RIO GRANDE
DIRECTED BY JOHN FORD
PRODUCED BY JOHN FORD and MERIAN C. COOPER
ARGOSY PRODUCTION
REPUBLIC PICTURES
INFORMATION FROM IMDb
Plot Summary
Rio Grande takes place after the Civil War when the Union
turned their attention towards the Apaches.
Union officer Kirby Yorke is in charge of an outpost on the Rio Grande
in which he is in charge of training of new recruits one of which
is his son whom he hasn't seen in 15 years.
He whips him into shape to take on the Apaches
but not before his mother shows up to take him out of there.
The decision to leave is left up to Trooper Yorke who decides to stay and fight.
Through it all Kirby and Kathleen though separated for years fall back into love
and decide that it's time to give it another try.
But Yorke faces his toughest battle when his unorthodox plan
to outwit the elusive Apaches leads to possible court- martial.
Locked in a bloody Indian war, he must fight to redeem his honor
and save the love and lives of his broken family
Summary written by Christopher D. Ryan
Full Cast
John Wayne .... Lt. Col. Kirby Yorke
Maureen O'Hara .... Mrs. Kathleen Yorke
Ben Johnson .... Trooper Travis Tyree
Claude Jarman Jr. .... Trooper Jefferson 'Jeff' Yorke
Harry Carey Jr. .... Trooper Daniel 'Sandy' Boone
Chill Wills .... Dr. Wilkins (regimental surgeon)
J. Carrol Naish .... Lt. Gen. Philip Sheridan
Victor McLaglen .... Sgt. Maj. Timothy Quincannon
Grant Withers .... U.S. Deputy Marshal
Peter Ortiz .... Capt. St. Jacques
Steve Pendleton .... Capt. Prescott
Karolyn Grimes .... Margaret Mary
Alberto Morin .... Lieutenant
Stan Jones .... Sergeant
Fred Kennedy .... Trooper Heinze
Sons of the Pioneers .... Regimental Musicians (as Sons of the Pioneers)
Ken Curtis .... Donnelly (regimental singer) (uncredited)
Tommy Doss .... Regimental singer (uncredited)
Hugh Farr .... Regimental singer (uncredited)
Karl Farr .... Regimental singer (uncredited)
Shug Fisher .... Regimental singer/Bugler (uncredited)
Cliff Lyons .... Soldier (uncredited)
Lee Morgan .... (uncredited)
Jack Pennick .... Sergeant (uncredited)
Lloyd Perryman .... Regimental singer (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson .... Officer/Indian who fires arrow into Col. York's chest (uncredited)
Barlow Simpson .... Indian chief (uncredited)
Patrick Wayne .... Boy (uncredited)
Writing Credits
James Warner Bellah story Mission With No Record
James Kevin McGuinness screenplay
Original Music
Victor Young
Cinematography
Bert Glennon
Original Music
Dale Evans (song "Aha, San Antone")
Stan Jones (songs "My Gal is Purple", "Footsore Cavalry" and "Yellow Stripes")
Tex Owens (song "Cattle Call")
Victor Young
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Wingate Smith .... assistant director
Cliff Lyons .... second unit director (uncredited)
Stunts
Jerry Brown .... stunts (uncredited)
Everett Creach .... stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Hayward .... stunts (uncredited)
John Hudkins .... stunts (uncredited)
Fred Kennedy .... stunts (uncredited)
Cliff Lyons .... stunts (uncredited)
Frank McGrath .... stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson .... stunts (uncredited)
Bob Rose .... stunts (uncredited)
Barlow Simpson .... stunts (uncredited)
Norm Taylor .... stunt double (uncredited)
Terry Wilson .... stunts (uncredited)
Other crew
Dale Evans .... lyricist: "Aha, San Antone"
D.R.O. Hatswell .... uniforms (as D.R. Overall Hatswell)
Stan Jones .... lyricist: "My Gal is Purple", "Footsore Cavalry" and "Yellow Stripes"
Philip Kieffer .... technical advisor (as Major Philip H. Kieffer)
Archie Stout .... camera operator: second unit
Herbert J. Yates .... presenter
Barbara Ford .... assistant editor (uncredited)
Norm Taylor .... driver: cavalry wagon (uncredited)
Trivia
Two stunt men drowned while filming a river crossing sequence.
John Ford recycled the stampeding of the pony herd sound effect from She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949) for the rescue charge.
