How many of you know and love this movie?:scratch2:

With Henry Fonda, Walter Matthau, and Larry Hagman.
Filmed in 1964.

Love the footage of the B-58 Hustler, an aircraft I consider to be one of the most beautiful ever made, without the humungous centerline tank.

Story line kinda far fetched? Perhaps. But, what a trip.

"I am the Matador."


Dave

I watched it on late-nite TV when I was a kid of 12, 13...Scared the Hell outta me, because something like that seemed plausible then (1969-70).

I saw it for the first time as a teenager 1977-78, or somewhere thereabouts.
I remember, for the first time in my life thinking about how insane the (Cold War) situation was. And this movie, even though it was just a Hollywood fantasy, was what first made my young mind wake up to the real world. (Serving sea duty in the Navy a few years later was the second thing.)

Maybe this is why I keep watching it?

Anyhow, great movie, great actors.

Dave

YEE-HAW! Great flick!:yes: :thmbsp:

This movie (and book) and Dr. Strangelove are cousins; two takes on the exact same theme.

De-rated versions of the twin-spool axial-flow turbofan engines used on the B-58 were used to power the amazing Convair 990 jetliner -- probably the most beautiful but tempermental (and ultimately) unsuccessful commerical passenger jet of all.

http://cdn-www.airliners.net/aviation-photos/photos/5/6/9/1328965.jpg
(image from the airliners.net database)


EDIT: fun, music-related B-58 fact from Wikipedia:
Singer John Denver's father, Col. Henry J. Deutschendorf, Sr., held several speed records as a B-58 pilot

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/XB-58.jpg

IIRC, the 990 was FAST, too-Would break the sound barrier in a shallow dive, something the 707 or DC-8 couldn't do. And the Hustler-One of the most beautiful planes there ever was-was mustered out of service before the ashtrays even got full...

Great flick. Takes itself seriously, but it's a serious pretense. I never thought it plausible that we would, er, oops... don't wanna give the plot away...

I believe the B-58 (built the model as a kid) still holds some speed and distance records to this day, although I could be right.

The 58 gets my vote for best looking jet ever built.

Wow, I forgot I have the movie on VHS. Need to upgrade to DVD if its available. Great movie and cast. Thanks

Fantastic flic! Dr. Strangelove was a parody of Failsafe. Both great movies in their own right.

That was a creepy movie the way I remember it. Or very unsettling. I saw it on HBO as a kid and just kept on thinking would we really do that...

found this about the jet..

http://www.aviation-history.com/convair/b58.html

but my favorite is still the SR-71.

That is such a well done movie, I've seen it a bunch of times. It's also notable as it is one of the most faithful screenplays. It's a great book and the movie takes in all of it.

In reply to Kcollins4........Dr Strangelove was not a parody of Fail-Safe, strangelove opened in Dec. 1963, Fail-safe opened in Oct. 1964. There was a complicated lawsuit involving the books which inspired each of these movies, Failsafe the book & Red Alert- the book. Columbia took over distribution of both pictures.

Trying to explain all the details would involve at least a 1000 word reply, it's complicated.

At any rate, my father was in Dr. Strangelove, (Sterling Hayden) playing Jack Ripper who starts WWIII.

Andrew Hayden

Trying to explain all the details would involve at least a 1000 word reply, it's complicated.



Yes, it is quite complicated. I have a few books on the life & work of Kubrick and I've read that Kubricks partner, James B. Harris was not all that keen on the idea of "Strangelove" being made as a comedy....So Harris left the production in the early stages when Kubrick decided to make a Black comedy as opposed to a straight forward Drama. The two men however did remain freinds.
Harris went on to direct his own cold-war drama called: "The Bedford Incident"....about a gung-ho patriotic destroyer captain that accidently starts WW3 by taking things too far. A VERY good movie in itself, BTW.

"Fail Safe"
"Strangelove"
"Bedford Incident"

.....all three very good movies which are connected to one another in some ways....but as you've stated...quite complicated indeed!

Russ

There's information out on teh interweb on the interrelationships of the three movies (and books), as well.

At any rate, my father was in Dr. Strangelove, (Sterling Hayden) playing Jack Ripper who starts WWIII.


Andrew:

Your dad was an amazing, iconic actor with a great portfolio of roles. Ripper has to be one of the greatest satirical movie characters in history, and I cannot imagine anyone else playing that role.

Excellent and spooky movie; that and "On The Beach"

In reply to Kcollins4........Dr Strangelove was not a parody of Fail-Safe, strangelove opened in Dec. 1963, Fail-safe opened in Oct. 1964. There was a complicated lawsuit involving the books which inspired each of these movies, Failsafe the book & Red Alert- the book. Columbia took over distribution of both pictures.

Trying to explain all the details would involve at least a 1000 word reply, it's complicated.

At any rate, my father was in Dr. Strangelove, (Sterling Hayden) playing Jack Ripper who starts WWIII.

