Ben Johnson

Discussion of the actors, directors and film-makers who 'made it all happen'
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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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A little behind the scenes pic from the set of One-Eyed Jacks. This was originally posted to Toby Roan's A Million Feet of Film tumblr page (http://amillionfeetoffilm.tumblr.com/) and I have now posted it to the BJ Fan Page (with Toby's permission). :) Maybe I'll luck out some day and find an actual copy of this on ebay. ;)

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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The 73rd Golden Globes is this coming Sunday, so here's a look back the 29th Golden Globes (February 6, 1972), where Ben won for Best Supporting Actor in a film for his role as Sam the Lion in The Last Picture Show.

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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Here's an article about Ben being touted for an Oscar nomination for Bite the Bullet. Alas, he didn't get one, although IMHO he certainly deserved it. As writer Fredda Dudley Balling notes, his powerfully unsentimental performance kept that role from dissolving into bathos. Ms. Balling does get some of her information wrong; for instance Ben was 20, not 16, when he went to Hollywood, Howard Hawks' name is not spelled Hawkes, and Ben bred Limousin cattle, not "Limousin horses." But it's still an enjoyable piece. :) Unfortunately this clipping does not identify the publication.

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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Two photos of Alan Ladd smacking down the much bigger Ben in Shane. ;)

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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Woo hoo! :) I got to do a phone interview with the Virginian himself, James Drury. He worked with Ben in the 1960 movie Ten Who Dared and one episode of The Virginian, and they were friends for many years -- Drury participated in Ben's pro-celebrity charity rodeos.

It's available on the BJ Fan Page -- http://benjohnsonfanpage.shutterfly.com
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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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Blu-ray news.

Kino Lorber has announced that a Blu-ray of something big is "coming soon." No more information available at this time but I will post artwork and details when they are released.

Arrow Video will release Dillinger in a dual Format Blu-ray + DVD on April 26, 2016. Here are the details and artwork.

NOBODY DID IT LIKE DILLINGER!
The runaway success of Bonnie and Clyde in 1967 proved massively influential: it made stars of Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty, introduced a new form of violence to the movies, and inspired a stream of imitators, including Bloody Mama, Martin Scorsese’s Boxcar Bertha and the directorial debut of John Milius, Dillinger.

Milius presents John Dillinger as an almost mythical figure, tracing the rise and fall of the Depression era’s Public Enemy Number One as he takes on the banks and the G-men, led by the infamous Melvin Purvis.
Starring Sam Peckinpah favourites Warren Oates and Ben Johnson as Dillinger and Purvis, and with a supporting cast including Harry Dean Stanton, Richard Dreyfuss and Michelle Phillips of The Mamas and the Papas, Dillinger is a top drawer gangster picture: explosive, stylish and hugely entertaining.

SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS:
•Brand new 2K restoration of the film from original film materials
•High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray and Standard Definition DVD presentations of the film
•Original mono soundtrack (uncompressed PCM on the Blu-ray)
•Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
•Audio commentary by Stephen Prince, author of Savage Cinema and Screening Violence
•Newly-filmed interview with producer Lawrence Gordon
•Newly-filmed interview with director of photography Jules Brenner
•Newly-filmed interview with composer Barry De Vorzon
•Stills gallery
•Theatrical trailer
•Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sean Phillips
•Collector’s booklet containing new writing by Kim Newman on fictional portrayals of John Dillinger, plus an on-set report containing interviews with writer-director John Milius and others, illustrated with original production stills.

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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Another pic from the Laramie episode "Hour After Dawn."

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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A pic from Wagon Master. I found this online. Wish I had an actual physical copy. Oh well...

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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Mighty Joe Young publicity still. :)

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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I had one of those super-busy weekends but managed to post the picture below on the BJ Fanpage for Valentine's Day. But I had to wait till today to find time to post it here. :) It's a publicity still from Mighty Joe Young. :) Someone did a sloppy job of trimming the edges, plus it has damage. But it's still a pretty nice photo. :)

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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Oscar week! Here is Ben receiving his Oscar from presenters Richard Harris and Sally Kellerman at the 44th Academy Awards, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, April 10, 1972.

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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More Oscar gold!

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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Sorry I've been away so long! Spring is always so busy for me, and on top of that I left town for 8 days earlier this month. :) But I'm back. ;)

Some news about One-Eyed Jacks. Jeffrey Wells at Hollywood-Elsewhere.com is reporting that sources have told him that the restoration will be completed in April, and it may debut at the Cannes Film Festival, to be followed possibly by theatrical screenings in June and July, and finally a blu-ray in the fall. File this in the "Rumor Mill" department for now; fingers crossed it happens. ;)

http://www.hollywood-elsewhere.com/2016 ... in-cannes/

Here's something fun I got from eBay -- one of Ben's pay slips from One-Eyed Jacks!

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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Another one of those collector's cards. The photo is from She Wore a Yellow Ribbon.

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pvitari
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Re: Ben Johnson

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Opinion poll time.

Here is a publicity picture from Smoky (1946). Ben doubled for Fred MacMurray in this picture, including the famous dragging scene.

Below the photo is a cropped and enlarged section of the photo. Does anyone think this is Ben? He probably was 27 (depending exactly on when it was filmed).

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