In order to get approval for a film he very much wanted to make, The Quiet Man (1952), John Ford had to agree to Herbert J. Yates, head of Republic Pictures, to make this film, starring both John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara. Republic believed that "The Quiet Man" would tank at the box office and thought a western would recoup that film's expected losses.
Ben Johnson (Tyree) and Victor McLaglen (Quincannon) had the same character names in both this film and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949). The oddity is in "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon"--released before this one-- they were older soldiers with higher ranks than in this film.
John Wayne wore a smaller hairpiece than usual to make his character look slightly older.
First of five movies that paired John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara.
John Wayne's first film with Maureen O'Hara. They starred together five times and would become known as one of Hollywood's greatest on-screen couples.
Film debut of Patrick Wayne.
Goofs
* Continuity: Col. York's saber & scabbard disappear from his saddle when he gets shot by an arrow.
* Continuity: When Tyree steals Colonel York's horse, he rides off bareback, carrying a saddle only. Later, his horse is saddled complete with blanket.
* Continuity: After hearing his son's name in the new arrivals' role call, Col. York comes out to speak to the troops. When he does, he puts his hat on twice.
* Continuity: On the covered wagon carrying Kathleen Yorke during the Indian attack, when the driver falls off the canvas behind Mrs Yorke is wide open. Later when another trooper jumps on to drive the wagon the canvas is closed tightly.
* Crew or equipment visible: During the Indian attack on the wagon train, Kathleen Yorke is in the driver's seat of a wagon by herself. There is another person visible in the back of the wagon who has the reins and is driving the wagon.
* Anachronisms: When the regimental singers are serenading Kathleen Yorke and General Sheridan outside Colonel Yorke's tent there are several lanterns hanging from the top of the opening. The lantern on the right side of the tent post clearly has an electric light bulb in it.
* Continuity: After the wagon train is rescued, Sandy Boone remains behind with Mrs. Yorke as the command rides off in pursuit of the captured children. Later, he is present with the troops to be picked by Tyree to sneak into the Mexican village.
* Revealing mistakes: When Lt. Col. Yorke checks his son's height on the tent, you can see previous marks from another take.
* Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Recall is sounded after the children are rescued you hear the call blown, then it stops. The horn is still being blown after the call stops.
* Continuity: When Quincannon is addressing the recruits about horsemanship, Sandy takes his hand out of his pocket and removes the hay straw from his mouth. When the camera angle changes to behind Sandy, he has his thumb looped through his suspenders and the straw is back in his mouth. When it changes to the front view of Sandy, his hand is back in his pocket.
* Continuity: While the guests are entering the grandstand, one of the troopers being honored is missing (Indian scout). He shows up in the next scene as the last man in line.
* Continuity: For most of the movie, the troopers are carrying trapdoor carbines, including the escort for the women and children. Of the three troopers who entered the church, Boone and Yorke had been a part of the escort however, Tyree escaped from the fort without any weapons. The rest of the troop and the skirmishers are now carrying Winchester rifles when they charge the village.
* Revealing mistakes: When the Indian who shoots Lt. Col. York (John Wayne) with an arrow in the village is aiming at the Colonel from a window, the arrow clearly has no sharp tip on it at all, it's simply a rounded blunt end like a practice arrow.
* Revealing mistakes: When the Indian in the window lines up his aim to shoot John Wayne you can see there is no arrowhead on the tip.
* Continuity: When Travis meets up with Sandy and Jeff as they escort the children, he jumps off his horse and sits on the ground just in front of it. After Sandy gives him a can of beans Travis is sitting to the side of the horse, then to the front of it, then to the side of it. It looks like half the scene was filmed in a studio with Travis beside the horse and half in the open with Travis in front of the horse.
* Revealing mistakes: Although Tyree is supposed to have stolen Colonel Yorke's horse, it is clearly a different horse and Yorke in fact continues to ride the same horse he had before.
* Anachronisms: The movie is set in the around 1879-1880, 15 years after General Sheridan's campaign through the Shenandoah Valley. One of the songs in the movie, "Down by the Glenside (The Bold Fenian Men)," however, was not written until 1916.
Filming Locations
Colorado River, Moab, Utah, USA
Ida Gulch, Moab, Utah, USA
Mexican Hat, Utah, USA
Moab, Utah, USA
Monument Valley, Utah, USA
Onion Creek Narrows, Moab, Utah, USA
Professor Valley, Moab, Utah, USA
White's Ranch - Milepost 14 Utah Hwy 128, Moab, Utah, USA
Watch this Clip
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