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Man of the West

FILM · 1958 · USA

Man of the West

Directed by
Anthony Mann
Runtime
100 min
Studio
Ashton Productions, Walter Mirisch Productions

24 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026

Heading east to Fort Worth to hire a schoolteacher for his frontier town home, Link Jones is stranded with singer Billie Ellis and gambler Sam Beasley when their train is held up. For shelter, Jones leads them to his nearby former home, where he was brought up an outlaw. Finding the gang still living in the shack, Jones pretends to be ready to return to a life crime.

  • Man of the West — production image

24 Interesting Facts About Man of the West

Interesting Facts (8)

  1. #001

    Man of the West was the last film Gary Cooper made before undergoing cosmetic surgery in April 1958.

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  2. #002

    Gary Cooper was nearly 57 years old and was ten years older than Lee J. Cobb, who played "Uncle" Dock Tobin. It was generally accepted that even with heavy makeup, Tobin looked younger than Link Jones. Cooper was in fact about 20 years older than his character should have been. Cooper and John Dehner also talk about being children together, but Dehner was actually 14 years younger than Cooper.

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  3. #003

    Jean-Luc Godard, who was a film critic before becoming a director, praised Man of the West as the best film of the year. On his recommendation the film was re-evaluated and is now regarded as a classic western.

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  4. #004

    Man of the West was shot the same year as William Wyler's The Big Country (1958), and both films shared set designer Edward G. Boyle. As often happens in western productions, the two films share a significant location: the ghost town of Lassoo in the final act of Man of the West is the exact same set used for the Hanassey hideout/ranch at the end of Blanco Canyon in the final section of The Big Country (1958).

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  5. #005

    The contest between Ponch and Dock Tobin is called arm wrestling. The competitors stand with their feet apart, each with their right foot forward, touching the outside of the opponent's right foot. The competitors grip right hands and try to unbalance the opponent by pulling, pushing, twisting and turning their hands. The left hand must not be used against the opponent. A competitor who is forced to touch the ground with any part of the body other than the feet, or who is forced to move both feet, loses the match.

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  6. #006

    The train route from Del Rio to Fort Worth covers roughly 450 miles, running east to San Antonio, northeast to Austin and north to Fort Worth. At the time, the journey took a full day including stops.

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  7. #007

    Warner Bros first announced this as a John Wayne vehicle in 1955.

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  8. #008

    In his biography, producer Walter Mirisch said that during shooting he and Gary Cooper were invited to dinner by Joel McCrea at his ranch not far from the filming location. McCrea told Cooper that early in his career he had accepted some roles Cooper had turned down. Cooper denied it, but no one argued further. Mirisch says the dinner was a very pleasant moment.

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Production Story (10)

  1. #009

    Despite physical pain stemming from a car accident years earlier, Gary Cooper bravely performed his own horseback riding scenes.

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  2. #010

    Many people have wondered why James Stewart, who had already made several westerns with director Anthony Mann, did not appear in the film. According to producer Walter Mirisch, they had just finished Love in the Afternoon (1957) with Gary Cooper and signed a deal for another film right away. Thus Cooper was attached to the project before a director had even been hired.

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  3. #011

    James Stewart was never considered for the lead role because he had fallen out with director Anthony Mann the previous year.

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  4. #012

    When Lee J. Cobb decided to leave the series The Virginian (1962), John Dehner temporarily replaced him. Stewart Granger, who was considered for Cobb's role in this film, was eventually chosen to replace Cobb permanently.

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  5. #013

    It appears on the list '1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die', edited by Steven Schneider.

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  6. #014

    The steam locomotive used in the film is a 4-6-0 model built in 1891 by the Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works in Patterson, New Jersey. As of 2025, it is still operational at Railtown 1897 State Historic Park of the Sierra Railways in Jamestown, California. This is the fourth and final film of Gary Cooper's to feature Sierra No. 3; the others are The Virginian (1929), The Texan (1930) and High Noon (1952).

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  7. #015

    Warner Bros. first announced the film in 1955 as a John Wayne project.

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  8. #016

    In his biography, producer Walter Mirisch recounts that during shooting he and Gary Cooper were invited to dinner at Joel McCrea's ranch, which was close to the set. McCrea told Cooper that early in his career he had accepted some roles that Cooper had turned down; Cooper denied it, but no one pressed the matter. Mirisch notes that the dinner was a very enjoyable moment.

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  9. #017

    Screenwriter Philip Yordan had previously written a novel titled 'Man of the West', but it has nothing to do with this film. Yordan's novel was made into the film Gun Glory (1957).

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  10. #018

    Anthony Mann wanted Julie London's character to be changed from a simple girl into Gary Cooper's wife, thinking the rest of the story would be more poignant that way; however, the producers rejected this. Mann said Julie London's character was very silly.

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Characters & Cast (4)

  1. #019

    The opening title sequence lists a title song composed by Bobby Troup, the husband of star Julie London. However, no song appears in the film.

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  2. #020

    Stewart Granger was initially announced for the lead role.

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  3. #021

    James Stewart was never considered for the lead role because his relationship with director Anthony Mann had soured the previous year.

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  4. #022

    When Lee J. Cobb decided to leave The Virginian (1962), John Dehner was brought in temporarily to replace him. Stewart Granger, who had been considered for the role Cobb played in this film, was eventually chosen to replace Cobb permanently.

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Deeper Meaning (2)

  1. #023

    Despite physical pain stemming from a car accident years earlier, Gary Cooper bravely performed his own riding scenes.

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  2. #024

    The steam locomotive used in this picture is a 4-6-0 built in 1891 by the Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works in Patterson, New Jersey. As of 2025 it is still operational, together with the Sierra Railway's Railtown 1897 State Historic Park in Jamestown, California. This is the fourth and last Gary Cooper film to feature Sierra No. 3. The other films were The Virginian (1929), The Texan (1930) and High Noon (1952).

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Sources & editorial notes

Reference databases

  • Wikipedia English Wikipedia article
  • IMDb IMDb title page (trivia)

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