RIO BRAVO (1959): Fun Facts:

Rio Bravo is one of my favorite westerns. Wayne is such a awesome movie actor. The story is wonderful and the supporting cast is perfect (Walter Brennan steals many scenes ). I believe this movie is one of the great western classics.

FUN FACTS:

The sets in Old Tucson are built to 7/8th scale, so the performers look larger than life.


Although Harry Carey Jr. was listed in the credits on-screen, he does not appear in the picture. Carey had a drinking problem at the time. He called director Howard Hawks on one of his first days on the set, infuriating Hawks. His contract, including his pay and his screen credit, was honored, but his part (a townsman) was cut.


The song "My Rifle, My Pony and Me" was originally used as the theme for Red River (1948), another John Wayne western. The original title was "Settle Down".


The movie was made by Howard Hawks and John Wayne as a counter-response to the underlying theme and point of view of High Noon (1952).


John Wayne and Ward Bond's 22nd and final movie together.


Ward Bond's death scene was filmed from a distance because it was actually a double. Bond had already left the set to be back on location for "Wagon Train" (1957).


John Wayne was nervous about the love scenes between his character and Feathers, since he was 51 and Angie Dickinson was 26.


On May 8th, just one week into shooting ‘Rio Bravo’, Ricky Nelson celebrated his 18th birthday. As a gift, John Wayne and Dean Martin gave him a 300 lb. sack of steer manure, which they then threw Nelson into as a rite of passage.


Montgomery Clift turned down the role of Dude, because he didn't want to work again with John Wayne and Walter Brennan.


Dean Martin's agent approached Howard Hawks to consider his client for the role of the drunken deputy Dude. Hawks agreed to meet with Martin at 9:30 the next morning. When Hawks learned that Martin had done a show in Las Vegas until midnight, and hired a plane to fly him to the meeting, Hawks was so impressed that he simply sent Martin to get a costume and told him he had the part.

The last movie in which John Wayne wore the hat he had worn since Stagecoach (1939).


More or less remade as El Dorado (1966) and Rio Lobo (1970).

Info From: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.