Budd Boetticher
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Oscar Boetticher Jr. ( ; July 29, 1916 – November 29, 2001), known as Budd Boetticher, was an American film director. He is best remembered for a series of low-budget Westerns he made in the late 1950s starring
Randolph Scott George Randolph Scott (January 23, 1898 – March 2, 1987) was an American film actor, whose Hollywood career spanned from 1928 to 1962. As a leading man for all but the first three years of his cinematic career, Scott appeared in dramas, come ...
.


Early life

Boetticher was born in Chicago. His mother died in childbirth and his father was killed in an accident shortly afterward. He was adopted by a wealthy couple, Oscar Boetticher Sr. (1867–1953) and Georgia ( Naas) Boetticher (1888–1955), and raised in
Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 118,414 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is Indiana's List of cities in Indiana, third-most populous city after India ...
, along with his younger brother, Henry Edward Boetticher (1924–2004). He attended Culver Military Academy, where he became friends with Hal Roach Jr. He was a star athlete at
Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...
, until an injury ended his sports career. In 1939 he traveled to Mexico, where he learned
bullfighting Bullfighting is a physical contest that involves a bullfighter attempting to subdue, immobilize, or kill a bull, usually according to a set of rules, guidelines, or cultural expectations. There are several variations, including some forms wh ...
under Lorenzo Garza, Fermín Espinosa Saucedo and Carlos Arruza.


Career


Early films

Boetticher worked as a crew member on ''
Of Mice and Men ''Of Mice and Men'' is a 1937 novella written by American author John Steinbeck. It describes the experiences of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant worker, migrant ranch workers, as they move from place to place in California ...
'' (1939) and '' A Chump at Oxford'' (1940). A chance encounter with
Rouben Mamoulian Rouben Zachary Mamoulian (October 8, 1897 – December 4, 1987) was an Armenian-American film and theater director. Mamoulian's oeuvre includes sixteen films (four of which are Musical film, musicals) and seventeen Broadway theatre, Broadw ...
landed him a job as technical advisor on '' Blood and Sand'' (1941). He stayed on in Hollywood working at
Hal Roach Studios Hal Roach Studios was an American motion picture and, through its TV production subsidiary, Hal Roach Television Corporation, television production studio. Known as ''The Laugh Factory to the World'', it was founded by producer Hal Roach and busin ...
doing a variety of jobs.


Columbia Pictures

Boetticher received an offer to work at
Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...
as an assistant director on '' The More the Merrier'' (1943). The studio liked his work and he stayed to assist on '' Submarine Raider'' (1942), '' The Desperadoes'' (1943), ''
Destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...
'' (1943), '' U-Boat Prisoner'' (1944), and ''
Cover Girl A cover girl is a woman whose photograph is used for the front cover of magazines. She may be a model, celebrity or entertainer. The term would generally not be used to describe a person making a single, casual appearance on the cover of a magaz ...
'' (1944), promoted to first assistant director. Some of these were Columbia's most prestigious films and Boetticher was offered the chance to join the studio's directing program. Boetticher's first credited film as director was a
Boston Blackie Boston Blackie is a fictional character created by author Jack Boyle (1881–1928). Blackie was originally depicted as a jewel thief and safecracker in Boyle's stories, and became a private detective in adaptations for films, radio and televisi ...
film '' One Mysterious Night'' (1944). It was followed by other "B" movies: '' The Missing Juror'' (1944), '' Youth on Trial'' (1945), '' A Guy, a Gal and a Pal'' (1945), and '' Escape in the Fog'' (1945). "They were terrible pictures", he remarked in 1979. "We had eight or ten days to make a picture. We had all these people who later became stars, or didn't, like George Macready and Nina Foch, and you never had anybody any good. I don't mean that they weren't good but they weren't then, and neither were we."


Military service

Boetticher was commissioned as an Ensign in the U.S. Naval Photographic Science Laboratory. He made documentaries and service films including '' The Fleet That Came to Stay'' (1945) and ''Well Done''.


