''Tomahawk'' is a 1951 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 directed by George Sherman and starring

Van Heflin Emmett Evan "Van" Heflin Jr. (December 13, 1908 – July 23, 1971) was an American theatre, radio and film actor. He played mostly character parts over the course of his film career, but during the 1940s had a string of roles as a leading man. H ...

and Yvonne De Carlo. The film is loosely based on events that took place in

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...

in 1866 to 1868 around

Fort Phil Kearny Fort Phil Kearny was an outpost of the United States Army that existed in the late 1860s in present-day northeastern Wyoming along the Bozeman Trail. Construction began in 1866 on Friday, July 13, by Companies A, C, E, and H of the 2nd Battalion, ...

on the

Bozeman Trail The Bozeman Trail was an overland route in the western United States, connecting the gold rush territory of southern Montana to the Oregon Trail in eastern Wyoming. Its most important period was from 1863–68. Despite the fact that the major pa ...

such as the

Fetterman Fight The Fetterman Fight, also known as the Fetterman Massacre or the Battle of the Hundred-in-the-Hands or the Battle of a Hundred Slain, was a battle during Red Cloud's War on December 21, 1866, between a confederation of the Lakota, Cheyenne, and ...

and Wagon Box Fight. In the UK, the film was released as ''The Battle of Powder River''. It is one of the first films to empathise with the views of the native Americans.

Plot

The story has two main threads: the white fur traders, and their relatively friendly relationship with the Sioux; and the US Cavalry who have a very distanced relationship with the Sioux. The traders and scouts are led by Jim Bridger who has the Indian name of "Tomahawk". A small travelling show run by Julie Madden gets an escort cross-country to a fort from Lt Dancy. En route Dancy kills a young unarmed Sioux boy without provocation, for being near his horses. He tells his corporal to explain the night-time shot as him killing a fox. In retaliation on the following day, half a dozen mounted Sioux ambush the travelling show hitting Julie's elderly companion Dan with an arrow in the chest. They take the injured man to the fort but the doctor refuses to operate. Julie persuades Jim Bridger to operate and Bridger saves his life. Jim asks Julie to look after Monahseetah his female Cheyenne travelling companion, the daughter of Chief Black Kettle . The Sioux approach the fort in small groups and pick off one sentry at a time then ride off. Julie has taken a horse out without permission and they chase her. Jim calls them off, but one still chases her. Jim pulls him from his horse and they fight. It is Red Cloud's favourite son and he is killed. When they get back to the fort they can hear the Sioux war drums. Bridger discovers that Dancy killed his Cheyenne wife, Monahseetah's sister, after Dancy leads a suicidal attack on a group of Sioux where he is the sole survivor. The Sioux attack the fort in waves but the newly arrived breach loading rifles defeat them.

Cast

Jim Bridger James Felix "Jim" Bridger (March 17, 1804 – July 17, 1881) was an American mountain man, trapper, Army scout, and wilderness guide who explored and trapped in the Western United States in the first half of the 19th century. He was known as Old ...

* Yvonne De Carlo as Julie Madden * Alex Nicol as 1st. Lt. Rob Dancy *

Preston Foster Preston Stratton Foster (August 24, 1900 – July 14, 1970), was an American actor of stage, film, radio, and television, whose career spanned nearly four decades. He also had a career as a vocalist. Early life Born in Ocean City, New Jersey ...

as Col. Carrington *

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 Golde ...

as Cpl. Burt Hanna *

Arthur Space Charles Arthur Space (October 12, 1908 – January 13, 1983) was an American film, television and stage actor. He was best known as Doc Weaver, the veterinarian, in thirty-nine episodes of the CBS television series '' Lassie''. Early years Bor ...

as Capt. William J. Fetterman *

Russ Conway Russ Conway, DSM (born Trevor Herbert Stanford; 2 September 1925 – 16 November 2000) was an English popular music pianist and composer. Conway had 20 piano instrumentals in the UK Singles Chart between 1957 and 1963, including two number on ...

as Maj. Horton (as Russell Conway) * Stuart Randall as Sgt. Newell *

Jack Oakie Jack Oakie (born Lewis Delaney Offield; November 12, 1903 – January 23, 1978) was an American actor, starring mostly in films, but also working on stage, radio and television. He portrayed Napaloni in Chaplin's ''The Great Dictator'' (194 ...

as Sol Beckworth (based on

James Beckwourth James Pierson Beckwourth (born Beckwith, April 26, 1798 or 1800 – October 29, 1866 or 1867), was an American mountain man, fur trader, and explorer. Beckwourth was known as "Bloody Arm" because of his skill as a fighter. He was mixed-race and ...

) *

Tom Tully Thomas Kane Tulley (August 21, 1908 – April 27, 1982) was an American actor. He began his career in radio and on the stage before making his film debut in ''Northern Pursuit'' (1943). Subsequently, he was nominated for an Academy Award for hi ...

as Dan Castello *

John War Eagle John Henry St Pierre, a.k.a. John War Eagle (8 June 1901 – 7 February 1991) was a Yankton Sioux film and television actor. He was born September 24, 1901, in Wagner, Charles Mix, South Dakota. He is Dakota of the Sioux people and was rais ...

Red Cloud Red Cloud ( lkt, Maȟpíya Lúta, italic=no) (born 1822 – December 10, 1909) was a leader of the Oglala Lakota from 1868 to 1909. He was one of the most capable Native American opponents whom the United States Army faced in the western ...

* Susan Cabot as Monahseetah *

Ann Doran Ann Lee Doran (July 28, 1911 – September 19, 2000) was an American character actress, possibly best known as the mother of Jim Stark (James Dean) in ''Rebel Without a Cause'' (1955). She was an early member of the Screen Actors Guild and serv ...

as Mrs. Carrington

Production

The film was based on a story by Daniel Jarrett. Film rights were bought by Universal in 1947; they assigned Leonard Goldstein to produce and George Sherman to direct. In August 1948 Universal announced the film would be one of their Technicolor productions for the following year, along with ''

Calamity Jane and Sam Bass ''Calamity Jane and Sam Bass'' is a 1949 American Western film directed by George Sherman and starring Yvonne de Carlo, Howard Duff and Dorothy Hart. Plot Sheriff Will Egan doesn't want any gamblers in Denton, Texas and is suspicious when str ...

'', '' Sierra'', ''Streets of Cairo'', ''

Bloomer Girl ''Bloomer Girl'' is a 1944 Broadway musical with music by Harold Arlen, lyrics by E.Y. Harburg, and a book by Sig Herzig and Fred Saidy, based on an unpublished play by writer Daniel Lewis James and his wife Lilith.Suskin, 89 The plot concerns ...

'' and '' Bagdad''. In May 1949

Stephen McNally Stephen McNally (born Horace Vincent McNally; July 29, 1911 – June 4, 1994) was an American actor remembered mostly for his appearances in many Westerns and action films. He often played hard-hearted characters, criminals, bullies, and othe ...

was announced for the lead and Edna Anhalt was going to write the script. McNally dropped out and was replaced by

in March 1950 and Anhalt is not credited on the final film. In April Yvonne De Carlo was cast opposite Heflin. De Carlo liked that her part was more of a straight dramatic role. Shooting began in May 1950. The film was shot partly on location in South Dakota.

Reception

The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'' called it a "well made, exciting movie." In June 1952 Van Heflin and George Sherman were reported as working on a followup to the movie.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tomahawk (Film) 1951 films 1951 Western (genre) films American Western (genre) films Films directed by George Sherman Films scored by Hans J. Salter Films set in the 1860s Universal Pictures films Western (genre) films based on actual events 1950s English-language films 1950s American films