Bronco Billy (1980)

An idealistic, modern-day cowboy struggles to keep his Wild West show afloat in the face of hard luck and waning interest.

Director:

Clint Eastwood

Writer:

Dennis Hackin (as Dennis E. Hackin)

Stars:

Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Geoffrey Lewis

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Clint Eastwood	...	Bronco Billy
Sondra Locke	...	Antoinette Lily
Geoffrey Lewis	...	John Arlington
Scatman Crothers	...	Doc Lynch
Bill McKinney	...	Lefty LeBow
Sam Bottoms	...	Leonard James
Dan Vadis	...	Chief Big Eagle
Sierra Pecheur	...	Lorraine Running Water
Walter Barnes	...	Sheriff Dix
Woodrow Parfrey	...	Dr. Canterbury
Beverlee McKinsey	...	Irene Lily
Doug McGrath	...	Lt. Wiecker (as Douglas McGrath)
Hank Worden	...	Station Mechanic
William Prince	...	Edgar Lipton
Pam Abbas	...	Mother Superior

Storyline

"Bronco" Billy McCoy (Clint Eastwood) is the proud owner of a small travelling Wild West show. But the business isn't doing too well. For the past six months, he hasn't paid his employees. At a gas station he picks up Antoinette Lily (Sondra Locke), a stuck-up blonde from a rich family, who was left behind without a penny by her husband John Arlington (Geoffrey Lewis) on their wedding night. Billy likes her looks and hires her as his assistant. She seems to bring them bad luck and the business gets even worse. In these hard times, she loses her reluctance and starts to like her new way of life, and Bronco Billy.

---

Plot Keywords:

cowboy | circus | title spoken by character | cult favorite | new york city new york | 

---

Taglines:

His latest, His fastest, His funniest!

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Romance | Western

---

Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Clint Eastwood kicked Sondra Locke under the table when she couldn't work up tears for her crying scene in the bar. That was the extent of his direction.

---

Goofs

When Bronco Billy meets with the sheriff alongside the road you can see a microphone rise up next to Billy's car, parked behind him.Then you see it lowering slowly down next to the car.

---

Quotes

Antoinette Lilly: What are you going to do?
Bronco Billy McCoy: I do the thinking around here.
Antoinette Lilly: I hadn't noticed.

---

Connections

Featured in The Eastwood Factor (2010)

---

Soundtracks

Misery and Gin
Written by John Durrill (as J. Durrill) and Snuff Garrett (as S. Garrett)
Sung by Merle Haggard

User Reviews

One Of My All-Time Favorites, Too

This movie never got much acclaim for some reason. When I read where Clint Eastwood said it was a personal favorite of his I smiled, because it's mine, too.....and I like a lot of Eastwood's movies.

This isn't just my favorite Eastwood film. It's one of my all-time favorite - period! That's probably because it has tremendous charm, with a good mixture of comedy and drama with characters you care about. It's definitely different from most of Clint's movies.

The famous Eastwood glare when he's mad is still there, and he still shows his violent side. However, it's not a violent story, just a tale of a modern-day man and his little troupe who want to be cowboys and Indians, and go on tour with their little Wild West show.

The film has nice, colorful photography and looks great on DVD. However, the story, not the visuals, is the main attraction. It's refreshing to see Eastwood play a role like this where he's a Mr. Rogers-type western hero for little kids, urging children to stay on the straight and narrow, mind their parents and say their prayers before going to bed at night.

Sondra Locke also is effective as the cold newcomer who reluctantly joins the group and slowly changes from a mean-spirited, sarcastic woman to a caring person. She shows a good comedic touch and is excellent in this film, perhaps her best effort since "The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter."

The rest of the cast is fun to watch, too, and it includes one of my favorite faces and voices, that of "Scatman" Crothers. There is very little profanity in this film, too, which adds to the attraction and widens the potential audience of this neglected gem. I really think it's Eastwood's most underrated movie.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 June 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bronco Billy

Filming Locations:

Hungry Onion Drive-Inn - 334 N Main St, Meridian, ID 83642, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$6,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,708,710, 15 June 1980

Gross USA:

$24,265,659

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$24,265,659

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Second Street Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1