Andrew Hayden
I knew I should check the dates before I spouted off! I stand corrected. Thanks Andrew. I also enjoyed your fathers work.

Another great one I remember Sterling being in was "The Killing", also a Kubrick production. :thmbsp:

I knew a fellow who was a special weapons officer on B-47s and B-58s. He had many interesting stories.

He once had to land his B-58 using a tiny control stick in his cockpit when a bird went through the pilot's windshield. He got a commendation for that. :jawdrop:

The B-58 was the coolest bomber of the 50's. The Valkyrie came close later on.

Not to mention S. Haydens role in The Godfather. He played Capt. McCluskey. If you didn't know this, you need to!

On the Beach is a pretty good movie, but an excellent book. One of my favorite pieces of apocalyptic literature; on a more intimate, human scale. There was a movie in the 1980s with a somewhat similar perspective on The End. I can't recall the title (but I will, I will...).

EDIT. tee-hee. got it. It was called Testament http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086429/

And today, we find out that Sterling Hayden (http://www.abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=5579095)among others, was a spy for the OSS during WWII! So Andrew, did you know anything about this?

A great movie! I have it on LD.

Yes, My dad was a Marine assigned to the OSS. Commissioned second lieutenant and spent three weeks as a drill instructor, then did OSS training in England before being sent to Italy to run supplies across the Adriatic Sea. He had command of 400 Yugoslav partisans who were arming Serbs who were fighting the Nazi's. He also parachuted behind enemy lines and rescued several U.S. pilots, for which he got the silver star, two bronze stars and the Yugoslav Order of Merrit.

His time in Yugoslavia was hard, what the Germans and the Yugoslavs who sided with the Nazi's did was as bad as it gets. I feel this gave my dad a hardened edge which he carried to move roles such as Asphalt Jungle, The Killing and Dr. Strangelove.

Found a copy of "Fail Safe" on VCR tape at the local GW this morning!

Gonna have to dig the VCR out and hook it up. Watch it sometime this weekend.

Wish I had a copy on DVD. That would be sweet.
(Did I just start a "digital vs. analog video" debate?)

Dave

The TV remake starring and produced by George Clooney is excellent as well. It was done live on a soundstage and has great performances by Clooney, Richard Dreyfuss, and a host of others. It's available on dvd and through Netflix. Very well done.

Failsafe is on of my all time favorite movies. It still will keep me on the edge of my seat all the time wondering, my God, could this kind of thing actually happen? Is the technology and the people behind it good enough? I think Failsafe is an extraordinarily good story and movie and the entire cast could not have been better. :thmbsp:

I will have to try to catch the remake. I won't be expecting it to be better than the original though. I just don't know how it possibly could be. It does sound like it will be good to see. Thanks for the tip prisioners.

I enjoyed Fail Safe and Dr. Strangelove.

The Convair isn't a bad looking airplane, but I personally think the 707 has the lines.

The B-58 was the best looking thing that ever carried bombs. The flashy guys (B-58, 111), came and went, and who thought the original, dumb, heavy bomber would outlast them all? I wouldn't be surprised if bombers are still driving around after the Bones and B-2's are long retired.

The TV remake starring and produced by George Clooney is excellent as well. It was done live on a soundstage and has great performances by Clooney, Richard Dreyfuss, and a host of others. It's available on dvd and through Netflix. Very well done.

Remake? Didn't know there was one. Thanks.

Dave

In reply to Kcollins4........Dr Strangelove was not a parody of Fail-Safe, strangelove opened in Dec. 1963, Fail-safe opened in Oct. 1964. There was a complicated lawsuit involving the books which inspired each of these movies, Failsafe the book & Red Alert- the book. Columbia took over distribution of both pictures.

Trying to explain all the details would involve at least a 1000 word reply, it's complicated.

At any rate, my father was in Dr. Strangelove, (Sterling Hayden) playing Jack Ripper who starts WWIII.

Andrew Hayden

Loved your Father's work. If I remember correctly, he also had a small, but memorable role later on in 9 to 5? I have Fail Safe on vhs, and have always loved it, along with Dr Strangelove. As a child, I still remember sonic booms from B-58s from Bunker Hill (later Grissom) AFB, Indiana. Great thread!

Remake? Didn't know there was one. Thanks.

Dave

Just viewed the remake-(2000) with Dreyfus, and Brian Dennehy.

Good, but does not even approach the caliber of the original.

They left out the entire "Matador" dream sequence.

The movie is just not the same without the line, "The Matador, the Matador -------is me.":no:

And the scene with Colonel Casio and his alcoholic parents, which I regard as important, because it explains the stress he was under before he reported for duty that day, leading to his breakdown.

That, and there was only one, very brief footage of the B-58.:sigh:

I'll take the original, Thank You.

Thought bubble--(Hmmm, now where did I put that VCR?:scratch2:)

Dave