The Boy from Oklahoma

The Boy from Oklahoma is a 1954 American western film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Will Rogers Jr., Nancy Olson and Anthony Caruso.[1][2] It was produced and distributed by the major studio Warner Bros.

The Boy from Oklahoma
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMichael Curtiz
Written byFrank Davis
Winston Miller
Based onThe Sheriff Was Scared by Michael Fessier
Produced byDavid Weisbart
StarringWill Rogers Jr.
Nancy Olson
Anthony Caruso
CinematographyRobert Burks
Edited byJames Moore
Music byMax Steiner
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Bros.
Release date
  • February 27, 1954 (1954-02-27)
Running time
87 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

Cast

Background

The film became the basis for the 1957 Warner Bros. television series Sugarfoot, in which Will Hutchins replaced Rogers as lead character Tom Brewster. The movie features Lon Chaney Jr. and includes one of future TV talk show host Merv Griffin's few theatrical film roles. In the movie version, Rogers as Brewster substitutes facility with a twirling rope, similar to Will Rogers, Sr.'s, for the usual unerring speed and accuracy with firearms typically found in cinematic cowboy heroes.

Three of the original cast members from the movie, Louis Jean Heydt, Sheb Wooley, and Slim Pickens, were transplanted directly into the subsequent TV show's pilot, "Brannigan's Boots", playing their roles from the movie; the first episode of Sugarfoot follows the film's script fairly faithfully. Dennis Hopper succeeded James Griffith as Billy the Kid in the television version, Merry Anders took over the part of Katie Brannigan from Nancy Olson, and Chubby Johnson replaced Wallace Ford as Wally Higgins for the small screen.

This was the last film made by Curtiz as a contract director at Warner Bros. He had worked exclusively at the studio since 1926.

Reception

Reviewing the DVD release in 2013, Gene Triplett of The Oklahoman called the film an "amiable oater" with a plot that "may sound like potential corn on the cob to some" but turns out to be "unexpectedly well-crafted entertainment".[3]

References
  1. Boggs, Johnny D. (2013). Billy the Kid on Film, 1911-2012. McFarland. p. 120. ISBN 9781476603353. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  2. Thissen, Judith; Zimmermann, Clemens (2017). Cinema Beyond the City. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 61. ISBN 9781844578481. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  3. Gene Triplett, "DVD review: 'The Boy from Oklahoma'", The Oklahoman, March 22, 2013.


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