Last Train from Gun Hill

Last Train from Gun Hill
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	John Sturges
Produced by	Hal B. Wallis
Screenplay by	James Poe
Story by	("Showdown"); Les Crutchfield
Starring	Kirk Douglas; Anthony Quinn
Music by	Dimitri Tiomkin
Cinematography	Charles B. Lang Jr.
Production; company	Hal Wallis Productions; Bryna Productions
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date	July 29, 1959;
Running time	94 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$2.5 million (est. US/ Canada rentals)[1]

Last Train from Gun Hill is a 1959 Western in VistaVision and Technicolor by action director John Sturges. It stars Kirk Douglas and Anthony Quinn. Douglas and Holliman had previously appeared together in Sturges' Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), which used much of the same crew.

Plot

Two old friends, Matt Morgan (Kirk Douglas) and Craig Belden (Anthony Quinn), now find themselves on opposite sides of the law. Belden, a rich cattle baron, is the de facto ruler of the town of Gun Hill. Morgan is a U.S. Marshal living in another town with his Native American/Indian wife (played by Ziva Rodann) and young son, Petey.

Two young drunken cowboys rape and murder Morgan's wife while she is returning with their son from a visit to her father. The boy escapes on one of the killers' horses which bears a distinctive, fancy saddle.

Morgan sets off to find the killer. His one clue is the saddle, which he recognizes as belonging to Belden. Assuming it was stolen from his old friend, Morgan travels to the town of Gun Hill to pick up the trail, but once there he quickly realizes that Belden's son Rick (Earl Holliman) is the killer.

Belden refuses to turn over his son, forcing Morgan to go against the entire town. Morgan vows to capture Rick and get him on that night's last train from Gun Hill.

Morgan takes Rick prisoner, holding him at the hotel. Belden sends men to rescue his son, but Morgan manages to hold them off. In the meantime, Belden's former lover (Carolyn Jones) decides to help Morgan. She sneaks a shotgun to his hotel room. The second rapist, Lee, sets fire to the hotel to flush out Morgan.

Morgan presses the shotgun to Rick's chin on the way to the train depot, threatening to pull the trigger if anyone attempts to stop him. Lee tries to kill Morgan but shoots Rick instead. Morgan then kills Lee with the shotgun. As the train prepares to leave, a devastated Belden confronts Morgan in a final showdown and is gunned down.

Cast

Earl Holliman in a promotional photograph for the film

Kirk Douglas as Marshal Matt Morgan
Anthony Quinn as Craig Belden
Carolyn Jones as Linda
Earl Holliman as Rick Belden
Brad Dexter as Beero
Brian G. Hutton as Lee Smithers (as Brian Hutton)
Ziva Rodann as Catherine Morgan
Bing Russell as Skag
Val Avery as Steve, Horseshoe Bartender
Walter Sande as Sheriff Bartlett

Filming locations

The movie was filmed in and around Old Tucson Studios outside of Tucson, Arizona, Sonoita, Arizona, as well as at Paramount Studios and their back lot in Los Angeles, California.

Comic book adaption

Dell Four Color #1012 (July 1959)[2][3]

References

"1959: Probable Domestic Take", Variety, 6 January 1960 p 34
"Dell Four Color #1012". Grand Comics Database.
Dell Four Color #1012 at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)

External links

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[1] "1959: Probable Domestic Take", Variety, 6 January 1960 p 34

[2] "Dell Four Color #1012". Grand Comics Database.

[3] Dell Four Color #1012 at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)