Eagle Lion and Monogram

Boetticher left Columbia. He directed some films for
Eagle Lion Eagle Lion (1985-2013) was an event horse that successfully competed at the highest level of the sport. He stood 16.1  hh (169 cm). Eagle Lion was out of Stream Lion, a producer of event horses, including stablemates Pirate Lion and ...
, '' Assigned to Danger'' (1948) and '' Behind Locked Doors'' (1949). At
Monogram Pictures Monogram Pictures Corporation was an American film studio that produced mostly low-budget films between 1931 and 1953, when the firm completed a transition to the name Allied Artists Pictures Corporation. Monogram was among the smaller studios i ...
he directed
Roddy McDowall Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 3 October 1998) was a British-American actor whose career spanned over 270 screen and stage roles across over 60 years. Born in London, he began his acting career as a child in his n ...
in '' Black Midnight'' (1949) and '' Killer Shark'' (1950). In between he made '' The Wolf Hunters'' (1949). He began directing for television with '' Magnavox Theatre'' – a production of ''
The Three Musketeers ''The Three Musketeers'' () is a French historical adventure novel written and published in 1844 by French author Alexandre Dumas. It is the first of the author's three d'Artagnan Romances. As with some of his other works, he wrote it in col ...
'' that was released theatrically in some markets as '' The Blade of the Musketeers''.


''Bullfighter and the Lady''

Boetticher got his first big break when he was asked to direct '' Bullfighter and the Lady'' for
John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne, was an American actor. Nicknamed "Duke", he became a Pop icon, popular icon through his starring roles in films which were produced during Hollywood' ...
's production company, Batjac, based loosely on Boetticher's own adventures studying to be a matador in Mexico. It was the first film he signed as Budd Boetticher, rather than his given name, and it earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Original Story. But the film was edited drastically without his consent, and his career again seemed on hold. (The film has since been restored by the
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...
Film Archive and the restored print is sometimes referred to by its working title, ''Torero''.)


Universal-International

Boetticher signed a contract to direct for Universal-International where he specialised in Westerns. "I became a western director because they thought I looked like one and they thought I rode better than anyone else," said Boetticher later. "And I didn't know anything about the west." His films there included '' The Cimarron Kid'' (1952) with
Audie Murphy Audie Leon Murphy (20 June 1925 – 28 May 1971) was an American soldier, actor, and songwriter. He was widely celebrated as the most decorated American combat soldier of World War II, and has been described as the most highly decorated enli ...
; '' Bronco Buster'' (1952); ''
Red Ball Express The Red Ball Express was an American truck convoy system that supplied World War II allies, Allied forces moving through Europe after breaking out from the D-Day beaches in Normandy in the summer of 1944. To expedite cargo shipments to the fro ...
'' (1952), a
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
film; '' Horizons West'' (1952) with Robert Ryan; '' City Beneath the Sea'' (1953), a treasure hunting film; ''
Seminole The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, ...
'' (1953), a Western with
Rock Hudson Rock Hudson (born Roy Harold Scherer Jr.; November 17, 1925 – October 2, 1985) was an American actor. One of the most popular film stars of his time, he had a screen career spanning more than three decades, and was a prominent figure in the G ...
; '' The Man from the Alamo'' (1953) with
Glenn Ford Gwyllyn Samuel Newton Ford (May 1, 1916 – August 30, 2006), known as Glenn Ford, was a Canadian-born American actor. He was most prominent during Classical Hollywood cinema, Hollywood's Golden Age as one of the biggest box-office draws of th ...
; '' Wings of the Hawk'' (1953) with Van Heflin; and '' East of Sumatra'' (1953) with Chandler and Quinn. He started directing '' The Americano'', an independent film with Ford, but quit. He returned to television with '' The Public Defender''.


''The Magnificent Matador''

In 1955, he helmed another bullfighting drama, '' The Magnificent Matador'', at 20th Century-Fox, which began his frequent collaboration with cinematographer Lucien Ballard. They followed it with a film noir, '' The Killer Is Loose'' (1956). He also directed episodes of ''
The Count of Monte Cristo ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' () is an adventure novel by the French writer Alexandre Dumas. It was serialised from 1844 to 1846, and published in book form in 1846. It is one of his most popular works, along with ''The Three Musketeers'' (184 ...
''.


Ranown Cycle

Boetticher finally achieved his major breakthrough when he teamed up with actor
Randolph Scott George Randolph Scott (January 23, 1898 – March 2, 1987) was an American film actor, whose Hollywood career spanned from 1928 to 1962. As a leading man for all but the first three years of his cinematic career, Scott appeared in dramas, come ...
and
screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...
Burt Kennedy Burton Raphael Kennedy (September 3, 1922 – February 15, 2001) was an American screenwriter and film director, director known mainly for directing Westerns. Budd Boetticher called him "the best Western writer ever." Biography Kennedy was b ...
to make '' Seven Men from Now'' (1956). It was the first of the seven films (last in 1960) that came to be known as the Ranown Cycle. He was reunited with Scott and Kennedy on '' The Tall T'' (1957); they were joined by producer
Harry Joe Brown Harry Joe Brown (September 22, 1890 – April 28, 1972) was an American film producer, and earlier a theatre direction, theatre and film director. Biography Harry Joe Brown was born in 1890 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. As a producer, he had a p ...
, who would produce the six remaining films. Boetticher directed the first three episodes of the TV series '' Maverick''. He went back to working with Scott: '' Decision at Sundown'' (1957); '' Buchanan Rides Alone'' (1958) (not written by Kennedy); and '' Ride Lonesome'' (1959). '' Westbound'' (1959) was made with Scott but without Kennedy or Brown. '' Comanche Station'' (1960) was made with Scott and Kennedy.


