Canyon Passage (1946)

90-93 mins | Western | 26 July 1946

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HISTORY

Ernest Haycox's novel was serialized in The Saturday Evening Post from 13 Jan 1945 to 3 Mar 1945. According to a Feb 1945 LAEX news item, producer Walter Wanger had originally intended to cast John Wayne, Thomas Mitchell and Claire Trevor in the film, having had tremendous success with those actors in his 1939 adaptation of another Haycox novel, Stagecoach (see AFI Catalog of Feature Films, 1931-40; F3.4284). In addition, a May 1945 NYT news item states that Robert Siodmak was being considered to direct the picture. According to LAT, portions of the film were shot on location near Diamond Lake, OR.
       The DV review states that Patricia Roc, a British actress who made her American film debut in the picture, was borrowed by Universal from J. Arthur Rank under a "lend-lease" deal between the two production companies. HR production charts include Jimmy Aubrey and Walter Doering in the cast, but their appearance in the released film has not been confirmed. HR production charts also include Ray Collins in the cast, but he did not appear in the film. According to an article in SEP, Hoagy Carmichael, the noted composer, considered his performance as "Hi Linnet" the finest of his career. Carmichael and Jack Brooks's song "Ole Buttermilk Sky" was nominated for an Academy Award, but lost to the Harry Warren-Johnny Mercer tune "On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe" from the M-G-M film The Harvey Girls (See Entry). ...

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Ernest Haycox's novel was serialized in The Saturday Evening Post from 13 Jan 1945 to 3 Mar 1945. According to a Feb 1945 LAEX news item, producer Walter Wanger had originally intended to cast John Wayne, Thomas Mitchell and Claire Trevor in the film, having had tremendous success with those actors in his 1939 adaptation of another Haycox novel, Stagecoach (see AFI Catalog of Feature Films, 1931-40; F3.4284). In addition, a May 1945 NYT news item states that Robert Siodmak was being considered to direct the picture. According to LAT, portions of the film were shot on location near Diamond Lake, OR.
       The DV review states that Patricia Roc, a British actress who made her American film debut in the picture, was borrowed by Universal from J. Arthur Rank under a "lend-lease" deal between the two production companies. HR production charts include Jimmy Aubrey and Walter Doering in the cast, but their appearance in the released film has not been confirmed. HR production charts also include Ray Collins in the cast, but he did not appear in the film. According to an article in SEP, Hoagy Carmichael, the noted composer, considered his performance as "Hi Linnet" the finest of his career. Carmichael and Jack Brooks's song "Ole Buttermilk Sky" was nominated for an Academy Award, but lost to the Harry Warren-Johnny Mercer tune "On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe" from the M-G-M film The Harvey Girls (See Entry).

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GEOGRAPHIC LOCATIONS
PERSONAL & COMPANY INDEX CREDITS
CREDIT
HISTORY CREDITS
CREDIT TYPE
CREDIT
Personal note credit:
SOURCE CITATIONS
SOURCE
DATE
PAGE
Box Office
27 Jul 1946
---
Daily Variety
15 Jul 1946
pp. 3, 14
Film Daily
17 Jul 1946
p. 4
Hollywood Reporter
17 Aug 1945
p. 13
Hollywood Reporter
24 Aug 1945
p. 15
Hollywood Reporter
28 Aug 1945
p. 25
Hollywood Reporter
15 Jul 1946
p. 3
Hollywood Reporter
12 Aug 1946
p. 8
Los Angeles Daily News
15 Jul 1946
---
Los Angeles Examiner
6 Feb 1945
---
Motion Picture Herald Product Digest
9 Mar 1946
p. 2883
Motion Picture Herald Product Digest
20 Jul 1946
p. 3101
New York Times
6 May 1945
---
New York Times
11 Nov 1945
---
New York Times
8 Aug 1946
p. 18
The Saturday Evening Post
15 Sep 1951
---
Variety
24 Jul 1946
p. 14
CAST
PRODUCTION CREDITS
NAME
PARENT COMPANY
DISTRIBUTION COMPANY
NAME
CREDITED AS
CREDIT
DIRECTORS
Dial dir
Asst dir
Mack Wright
Asst dir
PRODUCERS
Assoc prod
WRITER
PHOTOGRAPHY
Dir of photog
ART DIRECTORS
John B. Goodman
Art dir
FILM EDITOR
Film ed
SET DECORATORS
Set dec
Const eng
COSTUMES
MUSIC
Mus dir
SOUND
Dir of sd
[Sd] tech
Re-rec and eff mixer
VISUAL EFFECTS
D. S. Horsley
Spec photog
Matte paintings
MAKEUP
Hairstylist
Jack P. Pierce
Dir of makeup
PRODUCTION MISC
Research dir
Research dir
COLOR PERSONNEL
Technicolor col consultant
SOURCES
LITERARY
Based on the novel Canyon Passage by Ernest Haycox (New York, 1945).
LITERARY SOURCE AUTHOR
SONGS
"Rogue River Valley," "I'm Gettin' Married in the Mornin'" and "Silver Saddle," music and lyrics by Hoagy Carmichael; "Ole Buttermilk Sky," music by Hoagy Carmichael, lyrics by Jack Brooks.
SONGWRITER/COMPOSER
DETAILS
Release Date:
26 July 1946
Premiere Information:
World premiere in Portland, OR: 15 Jul 1946
Production Date:
mid Aug--mid Dec 1945
Copyright Info
Claimant
Date
Copyright Number
Universal Pictures Co., inc.
18 July 1946
LP447
Physical Properties:
Sound
Western Electric Recording
Color
Technicolor
Duration(in mins):
90-93
Country:
United States
PCA No:
11547
SYNOPSIS

