ROD STEIGER, 1925 - 2002
From the docks of New York to the rural back roads of Mississippi to the war torn Russian steppes, Rod Steiger reveled in creating some of the most overpowering and difficult men on the screen. He could be a total scoundrel, embodying Machiavelli's idiom that "it's better to be feared than loved" in the movies. But as an actor he refused to be typecast and his wide range included characters who were secretly tormented (The Pawnbroker, 1965) or loners (Run of the Arrow, 1965) or eccentrics (The Loved One, 1965).
Along with Marlon Brando, Steiger helped bring the 'Method School' from the Group Theater and Actors Studio in New York to the screens of Hollywood. The Method technique, taught by Stella Adler and Lee Strasberg, insisted on complete immersion into the character's psyche and resulted in intense, dramatic performances and performers. Steiger made his first significant screen appearance as Brando's older brother in On the Waterfront (1954). Their climatic scene together in a taxicab is one of the great moments in American cinema.
It was a short leap from playing a crooked lawyer in On the Waterfront to playing the shady boxing promoter in The Harder They Fall (1956). Based on the tragic tale of true-life fighter Primo Carnera, The Harder They Fall details the corruption behind the scenes of professional boxing bouts. Steiger is a fight manager named Nick Benko who enlists newspaperman Eddie Willis (Humphrey Bogart in his final screen appearance) to drum up publicity for a fixed prizefight. While the boxing scenes were often brutally realistic, the most powerful dramatic moments took place between Steiger and Bogart on the sidelines.
As mob boss Al Capone (1959), Steiger got to play another man you loved to hate. He vividly depicted the criminal from his swaggering early days to his pathetic demise from syphilis. In Doctor Zhivago (1965), Steiger was the only American in the international cast, playing the hateful and perverse Komarovsky. During the production of Dr. Zhivago, Steiger often found himself at odds with director David Lean. Schooled in the British tradition, Lean valued the integrity of the script and demanded that actors remain faithful to the script. Steiger, on the other hand, relied on improvisation and spontaneity. When kissing the lovely Lara (played by Julie Christie), Steiger jammed his tongue into Christie's mouth to produce the desired reaction - disgust. It worked! While it might not have been Lean's approach, it brought a grittier edge to the prestige production and made Komarovsky is a detestable but truly memorable figure.
Steiger dared audiences to dislike him. As the smalltown southern Sheriff Gillespie in In The Heat of the Night (1967), Steiger embodied all the prejudices and suspicions of a racist. When a black northern lawyer, played by Sidney Poitier, arrives on the crime scene, Gillespie is forced to recognize his fellow man as an equal despite skin color. Here, Steiger's character started as a bigot and developed into a better man. He finally claimed a Best Actor Academy Award for his performance as Sheriff Gillespie.
Steiger was an actor's actor. A chameleon who didn't think twice about diving into challenging roles that others would shy away from. In the Private Screenings interview he did with host Robert Osborne he admitted that Paul Muni was one of his idols because of his total immersion into his roles. Steiger said, "I believe actors are supposed to create different human beings." And Steiger showed us a rich and diverse cross section of them.
by Jeremy Geltzer & Jeff Stafford
Cattle Annie and Little Britches
Brief Synopsis
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It's 1893, and after their many years together, the outlaw gang led by Bill Doolin and Bill Dalton is about to disband. But when two teenage girls filled with the romance of being outlaws in the West show up, the gang is revived. Jenny and Annie help the men plan a series of robberies, but this new
Cast & Crew
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Lamont Johnson
Director
Burt Lancaster
Bill Doolin
John Savage
Bittercreek Newwcomb
Rod Steiger
Us Marshal Bill Tilghman
Diane Lane
Jenny
Amanda Plummer
Film Details
MPAA Rating
Genre
Western
Release Date
1981
Production Company
Pacific Title & Art Studio; United Artists Films
Distribution Company
Universal Pictures
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 38m
Synopsis
It's 1893, and after their many years together, the outlaw gang led by Bill Doolin and Bill Dalton is about to disband. But when two teenage girls filled with the romance of being outlaws in the West show up, the gang is revived. Jenny and Annie help the men plan a series of robberies, but this new activity draws the interest of a lawman who is determined to bring them all to justice.
