Cactus Classic Cinema Screening: “The Searchers” (1956)

1812 Buddy Holly Ave,Lubbock TX 79401

13 September, 2022

Description

Cactus Classic Cinema Screening: “The Searchers” (1956)Presented by the Cactus TheaterALL AGES No Rating; Running time: 1 hour, 59 minutes Background about the film “The Searchers” Cast: John Wayne, Jeffrey Hunter, Vera Miles, Ward Bond, Natalie Wood The Searchers is a 1956 American epic Western film directed by the legendary John Ford and written by Frank S. Nugent, based on the 1954 novel by Alan Le May. It is set during the Texas-Native American wars, and stars John Wayne as a middle-aged Civil War veteran who spends years looking for his abducted niece (Natalie Wood), accompanied by his adopted nephew Martin (Jeffrey Hunter). Of the dozens of westerns Wayne made during his half-century career, his role as Ethan in The Searchers is considered his greatest acting triumph. Since its release, it has come to be considered a masterpiece and one of the greatest and most influential films ever made. It was named the greatest American western by the American Film Institute in 2008, and it placed 12th on the same organization's 2007 list of the all-inclusive, 100 greatest American movies of all time. Local note of particular interest: Fans of Lubbock's legendary rock 'n' roll group, The Crickets, know that the title for the band's only #1 single "That’ll Be the Day” was taken directly from John Wayne's utterance of that phrase on three occasions in this film, The Searchers. Frontman Buddy Holly and drummer Jerry (J.I.) Allison, very recently deceased - went to see the film at the State Theater (just a few blocks around the corner from the Cactus Theater) and were inspired to write a song using that famous Wayne phrase. The song was composed at Jerry Allison's house, which now sits adjacent to the Buddy Holly Center, one block to the east of the Cactus. In observance of Buddy's birthday on September 7 and the recent passing of J.I. Allison - we pay tribute to all four members of The Crickets with this special, one-showing-only screening and hope you'll join us! Tickets: All floor seats.....$7 (Note: Standard balcony and box seats unavailable for this screening)