Flaming Star (1960)

Sam Burton's second wife Neddy is Indian, their son Pacer a half-breed. As struggle starts between the whites and the Kiowas, the Burton family is split between loyalties. Neddy and Sam are... See full summary »

Director:

Don Siegel

Writers:

Clair Huffaker (screenplay), Nunnally Johnson (screenplay),

Stars:

Elvis Presley, Barbara Eden, Steve Forrest

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Elvis Presley	...	Pacer Burton
Barbara Eden	...	Roslyn Pierce
Steve Forrest	...	Clint Burton
Dolores del Rio	...	Neddy Burton (as Dolores Del Rio)
John McIntire	...	Sam 'Pa' Burton
Rodolfo Acosta	...	Buffalo Horn (as Rudolph Acosta)
Karl Swenson	...	Dred Pierce
Ford Rainey	...	Doc Phillips
Richard Jaeckel	...	Angus Pierce
Anne Benton	...	Dorothy Howard
L.Q. Jones	...	Tom Howard
Douglas Dick	...	Will Howard
Tom Reese	...	Jute
Marian Goldina	...	Ph'sha Knay
Monte Burkhart	...	Ben Ford

Storyline

Sam Burton's second wife Neddy is Indian, their son Pacer a half-breed. As struggle starts between the whites and the Kiowas, the Burton family is split between loyalties. Neddy and Sam are killed; Pacer sides with the Indians, his half-brother Clint with the whites.

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Plot Keywords:

half breed | gunfight | martial arts | doctor | warrior | 

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Taglines:

CHOOSE!... Between your white father and your Kiowa mother !

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 December 1960 (USA)

Also Known As:

Black Heart

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min 92 min (FMC Library Print)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Elvis Presley had another song in the film, "Summer Kisses, Winter Tears", which was cut after preview audiences laughed at the staging (Elvis singing to the Indians around a campfire, accompanied by a chief on war drums). A studio version of the tune was recorded, but the original "Indian" version was only resurrected recently on the German "Elvis: Double Features" CD collection.

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Quotes

Tom Howard: [as the Burtons and their guests finish dinner] Whole supper was just great, Mrs. Burton. Of course, like Will and me always say, when it comes to cookin', no one would ever guess you was any different from... well, our ma or anybody else.
Neddy Burton: I'm really proud you liked it Tom. Just a little more cake?
Tom Howard: [Tom chuckles] No, ma'am!

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Connections

Referenced in Elvis (2005)

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Soundtracks

"A Cane And A High Starched Collar"
Written by Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett (as Roy Bennett)
Performed by Elvis Presley
Vocal Accompaniment by The Jordanaires

User Reviews

Elvis the Actor

Basically, Elvis does not sing much in this one. It is a dramatic role in which he plays a half-breed youth, raised in his father's white world, but now caught in the midst of an Indian war.

This film is a sad statement of what might have been. Here we glimpse the natural dramatic talent that was never allowed to blossom. There would be no "From Here to Eternity" for Elvis as there was for Sinatra. Contracts later forced him in to the musical-comedy roles that he grew to hate. He was told you will do these movies with this starlet or that starlet, sing this bad music with ducks or cows in the background, play the race car driver, the speed boat driver, the motorcycle racer, or you won't work at all.

The truly sad thing is that if this part of Elvis' talent had been cultivated, if his musical career had been kept separate from a dramatic acting career, perhaps his life would have traveled a very different road. It is a horrible thing to know that you have talent & to want to be able to use that talent, but be forced to waste it. IMHO, it was something that gnawed at him and played no small part in his own self-destruction.