Jesse James (1939 film)
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| Jesse James | |
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 Jesse James movie cover |
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| Directed by | Henry King |
| Produced by | Darryl F. Zanuck Nunnally Johnson |
| Written by | Nunnally Johnson |
| Starring | Tyrone Power Henry Fonda Nancy Kelly Randolph Scott |
| Music by | Louis Silvers |
| Cinematography | George Barnes W. Howard Greene |
| Distributed by | Twentieth Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | January 27, 1939 |
| Running time | 106 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1.6m U.S. |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Jesse James is a 1939 western movie directed by Henry King and starring Tyrone Power, Henry Fonda, Nancy Kelly, and Randolph Scott. Written by Nunnally Johnson, the film is loosely based on the life of the notorious outlaw for which the film derives its name. The American Humane Association began to oversee filmmaking after a horse died during a stunt on the film.
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[edit] Plot
The film follows the life and death of Jesse James (Tyrone Power), as well as his adventures with his brother, Frank James (Henry Fonda).
[edit] Reception
Jesse James became a moderately successful film upon release, but was mostly ignored at the time, as a number of more notable films were released either at the same time or shortly thereafter (Gone with the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, etc.). The film gained a measure of notoriety, however, for a scene in which a horse falls to its death down a rocky slope toward the end of the film. This scene was one of many cited by the American Humane Association against Hollywood's abuse of animals, and led to the association's monitoring of filmmaking.
[edit] Cast
Tyrone Power as Jesse James
Henry Fonda as Frank James
Nancy Kelly as Zerelda 'Zee'
Randolph Scott as Will Wright
Henry Hull as Maj. Rufus Cobb
John Carradine as Bob Ford
Charles Tannen as Charlie Ford
Slim Summerville as Jailer
J. Edward Bromberg as Mr. Runyan
Brian Donlevy as Barshee
Donald Meek as McCoy
Claire Du Brey as Mrs. Bob Ford
Jane Darwell as Mrs. Samuels
Lon Chaney Jr. as James Gang member
[edit] See also
- The Return of Frank James (1940), sequel starring Henry Fonda.
