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Show A Year of Change yiP's from the annual Western Film Festival gather at the Prairie Schooner for an evening meal. (L-R) Al Bernstein, ESPN Boxing, Don Sharks, Celeste Robinette, Jerry Potter, Rusty Richards, Blanche Davis and Steve Stevens. Western Film Festival ft jv.yiwiuui ii.m h.iiiijiiii.i iptomw-ii' (, -V , &: Vii- -x -t.V-' i- .-j ; ' .' Cv . -- - f What could be more American than a western movie? How about a National Western Film Festival held at the geographic center of the American west? Of course, Utah specifically Ogden a place where most characters, themes and events depicted in western films have been found at one time or another. When Ogden was trying to decide what to do with a stately but largely deserted Union Station, an idea shot up and it took off like gunfire. The building would be renovated to host a celebration honoring an industry that so richly portrays the spirit and fortitude of the men and women who settled the West. Even though it appears the silver screen has turned its back on the western movie genre, one of the festival's goals is to assist in developing the Utah film industry and to promote the re-emergence of western film making, according to Julie DeBoer, Golden Spike manager. If using a train station as the headquarters of a western film festival seems perfectly natural, given the important part railroads have played in the history of the west and the movies, said Dennis Read in the Washington Post, then Ogdenites are out to make the most of it. When the festival debuted in 1985, it was surrounded by the euphoric atmosphere created by the release of a couple of westerns that summer: Pale Rider and Silverado. It was an event that drew hundreds of film buffs from across the country. After the second annual western film festival held July 17 - 20, 1986, Ogden marked it a major event on the cultural calendar. The four-day extravaganza is one of the west's largest festivals and features a variety of opportunities to view and study the different elements that go into making a western movie. DeBoer said the response of the former western film stars has been overwhelming to everyone connected with the festival. "Their eagerness to be here is really amazing," she said. "Most come and stay the entire four days, and they really seem to enjoy mingling with the people, signing autographs and talking about their old movies. I guess it's important to them to know people still remember them, that they're not forgotten." Last year, the festival started with a parade which ran from the Radisson Suite Hotel down historic Twenty-Fifth Street to the Union Station. It was followed by an outdoor reception including music, entertainment, appearances and autograph signing by film celebrities. "The Old West Evening" was followed with dinner, a western fashion show (with models including Pioneer Days royalty) and dancing. Seminars held in the Union Building were "The Singing Cowboy" by Rusty Richards and the "American Cowboys," "Film Evolution of Jesse James" by James V. D'Arc, and "Mystique of Billy the Kid" by Steven Tatum. Steve Stevens, Hollywood casting agent, conducted a seminar on "The Role of the Casting Director, the Agent and Getting into the Movies." (Story coverage of this was placed in the For Your Self column of the May 28, 1987 issue of the Signpost.) A necessary rugged independence of western living and the joy of our magnificent western landscape was displayed in the 12 movies that were shown: Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid, The Gunfighters, Buffalo Bill, One-eyed Jack, Cisco Kid, Ride The High Country, Shane, The Long Riders, The Searchers, Once Upon A Time In The West, and The Wild Bunch. It was fun to watch the actors, musicians and agents rope with local cowboys against the clock in the celebrity-team roping competition which was new last year. Celebrities who competed were Wilford Brimley, Jim Cash, Johnny Crawford, Bob Fiest, Jerry Potter, Rusty Richards, Steve Stevens and Casey Tibbs. Wilford Brimley, roping with Craig Cross, won the competition. The awards banquet concluded the festival Sunday evening. Those who attended enjoyed entertainment by Rusty Richards and the American Cowboys, Prairie Fire and Smokey Robertson, and Utah's own Heartland Band. Afterward, they were treated to an outdoor western barbecue. Following the dinner, celebrities granted awards included Wilford Brimley, excellence in filmmaking; Steve Stevens, excellence in filmmaking and enduring friend of western films; Casey Tibbs, excellence in filmmaking and Ail-American sport of rodeo; Don Shanks, excellence in filmmaking; Jock O'Mahoney, excellence in filmmaking and stunts; John Denver, excellence in filmmaking and music; Bud Mitchell, John Earl Award. Northern Utah is the crossroads of the west. It was here, historians agree, that the single most important date in the history of the West was marked on that day when the Golden Spike was driven into a laurel tie (May 10, 1869). A date when a nation of seemingly endless horizons became linked coast to coast. Ogden thrived as a railroad center for nearly a century thereafter. The heydey of passenger traffic, which has since vanished, boomed at its peak when 125 trains passed through the station every day. Appropriately enough, one of the first American movies every made was a western: The Great Train Robbery (1903). Today it might seem like fantasy, but back then it wasn't too far removed from what a man from Southern Utah was doing for a living. His name was Butch Cassidy. Westerns have played a significant role in the development of American motion pictures since The Great Train Robbery. Some of the best American movies ever made were westerns like Shane, Stagecoach and High Noon (all considered the finest). Festival organizers promise that the 1987 event (to be held this July 16 - 19) will be better than ever. Festival chairman Bud Mitchell said all seminars and workshops will be free and admission price to the screenings will be cut. Organizers are also soliciting student films from schools across the country for a planned independent film competition. In addition, a Willie Nelson concert is marked for July 18 at the Dee Events Center. Set against a backdrop of some of the most intimidating yet magnificent landscapes ever created, The Washington Post said "America's western movies captured the hearts and imagination of moviegoers the world over. If the National Western Film Festival helps keep these films alive, there's reason to hope that our love affair with western movies and the western heritage they portrayed will never die." Tanja Schaffer 8C SignOff Tuesday, June 2, 1987 |
