 9, 1887 – September 4, 1960) was an American film actor. Henry Olaf Hansen was born in Christiania (now Oslo), Norway. His family migrated to the United States in 1892. Under the stage nam ...

as Sooner At Camp Fight * Arthur Tovey as Dancer At Ball *

Ivan Triesault Ivan Triesault (born Johann Constantin Treisalt; in Reval (now Tallinn) – January 3, 1980 in Los Angeles) was an Estonian-American actor. His parents were from the island of Hiiumaa. Life His first stage appearance was at the German Theat ...

as Lewis Venable, Sabra's Father * Charles Watts as Lou Brothers, Politician *

Helen Westcott Helen Westcott (born Myrthas Helen Hickman, January 1, 1928 – March 17, 1998) was an American stage and screen actress and former child actress. She is best known for her work in ''The Gunfighter'' (1950). Early years Westcott was the daughte ...

as Miss Kuye, Schoolteacher * Robert Williams as Oil Worker * Jeane Wood as Clubwoman * Wilson Wood as Reporter * Jorie Wyler as Theresa Jump

Production

In February 1941, MGM bought the remake rights to ''Cimarron'' from RKO for $100,000. In 1947, MGM announced an

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its ...

version starring

Kathryn Grayson Kathryn Grayson (born Zelma Kathryn Elisabeth Hedrick; February 9, 1922 – February 17, 2010) was an American actress and coloratura soprano. Ronald Berganbr>Obituary '' London Guardian'', February 19, 2010. From the age of twelve, Grayson trai ...

and produced by

Arthur Freed Arthur Freed (September 9, 1894 – April 12, 1973) was an American lyricist and Hollywood film producer. He won the Academy Award for Best Picture twice, in 1951 for '' An American in Paris'' and in 1958 for '' Gigi''. Both films were musicals. ...

, but this did not happen. In February 1958, MGM announced its plans to produce ''Cimarron'' as the studio's second film using the

MGM Camera 65 Ultra Panavision 70 and MGM Camera 65 were, from 1957 to 1966, the marketing brands that identified motion pictures photographed with Panavision's anamorphic movie camera lenses on 65 mm film. Ultra Panavision 70 and MGM Camera 65 were shot at 24 f ...

process following '' Raintree Country'' (1957). One month later,

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...

and

Rock Hudson Rock Hudson (born Roy Harold Scherer Jr.; November 17, 1925 – October 2, 1985) was an American actor. One of the most popular movie stars of his time, he had a screen career spanning more than three decades. A prominent heartthrob in the Gold ...

were considered to star in the film. Ultimately,

, who previously starred in the Westerns such as '' 3:10 to Yuma'' (1957) and '' The Sheepman'' (1958), was attached to star. In October 1959,

Arnold Schulman Arnold Schulman (born August 11, 1925) is an American playwright, screenwriter, producer, a songwriter and novelist. He was a stage actor long associated with the American Theatre Wing and the Actors Studio. Biography Born to a Jewish family i ...

was signed to write the screenplay. For his script, Schulman introduced several characters, including those of journalist Sam Pegler ( Robert Keith) and Wes Jennings (

), while removing the Cravats' daughter, Donna and a boy named Isaiah.

King Vidor King Wallis Vidor (; February 8, 1894 – November 1, 1982) was an American film director, film producer, and screenwriter whose 67-year film-making career successfully spanned the silent and sound eras. His works are distinguished by a vivid, ...

declined an invitation to direct.

was eventually named as director. Known primarily for the critically acclaimed hits '' The Glenn Miller Story'' (1954) and ''

Men in War ''Men in War'' is a 1957 black and white American war film about the Korean War directed by Anthony Mann and starring Robert Ryan and Aldo Ray as the leaders of a small detachment of American soldiers cut off and desperately trying to rejoin thei ...

