Genghis Khan (1965) In 1946, Jimmy Stewart led a small group of stars who vocalized their support for brotherhood among all Americans. Mar 5: AEW Revolution Ford discovered Wayne, then Marion Morrison, when the latter was a University of Southern California student with a summer job on a studio lot. 9 Black Athletes Who Integrated Professional Sports - HISTORY Munn claims that he and Laurence Olivier were great friends, and that Olivier nicknamed him Eminem decades before rapper Marshall Mathers adopted the moniker. Though he was a conservative unlike his friend Henry Fonda who was a liberal and despised racism, I doubt if their life long friendship wouldve lasted if Fonda discovered he had racist views. But Woody's own behaviors raise plenty of questions about his intentions, including his admission that he's "been playing with dead things since [he] was a toddler.". Thanks for reading Brice! Producer Julian Blaustein, who produced Jims 1950 film, Broken Arrow, also knew that Jimmy Stewart was not racist: I never knew Jimmy to do or say anything that was racist.. Caribbean (1952) So glad that Mr. Stewart was not a racist. Woody Strode, Black Representation and John Ford's SERGEANT RUTLEDGE - YouTube John Ford wasn't afraid to explore bigotry in his films, but Sergeant Rutledge is a standout and the first. Thankfully, the show never subjected Woody - or viewers - to that possibility. Her brother Peter said that Jimmy Stewart was not racist. But I must say I got a little smug about it. Unlike Robinson, however, neither played much. Two Rode Together (1961) Woody Strode weighed 205 lbs (92 kg) when playing. Che! Retro book review: Strodes story a fascinating read, WOODY STRODES MOVIES Hi Pete, thanks for your comment. It changed my outlook on many other things and renewed my faith in mankind, thank you. As they were preparing to shoot, Ford came up to Stewart and asked, What do you think of Woodys costume?. Sundown (1941). You could smell the orange blossoms. Strode as a member of the Calgary Stampeders. Holmes. All Rights Reserved. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. NWA USA: Tag team main event is full of SVGS, SmackDown: Rhodes and Reigns lay WrestleMania goals, Mat Matters: Forecasting the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2023, Drago and Aero Star showcasing lucha libre abroad. Strode continued acting for decades his final film was as Charlie Moonlight in the 1995 film,The Quick and the Deadthat also featured Leonardo Di Caprio, Sharon Stone, and Gene Hackman sadly, Strode passed away from lung cancer in late 1994 before the film was released and the film was dedicated to him upon release. link], repeats The Jimmy Stewart Show casting misunderstanding, citing it as evidence of, in Munns own words, Jims racist spirit. Munn also claims that a 1976 interview he conducted with black actor Woody Strode, Jims co-star in 1962s The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, further proves that Jimmy Stewart was a racist. For Jims take on working with John Ford and the Uncle Remus incident, listen to his 1969 account below. Jim hit it off particularly well with Duke Ellington during filming of 1959s Anatomy of a Murder, for which Ellington made history as the first black musician to compose the score for a major Hollywood production. Stewart was a political conservative and product of his time and had issues with racial advancement and equality. Strode, doing his part, is reported to have ridden a horse in the famed Royal York hotel. The Man Who Made The Stars Shine Brighter: An Interview with Woody Strode. I find a lot of this evidence unconvincing. He was the African antagonist in Tarzan Fights for Life (1958) and an Apache chief who took on Sean Connery in the western, Shalako (1968). Saturday, 4th March 2023See today's front and back pages, download the newspaper, order back issues and use the historic Daily Express newspaper archive. Do you find this information helpful? If Michael Munns interview with Woody Strode did take place, its craftily presented, with Munns own words inserted in key places to suggest that Jimmy Stewart was a racist. Jimmys words and actions prove that he was not racist. link]. As already mentioned, Woody has a real hard time knowing when to keep from over sharing. He died the following year at age 80. Scream (1985) In the absence of evidence to support your various claims about Jimmy Stewart, they cannot be taken as fact. And I went on, and it went around the company: Stewart has never, hes always right up there., The day before the movie finished shooting, the cast was preparing to do the funeral scene. Thank you for reading! And yet, it's impossible to get enough of him, even when he crosses every line and oversteps every boundary. It took skill to do that fight scene without actually hurting myself or hurting Douglas., Kirk Douglas faces off with Woody Strode in Spartacus, He left for Italy in 1969, frustrated with the lack of meaty roles as an African-American. The Alleged Woody Strode Interview Michael Munn's dangerous habit of mixing truth with exaggeration and fallacy calls his alleged interview with Woody Strode into question. This unnamed actor