Will Hutchins Movies

The fourth season of the ABC western Cheyenne made TV history as the only instance in which the title character never appeared! Embroiled in a bitter contract dispute with Warner Bros., actor Clint Walker, aka Cheyenne Bodie, walked off the set and refused to return until his demands (which by Hollywood standards were perfectly reasonable)were met. Taking a "We made you, we can break you" stance with Walker, Warner Brothers likewise dug in its heels, proceeding with Season Four of Cheyenne minus the show's star. And how was this done? Simple. Although the program was still officially titled Cheyenne, the season actually consisted of two other western series, appearing in rotation. One of these was Sugarfoot, starring Will Hutchins as a gangly frontier lawyer, a series that had already been seen in the 1957-58 on an alternate-week basis with Cheyenne. The other show was Bronco, a virtual carbon copy of Cheyenne starring newcomer Ty Hardin. Both Cheyenne Bodie and Bronco Layne were Civil War veterans who chose to drift throughout the west after the conflict, taking whatever odd jobs that suited them and getting involved in the lives of other westerners all along the way. There was even a marked physical resemblance between Clint Walker and Ty Hardin,even though Walker had dark hair and Hardin was a blonde. The principal difference between Bronco and its inspiration was that Bronco Layne tended to cross paths with genuine western celebrities like Wild Bill Hickok, Jesse James and the Younger Gang. This "revised" version of Cheyenne ran throughout the 1958-59 season, by which time Warner Bros. had agreed to Clint Walker's terms and invited him back to the fold. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this sleazy melodrama a defiant Southern farm girl marries a poor dirt farmer instead of the wealthy landowner her mother picked out. After her new husband is drafted and leaves, the girl descends into a life of cheap thrills, moving from man to man. She is beautiful and the men fight over her like dogs. During one of the scuffles one man runs another over with his car. The bereaved father of the dead man comes to the woman's house and shoots her. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this offbeat western, a gunfighter whose magic gloves allow him to draw his weapon at unheard-of speed seeks revenge against a vicious outlaw who has killed many innocent people. Presented by Francis Ford Coppola, whose nephew directed the film. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Though director William Wellman was attached to the Lafayette Flying Corps during WW1, many people believed that he was actually with the celebrated Lafayette Escadrille, and this 1958 actioner does little to dispel that belief. The film concentrates on a group of courageous young American aviators who, long before the USA's entry into the Great War, band together to fight the minions of the Kaiser in the skies of France. One of these reckless flyboys is Thad Walker (Tab Hunter), who arrives in Paris after being thrown out of his wealthy father's home. Joining the Escadrille with Walker are fellow expatriates Tom Hitchcock (Jody McCrea), Duke Sinclaire (David Janssen) and "Wild Bill" Wellman (played by the director's son, Bill Wellman Jr.). After a bit of parlez-vous with the local mademoiselles, Walker and his pals take to the air, and at this point, the film really gets off the ground (no pun intended). The spectacular aerial sequences are evocative of those in Wellman's silent classic Wings, though Lafayette Escadrille itself falls a bit short of classic status. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Bart (Jack Kelly) is framed for crimes he didn't commit by sadistic sheriff Horace Hadley (Edgar Buchanan) and his equally odious deputy Jones (played by future Oscar winner George Kennedy). The two crooked lawmen specialize in hunting down and murdering innocent men, then claiming that their victims are outlaws in order to collect the reward. In his efforts to expose Hadley and Jones' racket, Bart turns bounty hunter and solicits the aid of several familiar Warner Bros. TV-series stars--who prove to be no help whatsoever. Appearing in cameo roles are Clint Walker from Cheyenne, Will Hutchins from Sugarfoot, John Russell and Peter Brown from Lawman, and Edd "Kookie" Byrnes from 77 Sunset Strip (a title given a cute "westernization" in the context of the story). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Mac Hyman's hilarious barracks novel No Time for Sergeants was adapted for TV by Ira Levin in 1955, with newcomer Andy Griffith as bumptious Air Force draftee Will Stockdale. This TV version was soon afterward transformed into a Broadway play, and then a movie, again with Griffith in the lead. Brought to the Air Force base in handcuffs because his farmer father has been hiding his draft notices, good-natured Will becomes the target of ridicule for the other transcripts. Especially nasty is Private Irvin (Murray Hamilton), but Will is able to forgive him because he knows that Irvin is suffering from some mysterious disease called ROTC. Will's best pal is hot-headed private Ben (Nick Adams), who wants to be transferred to the Infantry and convinces Will to try for the same goal. Slowly becoming aware that the trusting, naïve Will may prove to be a troublemaker, career sergeant King (Myron McCormick), who wants nothing more out of life than a little peace and quiet, tries to keep Stockdale out of mischief by appointing him "PLO" -- Permanent Latrine Orderly, a dubious distinction in which Will takes enormous pride. Later on, King tries to pull strings to get Will transferred, succeeding only in losing his sergeant's stripes. The story goes off on a zany tangent when Will and Ben find themselves on a crippled plane in flight. They manage to escape with their lives, but all evidence suggests that they've been killed in the plane's crash. Imagine the dismay of newly reinstated Sergeant King when Will and Ben show up in his office -- just as the entire base is gathered for a memorial service for the two "fallen heroes." Featured in a minor role as a "coordination officer" is Griffth's future TV cohort Don Knotts, while Sammy Jackson, who played Stockdale in a 1964 sitcom version of No Time for Sergeants, shows up in an unbilled bit. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When a group of teenage girls gather together for a slumber party, they spend the night relating stories of how they lost their virginity. Debra Winger makes her screen debut in this film. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

Middle-aged shopkeeper George Davies (Dean Jagger) is responsive to the flirtations of local "fast girl" Lola (Cathy Merchant) -- but when Lola mocks him, he strikes her down and accidentally kills the girl. Later on, Lola's boyfriend, J.J. Fenton (Will Hutchins), is arrested for the murder...and George is chosen to serve on the jury. At first pondering the possibility of allowing Fenton to be accused of the crime that he himself committed, George instead devises a method to get the boy off without incriminating himself. In the end, however, both George and J.J. suffer mightily for their association with the unfortunate Lola. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Director Monte Hellman used his beloved "hunter as hunted" theme for his near-existential western The Shooting. Jack Nicholson and Warren Oates are starred in this bare-bones tale of an ex-bounty hunter (Oates) with a price on his head and the cocky young gun (Nicholson) who hopes to collect. The film seems to be exclusively populated by Life's Losers; but even with portents of doom throughout, the ending is still a jaw-dropping experience. Demonstrating the parsimony he'd learned while working with Roger Corman, director Hellman shot The Shooting in Utah simultaneously with another feature, Ride in the Whirlwind, for a combined budget of $150,000. Completed in 1967, The Shooting did not receive widespread release until after Jack Nicholson achieved stardom in the early 1970s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide