I have become totally obsessed with an old TV series, THE TEXAN starring Rory Calhoun. I never knew this series existed until we switched cable companies not long ago and were so fortunate to be able to add GRIT TV to our lineup—and it’s about all we watch anymore.
THE TEXAN was a black and white series (yes, that’s how old it is, almost older than I am, but not quite!). It aired on CBS from 1958-1960, and as with so many of these older shows, I love to see so many roles by early “unknowns” who later became famous in their own right.
But the premise of THE TEXAN is really different, and heartbreaking all at once.
The Texan is Bill Longley, who was a captain in the Confederacy during the Civil War. When he comes back to his privileged life at his family’s southern plantation, he finds his young wife has died of a fever, and the plantation lies in ruins. He puts a grave marker up beside his wife’s that says Bill Longley died on this day, with the date below it—the date he returned home and found that his love was dead.
He goes to Texas and becomes a drifter, building a reputation as a fast gun, but he is not for hire. He just takes a hand when he sees wrongdoing and tries to right it, whatever it might be, when he can. I have, by no means, seen the entire series yet—we usually watch a couple of the 30-minute episodes while we eat dinner. Yes, some of them feel rather “rushed” because they are only 30 minutes long and the commercials have been moved around to accommodate today’s programming. But all in all, it’s really a good series, and I LOVE being able to study his character as the shows progress and we get to know more about him.
I truly admire the realism in this show. I didn’t realize it until recently, but there were so many westerns of that era that had the lawmen and the “good guys” always shooting to wound someone. The Lone Ranger even says at the beginning of that series that he will never kill, only shoot to wound, and then, only if necessary.
CREDIT FOR PICTURE: By Desilu Sales Inc., Hollywood – eBay (front & back), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=113095488
Well, let me tell y’all, Bill Longley has been through war and he is as tough as they come. Even though his past has been harsh (at least, it was once he joined the Confederacy and went to war), he still retains his sense of fairness. But make no mistake—he will shoot to kill, and he is fast. I don’t know how fast he was in actuality, but I did read something interesting the other day, as an aside—actor Glenn Ford was said to be the fastest gun in Hollywood, with a draw time of .04 seconds! WOW!
This character, THE TEXAN, is in many ways how I envision my heroes in my own books. My heroes, so far, don’t have his genteel upbringing—but I think if they all knew each other they’d be friends, because they’d see things the same way. Though they are fast with a gun, they don’t use it indiscriminately, and they are not ever ones to believe that “might makes right”.
You know, I have seen only one of Rory Calhoun’s movies, but in it, he plays the same kind of character as he played in THE TEXAN. A loner. A fast gun. Someone who makes tough decisions and takes up the slack when others don’t or won’t.
Now that I’ve started following him, I remember my mom saying something once about a movie she was wanting to see. I must have been about 8 or 9—all I remember was her saying, “It has Rory Calhoun in it!” and giving a little smile. I should have paid attention about 55 years sooner…
If you get a chance to watch THE TEXAN, you will not be sorry. This fictional Bill Longley is like so many of the western heroes we writers try to create, and the ones that readers love to read. It’s odd that they decided to call him Bill Longley, since there really WAS a Bill Longley, an outlaw who was nothing at all like the fictional portrayal. The real Bill Longley died at the age of 27 and was known for his hot temper, rages, and bloody murders he committed. Shudder. I love the fictional Bill Longley much better!
I’ve created many “loner” type heroes in my stories. Many of them resemble the characteristics of Bill Longley in THE TEXAN. Just thinking back on them, I’d say the two that stick in my mind as being most like The Texan are Johnny Houston from LOVE UNDER FIRE and Jaxson McCall from A MARSHAL FOR CALLIE–but it was a hard decision to narrow it down!
Who is your favorite television or big screen movie western star and why? And I’d love to know your favorite western tv series or movie that character played in. I’m giving away a digital copy of LOVE UNDER FIRE or A MARSHAL FOR CALLIE to one commenter today (reader’s choice)! Don’t forget to leave contact details in your comment!
Here’s a short excerpt from A MARSHAL FOR CALLIE. A ruthless gang of cutthroats from Jaxson McCall’s past have re-surfaced and are holding Callie and Jaxson’s brother, Jeremy, and a young boy, Carlos, hostage. Jaxson is recovering from a poison-tipped arrow, but he and his other brother, Brendan, are there to save the hostages. Here’s the confrontation:
“Turn her loose,” Jax ordered in a low tone.
“Or what, Marshal? You’ll kill me?” Blocker taunted.
But Callie could hear the muted strain in his voice. I must have hit him, she thought, surprised.
“Take me, Blocker,” Jax murmured. Deliberately, he tossed the Winchester to the ground and held his hands out. “You don’t want her—not really. What you want is to finish what you started thirteen years ago. I wonder…” He took a step forward, his silhouette illuminated by the fire behind him in the growing darkness.
Blocker licked his lips nervously. “Wonder what, McCall?”
“Are you man enough to take me? We never finished what we started back in Fort Smith. But you can have it either way, Blocker. A fight, or…not. I’ll—go with you. Just let her go.”
“I don’t think so,” Blocker replied smugly.
“Why not?”
“Because you want it too much, McCall.” Blocker put the tip of the knife under Callie’s chin. “You agree to give yourself up to me, knowing what I’ll do to you?” He shook his head in disbelief. “Girl must mean an awful lot to you. I wonder why.”
“She’s worth money to me,” Jax said quietly. His heart lurched at the hollow, dead look in Blocker’s eyes.
“You’re both worth money to me,” Blocker responded.
Callie could feel the big man’s grip on her easing somewhat. He didn’t realize it, she knew.
“C’mon, Blocker,” Jax murmured. “Let’s fight it out. Just you and me.”
Blocker’s grip slipped a little more, and Callie felt an oozing warmth at her back.
His blood.
Blocker shook his head. “Shorty shoveled out three graves over there. I ain’t gonna fill one of ’em.”
Suddenly, Callie dug her elbows backward with all her might. She heard Blocker’s grunt of pain as he dropped the knife, and she squirmed away from him. He lunged at Jax with a snarl, and both men grappled together, then went to the ground, pummeling one another.
Callie watched in horror, thinking of how Jax had looked just this morning when she’d left him asleep in their bed. The fever, the wound, his fitful rest and lack of food would all surely take their toll. He was in no shape to fight.
“Callie!”
She turned, just as a strong arm encircled her waist, pulling her to the safety of the trees and underbrush along the creek bank.
The man urged her to the ground beside Carlos, then he was gone as quickly as he had appeared.
As Callie lifted her head to peer through the undergrowth, she saw him step out into the ring of firelight. He dropped to one knee, his gun ready, but Jax and Blocker fought too closely together to take a chance on a shot.
CHERYL’S AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE: https://tinyurl.com/2k7xeddt
Order your copy of LOVE UNDER FIRE today!
A MARSHAL FOR CALLIE–KINDLE LINK: https://tinyurl.com/yn85vnkk
A MARSHAL FOR CALLIE–PAPERBACK LINK: https://tinyurl.com/mryt2fwf
Thanks for stopping by today! Be sure to leave your contact info along with your comment in case you win!
A native Oklahoman, I've been influenced by the west all my life. I love to write short stories and novels in the historical western and western romance genres, as well as contemporary romantic suspense! Check my Amazon author page to see my work: http://www.amazon.com/author/cherylpierson
I live in Oklahoma City with my husband of 40 years. I love to hear from readers and other authors--you can contact me here: fabkat_edit@yahoo.com
Follow me on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cheryl.pierson.92
https://petticoatsandpistols.com/sweepstakesrules
Hey Cheryl! I enjoyed your post this morning! And I need to see if we can get that series. I don’t think we have seen that one! I like any movie or series with Sam Elliott in it! I also love all the old black and white westerns. I thought I had read this book, A Marshall for Callie. But, alas not. I only read Kindle Unlimited books especially since retiring. It sounds wonderful though!
Best wishes!
Hi Tracy! Oh, I tell you, I am so hooked on this show. Yes, it’s dated, but I still love it. Some of those OLD ones are the BEST ones, and I really do like this one. I love Sam Elliott too. I’ve got you in the drawing for A MARSHAL FOR CALLIE! Fingers crossed! Thanks for stopping by today, Tracy.
Its on friendly tv they have lot of Old Westerns I just recently started watching the Texan its very good. I like lots of the western not seen most of them before, so watching is fun to watch. My favorite is still Sam Elliot love that guy. Thanks for a chance, keeping the fingers crossed.
Sandy, I don’t think we get Friendly TV. Since we switched cable companies, we don’t get Heroes and Icons, either, and they had a TON of really good westerns on there. I miss them!
Did you know you can save money on Kindle Unlimited by buying yourself a Kindle Unlimited gift subscription? I bought myself a 24 month Kindle Unlimited gift subscription lowering my monthly cost to $7.19 vs. the regular monthly cost of $11.99 plus tax. You can not use a gift card to pay for it and it’s not refundable. It does not hurt authors. Also, I use the free websitewww.Ereaderiq.com (US and UK) to track price drops on Kindle titles from my watchlist. (You can set the price) so it notifies you when the title is on sale. If you track a lot of titles, I recommend you turn off your email notifications and check your notifications on the website daily. There are freebies in every genre too. You can search http://www.booksalefinder.com to find used book sales in the US and Canada. Also, you can use http://www.littlefreelibrary.org to find little free libraries by zip code to browse and/or donate used books( there’s an app too). I hope these tips help!
I like westerns but I prefer old episodes of Little House, Wind at Your Back (I found the DVDs at the public library, and when Calls the Heart
OH MY GOODNESS, thank you so much for this tip! I never knew this! That’s really good to know!
I have never seen Wind at Your Back or When Calls the Heart, but I do love Little House episodes! You know, I just don’t care for today’s tv shows that much. I’d much rather see these older shows, wouldn’t you? I’m going to look up these two you mentioned and see what they’re about!
I enjoyed your post. My husband and I watch 30 minute shows while we eat lunch and usually old shows. There are so many we enjoy to pick a favorite but I like James Garner in Maverick. My husband said we can get the Texan so we may try it. I loved Johnny Houston in Love Under Fire.
Elaine, another one I like is Tales of Wells Fargo with Dale Robertson. At first, I was not crazy about it, but it grew on me. The stories are usually good, and as Jim Hardie, he is a Wells Fargo Special Agent who gets into all kinds of scrapes–but he can fight like the dickens and he’s pretty fast with a gun, too! LOL I liked James Garner as Maverick, too. From all accounts, James Garner was all all-around nice person in real life, too.
Oh, I’m SO glad to hear that you liked Johnny Houston. I’m working on a sequel!
I have many favorite Westerns and their stars, but one of my top favorites is Robert Fuller of Laramie fame with his dark good looks. He eventually retired from acting to become a horse rancher.
Oh, gosh, yes, Janice! Robert Fuller was soooo handsome. One of my favorites, too, for sure. I didn’t know about him retiring to become a horse rancher. Dale Robertson did too, I believe. He was from here in OK, and had a horse ranch in one of the suburbs of Oklahoma City. Met him one time when I worked at the National Cowboy Museum here in Oklahoma City. He was just like the characters he played on the screen. Kind of an awkward position for me, because he stopped me and asked me, “Where’s the picture of me that’s supposed to be hung in this hallway? And where are the guns I donated?” LOLLOL I would love to see what my face looked like! LOL
I watch GRIT a lot!! You’ll definitely be able to see a lot of Rory Calhoun movies on there, too!! I LOVE his movies! My all time favorite, though, is Dack Rambo from The Guns of Will Sonnett, followed closely by James Stacey in Lancer. I’ll admit, I knew The Texan was on GRIT, though I’ve not watched it. I’ll have to remedy that!!
Trudy, I’m crazy about James Stacy too! And Dack Rambo was a good one, too. I am looking forward to seeing the Rory Calhoun movies. I really do enjoy watching him. Yes, be sure and watch THE TEXAN. I would love to have seen those in color rather than b&w, but…you take what you can get. LOL
I will have to look that one up and see if we can get it through the antenna!
I was so glad we switched cable carriers if for no other reason than that NOW I get GRIT!!! LOL Good luck, Emily. I hope you can get it!
What an excerpt!
I’m partial to the Kevin Costner cowboys.
Thank you, Denise! Glad you liked it! My heroes are usually pretty rough and tumble, and man, Jaxson has had a very rough life. I really like Kevin Costner, too. And surprisingly, I loved the movie TOMBSTONE with Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer–it’s one of my favorites. I think my husband can recite about every line in that movie. LOL Thank you for the kind words!
I enjoyed all the westerns and stars in them. One of my most liked was Rawhide with Clint Eastwood.
Connie, I am sooooo with you about Rawhide. I remember watching that when I was little, and then on the reruns as I got older and NOW I watch it too. It’s interesting to watch these movies/tv shows and even read books over again at different ages in our lives. You always take away something new that you didn’t see before. Loved the interaction between Rowdy Yates and Gil Favor.
I am not sure that I have seen that series but maybe as a child. My dad use to watch any type of western that was on the TV and he also read a lot of western books. I will see if I can find it anywhere of the TV though. I loved the excerpt to your book and can’t wait to read it.