In 1856, Logan Stewart, the proprietor of an Oregon mule train, is nearly robbed of a gold shipment while he sleeps in his Portland hotel room. He tells Lucy Overmine, the fiancée of his best friend, George Camrose, that he thinks the bandit was Honey Bragg, whom he believes had earlier killed two miners, though their murders were blamed on the local Indians. While traveling to the mining town of Jacksonville, Logan and Lucy stop at the ranch of Ben Dance and his family. Logan gives a locket to Caroline Marsh, an English immigrant staying with the Dances, though Lucy doubts his serious intentions. Upon his arrival in Jacksonville, Logan is forced to break up a bar fight between his young friend, Vane Blazier, and Bragg. Meanwhile, Lucy chastises George for his gambling, unaware that the problem is so severe that the banker is embezzling funds to cover his losses. Though he is secretly in love with Lucy, Logan proposes to Caroline, and she accepts, much to the chagrin of the jealous Vane. Later, Logan is forced to fight Bragg, and though he defeats the murderous outlaw, he refuses to kill him. After learning of George's excessive gambling, Logan agrees to pay his debts if the banker promises to give up poker. Though he takes the money, George continues his gambling, and even as his debt to professional gambler Jack Lestrade mounts, he tries to romance Lestrade's wife Marta. After killing MacIvar, a miner from whom he has been embezzling, George announces his intention to leave Jacksonville and take Lucy along as his wife. While George wants a quick wedding, Lucy's ...

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In 1856, Logan Stewart, the proprietor of an Oregon mule train, is nearly robbed of a gold shipment while he sleeps in his Portland hotel room. He tells Lucy Overmine, the fiancée of his best friend, George Camrose, that he thinks the bandit was Honey Bragg, whom he believes had earlier killed two miners, though their murders were blamed on the local Indians. While traveling to the mining town of Jacksonville, Logan and Lucy stop at the ranch of Ben Dance and his family. Logan gives a locket to Caroline Marsh, an English immigrant staying with the Dances, though Lucy doubts his serious intentions. Upon his arrival in Jacksonville, Logan is forced to break up a bar fight between his young friend, Vane Blazier, and Bragg. Meanwhile, Lucy chastises George for his gambling, unaware that the problem is so severe that the banker is embezzling funds to cover his losses. Though he is secretly in love with Lucy, Logan proposes to Caroline, and she accepts, much to the chagrin of the jealous Vane. Later, Logan is forced to fight Bragg, and though he defeats the murderous outlaw, he refuses to kill him. After learning of George's excessive gambling, Logan agrees to pay his debts if the banker promises to give up poker. Though he takes the money, George continues his gambling, and even as his debt to professional gambler Jack Lestrade mounts, he tries to romance Lestrade's wife Marta. After killing MacIvar, a miner from whom he has been embezzling, George announces his intention to leave Jacksonville and take Lucy along as his wife. While George wants a quick wedding, Lucy's family insists on an elaborate affair, so she prepares to go to San Francisco with Logan to pick out a wedding dress. Before they leave, Logan orders Lestrade to return his ill-gotten winnings to George, but the gambler instead hires Bragg to kill the entrepreneur. Bragg fails in his attempt to murder Logan, but he does kill Logan and Lucy's horses, leaving them stranded in the woods. The two manage to make it back to Jacksonville, only to learn that George has been arrested for the murder of MacIvar. George is found guilty by a kangaroo court, and knowing that his old friend will be lynched that night, Logan breaks the banker out of jail. While George hides in the woods, the townspeople are informed of an Indian uprising, which has been brought on by Bragg's rape and murder of an Indian woman. Learning that the Indians are bound for the Dance ranch, Logan and the miners head there, and discover that both Ben and his son Asa have been killed during an Indian attack. Caroline is found wandering dazed through the woods, and she later breaks her engagement to Logan, telling him that she would rather live on a farm with a man like Vane than in the city with him. Upon his return to Jacksonville, Logan discovers that his general store has been destroyed by the Indians and George has been captured and killed by the townspeople. Despite the setbacks, the resilient Logan heads for San Francisco to arrange for a line of credit to revive his business, with Lucy at his side.

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Legend
Viewed by AFI
Partially Viewed
Offscreen Credit
Name Occurs Before Title
AFI Life Achievement Award

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The American Film Institute is grateful to Sir Paul Getty KBE and the Sir Paul Getty KBE Estate for their dedication to the art of the moving image and their support for the AFI Catalog of Feature Films and without whose support AFI would not have been able to achieve this historical landmark in this epic scholarly endeavor.