Hondo (1953)
Director: John Farrow
Actors: John Wayne, Geraldine Page, Ward Bond, Michael Pate, James Arness, Rudolfo Acosta
Runtime: 83 min.
A mysterious cowboy crosses paths with a woman and her son when he arrives at a homestead in Apache territory, establishing a connection that joins their destinies.
Trivia: Geraldine Page appears here in one of her earliest roles. She was nominated for a total of eight Academy Awards, winning the Best Actress award for her role in The Trip to Bountiful (1986). She was married to actor Rip Torn. Screenwriter James Edward Grant also wrote the screenplay to the John Wayne produced Angel and the Badman. When the production went over schedule, director John Farrow had to leave the production due to schedule conflicts and the final scenes, where the Apaches attack, were shot by John Ford. The screenplay is based on a short story by Louis L'Amour titled, The Gift of Cochise. L'Amour also wrote a novelization of the movie titled Hondo. See if you can spot Ward Bond and James Arness who went on to play leading roles the hit TV westerns Wagon Train and Gunsmoke.