Quilt Lady, I have seen just about every old western there is I think, but then I get so excited when I come across one I HAVEN’T seen (Like The Texan!) and have allllll those episodes just waiting for me. LOL We watched a lot of westerns when I was little, too, but I was born in 1957 and that’s when so many of them had just come out, so I wasn’t really old enough to watch or remember them.
Thanks for the VERY kind words about A MARSHAL FOR CALLIE!
I have two or three favorites. Audie Murphy, Tom Selleck and Sam Elliott. Hard to choose between. They are all good. I also love to read westerns which surprised my family. Reading either of these books would be a pleasure.
Judy, my mom used to just love Audie Murphy. I think he was one of her very favorites, not only for his acting and movies, but for his war record and service in WWII. I really like Tom Selleck and Sam Elliott, too. I remember watching Tom Selleck back in his Magnum, P.I. days! Boy, that was a long time ago! LOL
We have grit in our lineup, but I never watched it. I’ll have to try it. I love the old westerns. John Wayne, James Garner, and Tom Selleck to name a few. They were always strong, honest men who wanted justice.
Oh, goodness, you will have such a pleasure waiting for you if you like Westerns–those old ones, especially–and I’m so glad we got GRIT. We didn’t have it on our old cable carrier, but now it’s about all we watch. My husband and I both love those old westerns. I think how so many of those shows and movies are woven into our lives at different times–it’s really amazing what an influence they had on society! A GOOD influence!
I have so many I absolutely love to watch but I love watching the Lone Ranger. I grew up reading the books. I have never seen The Texan but we are going to look it up.
Barbara, GRIT played The Lone Ranger series from the very beginning, and my husband recorded the first two episodes which neither of us had ever seen before. They were fascinating. They were all about how The Lone Ranger came into existence –he was a Texas Ranger, part of a group of Texas Rangers that had been ambushed and all left for dead including his brother and him. But he was not dead, and also, neither was one of the group who had betrayed the Texas Rangers and set up the ambush that the rest of the ambushers had tried to also kill. Tonto found the Lone Ranger–it turned out, The Lone Ranger had rescued Tonto several years before and they recognized each other. Tonto nursed him back to health, and the guy that had survived from the ambush gang came after them, but he ended up falling to his death. Then we learned that now that there were no witnesses, The Lone Ranger could carry out his newfound mission of bringing law and order to the west, and Tonto wanted to help him. In the second episode, it was revealed that there was a silver mine that The Lone Ranger and his brother had owned. He set up an old retired Texas Ranger there and only HE knew the identity of The Lone Ranger, and when they needed silver bullets, or silver to use as money, they had it. I never knew all that!
I hope you get to see The Texan and that you enjoy it!
My favorite western is Laramie from around the same time as The Texan and my favorite hero is Slim Sherman who runs the Sherman ranch and stage station. He is the epitome of the western man/hero, honest, caring, only fights when he has to, has your back, treats women like they should be treated, hard working, goes to church, takes care of his family…….
I really did love Laramie, too. That was a great series and really had some interesting story lines, and the characters were so PURE WESTERN.
Oh I love to watch all of them and Walker, Texas Ranger too!
Teresa, I love them all, too! LOL Including Walker, Texas Ranger! LOL
no fav
Oh no! So many good ones out there! LOL
I don’t watch much television, and that includes westerns (I prefer to read). I did watch True Grit recently and enjoyed it. The hero in that one was John Wayne.
Ami, True Grit is one of my favorite movies, but I loved that book even more! It’s by Charles Portis, and I had a copy of that in my library here at home for MANY years. I am not sure what happened to it, but now that you mention it, I would like to re-read it! I saw bits and pieces of the remake of True Grit with Jeff Bridges, but although it was good, I still liked the John Wayne version a lot better.
So many fav westers I love. The Duke being at the top of my list, then Rowdy Yates aka Clint Eastwood, how this rugged and handsome was to this little girl when she watched him on Rawhide. And then there was Heath Barkley, Lee Majors, he set many a cowboy fantasy and lets not for get Little Joe Cartwright… sighhhh.
