Walk the Proud Land (1956)

An agent sent from Washington in 1874 takes charge of an Apache reservation and has the oppressive US Army back off, which creates conflicts and causes the Indians to have great respect for him.

Director:

Jesse Hibbs

Writers:

Gil Doud (screenplay), Jack Sher (screenplay)

Stars:

Audie Murphy, Anne Bancroft, Pat Crowley

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Audie Murphy	...	John Philip Clum
Anne Bancroft	...	Tianay
Pat Crowley	...	Mary Dennison
Charles Drake	...	Tom Sweeny
Tommy Rall	...	Taglito
Robert Warwick	...	Chief Eskiminzin
Jay Silverheels	...	Geronimo
Eugene Mazzola	...	Tono
Anthony Caruso	...	Disalin
Victor Millan	...	Santos
Ainslie Pryor	...	Capt. Larsen
Eugene Iglesias	...	Chato
Morris Ankrum	...	Gen. Wade
Addison Richards	...	Gov. Safford
Maurice Jara	...	Alchise

Storyline

Indian Agent sent to try new approach to peace with Apaches based on respect for automomy rather than submission to Army. Wins over reservation chiefs and the Indian widow (Bancroft) given to him as housekeeper. Through use of diplomacy and demonstrations of faith in Apache leaders, reservation is put on the road to automomy. Conflicts arise between Apache widow and Eastern wife but latter has a lot to learn.

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Plot Keywords:

arizona territory | san carlos reservation arizona | settlers | widow | arizona desert | 

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Taglines:

HE TAMED APACHE WAR-LUST WITH THE POWER OF HIS FAITH...and conquered a savage warrior in a showdown of raw courage!

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Genres:

Biography | History | Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Goofs

In the knife fight scene where Clum breaks up the war dance, his opponent slashes at Clum and hits a tree. When the two separate, the knife is obviously pulled from the tree. In the next scene the two are on the ground fighting, but the knife is stuck in the tree.

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Quotes

John Philip Clum: Taglito, it doesn't appear you have too many friends here in this town.
Taglito: I think I as many as you have... maybe.
John Philip Clum: Why do you Apaches use the word *maybe* so much?
Taglito: It is because we are never sure of anything... maybe.

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Connections

Referenced in What's My Line?: Miss Universe 1956 Carol Morris & Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley (1956)

User Reviews

And you call them savages?

Walk the Proud Land is directed by Jesse Hibbs and adapted to screenplay by Gil Doud and Jack Sher from the biography of John Philip Clum, Apache Agent, written by his son Woodworth Clum. It stars Audie Murphy, Anne Bancroft, Pat Crowley, Charles Drake, Tommy Rall and Robert Warwick. A Technicolor/CinemaScope production out of UIP, music is supervised by Joseph Gershenson and cinematography by Harold Lipstein.

1874, San Carlos, Arizona, and John Philip Clum (Murphy) arrives and attempts to broker peace with the Apache by way of letting them have autonomy away from army government.

Don't turn your back on him. No matter what it says in the Bible.

Colourful character driven Western that's based on a real Indian agent, it portrays his determination and faith to get the Apache to agree to peace whilst affording them dignity and honesty. As everyone who as seen it will attest, this is no action packed Audie Murphy Oater, but although it was met with indifference at the box office and by Western critics, film is never less than enjoyable or interesting. John Clum is a peaceable man, a humanitarian, film's strength lies in his driven will to succeed against many odds. Bigotry and stubbornness surrounds him, but his approach is infectious and as a man his efforts laid a firm foundation for a bit of history to be made. Not least that he was the man who captured Geronimo (here played by Jay Silverheels) without a shot being fired in anger. He was a man worthy of a film, and even though this is obviously condensed down and dressed up for Hollywood, it's worth watching to catch the essence of a special type of man, a man splendidly essayed by Audie Murphy. Harold Lipstein captures some beautiful Old Tucson scenery to add evocative flavours, and Hibbs' direction is unobtrusive.

A domestic problem played out in the plot is a touch too saggy, and nearly pointless, and the all too familiar problem of white actors playing lead Native Americans is all too evident. But this is a very tidy production with a very worthwhile story being told. 7/10

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

September 1956 (USA)

Also Known As:

Walk the Proud Land

Filming Locations:

Tucson, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$1,500,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1