Cattle King (1963)

A rich landowner of Wyoming fights to prevent the Texas herds from trampling his rich meadows.

Director:

Tay Garnett

Writer:

Thomas Thompson

Stars:

Robert Taylor, Robert Loggia, Joan Caulfield

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Robert Taylor	...	Sam Brassfield
Robert Loggia	...	Johnny Quatro
Joan Caulfield	...	Sharleen Travers
Robert Middleton	...	Clay Mathews
Larry Gates	...	President Chester A. Arthur
Malcolm Atterbury	...	Abe Clevenger
William Windom	...	Harry Travers
Virginia Christine	...	Ruth Winters
Richard Devon	...	VInce Bodine
Ray Teal	...	Ed Winters
Robert Ivers	...	Webb Carter (as Bob Ivers)
Maggie Pierce	...	June Carter
Woodrow Parfrey	...	Stafford
Richard Tretter	...	Hobie Renton
John Mitchum	...	Tex

Storyline

It's 1883 in the Wyoming Territory. Sam Brassfield owns and operates the Teton cattle ranch alongside his foreman and housekeeper, husband and wife Ed and Ruth Winters, and his right hand man, a Mexican named Johnny Quatro, who likes his señoritas a little too much. He took in his now young adult nephew and niece, Webb and June Carter, upon the unfortunate circumstances concerning their parents, Webb who is learning to be ranch hand, his hotheadedness which often gets in the way. Sam is trying to do ranching differently, having a closed range of his own land as a more sustainable method. He erecting fences to keep other cattle out does not sit well with many of his neighboring ranchers, especially his former mentor, Clay Mathews, a Texas cattle baron who wants that open range all the way from Texas to the Canada border. Sam believes Clay's self interest is driven by he having purchased too many cattle for what his own land can support, he wanting eventually to oversupply the market ...

---

Plot Keywords:

rich cattleman | texas cattle drive | range war | bartender | barfly | 

---

Taglines:

HIRED KILLERS PLUNGE WYOMING INTO RANCH-WAR!

---

Genres:

Western

---

Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film barely broke even at the box office, earning MGM the small profit of $20,000 according to studio records.

---

Goofs

Chester A. Arthur was president 1881-85 but the Winchester rifles are Model 1892, a common error in B westerns--and others.

---

Quotes

Sam Brassfield: [there is a knock on the door] The door's open.
Clay Mathews: Sam... , Getting to be a big man, Sam.
Sam Brassfield: I own some land.
Clay Mathews: ...with a fence around it.
Sam Brassfield: That's right.
Clay Mathews: There are getting to be too many fences for me, Sam. My business depends on open range.
Sam Brassfield: Well then maybe you ought to change your business, Clay.
Clay Mathews: No, Sam. I don't see it that way. 'Way I see it, as soon as this National Cattle Trail Bill passes, my business'll just be starting.
Sam Brassfield: I don't expect it to pass. I'm doing everything I can to stop it.
Clay Mathews: Well, kinda puts us ...
[...]

User Reviews

MGM's Farewell To Robert Taylor

"Cattle King" is the last film Robert Taylor made under his MGM contract. His full-time contract had ended in 1959 but he agreed to do three more pictures. "Cattle King" is the third. Mr. Taylor plays a large scale cattle rancher whose living is being threatened by a Texas cartel who want to build a cattle highway from Texas to Canada. This would bring thousands of undesirable cattle to Mr. Taylor's Wyoming home. It's a nice twist on the old cattle ranchers vs. sheep herders story. Instead of wanting to leave the range free for cattle to roam, Sam Brassfield (Mr. Taylor) wants to fence in land for the controlled breeding of high quality bovines. The only sheep herder in the picture ends up siding with Brassfield. The cinematography is outstanding with a palette that brings out the beauty of the area near Yellowstone Park. There are numerous scenes of groups of people riding which must have looked wonderful on the big screen.

The acting is done by seasoned professionals like Robert Middleton, Ray Teal and William Windom and a newcomer, Robert Loggia. They are all excellent. As usual in westerns, Joan Caulfield as the love interest for Sam isn't given enough to do. President Chester A. Arthur (Larry Gates) plays a pivotal role. In many ways Robert Taylor's colleagues at MGM made this a warm farewell. The name Robert Taylor fills the screen from top to bottom in the credits. He is photographed lovingly with numerous close-ups. There's a wonderful scene where Mr. Taylor stands proudly, legs apart in the western stance facing his enemy when the camera slides into a screen filling close-up. Robert Taylor was very good at playing characters who were larger than life, people who made a difference without losing their integrity. There's even a bit of humor as he spends a fair amount of time fussing with his various ties. "Cattle King" is a solid, well-acted, beautifully photographed western.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

31 July 1963 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cattle King of Wyoming

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$535,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Missouri Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min 90 min (Turner library print)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.00 : 1