Oh, Kathleen, you have brought up some GREAT westerns. Yes, Rawhide was always one of my favorites, and even from an early age I liked watching the interaction between Gil Favor and Rowdy Yates, not really picking one or the other as a favorite, just watching their personalities. I still love doing that. Heath Barkley….OH be still my heart, yes! And of course, Little Joe Cartwright–a fabulous show, Bonanza, and I loved every one of the characters in that show, but of course, Little Joe was always my favorite, too! LOL
Good morning Cheryl, I loved to watch John Wayne , I still love watching his movies, I think the one I like the best is The Sons Of Katie Elder. I also love The Rifleman, so many great cowboy series its hard to pick just one. Have a great day and a great week. I enjoyed reading your post.
Alicia, thanks so much for stopping by today–YES, I loved The Rifleman, too. That was really an unusual premise for a western and I think that’s why I loved it so much–very different! And John Wayne…so many really good movies he made, and so many favorites among them for different reasons. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance was, in my opinion, a much better movie than the short story it was based on. I don’t say that very often, but in this case, that is how I feel about it. The Sons of Katie Elder was another classic. We always loved El Dorado and Rio Bravo–well, just too many to even mention. All wonderful! I’m glad you enjoyed the post, and I hope you have a wonderful week, too! It’s supposed to get warmer here, and I’m all for that!
Hi Alicia, I like The Sons of Katie Elder, too. But my favorite John Wayne movie isn’t a western. A lot of people don’t even know about it. It is The Quiet Man.
Billye, I LOVE The Quiet Man! I think John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara had SUCH great chemistry together and I loved the movies they made together because I just loved both of them, and when they got together it was even better! I love it in The Quiet Man when she says, “I want my things about me!” That says so much in just one line, and you think maybe he’s never going to understand! LOL Great movie!
We watched plenty of TV westerns when I was a kid (my husband is a compadre of yours, Grit is one of his favorite channels now) but I perused an online listing to refresh my memory. Good thing, ‘cuz the two I’d claim as faves hadn’t automatically surfaced. I recall “Here Come the Brides” (David Soul had a life before “Starsky and Hutch”!) due to my best friend moving to Seattle in 6th grade, but I liked it despite that. I’d forgotten about “F Troop” but that was one my dad liked, too, so we always watched and enjoyed it. It had a sort of “Gilligan’s Island” feeling but was a western.
Does anyone else like Elmer Kelton’s novels about TX rangers?
Mary, I was soooo in love with Here Come the Brides–yes, David Soul. I was standing in line to buy his album the day it came out, I think! He actually had a darn good singing voice–remember “Don’t Give Up On Us, Baby…” ? And of course Bobby Sherman–he made the version of “Seattle” that skyrocketed to the top of the charts, and my cousin that I was so close to just happened to live in Seattle at that time, — I think we were about 13 or so–NOT TO MENTION that her name was “Julie” (Remember Julie, Julie, Julie, Do Ya Love Me?–another Bobby Sherman hit!) I was terribly jealous of both of those things! LOL And Robert Brown, Jason Bolt, the oldest one–sigh–you know I’ve seen him on the old Perry Mason a couple of times and of course on Star Trek (the original series).
F-Troop–I remember that! My dad liked that too! HA!
Elmer Kelton–what a writer. Lots of just excellent western stories, but then if I’m not mistaken he went on to write some contemporary thrillers, too.
Speaking of Gilligan’s Island, I saw Alan Hale (the skipper) on The Texan the other night. He was younger and you could still tell it was him, but he had a beard and looked quite a bit different! LOL
P.S. Some of you mentioned cable for TV viewing. There’s a group of folks in our valley who maintain antennas that allow us to access TV stations from the LA area (we’re in the Mojave Desert) with old fashioned TV antennas (and there are new antennas one applies to an interior window, a la vinyl clings). See if you can access Grit and other stations this very economical way.
HOW VERY COOL! Thanks for letting us know, Mary!
I enjoyed Sky King (and Penny).
Oh, my goodness, I had completely forgotten Sky King! What a thrilling show for us youngsters! Thanks for the reminder!
I love watching old westerns with my grandparents. I also enjoyed your excerpt! In some ways, I long for the values of old.
I’m so glad you stopped by today and that you enjoyed the excerpt. I agree with you about missing the values of yesteryear. That’s probably why I love to read (and write) historical fiction. I do some contemporary too, but I just feel more at home in those olden days.
I love the old westerns. I wish they would show “Sugarfoot”, with Hutchins. It was a series that showed different shows each week. It has Cheyenne, Sugarfoot and Bronco. They did the same thing with the Maverick series. And, years later the series included Sugarfoot, Cheyenne, and other shows. I loved Wanted: Dead or Alive with Steve McQueen, Tales of Wells Fargo with Dale Robertson, and a lot more.