used the n word to refer to Woody Strode. Thanks for commenting. My grandparents were not especially anti-Semitic, but admitted they would not support Jewish political candidates. Keyshawn Johnson Wants the N.F.L. to Remember Its 'Forgotten Four' On top of this, Reese actor Lee Van Clef who went on to star in Clint Eastwood Spaghetti Westerns said that Ford resented the meddling and so would take out his annoyance on Wayne, whose casting as Doniphon was demanded by the studio. Required fields are marked *. Tarzan is summoned to protect him and he must face three tests of strength. Woody Strode has not been elected into the Hall of Fame. Stewart said that he didnt like it. And I agree, it would be illogical to assume that Jimmy Stewart was racist based on his support of Nixon, Reagan, and US troops in Vietnam. In an interview given before he died, Stewart once described the toll that Fords meanness took on Wayne. Strode almost singlehandedly won the 1948 Grey Cup for the team. In Liberty Valance, a picture I did with Duke, Stewart recounted. Ive updated the section to include more facts specific to the show. The show keeps things as PG as it can when it comes to his involvement with the cadavers he analyzes. The sheer fact that he shares the anecdote is evidence that Jim did not have any racist behavior to hide. Im delighted that you took the time too elaborate on its origins. In its pages African American studies intellectuals, community activists, and national and international political leaders come to grips with basic issues confronting black America and Africa. Another reliable source for Woody Strodes feelings towards Jimmy Stewart is a, If we are to take Michael Munns 1976 interview with Woody Strode as fact, then Munns alleged interview with. So this week, lets resolve to live in harmony with our fellow man.. Dr Albert Schweitzer Full Documentary - YouTube Noi non siamo angeli (1975) As James Stewart explained it, Woody Strode, the actor who was playing Waynes characters best friend, was part of the scene. He made more than sixty movies including his last film, The Quick and The Dead [1995]. By 1960, he was starting to garner more attention from Hollywood producers, and after roles inPork Chop Hill (1959), The Last Voyage (1960), andSpartacus(1960), Hollywood deemed he was no longer an extra and deserved more attention. He is wearing cowboy. Demetrius and the Gladiators (1954) Strode played as an End with the Rams in 1946, playing in 10 games that season. Jim was a good man through and through. Strode also played the powerful gladiator who does battle with Kirk Douglas in Spartacus (1960)." Played . Of course, their football rhythm had been broken up by World War II. > Canadian Hall of Fame Strode is perhaps best remembered as the stoic slave gladiator in Spartacus (1960) who tells Kirk Douglas: I dont want to be your friend. When we won, we all got drunk. At many times throughout the stressful saga, Woody is also fearing for his life, even pleading desperately with his captor and the episode's villain. Released two years before To Kill a Mockingbird, Rutledge is one of the first mainstream Hollywood films to address racism frankly. Western icon John Wayne had a legendary collaboration with director John Ford that lasted five decades and transformed both mens careers. Id do that if I could. In fact, Woody was already calling someone on his cell phone: Shawn. 10 Witty Buddy Comedies To Watch If You Love 'Psych', Psych: Ranking The Main Characters By Intelligence. Thanks for reading Brian! link] that first sparked rumors about the beloved stars beliefs. And he was dressed in blue overalls, a blue work shirt and boots. Every day, someone was at the bottom of the list in the barrel, as you say, Stewart said of Fords tendency to take his frustrations out on his underlings. The Harder They Fall, the Black Western in theaters now and on Netflix on Nov. 3, owes a tip of the Stetson to Woody Strode, one of the NFLs first Black players (he signed briefly with the Los Angeles Rams in 1946), who later found a niche playing strong, silent types in Westerns. Strode made a successful transition from sports hero to the movie screen, though Hollywood seemed more predisposed to his magnificent physique and gallant stride than his acting ability. debut in 1941 in Henry Hathaway' s Sundown. A footnote in the life of a great man. WOODY STRODE, ACTOR, IS DEAD - Buffalo News Also, his agent Bill Frye, in Jimmy Stewart: A Biography, says that Stewart turned down the role of Atticus Finch in Mockingbird because he was uncomfortable with the liberal racial tone (though without using those words). African American History: Research Guides & Websites, Global African History: Research Guides & Websites, African American Scientists and Technicians of the Manhattan Project, Envoys, Diplomatic Ministers, & Ambassadors, Education - Historically Black Colleges (HBCU), Political Activists - Radicals and Marxists, Foundation, Organization, and Corporate Supporters. I want to thank you for your research into one of my favorite actors. In 1962, he retired from pro wrestling to concentrate on his film career, which exploded after his role in John Fords