Pausing briefly in my postings about the Shenandoah Valley, I wanted to reflect a bit on the death of Charlton Heston. After hearing the news, my immediate memories were of The Ten Comandments (ranking first), Planet of the Apes, Midway, El Cid, Gray Lady Down, and a vague memory of Soylent Green (and, of course, the NRA). While I enjoyed most of these productions (as well as a few others in which he starred), Major Dundee was just never one of those that really caught my attention and, I can say with confidence that the movie had absolutely no impact on my Civil War “memory” (even in a pinch for Civil War content on television, I have to say that I found it hard to enjoy). Nevertheless, since he had a movie that dealt with an aspect of the Civil War era, and noting that nobody else had blogged about the movie and his death, I couldn’t help but bring it up. That being said, I guess I’ll keep my eye out for his better productions on DVD (as I say this, I’m also seeking out a copy of El Cid) and continue to enjoy the annual dose of The Ten Commandments provided via ABC.
Bidding farewell to Major Dundee
Posted on April 6, 2008 by Robert Moore
caswain01
April 8, 2008
Which is better? A memory based on “Major Dundee.” One based on “The Beguiled.” One based on “Birth of a Nation.” One based on “Ken Burns’ Civil War.” Or one based on those three episodes of the Beverly Hillbillies where Granny shoots the actor playing General Grant? (The beards of course for those episodes were a bit more acceptable than “Gettysburg”….)
cenantua
April 8, 2008
By far Grant’s beard in the Beverly Hillbillies wins hands-down against Gettysburg. As far as memory… I suppose contemporary memory of the Civil War would best be reflected by Granny’s reaction to Grant – again, the Beverly Hillbillies is the winner!
Phil LeDuc
April 8, 2008
The story of the film “Major Dundee” is one of those director vs. studio clashes. As a Sam Peckinpaugh film, the movie attracts a certain interest just on that basis. The film we usually see on TV is not what Peckinpaugh created – upon completion, it was re-cut by the studio, the music was changed, and all-in-all it was mangled beyond Peckinpaugh’s recognition. The latest DVD release was put together from recovered material, including music, to try to get back to Peckinpaugh’s original creation. Not completely though, as some material was apparently lost forever.