Buddy Ebsen is Will Lane, a former gunfighter whose old friend has died, but left him with a last request.
Seems the friend had one son, Lee Carey (Keir Dullea), a youngster as wild as the wind.
The friend has given Will Lane possession of his modest ranch, to be turned over to the son only at the time when Will’s convinced the son is mature enough to manage it.
Between his gambling, drinking and womanizing, it appears that day will never arrive for Lee.
And he suspects Will is a broken-down old man, determined to steal the ranch out from under him.
Just when Will is about to give up on his project, he stumbles across some ads for mail-order brides. Just the thing, Will figures, to settle Lee down.
A trip to town nets Annie Boley (Lois Nettleton) and her young son, both badly in need of a fresh start.
But Lee isn’t eager to go along with the idea, even if he’s attracted to Annie and even if it means saving his ranch.
After all, he has some buddies (including Warren Oates as Jace) eager to guide him down a less responsible path.
Buddy Ebsen as Will Lane in Mail Order Bride (1964)
Keir Dullea as Lee Carey in Mail Order Bride (1964)
Review:
An entertaining coming-of-age film that offers a nice mix of comedy and action and benefits from the performance of Buddy Ebsen.
In fact, one of the highlights of the film is his trip to Kansas City to find young Lee a bride.
He interviews several prospects — including an aging, yet still fetching saloon owner played by Marie Windsor — before settling on Annie and her son.
That son, by the way, is played by James “Jimmy” Mathers, brother of Jerry, the actor who starred in the hit TV comedy series “Leave It to Beaver.”
And while Nettleton and Dullea aren’t household names, they went on to long careers in film and acting. Nettleton wound up being nominated for six Emmy awards; Dullea starred in Stanley Kubick’s “2001: A Space Odessey (1968).
Ebsen had already started his run as Jed Clampett of “The Beverly Hillbillies” fame when this film was made.
Lois Nettleton as Annie Boley in Mail Orderr Bride (1964)
Jimmy Mathers as Matt Boley in Mail Order Bride (1964)
Directed by:
Burt Kennedy
Cast:
Buddy Ebsen … Will Lane
Keir Dullea … Lee Carey
Lois Nettleton … Annie Boley
Warren Oates … Jace
Barbara Luna … Marietta
Paul Fix … Sheriff Jess Linley
Marie Windsor … Hanna
Jimmy Mathers … Matt Boley
Denver Pyle … Preacher Pope
William Smith … Lank
Kathleen Freeman … Sister Sue
Abigail Shelton … Young Old Maid
Doodles Weaver … Charlie Mary
Diane Sayer … Lily Fontaine
Ted Ryan … Bartender
Runtime: 85 min.
Lee Carey’s up-to-no-good buddies Jace (Warren Oates) and Lank (William Smith) in Mail Order Bride (1964)
Barbara Luna as Marietta, Lee’s favorite saloon girl in Congress (1964)
Memorable lines:
Sheriff Jess Linley: “Shane Lane never got around to finishing his house.”
Will Lane: “Never finished building the boy either.”
Marietta: “There’s one thing I’ve learned in cow towns from Abilene to the Dakotas: Never run after a married man. You might catch him. And if you do, his good wife runs you right out of town.”
Annie Boley: “I had love, Mr. Lane. It wasn’t enough. All I want now is security. It’s the only thing that matters.”
Annie Boley: “Mr. Lane, we’ll never forget you.”
Will Lane: “That’s all a man can ask.”
Marie Windsor as Hanna, the Kansas City saloon owner in Mail Order Bride (1964)
Paul Fix as Sheriff Jess Linley in Mail Order Bride (1964)
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