Flaming Star (1960)

Director:

Don Siegel

Writers:

Clair Huffaker (screenplay) and
Nunnally Johnson (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

20 December 1960 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Western

Tagline:

CHOOSE!... Between your white father and your Kiowa mother !

Plot:

Sam Burton's second wife Neddy is Indian, their son Pacer a half-breed. As struggle starts between the whites and the Kiowas...

Plot Keywords:

Reference To Adam And Eve | Elvis Presley | Beautiful Woman | Racing | Based On Novel

Cast

Elvis Presley	...	Pacer Burton
Steve Forrest	...	Clint Burton
Barbara Eden	...	Roslyn Pierce
Dolores del Rio	...	Neddy Burton (as Dolores Del Rio)
John McIntire	...	Sam 'Pa' Burton
Rodolfo Acosta	...	Buffalo Horn (as Rudolph Acosta)
Karl Swenson	...	Dred Pierce
Ford Rainey	...	Doc Phillips
Richard Jaeckel	...	Angus Pierce
Anne Benton	...	Dorothy Howard
L.Q. Jones	...	Tom Howard
Douglas Dick	...	Will Howard
Tom Reese	...	Jute
Marian Goldina	...	Ph'sha Knay

Also Known As:

Black Heart (USA) (working title)
Black Star (USA) (working title)
Flaming Heart (USA) (working title)
Flaming Lance (USA) (pre-release title)

Runtime:

101 min | USA:92 min (FMC Library Print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (MPAA rating: certificate #19729) | West Germany:12 (f) | Australia:PG | Argentina:Atp | Chile:TE | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

In the early frames of the movie, Angus Pierce (Richard Jaeckel) has no partner with which to dance, so he grabs a wooden chair. The warden said, "Hey, buddy, don't you be no square. If you can't find a partner use a wooden chair." This line is from an earlier Elvis Presley film, Jailhouse Rock (1957).

Quotes:

One Indian: Kiowa Pacer. Is it true, earth, round like ball, white man live on all sides?
Pacer Burton: That is true.
Another Indian: Tell me, why men on bottom not fall off?
Pacer Burton: I've never been there. Maybe they do.
[they all laugh]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Elvis (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Flaming Star

Clair Huffaker's screenplay from his novel"Flaming Lance".

Clair Huffaker was a master story teller. His westerns are still read by true western aficionados. "Flaming Star" was Elvis's opportunity to act and to prove to the world that he could. Unfortunately the Colonel didn't want the world to know. This is one of Hollywood's best kept secrets. Maybe the fact that Elvis knew that he had actual talent for acting broke his heart, and those stupid Hall Wallis "sillies" must have driven Elvis crazy! Huffaker writes a good story of an interracial family harassed by prejudice and bigotry of the small western town. It is the struggle of two brothers in love with the same woman. It shows the love of a husband to his Indian wife. This film has enduring story.