The Cheyenne Social Club (1970)

Information from IMDb

Plot Summary
John is working as a cow poke for very little money with his friend Harley when he gets word his brother, DJ,
has left him The Cheyenne Social Club. He and Harley ride for nearly a thousand miles to his inheritance
only to find he is now the owner of a first class brothel.
Written by John Vogel

Full Cast
James Stewart ... John O'Hanlan
Henry Fonda ... Harley Sullivan
Shirley Jones ... Jenny
Sue Ane Langdon ... Opal Ann
Elaine Devry ... Pauline
Robert Middleton ... Barkeeper - Great Plains Saloon
Arch Johnson ... Marshal Anderson
Dabbs Greer ... Jedediah W. Willowby
Jackie Russell ... Carrie Virginia
Jackie Joseph ... Annie Jo
Sharon DeBord ... Sara Jean (as Sharon De Bord)
Richard Collier ... Nathan Potter
Charles Tyner ... Charlie Bannister
Jean Willes ... Alice
Robert J. Wilke ... Corey Bannister
Carl Reindel ... Pete Dodge
J. Pat O'Malley ... Dr. Michael Foy
Jason Wingreen ... Dr. Farley Carter
Hal Baylor ... Barkeep - Lady of Egypt
Charlotte Stewart ... Mae
Alberto Morin ... Ranch Foreman
Myron Healey ... Deuter
Warren J. Kemmerling ... Kohler (as Warren Kemmerling)
Dick Johnstone ... Mr. C.Y. Yancey
Phil Mead ... Cook
Hi Roberts ... Scared Man
Ed Pennybacker ... Teamster
Boyd 'Red' Morgan ... Hansen (as Red Morgan)
Dean Smith ... The Bannister Gang
Bill Hicks ... The Bannister Gang
Bill Davis ... The Bannister Gang
Walt Davis ... The Bannister Gang
John Welty ... The Bannister Gang
Fred Aldrich ... Bartender (uncredited)
Richard Alexander ... Little Egypt Saloon Table Extra (uncredited)
Frank Baker ... White-Bearded Saloon Patron (uncredited)
Danny Borzage ... Barfly (uncredited)
John Dehner ... Clay Carroll (uncredited)
Sam Edwards ... Man in Saloon (uncredited)
Ben Frommer ... Barfly (uncredited)
Jeffrey Sayre ... Saloon Extra (uncredited)
Phil Schumacher ... Bartender (uncredited)
Hal Taggart ... Saloon Table Extra (uncredited)
Max Wagner ... Man in Saloon (uncredited)
Dan White ... Saloon Extra (uncredited)

Writing Credits
James Lee Barrett (written by)
Davis Grubb novel

Original Music
Walter Scharf

Cinematography
William H. Clothier

Trivia
James Stewart agreed to do the film and suggested to the producers that they offer the part of Harley to his good friend, Henry Fonda. Fonda read the script and agreed to do it but he had one suggestion. In the opening sequence, when the two ride to Cheyenne, his character had no dialog in the script. Fonda innocently asked to give his character something to say. The writer, James Lee Barrett, came up with the speech Fonda gives. For years after the film was released, the sign that hung in the club listing the names of the girls hung in Barrett's home as a memento.

This is the only film Henry Fonda made in which he sings under the main title.

The political subtext was a reference to the real life political differences of James Stewart and Henry Fonda.

Goofs
In the last scene, when John receives a letter while working a cattle roundup, the letter is sealed when it's handed to him, but when he takes off his work glove to take the letter out of the envelope and read it, the flap is unsealed, as if it never had been sealed at all.

As John and Harley sit at the table waiting for their steaks after the gunfight, John pours Harley then himself a whiskey, the color of the which is pale. When John talks to the Marshal moments later, he holds up his glass, and the whiskey is a shade darker. In the next shot of John and Harley, John's whiskey is back to its original color.

During the Bannister gang shootout, a long shot shows three of the gang shooting while previous close shots had reduced the gang to two members.

Crew or equipment visible
As John and Harley walk through town talking, shadows of the camera and crew are visible.

Errors in geography
There are no mountains in the immediate vicinity of Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Revealing mistakes
When John and Harley are crossing the railroad tracks to see the Cheyenne Social Club for the first time, it is apparent from the camera angle that the last structure on the right is only a facade with no building behind it.

Memorable Quotes

Filming Locations
Bonanza Creek Ranch - 15 Bonanza Creek Lane, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
Eaves Movie Ranch - 105 Rancho Alegre Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
Samuel Goldwyn Studios - 7200 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, California, USA
Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA

Watch this clip

[extendedmedia]

The Cheyenne Social Club is a 1970 Western comedy film
written by James Lee Barrett and directed and produced by Gene Kelly,
starring James Stewart, Henry Fonda, and Shirley Jones.

Set in a brothel with suggestive dialogue, the movie was one of the
few off-color screen ventures for Stewart,
who specifically suggested that his friend Fonda be cast; they had most recently worked together two years previously
in Firecreek. Stewart and Fonda's first film together had been the musical comedy
On Our Merry Way (1948), and they had also both appeared in How the West Was Won (1962)
but had no scenes together despite playing best friends.

The Movie was shot at the Bonanza Creek Ranch and Eaves Movie Ranch outside Santa Fe, New Mexico (exteriors),
and the Samuel Goldwyn Studios in Hollywood, California (interiors).

User Review

Quote

16 September 2001 | by gmaloney1 (Edgewood, New Mexico)

After many years in the military, seeing few movies, I am still catching up on old flicks thanks to videos. Discovering Cheyenne SC is worth all my efforts. Cliches and all, it is a pleasure to watch the interaction of these two old "pros," Stewart and Fonda, and the superb supporting cast. I view this film often and laugh each time. I live close to the Eaves Ranch set, which I understand was built or expanded primarily for Cheyenne SC and where most of the movie was filmed. The set has changed some and the water tower was demolished a couple years ago. There is a piece of RR track and a couple livestock cars there, and the town buildings still exist, having been used for dozens of other movies since "Cheyenne SC" including "Silverado" and "Wyatt Earp." Unfortunately the owner/builder of the set Mr. J.W. Eaves just passed away on August 8 this year.(2001) A memorial service was held at his movie town.

Great photos as always