A Man Called Gannon (1968)

Anthony Franciosa is Gannon, a man in search of a fresh start and an open range that barb wire hasn’t yet reached.

He’s been through one range war. It ended with his killing six men to avenge the death of his brother Jim.

Still, that’s a death he still blames himself for because he taught his brother never to back down from a fight.

Now he’s taken another young man, Jeff Washburn (Michael Sarrazin), under his wing. Together they get jobs at the Cross Triangle Ranch.

What they don’t know is that widowed owner Beth Cross (Judi West) dreams of making a quick profit in order to escape the solitude of the West.

In order to do that, she’s invested every cent she has in cattle, bringing in a herd of 1,300 — way too many cattle for the range to support, according to her neighboring ranchers.

Their answer: String barbed wire to protect their portion of the range. That’s likely to mean violence, and Beth Cross isn’t shy about using her bedroom as a means of convincing someone to lead her men in the fight ahead.

The question: Will that someone be Gannon, who’s already battle barbed wire once? Or will it be his young protégé, who’s itching to prove he can do anything Gannon can?

Anthony Franciosa as Gannon in A Man Called Gannon (1968)

Michael Sarrazin as Jess Washburn in A Man Called Gannon (1968)

Review:

A film that has its moments, but still winds up being an inferior remake of 1955’s “Man Without a Star,” starring Kirk Douglas.

Michael Sarrazin turns in a fine role as the Easterner eager to prove himself out West. Some of the best scenes come when Gannon is teaching him the ropes of working on a ranch.

We also get a spirited performance from Susan Oliver as a whore named Matty, who loves Gannon, though that’s not likely to lead to a happy ending.

And John Anderson plays Capper, former of the Cross Triangle and a man eager to prove he’s still top man when Gannon and Jesse arrive.

Susan Oliver as Matty in A Man Called Gannon (1968)

Judi West as Beth Cross in A Man Called Gannon (1968)

Directed by:
James Goldstone

Cast:
Anthony Franciosa … Gannon
Michael Sarrazin … Jess Washburn
Judi West … Beth Cross
Susan Oliver … Matty
John Anderson … Capper
Harry Basch … Ben
James T. Callahan … Bo
Harry Davis … Harry
David Sheiner … Sheriff Polaski
James Westerfield … Amos
Gavin MacLeod … Lou
Eddie Firestone … Maz
Ed Peck … Delivery rider
Robert Sorrells … Goff
Terry Wilson … Coss
Eddra Gale … Louisa
Cliff Potts … Ike
Jason Evers … Mills

Runtime: 105 min.

Title tune: “A Smile, a Mem’ry and an Extra Shirt”
by Dave Grusin

David Sheiner as Sheriff Polaski in A Man Called Gannon (1968)

Harry Basch as Ben, one of Beth’s adversaries in A Man Called Gannon (1968)

Memorable lines:

Jess Washburn, after a guard on the train has been knifed and killed: “That was real slick.”
Gannon: “You ever kill anybody, boy?”
Jess: “No.”
Gannon: “There ain’t nothin’ slick about killing.”

Gannon:, after Jess risks getting accused of a murder he didn’t commit “How’d you ever get to be 20?”
Jess Washburn: “Twenty-three.”
Gannon: “It’s hard to believe. Never make it to 24.”

John Anderson as Capper in A Man Called Gannon (1968)

James Westerfield as Amos, one of Beth’s ranch hands, in A Man Called Gannon (1968)

Matty: “I don’t know, Gannon. Every time I think I’ve found peace and quiet, you show up.”

Gannon: “One day I’m gonna find me a bottle that starts off empty and ends up full.”

Jess: “How come you know so much about him (Gannon)?”
Matty: “It’s tradition, boy. A man can talk free to a whore. All she’s supposed to want is him money.”