1960s

Boetticher returned to television, directing episodes of ''
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
'', '' Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre'', ''
Death Valley Days ''Death Valley Days'' is an American Western (genre), Western anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program was ...
'', and ''
The Rifleman ''The Rifleman'' is an American Western television series starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the fictional town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show ...
''. He did a feature, '' The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond'' (1960). He directed the first three episodes of '' Maverick'' starring
James Garner James Scott Garner (né Bumgarner; April 7, 1928 – July 19, 2014) was an American actor. He played leading roles in more than 50 theatrical films, which included ''The Great Escape (film), The Great Escape'' (1963) with Steve McQueen; Paddy Ch ...
then had a fundamental disagreement with writer/producer Roy Huggins involving the lead character's dialogue and never directed the series again. Boetticher spent most of the 1960s south of the border pursuing his obsession, the documentary of his friend, the
bullfighter A bullfighter or matador () is a performer in the activity of bullfighting. ''Torero'' () or ''toureiro'' (), both from Latin ''taurarius'', are the Spanish and Portuguese words for bullfighter, and describe all the performers in the activ ...
Carlos Arruza, turning down profitable
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...
offers and suffering humiliation and despair to stay with the project, including sickness, bankruptcy and confinement in both jail and asylum (all of which is detailed in his
autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...
''When in Disgrace''). '' Arruza'' was finally completed in 1968 and released in Mexico in 1971 and the US in 1972.


Return to Hollywood

Boetticher returned to Hollywood with the rarely seen '' A Time for Dying'', a collaboration with
Audie Murphy Audie Leon Murphy (20 June 1925 – 28 May 1971) was an American soldier, actor, and songwriter. He was widely celebrated as the most decorated American combat soldier of World War II, and has been described as the most highly decorated enli ...
shot in 1969 and not released widely until 1982. He provided the story for
Don Siegel Donald Siegel ( ; October 26, 1912 – April 20, 1991) was an American film director and producer. Siegel was described by ''The New York Times'' as "a director of tough, cynical and forthright action-adventure films whose taut plots centered o ...
's ''
Two Mules for Sister Sara ''Two Mules for Sister Sara'' is a 1970 American-Mexican Western film in Panavision directed by Don Siegel and starring Shirley MacLaine and Clint Eastwood set during the French intervention in Mexico (1861–1867). The film was to have been t ...
'' (1970). In later years, he was known for the
documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
'' My Kingdom For...'' (1985) and his appearance as a judge in
Robert Towne Robert Towne (born Robert Bertram Schwartz; November 23, 1934 – July 1, 2024) was an American screenwriter and director. He started writing films for Roger Corman, including '' The Tomb of Ligeia'' in 1964, and was later part of the New Hollyw ...
's '' Tequila Sunrise'' (1988), and he was still actively attempting to get his screenplay "A Horse for Mr. Barnum" made, before his death in 2001. He and his wife Mary spent much of their later years traveling to film festivals around the world, especially in Europe. His last public appearance, less than three months before his death, was at Cinecon, a classic film festival held in Hollywood, California.