'' (1957), Mann had previously directed eight Westerns. However, disagreements with producer

Edmund Grainger Edmund Grainger (1906–1981) was an American film producer. He produced more than sixty films during his career, and also occasionally worked as an assistant director. During the 1930s he was employed by Universal Pictures. He worked for RKO du ...

caused Mann to leave the project halfway through filming. Mann had wanted to film entirely on location, but Grainger wanted a majority of scenes instead to be filmed in studio. Director

Charles Walters Charles Powell Walters (November 17, 1911 – August 13, 1982) was an American Hollywood director and choreographer most noted for his work in MGM musicals and comedies from the 1940s to the 1960s. Early years Charles Walters was born in Pasa ...

finished the film but received no screen credit. The climactic scene portraying the Oklahoma Land Rush was shot in Arizona and featured over 1,000 extras, 700 horses and 500 wagons and buggies.

, who played Dixie Lee, revealed in her autobiography ''Intermission'' that Ford and Maria Schell developed an offscreen romance: "During shooting, they'd scrambled together like eggs. I understood she'd even begun divorce proceedings in Germany. It was obviously premature of her." However, by the end of filming, "... he scarcely glanced or spoke in her direction, and she looked as if she were in shock."

Reception

Box office

According to MGM records, ''Cimarron'' earned $2,325,000 in the U.S. and Canada and $2,500,000 overseas, resulting in an overall loss of $3,618,000.

Critical reaction

Harrison's Reports ''Harrison's Reports'' was a New York City-based motion picture trade journal published weekly from 1919 to 1962. The typical issue was four letter-size pages sent to subscribers under a second-class mail permit. Its founder, editor and publisher ...

'' wrote: "The background music is undistinguished. There's enough marquee strength, action, romance, and the 'land rush' scene at the beginning is worth the price of a soft ticket. Color photography is outstanding." Thomas M. Pryor, reviewing for ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'', praised Schell and Ford's performances, and wrote "Although ''Cimarron'' is not without flaws—thoughtful examination reveals a pretentiousness of social significance more than valid exposition—the script plays well."

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though his ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' felt the film's opening "makes for a dynamic and illustrative sequence on the screen. But once the land rush is over in this almost two-and-one-half-hour-long film—and we have to tell you it is assembled and completed within the first half-hour—the remaining dramatization of Miss Ferber's bursting 'Cimarron' simmers down to a stereotyped and sentimental cinema saga of the taming of the frontier." A review in ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and event (philosophy), events that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various me ...

'' magazine criticized the film's length, writing ''Cimarron'' "might more suitably have been called Cimarron-and-on-and-on-and-on. It lasts 2 hours and 27 minutes, and for at least half of that time most spectators will probably be Oklacomatose."

Awards and nominations

In 1961, the film was nominated for Best Art Direction ( George W. Davis,

Addison Hehr Addison Hehr (October 27, 1909 – February 28, 1971) was an American art director. He was nominated for two Academy Awards in the category Best Art Direction. Selected filmography * ''The Day the Earth Stood Still'' (1951) * ''The True Stor ...

, Henry Grace,

Hugh Hunt Hugh Hunt (March 8, 1902 – September 1, 1988) was an American set decorator. He won two Academy Awards and was nominated for eleven more in the category Best Art Direction. Selected filmography Hunt won two Academy Awards for Best Art Di ...

and Otto Siegel) and Best Sound ( Franklin Milton). Glenn Ford's performance earned a nomination for a

Laurel Award The Laurel Awards was an American cinema awards system established to honor films, actors, actresses, producers, directors, and composers. This award was created by the ''Motion Picture Exhibitor'' magazine, and ran from 1948 to 1971 (with the ...

for Top Action Performance, though he did not win.

References

Footnotes

Citations

Bibliography

* *

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cimarron 1960 films 1960s English-language films 1960 Western (genre) films American Western (genre) epic films Films scored by Franz Waxman Films based on Western (genre) novels Films directed by Anthony Mann Films based on American novels Films set in Oklahoma Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films based on works by Edna Ferber 1960s American films