Director
Lamont Johnson
Director
Cast
Burt Lancaster
Bill Doolin
John Savage
Bittercreek Newwcomb
Rod Steiger
Us Marshal Bill Tilghman
Diane Lane
Jenny
Amanda Plummer
Scott Glenn
Bill Dalton
Steven Ford
Deputy Us Marshall
Ken Call
George Weightman
Redmond Gleeson
Red Buck
William Russ
Little Dick Raidler
Buck Taylor
Dynamite Dick
Perry Lang
Elrod
John Quade
Morgan
John Sterlini
Corey
Tom J Delaney
Ned'S Father
Matthew Taylor
Ned
Michael Conrad
Engineer
Roger Cudney
Capps; Fireman
Chad Hastings
Conductor
Yvette Sweetman
Mrs Sweetman
Mike Moroff
Deputy
John Hock
Bank Teller
Jerry Gatlin
Cop
Russ Hoverson
Guard
Crew
David Anderson
1st Assistant Director
Colin Arthur
Makeup
David Ball
Production Manager
David Ball
Production Manager
Dehl Berti
Song ("Cattle Annie")
Sanh Berti
Song ("Cattle Annie")
Sanh Berti
Music; Music Director
Bertha Chu
Hairstyles
Laurencio Cordero
Special Effects
Jim Cranston
Production Manager
John Daly
Executive Producer
Derek Dawson
Executive Producer
Sean Doyle
Camera Operator
Jesus Duran
Special Effects
Mark Eggenweiler
Sound Editor
Tony Epper
Stunt Coordinator
David Eyre
Screenwriter
Amy Fates
Assistant Editor
Jerry Gatlin
Stunts
Stan Gilbert
Sound Editor (Dialogue)
Rosa Guerrero
Makeup
William Haugse
Editor
David Hawkins
Sound Editor
Hall Hitzig
2nd Assistant Director
Hall Hitzig
Driver
Rupert Hitzig
Producer
Johnny Hock
Wrangler
Russell Hoverson
Driver
Lester Hoyle
Script Supervisor
Earl Huntoon
Propmaster
Christopher Michael Johnson
Stills
Stan Jolley
Production Designer
Diane Katz
Production Coordinator
Alan King
Producer
David Korda
Associate Producer
John Leblanc
Camera Assistant
Danne D Long
Hairstyles
Mary Mccaslin
Song Performer ("Cattle Annie")
Sergio Ortega
Assistant Editor
Bernard F Pincus
Sound Editor
Larry Pizer
Director Of Photography
Dick Purdy
Set Dresser
Larry Randles
Stunts
Rita Riggs
Costumes
Jim Ringer
Song Performer ("Cattle Annie")
Robbe Roberts
Editor Supervisor
Davey Rogers
Wrangler
Brian Rose
Camera Assistant
Gerald Rosenthal
Sound Editor
Scott Sampson
Driver
Jonathan Schwartz
Production Assistant
Tom Slocum
Song
Tom Slocum
Music; Music Director
Tom Slocum
Song Performer ("Cattle Annie")
John Smallcombe
Assistant Director
Beverly Spaulding
Song Performer ("Cattle Annie")
William Stevenson
Sound Effects Supervisor
Duncan Stewart
Production Accountant
Manuel Topete
Sound Recording
Robert Ward
Screenwriter
Robert Ward
Source Material (From Novel)
Bob Wright
2nd Assistant Director
Film Details
MPAA Rating
Genre
Western
Release Date
1981
Production Company
Pacific Title & Art Studio; United Artists Films
Distribution Company
Universal Pictures
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 38m
Articles
TCM Remembers - Rod Steiger
TCM Remembers - Rod Steiger
ROD STEIGER, 1925 - 2002
From the docks of New York to the rural back roads of Mississippi to the war torn Russian steppes, Rod Steiger reveled in creating some of the most overpowering and difficult men on the screen. He could be a total scoundrel, embodying Machiavelli's idiom that "it's better to be feared than loved" in the movies. But as an actor he refused to be typecast and his wide range included characters who were secretly tormented (The Pawnbroker, 1965) or loners (Run of the Arrow, 1965) or eccentrics (The Loved One, 1965).
Along with Marlon Brando, Steiger helped bring the 'Method School' from the Group Theater and Actors Studio in New York to the screens of Hollywood. The Method technique, taught by Stella Adler and Lee Strasberg, insisted on complete immersion into the character's psyche and resulted in intense, dramatic performances and performers. Steiger made his first significant screen appearance as Brando's older brother in On the Waterfront (1954). Their climatic scene together in a taxicab is one of the great moments in American cinema.
It was a short leap from playing a crooked lawyer in On the Waterfront to playing the shady boxing promoter in The Harder They Fall (1956). Based on the tragic tale of true-life fighter Primo Carnera, The Harder They Fall details the corruption behind the scenes of professional boxing bouts. Steiger is a fight manager named Nick Benko who enlists newspaperman Eddie Willis (Humphrey Bogart in his final screen appearance) to drum up publicity for a fixed prizefight. While the boxing scenes were often brutally realistic, the most powerful dramatic moments took place between Steiger and Bogart on the sidelines.
As mob boss Al Capone (1959), Steiger got to play another man you loved to hate. He vividly depicted the criminal from his swaggering early days to his pathetic demise from syphilis. In Doctor Zhivago (1965), Steiger was the only American in the international cast, playing the hateful and perverse Komarovsky. During the production of Dr. Zhivago, Steiger often found himself at odds with director David Lean. Schooled in the British tradition, Lean valued the integrity of the script and demanded that actors remain faithful to the script. Steiger, on the other hand, relied on improvisation and spontaneity. When kissing the lovely Lara (played by Julie Christie), Steiger jammed his tongue into Christie's mouth to produce the desired reaction - disgust. It worked! While it might not have been Lean's approach, it brought a grittier edge to the prestige production and made Komarovsky is a detestable but truly memorable figure.
Steiger dared audiences to dislike him. As the smalltown southern Sheriff Gillespie in In The Heat of the Night (1967), Steiger embodied all the prejudices and suspicions of a racist. When a black northern lawyer, played by Sidney Poitier, arrives on the crime scene, Gillespie is forced to recognize his fellow man as an equal despite skin color. Here, Steiger's character started as a bigot and developed into a better man. He finally claimed a Best Actor Academy Award for his performance as Sheriff Gillespie.
Steiger was an actor's actor. A chameleon who didn't think twice about diving into challenging roles that others would shy away from. In the Private Screenings interview he did with host Robert Osborne he admitted that Paul Muni was one of his idols because of his total immersion into his roles. Steiger said, "I believe actors are supposed to create different human beings." And Steiger showed us a rich and diverse cross section of them.
by Jeremy Geltzer & Jeff Stafford
Quotes
Trivia
Miscellaneous Notes
Released in United States 1981
Feature acting debut for actress Amanda Plummer, the daughter of Tammy Grimes and Christopher Plummer.
Released in United States 1981
