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Robert Osborne on John Ford
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Since it was director John Ford who helped popularize
the theory "When the legend becomes fact, print the
legend" (a memorable line from his 1962 western
classic The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance), it
makes it even more complicated to draw a totally
accurate picture of the real Mr. Ford. Cantankerous,
grouchy, tough, unpredictable, tyrannical and sadistic
are words often used to describe him; others who knew
or worked for him insist he was really just an old
softie at heart, a rascal who covered his sentimental
nature with a gruff, curmudgeony exterior. Colorful,
he certainly was; also a mystery, even to those who
knew him best. John Wayne, who starred in 14 of Ford's
films and was no shrinking violet, admits he often
quaked in Ford's presence; so did Jimmy Stewart,
despite the fact that by the time Stewart worked with
Ford, the actor had 60 films under his belt.
Some things about Ford, however, can't be argued: he
was, without question, a brilliant filmmaker and a
master storyteller, an exceptional director with an
uncanny eye for visual beauty, along with a striking
ability to sock over his tales with words kept to a
minimum. Ford is also the only person to date to have
won as many as four Academy Awards® as Best
Director. (Closest runners-up: William Wyler and Frank
Capra, with three each.)
This month, we'll be spending every Tuesday evening
with the amazing and complicated John Ford, bringing
you 22 of his films, from 1931's Arrowsmith (on
Nov. 28) to his final directorial effort, 1966's Seven
Women (airing Nov. 22). We'll include many of his
great westerns, among them 1939's Stagecoach,
1948's Fort Apache, 1949's She Wore a Yellow
Ribbon and 1950's Rio Grande. Despite
Ford's great identification with the old West,
shotguns, wagon wheels and Cavalry trumpets, we'll be
offering considerable proof that he was equally
effective directing non-sagebrush stories as well,
such as the historical drama Mary of Scotland
with Katharine Hepburn Katharine Hepburn (with whom
J.F. had a strong romantic attachment at the time),
the big-scale African adventure Mogambo with
Clark Gable, the modern political tale The Last
Hurrah with Spencer Tracy and so many others.
The capper of our Ford salute, and the best chance yet
for all of us to get a direct, unvarnished look at the
legendary Ford, is Peter Bogdanovich's documentary
Directed by John Ford, which will be having its
world television premiere on TCM on November 7, with a
repeat on November 21. It's a re-edited, re-vamped and
expanded version of a film Bogdanovich compiled in
1971 that was only briefly shown at the time and has
not been seen for the past 30 years. Flash ahead to
2006: with the help of TCM and producer Frank Marshall
(and the inclusion of 20 additional minutes of new
footage), you can review Ford's entire career, see
some magnificent film clips and watch as Wayne,
Stewart, O'Hara, Henry Fonda, Steven Spielberg, Martin
Scorsese, Clint Eastwood and others give fascinating,
personal insights into Ford, the filmmaker, and Ford,
the man. There's also priceless footage of Ford
himself being interviewed. Watching this gift from
Peter Boganovich will make it even clearer why Orson
Welles once said, "I learned filmmaking by studying
the Old Masters—and by that I mean John Ford, John
Ford and John Ford."
by Robert Osborne
 
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