A long time ago I was watch a Saturday morning show with old westerns and I saw a movie with John Wayne where he sang.
Billye, if you can get the Heroes and Icons channel, I know they had Sugarfoot on a few months back when we had the other cable carrier. They also had Cheyenne and Wanted: Dead or Alive, as well as Have Gun–Will Travel and Rawhide. They had a really great lineup on weekdays!
Now, I’ve got to see if I can find the singing John Wayne movie. The worst movie John Wayne ever made was when he played Genghis Khan. It was a movie called The Conqueror. Just purely AWFUL, but he was under contract and had no choice, I’m sure.
I loved the show when I was little. You might also like The Rebel as it has some similarities. Isn’t interesting how well they could tell a story in such a short time? Would they could achieve that with modern shows; of course, the commercial breaks have grown so large the actual episodes are shorter still.
David, I am constantly amazed at the way they are able to just “cut to the chase” and get the story told, but still add some depth to the characters and actually do some character building as the show progresses in so many of these older shows. They expanded Tales of Wells Fargo from 1/2 hour to a full hour, and you know, I don’t like those longer shows nearly as much as the shorter ones! I remember The Rebel…Johnny Yuma…that was one of my favorite songs–I think I had it on a little 45 I played on my record player when I was about 5. I never did watch The Texan though–I think because I was born in 1957 and the show ran from 58-60. So I wasn’t much interested in westerns yet.
I’ve recently watched the first several episodes of The Texan. I’m sure my parents watched it, because they watched all the tv westerns of the era. But I don’t remember anything about it. I’m working my way through the series, and I’m enjoying it. Rory Calhoun had such a ‘stage’ presence, plus being a ‘hunk and a half’. 😉
Your excerpt from A Marshal for Callie is gritty. I love it. Grit is my middle name. hahaha
HA! You made me laugh out loud! I love gritty westerns too, Kaye. I think we must be twin daughters of different mothers. LOL!
Yes, Rory Calhoun was quite the character in real life, too. He did prison time, was paroled and had started his acting career when he was arrested for assault (got into a fight) and did another year in prison. WHO KNEW? He seems so easygoing for the most part (but don’t rile him!) in the series. Just shows what a great actor he was. Yes, he was quite the hunk, too! I’m so glad you stopped by today!
sorry I got here too late. I know I watched the Texan, but don’t really remember it much. One of my early favorites was The Rifleman with Chuck Connors. There was a good father -son relationship, and he was someone who would not stand by when he became aware of an injustice.
Hey Patricia! So good to see you here, no matter what time it is! I loved The Rifleman! That show really was different for so many reasons, and I think the main one was the ongoing father-son relationship and how Lucas still maintained his integrity no matter WHAT the circumstances might be. It could not have been easy. I always loved that show! So glad you stopped in!
I really love Roy Rogers, because he was truly the same off screen as he was on screen. He and Dale Evans did so much good for people, especially kids with disabilities. He was truly one of the good guys.
Kim, I agree! I loved him, too! My older sister grew up telling everyone she was going to marry him. She had a plan that they’d get married and raise lemons in a lemon orchard. He and Dale were the perfect couple. They did a LOT of good together!
Rory Calhoun was one of my all-time favorite actors. My wife and I named our son Rory, after him. Watch ‘River of No Return’ with Robert Mitchum, Marylyn Monroe, and Rory Calhoun if you get the chance. I saw it at the theater in 1954 when I was seven years old, and I still remember most of it. The FX are dated, but at the time, they were cutting edge. You will be surprised at the role Rory Calhoun plays. It shows how good an actor he was when he had a role he could sink his teeth into. Tommy Rettig, who was the little boy in the first Lassie series plays Robert Mitchum’s son. Also, Rory Calhoun’s friends called him Smoke.
Ron, HOW COOL! I’m glad you came over here and stopped in to comment. I did not know that about him being in River of No Return. I have seen that movie a LONG time ago, and I guess I just didn’t realize that Rory Calhoun was in it, because I was oblivious. I was probably in my early teens when I saw it. I will definitely watch it again! I love Robert Mitchum in anything he’s in. He was so versatile. I didn’t know they called him Smoke, either. I wonder how he got that nickname, do you know? I love the name Rory. I saw where on of the directors, when he first got started in show business, changed his name to Rory because he said, something like “You’re a Leo and you need a name that roars” or something like that. Which I thought was very neat, because I’m a Leo too. LOL That’s a very unusual name, and I just love it. Thanks again for stopping by!