The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox (1976)

A female hustler is chasing after rich men, but becomes repeatedly mixed up with a suave con man and card shark through a series of misadventures before falling in love with him.

Director:

Melvin Frank

Writers:

Melvin Frank (screenplay), Barry Sandler (screenplay)

Stars:

George Segal, Goldie Hawn, Conrad Janis

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
George Segal	...	Charlie Malloy
Goldie Hawn	...	Amanda Quaid
Conrad Janis	...	Gladstone
Thayer David	...	Widdicombe
Jennifer Lee Pryor	...	Trollop (as Jennifer Lee)
Sid Gould	...	Rabbi
Pat Ast	...	Music Hall Singer
E.J. André	...	Prospector (as E.J. Andre)
Richard Farnsworth	...	Stage Coach Driver (as Dick Farnsworth)
Clifford Turknett	...	Ticket Agent
Harlan Knudson	...	Cooper
Jean Favre	...	Drunk / Usher
Bill McLaughlin	...	Murdock
Richard Jamison	...	Waiter
Barbara Ulrich	...	Maisie

Storyline

It's 1882 on the Barbary Coast. Charlie Malloy aka the Dirtwater Fox, makes his living cheating at cards. His latest venture however is stealing $40,000 from a bunch of outlaws. Bluebird, a saloon performer and prostitute, wants an easy life. When a Mormon, Josiah Widdicombe, comes to town, Bluebird has the idea that being the seventh wife of a Mormon would be a good life - she only has to work once every seven days. She steals Malloy's bag with the money, unaware of the amount inside. She only wants enough to buy a dress to masquerade as a duchess for Widdicombe. The ruse works. On Bluebird's way to Salt Lake City, Malloy catches up with her. Although Bluebird still has every intention of becoming a Mormon wife, the two decide to partner on the scheme of Mormon riches. All the while, the outlaws are on their tail after their $40,000.

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Plot Keywords:

mormon | con man | stagecoach | animal in title | title in title | 

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Taglines:

He starts out as a simple card-sharp...and ends up with $40,000, three bullet holes, and the only saloon-dancing Duchess in the West!

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Genres:

Comedy | Western

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

The principal photography production period on this picture ran for about two months.

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Goofs

When Malloy falls off his horse and remounts, the remount is reverse footage of the fall as the people in the background are moving backwards.

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Quotes

Charlie 'Dirtwater Fox' Malloy: Here it is... Virginia City, my kind of town.
Amanda Quaid/Duchess Swansbury: What constitutes your kind of town?
Charlie 'Dirtwater Fox' Malloy: Any place I can get rid of you!

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Connections

Featured in It'll Be Alright on the Night (1977)

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Soundtracks

Fools Gold
Words by Sammy Cahn and Melvin Frank
Music by Charles Fox

User Reviews

Good Fun!

I first saw this film when I was about 10 & thought it was a great film. Saw that it had been recently released on DVD & decided to take a trip down memory lane to see if Goldie was as hot in the movie as I remembered......she was. The film starts off pretty funny & moves along at a good pace. Some good gags, some good dialogue & a bit of slapstick. But what I think lets the film down is the finale. It just peters out & is a bit of a damp squib.

George Segal & Goldie Hawn work well together & I'm surprised they didn't do anything else together. All in all an enjoyable little film...if only for Goldie Hawns dance routines.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Hebrew French German

Release Date:

1 April 1976 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox

Filming Locations:

Gilpin County, Colorado, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,590,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

20th Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (DeLuxe) Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1