Filmography

*''
Of Mice and Men ''Of Mice and Men'' is a 1937 novella written by American author John Steinbeck. It describes the experiences of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant worker, migrant ranch workers, as they move from place to place in California ...
'' (1939) – horse wrangler *'' A Chump at Oxford'' (1940)- crew *'' Blood and Sand'' (1941) – technical adviser *''Military Training'' (1941) (short) – assistant director *'' Submarine Raider'' (1942) – uncredited director *'' The More the Merrier'' (1943) – assistant director *'' The Desperadoes'' (1943) – assistant director *''
Destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...
'' (1943) – assistant director *''
Cover Girl A cover girl is a woman whose photograph is used for the front cover of magazines. She may be a model, celebrity or entertainer. The term would generally not be used to describe a person making a single, casual appearance on the cover of a magaz ...
'' (1944) – assistant director *'' The Girl in the Case'' (1944) – assistant director *'' U-Boat Prisoner'' (1944) aka ''Dangerous Mists'' – uncredited *'' One Mysterious Night'' (1944) aka ''Behind Closed Doors'' – director *'' The Missing Juror'' (1944) – director *'' Youth on Trial'' (1945) – director *'' A Guy, a Gal and a Pal'' (1945) – director *'' Escape in the Fog'' (1945) – director *''The Fleet that Came to Stay'' (1945) (documentary) – director *'' Assigned to Danger'' (1948) – director *'' Behind Locked Doors'' (1948) – director *'' Black Midnight'' (1949) – director *'' The Wolf Hunters'' (1949) – director *'' Killer Shark'' (1950) – director *'' The Maganvox Theater'' (1950) (TV series) – episode "The Three Musketeers" – director *'' Bullfighter and the Lady'' (1951) – director, producer, story *'' The Cimarron Kid'' (1952) – director *'' Bronco Buster'' (1952) – director *''
Red Ball Express The Red Ball Express was an American truck convoy system that supplied World War II allies, Allied forces moving through Europe after breaking out from the D-Day beaches in Normandy in the summer of 1944. To expedite cargo shipments to the fro ...
'' (1952) – director *'' Horizons West'' (1952) – director *''
Seminole The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, ...
'' (1953) – director *'' City Beneath the Sea'' (1953) – director *'' The Man from the Alamo'' (1953) – director *'' Wings of the Hawk'' (1953) – director *'' East of Sumatra'' (1953) – director *'' The Public Defender'' (1954) (TV series) – director *'' The Magnificent Matador'' (1955) aka ''The Brave and the Beautiful'' – director, story *'' Seven Men from Now'' (1956) – director *'' The Killer Is Loose'' (1956) – director *'' General Electric Summer Originals'' (1956) (TV series) – episode "Alias Mike Hecules" – director *''
The Count of Monte Cristo ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' () is an adventure novel by the French writer Alexandre Dumas. It was serialised from 1844 to 1846, and published in book form in 1846. It is one of his most popular works, along with ''The Three Musketeers'' (184 ...
'' (1956) (TV series) – episode "The Affair of the Three Napoleons" – director *'' The Tall T'' (1957) – director *'' Maverick (1957) – various episodes – director *'' Decision at Sundown'' (1957) – director *'' Buchanan Rides Alone'' (1958) – director *'' Ride Lonesome'' (1959) – director, producer *'' Westbound'' (1959) – director *'' Comanche Station'' (1960) – director, producer *''
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
'' (1960) (TV series)- episode "Colonel Cat" – director *'' The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond'' (1960) – director *'' Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater'' (1960–61) (TV series) – director of various episodes *''
Death Valley Days ''Death Valley Days'' is an American Western (genre), Western anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program was ...
'' (TV series) – episode "South of Horror Flats" – director *''
The Rifleman ''The Rifleman'' is an American Western television series starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the fictional town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show ...
'' (1961) (TV series) – episode "Stopover" – director *'' A Time for Dying'' (1969) – director, writer *''
Two Mules for Sister Sara ''Two Mules for Sister Sara'' is a 1970 American-Mexican Western film in Panavision directed by Don Siegel and starring Shirley MacLaine and Clint Eastwood set during the French intervention in Mexico (1861–1867). The film was to have been t ...
'' (1970) – story only *'' Arruza'' (1971) (documentary) – director, producer *'' My Kingdom For...'' (1985) (documentary) – director, producer *'' Tequila Sunrise'' (1988) – actor only


References


External links

*
They Shoot Pictures, Don't They?

Bruce Hodsdon, 'Budd Boetticher and the Westerns of Ranown', ''Senses of Cinema'' 18 July 2001

John Flaus, 'Budd Boetticher', ''Senses of Cinema'' 18 September 2001

Budd Boetticher
at
TCMDB Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of ...

Sean Axmaker, 'Budd Boetticher, Last of the Old Hollywood Two-Fisted Directors', ''Green Cine'', 16 December 2005

Sean Axmaker, 'Ride Lonesome: The Career of Budd Boetticher', ''Senses of Cinema'' 7 February 2006


at Film Reference
Literature on Budd Boetticher
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boetticher, Bud 1916 births 2001 deaths Western (genre) film directors Ohio State University alumni People from Evansville, Indiana Film directors from Indiana Culver Academies alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy officers Film directors from California