A Big Hand for the Little Lady (1966)

Comedy western in which a traveler bets more money than he can afford in a poker game, and unusual events follow.

Director:

Fielder Cook

Writer:

Sidney Carroll

Stars:

Henry Fonda, Joanne Woodward, Jason Robards

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Henry Fonda	...	Meredith
Joanne Woodward	...	Mary
Jason Robards	...	Henry Drummond
Paul Ford	...	C.P. Ballinger
Charles Bickford	...	Benson Tropp
Burgess Meredith	...	Doc Scully (as Burgess Meridith)
Kevin McCarthy	...	Otto Habershaw
Robert Middleton	...	Dennis Wilcox
John Qualen	...	Jesse Buford
Jean-Michel Michenaud	...	Jackie (as Gerald Michenaud)
James Berwick	...	Sam Rhine (as James Kenny)
Allen Collins	...	Toby
Jim Boles	...	Pete
Virginia Gregg	...	Mrs. Drummond
Chester Conklin	...	Old Man in Saloon

Storyline

A naive couple and a child arrive to the town on the way to San Antonio, Texas to buy a farm there. There is a poker game between the richest men in the region. The man cannot resist it and though he is a very bad poker player, enters the game betting all the money of his family. In the climax of the game he suffers a heart-attack. His wife then takes his place in the table. That's the only way of recovering their savings. But there is a little problem. Can anybody explain to her how to play poker?

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Plot Keywords:

poker | gambling | conman | stagecoach | poker game | 

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Taglines:

Rule of the game: you must sit in from the beginning! And it's the wildest poker game in the west!

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie was initially written for television as "Big Deal in Laredo".

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Goofs

After Meredith gives his poker hand to Mary, she exposes the bottom card in her hand just before she closes the door to the card room. The card exposed is the ten of diamonds. Later, when she reveals her hand to C.P. Ballinger, the banker, all five of the cards in her hand can be seen, none of which is the ten of diamonds.

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Quotes

Mrs. Drummond: Henry, we've got a lot to do.
Henry Drummond: You got nothing to do till I tell you.

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Connections

Remake of The DuPont Show of the Week: Big Deal in Laredo (1962)

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Soundtracks

Ma Blushin' Rosie (Ma Posie Sweet)
(uncredited)
From the Broadway musical "Fiddle-Dee-Dee" (1900)
Written by Edgar Smith and John Stromberg
Performed by Marilyn Powell

User Reviews

The best card playing movie I've seen

Well, this movie certainly beats the pants off watching THE CINCINNATI KID (the only other poker movie I can think of off the top of my head). It is a very unusual film set in the old West about a family passing through town and the head of the family who gets suckered into playing a high-stakes poker game and seems on the verge of losing everything. And, at the crucial moment when he is on the edge of either winning or going bust, he becomes too ill to continue and his wife, by default, is brought in to take his place.

The movie, despite the BRIEF overview I gave, is far deeper and is a super-intelligently written film. There are many wonderful twists and turns, but if I let it out of the bag, it would ruin it for you. Just give the movie a chance--it's a buried treasure.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 July 1966 (France)

Also Known As:

A Big Hand for the Little Lady

Filming Locations:

Flagstaff, Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Eden Productions Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1