Sergeant Rutledge, and then his first starring role in the Western The Professionalsthat starred Lee Marvin and Burt Lancaster in 1966. That tendency to be excluded, either intentionally or unthinkingly, clearly plays a major part in his excitement whenever he's actually looped into any episodic adventure - even if it means the friendship group may have killed someone. Another reliable source for Woody Strodes feelings towards Jimmy Stewart is a 1994 interview with Lee Marvin biographer, Dwayne Epstein. Given his love of talking too much, and going entirely too in depth on the worst subjects, that's not a surprise at all. His fellow Gold Dust Gang member Jackie Robinson would break the color barrier in Major League Baseball a year later in 1947. Released in 1960, when the U.S. was in the early stages of the Civil Rights Movement, the film confronted racial injustice head on. Keoma (1976) Cowboysan (1977) but i had also read the story of him sticking up for Strode, so I didnt know what to believe. Never thought of them as brothers though. His words, actions, and moral code prove the fallacy of any rumor to the contrary. There is no FBI agent in the 24 episodes of, In the dozens of interviews Hal Kanter gave about, Hal Williams also never called Jimmy Stewart a racist, or said that Jim mistreated him on. Despite his romance with Dinah Shore in the 1940s Stewart was also known to express some mildly anti-Semitic views during the counterculture movement. According to Strode: Stewart was never rude to mehe was never rude to anyone. Strode was a black cavalry officer on trial for rape and murder, and during the court-martial his story is recounted in flashback. Afterwards, Lee Marvin remembered seeing both John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart lunge for the offending actor. Perhaps, Henry Fondas daughter Ms Jane Fonda would be perfect to obtain a definitive comment. Sounds pretty racist to me. Actually, I had been rassling in the off-season anyhow, Strode told the late, great Canadian newspaper columnist Jim Proudfoot. They broke the NFLs modern colour barrier the year before, suiting up for the Los Angeles Rams. For terms and use, please refer to our Terms and Conditions By the late 1960s, he moved to Europe and became a regular in the Italian (Spaghetti) Western genre. I am an African American woman who had stopped watching his films when I heard about his overt racism. In this, the last interview Strode ever gave, he expresses only respect for Jimmy Stewart, calling Jim one of the screens greatest actors.. Tarzans Three Challenges (1963) Film historian and author Donald Bogle explains Fords handling of race in the film compared to his previous work and the representation of the real life Buffalo Soldiers of the Old West. He became part of Hollywood lore after meeting director John Ford and becoming a part of the Ford "family," appearing in four Ford motion pictures. Apparently, that tendency to over share can get even worse than what viewers are already used to. Thanks for commenting! Pork Chop Hill (1959) The Lion Hunters (1951) An athlete turned actor, Strode was a top-notch decathlete and a football star at UCLA. She has a passion for character-driven stories with dynamic but flawed leads, and a special weakness for all things 1980s. The picture was about, oh, more than halfway finished. And when we lost, we cried like babies.. I was a big James Stewart fan until I read he was racist. John Wayne 'was really p***ed off': The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance Im so glad that you decided to do your own research, and that you came across my article. Im glad that it clears up that rumor about him. He wasnt just an athlete on a scholarship at UCLA, he was an academic. Angkor: Cambodia Express (1982) The Sins of Rachel Cade (1961) What is it whats the idea? And I said, I dont know!, And I didnt know, Stewart added. I wanted to crawl into a mouse hole, Stewart recalled. After livestock belonging to Rack's friend Walter Colby (Woody Strode, The Italian connection. John Ford wasnt afraid to explore bigotry in his films, but Sergeant Rutledge is a standout and the first big-budget Western to feature a black man as the hero played by Woody Strode. Jim and Duke got to know each other during filming in Marquette County, Michigan, where the entire company stayed at the same hotel and shared meals. Tha Gatling Gun (1973) Thank you for reading! BlackPast.org is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and our EIN is 26-1625373. An athlete turned actor, Strode was a top-notch decathlete and a football star at UCLA. Request Permissions. Or taken out of the script altogether. I once played a part written for an Irish prize fighter. How much did Woody Strode weigh when playing? In a heated confrontation toward the end of the film with one of the movie's villains, Woody identifies himself: "I'm the assistant coroner, b*tch! Six decades later, the film continues to attract attention because it was one of the first mainstream films in the U.S. to treat racism frankly and to give a starring role to an African-American actor. Im so glad you searched for the facts and came across my article.