Paint Your Wagon (1969)

Two unlikely prospector partners share the same wife in a California gold rush mining town.

Director:

Joshua Logan

Writers:

Alan Jay Lerner (book), Alan Jay Lerner (screenplay)

Stars:

Lee Marvin, Clint Eastwood, Jean Seberg

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Lee Marvin	...	Ben Rumson
Clint Eastwood	...	Pardner
Jean Seberg	...	Elizabeth
Harve Presnell	...	Rotten Luck Willie
Ray Walston	...	Mad Jack Duncan
Tom Ligon	...	Horton Fenty
Alan Dexter	...	Parson
William O'Connell	...	Horace Tabor
Benny Baker	...	Haywood Holbrook (as Ben Baker)
Alan Baxter	...	Mr. Fenty
Paula Trueman	...	Mrs. Fenty
Robert Easton	...	Atwell
Geoffrey Norman	...	Foster
H.B. Haggerty	...	Steve Bull
Terry Jenkins	...	Joe Mooney

Storyline

A Michigan farmer and a prospector form a partnership in the California gold country. Their adventures include buying and sharing a wife, hijacking a stage, kidnaping six prostitutes, and turning their mining camp into a boomtown. Along the way there is plenty of drinking, gambling, and singing. They even find time to do some creative gold mining.

---

Plot Keywords:

polyamory | mining | gold | california | prospector | 

---

Taglines:

Stake Your Claim To The Musical Goldmine of '69!

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Musical | Romance | Western

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic material

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 October 1969 (USA)

Also Known As:

La leyenda de la ciudad sin nombre

Filming Locations:

Baker, Oregon, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$31,678,778

Company Credits

Production Co:

Alan Jay Lerner Productions, The Malpaso Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

164 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (35 mm prints) 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Lee Marvin and Joshua Logan became fast friends, and he developed a genuine fondness for the director's two teenaged children. Logan was amazed at the contrasts in Marvin's character. Raised as a Southern gentleman, he always tipped his hat for ladies and referred to older men as "sir." But he also started drinking beer the moment he arrived on the set. If his drinking ruined a shot one day, he more than made up for it the next with a letter perfect performance. A few weeks after the film came out, a New York gossip columnist printed a story about director and star having an on-set fight which climaxed with Marvin using Logan's boots "like a dog uses a fire hydrant." When Logan's children pointed out the article, he set the story straight with a letter stating, "Lee Marvin is a very close friend of mine and we will stay friends for many years to come. It is true that we have had a few mild discussions, never any violent ones. Lee Marvin is a great Southern gentleman....Therefore, when he is sober it is absolutely impossible for him to have done such a thing, and when he is drunk, which he is once in a while I must admit, he is really drunk. He staggers and careens in such a way that he wouldn't have the aim."

---

Goofs

When the town is falling apart, you can see the strap holding Horton and the prostitute he's with to the bed as they fall to the ground.

---

Quotes

[shouted from clifftop to riverbed and back, very slowly]
Steve Bull: IS... THEY... DEAD...?
Ben Rumson: THEY... BETTER... BE... CAUSE... I'M... GONNA... BURY 'EM!

---

Alternate Versions

On its release to what were then called "neighborhood theatres" (i.e. theatres which showed films that had ended their first runs downtown), the film's running time was shortened by having three songs eliminated, "I Still See Elisa", "The First Thing You Know", and "Gold Fever". This left both Lee Marvin and Clint Eastwood with only one solo song each. The film was restored to its original length for its first television showing, and has remained that way ever since.

---

Connections

Referenced in Wow, It's Cindy (1971)

---

Soundtracks

They Call The Wind Maria
Lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner
Music by Frederick Loewe
Sung by Harve Presnell & The Chorus

User Reviews

Clint CAN sing. Movie is a hoot.

I once heard a critic state any movie where Clint Eastwood sings should be rated for violence. He must have never actually listened to this movie. Clint may not be the best voice in the cast but he is surely not the worst. As a young man he has a pleasant "everyman" kind of voice I ENJOY. And in addition to that this an outrageously funny and moving movie.