Glenn Ford Died Last Night

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FullerH

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Nov 25, 1998
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This morning brought the news that Glenn Ford, the star of "Blackboard Jungle", the film that prompted the federal ban on switchblades, as well as star of many other film died last night at age 90. Requiescat in pace, Glenn.

One of my favorites of his films was the western, "The Fastest Gun Alive."
 
I read the story last night. I was too bummed to write about it. Good guy. I hadn't realized he'd been working so long.
 
FullerH said:
One of my favorites of his films was the western, "The Fastest Gun Alive."
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Same here, one of THE classic "retired gunfighter" movies!

His film "The Sheepman" is another of my favorite westerns.

He was also great as Tom Sunday in "The Sackett's"

RIP

ps, He was also a very highly decorated combat veteran from WW2. One of the few actors in Hollywood who's real life adventures outdid he onscreen ones.
 
Quite a life led, for sure. One of my favorite lines of his (from Gilda): "Pardon me, but your husband is showing."

RIP
 
The Last Confederate said:
Same here, one of THE classic "retired gunfighter" movies!

His film "The Sheepman" is another of my favorite westerns.

He was also great as Tom Sunday in "The Sackett's"

RIP

ps, He was also a very highly decorated combat veteran from WW2. One of the few actors in Hollywood who's real life adventures outdid he onscreen ones.
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Thank you, TLC, would you mind giving us some details or a link to a site where we might find out more about his combat career?
 
FullerH said:
This morning brought the news that Glenn Ford, the star of "Blackboard Jungle", the film that prompted the federal ban on switchblades
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I remember seeing that about 25 years ago, I recall it was a pretty good movie. Although that scene where he had all the delinquents throw their switchblades into the trash just killed me.

Wasn't one of them a very young Jamie Farr (Jameel Farah)?
 
FullerH said:
Thank you, TLC, would you mind giving us some details or a link to a site where we might find out more about his combat career?
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Here's some of it, many years ago after the movie "First Blood" came out, there was an article in a TV magazine about how some actors had actually served their country, a slight slam at Sly Stallone, and how some had actually seen alot of real combat. Audie Murphy of course was mentioned, but Glenn Ford was another that was singled out as having put his movie career on hold and enlisted in the military and had seen some pretty heavy combat. He also served in Korea and Vietnam some.

From an online bio:

His career was interrupted by World War II. During his valiant service with the Marines, he helped build safe houses in France for those hiding from the Nazis. He was one of the first into the German Dachau extermination camp following its liberation. In addition to meritorious service in World War II, Mr. Ford served two tours of duty in Vietnam with the Third Marine Amphibious Force and is the only actor to have served with both the Green Berets and the French Foreign Legion. A few of his numerous medals and commendations are:


The Medal of Honor, presented by the Veterans of Foreign Wars
The French Legion of Honor Medal for his service in World War II
The Medaille de la France Libre for the liberation of France
Two commendation medals from the US Navy
Vietnamese Legion of Merit
 
I can't help but link to this wallpaper I just found:

wpglenn01.jpg
 
Thanks for both TLC.

The scene from Blackboard Jungle that I remember is not the rape scene, as I was too young to really get into that, but the scene where he takes the Italian switchblade away from the very young Vic Morrow, stabs it into a desk, and backhands it, breaking the blade off of it. It always seemed a fitting comment on those POS junk knives and I had one as a teenager until my mother threatened to take it away. I did the same with it that he had done in the film. The steel in them was terrible and the joint was a single lousy soft steel rivet holding the blade into the hilt which had similarly lousy steel in the liners. They were VERY fragile at that joint. Believe me whn I say that a Guardson or a Guardfather is a 500% better knife.
 
we lost a great western actor! :( my brother thought maybe they would release CADE'S COUNTY on dvd now. i liked all three of the westerns mentioned earlier! didn't he do another westerns with sheep , with one of the carradine brothers as one of the villians? can't think of the name of the movie.
 
jack lowe said:
didn't he do another westerns with sheep , with one of the carradine brothers as one of the villians? can't think of the name of the movie.
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Yes, "Heaven With A Gun" 1969, Ford played a wandering "Priest" that defends Sheepherders from a Cattle Baron. David Carradine played the Cattle Barons son.
 
I was just reading his bio on the internet, and durring WW2 he built safe houses in France for people hiding from the Nazi's. The man was not short of nerve, for sure. A real life hero.
 
orthogonal1 said:
Man, too many greats are dying. And there ain't no replacements.

Depressing.
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What gets me is that he put his movie career on hold to enlist, I can think of maybe a few others that did that during WW2, Johnny Weissmuller of Tarzan fame taught swimming to Navy Frogmen (he was a former Olymic swimmer), but how many of todays Hollywood crowd would do that?
 
FullerH said:
Thanks for both TLC.

The scene from Blackboard Jungle that I remember is not the rape scene, as I was too young to really get into that, but the scene where he takes the Italian switchblade away from the very young Vic Morrow, stabs it into a desk, and backhands it, breaking the blade off of it.
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Hugh, your memory may be a bit faulty if you were talking about Glen Fords (Mr. DaddyO) character breaking the knife. I know it was one of the students that picks up the knife after Ford knocks the knife out of Vic Morrow's (Artie West) hand, (he drove him into the wall with a flagpole). It may have been Jamie Farr's character, but I'm pretty sure it was Rafael Campos (Morales) that actaully broke the blade. Belazi also handled the knife before it was broken.
 

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The movie "Cowboy" with Jack Lemmon(one of my favorites of all time) comes to mind along with Jubal with Ernest Borgnine.
Great actor,one of the oldtimers.Will be missed.
 
jack lowe said:
didn't he do another westerns with sheep , with one of the carradine brothers as one of the villians? can't think of the name of the movie.
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Yep TLC, Heaven With A Gun :thumbup:
DCarradine,34 years later, BILL Mid-July '03 decision to split KILL BILL into two movies :eek: :D
Carradine does villain as good as he does hero.:cool:

Glenn Ford,sad loss for movie fans everywhere,Western especially.
His military record speaks for itself.:D

Doug :)
 
The Last Confederate said:
What gets me is that he put his movie career on hold to enlist, I can think of maybe a few others that did that during WW2, Johnny Weissmuller of Tarzan fame taught swimming to Navy Frogmen (he was a former Olymic swimmer), but how many of todays Hollywood crowd would do that?
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James Stewart, Henry Fonda, Clark Gable, did likewise, as did English actor David Niven who was in the commandos.

There is no replacements for these kinds of individuals in the current crop of Hollywood jerks. Henry Fonda was not even eligable to be drafted because he had two kids, so he enlisted in the navy and served on a battleship in the Pasific.

Glen Ford, like Stewart, refused to let his agent publisize his military decorations. A modest hero.
 
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