Before FBI was renewed for three more seasons and the franchise took its time bringing the focus back to Rina’s murder and the Vargas cartel (sending Jeremy Sisto‘s Jubal over to International just a few episodes ago), we might have thought it could wrap up the premiere’s case this spring. Now, we’ll be surprised if it does. Still, CBS has released the official description for the Season 6 finale, titled “Ring of Fire” and airing on May 21, and it is all about that open case. “The Somalian terrorist group behind the death of Agent Hobbs resurfaces, sending the team on a chase to take them down for good,” teases the network. That ties into what John Boyd (who plays Stuart Scola) told TV Insider. “I’m hoping that we tie up some supervillains and get some people that got away. That would be cool,” he said. Season...
- 4/19/2024
- TV Insider
For as long as American media has existed, so too has the allure of a Western. Stories set in the Wild West play an outsized role in the country’s self-mythology, and one of the genre’s favorite tropes is the duel between two opposing gunfighters. These duels often came down to one simple question: who was the fastest in the West? It turns out that few had the reflexes or mental sharpness of Nick Barkley, a character on the show The Big Valley played by Peter Breck.
Breck was one of many actors who learned to fire their weapons accurately in no time. But who was the quickest? It’s a question without a definitive answer.
Peter Breck played the young hothead in ‘The Big Valley’
The Big Valley took place in Stockton, California, from 1884 to 1888. The show followed the lives of the Barkley family. They were wealthy owners...
Breck was one of many actors who learned to fire their weapons accurately in no time. But who was the quickest? It’s a question without a definitive answer.
Peter Breck played the young hothead in ‘The Big Valley’
The Big Valley took place in Stockton, California, from 1884 to 1888. The show followed the lives of the Barkley family. They were wealthy owners...
- 4/16/2023
- by Sam Hines
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Sergio Leone's "Once Upon a Time in the West" is an elegy for a genre that has died countless deaths. The Western has passed in and out of favor many times since the advent of the motion picture, and is currently ticking anew thanks to Taylor Sheridan's "Yellowstone" franchise. But as the 1970s approached, there was a realization that the stars and filmmakers who'd transformed the oater into the most American of movie genres were on their way out. John Ford had been driven into retirement. John Wayne was dying. Anthony Mann was dead. A glorious, yet complicated era was drawing to a close.
This was the perfect moment for Sergio Leone to go once more to the Western well with a mythic send-off to the films on which he'd built his international reputation. But his scope wasn't limited to "A Fistful of Dollars," "For a Few Dollars More...
This was the perfect moment for Sergio Leone to go once more to the Western well with a mythic send-off to the films on which he'd built his international reputation. But his scope wasn't limited to "A Fistful of Dollars," "For a Few Dollars More...
- 8/19/2022
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
By Doug Oswald
Jack Lemmon is cast against type with co-star Glenn Ford in “Cowboy,” a gritty western available on Blu-ray by Twilight Time. The movie has a rousing start with titles by Saul Bass accompanied by a title score composed by George Duning, setting the mood for this western directed by Delmer Daves. No stranger to westerns, Daves also directed Ford in “Jubal” and “3:10 to Yuma.” The drama in Daves’ westerns was atypical of the genre and unfolded in a more realistic way with no clearly defined hero or villain in an era where the western followed a typical story pattern with clearly defined depictions of heroism and masculinity. Daves was part of a change which redefined the western in the 50s and in some ways prepared us for the inside-out world of the spaghetti westerns to come in the 1960s.
Frank Harris (Lemmon) is a Chicago hotel...
Jack Lemmon is cast against type with co-star Glenn Ford in “Cowboy,” a gritty western available on Blu-ray by Twilight Time. The movie has a rousing start with titles by Saul Bass accompanied by a title score composed by George Duning, setting the mood for this western directed by Delmer Daves. No stranger to westerns, Daves also directed Ford in “Jubal” and “3:10 to Yuma.” The drama in Daves’ westerns was atypical of the genre and unfolded in a more realistic way with no clearly defined hero or villain in an era where the western followed a typical story pattern with clearly defined depictions of heroism and masculinity. Daves was part of a change which redefined the western in the 50s and in some ways prepared us for the inside-out world of the spaghetti westerns to come in the 1960s.
Frank Harris (Lemmon) is a Chicago hotel...
- 9/16/2019
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Things started off with a bang on FBI Season 1 Episode 1! While there wasn't a lot of back stories given for each of the characters, there really wasn't a need.
The scene of the two bombings was nitty, gritty, and downright gruesome. Something that I don't often see on TV, but it made the entire situation feel more real. It was unique, and that was part of what made it awesome.
There were some moments that moved a little slow, especially when it came to the technical aspect of the information gathering. But it can't be all action all the time.
Every part that was a bit slower paced or seemed a touch boring was put in place just to give a breather before striking with something absolutely shocking. Like a gang member being murdered and having his heart ripped out. Literally.
Oa: I haven't seen grenades like these since West Point.
The scene of the two bombings was nitty, gritty, and downright gruesome. Something that I don't often see on TV, but it made the entire situation feel more real. It was unique, and that was part of what made it awesome.
There were some moments that moved a little slow, especially when it came to the technical aspect of the information gathering. But it can't be all action all the time.
Every part that was a bit slower paced or seemed a touch boring was put in place just to give a breather before striking with something absolutely shocking. Like a gang member being murdered and having his heart ripped out. Literally.
Oa: I haven't seen grenades like these since West Point.
- 9/26/2018
- by Sarah Cudlipp
- TVfanatic
As much as society and morality tales love to insist that "honesty is the best policy", sometimes being the most honest, upright citizen you can be puts you in harm's way. Delmer Daves's Jubal represents one such story where this holds true, with the titular hero coming under fire for things he never did and being too noble to head off trouble before it got too far. Honesty does win the day, but not without a fair amount of bloodshed and misunderstanding putting people's lives at unnecessary risk. Jubal is a Greek tragedy (or just a straight up adaptation of Shakespeare's Othello) masquerading as a Western, using the best elements of both genres to deliver a riveting tale of consequences characteristic of the former genre set against the latter's sweeping visuals and rough lifestyle. With solid performances by Glenn Ford, Ernest Borgnine, Rod Steiger, Charles Bronson, and Valerie French,...
- 7/24/2013
- by Lex Walker
- JustPressPlay.net
By Lee Pfeiffer
In a worthy attempt to focus attention on the work of writer/producer/director/actor Delmer Daves, Criterion as released a Blu-ray edition of his 1956 Western Jubal. It's a rather odd choice for the label, which specializes in gold-standard editions of established classics and revered cult films. On the surface, Jubal may sound like a standard horse opera, especially with the title role played by reliable-but-unexciting Glenn Ford. However, the reason why Criterion sought to have the movie re-evaluated is immediately apparent. This is an unusually mature Western with a very intense story line that builds in intensity under Daves' assured direction. Ford plays Jubal Troop, a troubled loner and drifter, who is saved from certain death in the mountains by Shep Horgan (Ernest Borgnine), a boisterous but kind prominent rancher who nurses Jubal back to health and rewards him with a job on his ranch. It...
In a worthy attempt to focus attention on the work of writer/producer/director/actor Delmer Daves, Criterion as released a Blu-ray edition of his 1956 Western Jubal. It's a rather odd choice for the label, which specializes in gold-standard editions of established classics and revered cult films. On the surface, Jubal may sound like a standard horse opera, especially with the title role played by reliable-but-unexciting Glenn Ford. However, the reason why Criterion sought to have the movie re-evaluated is immediately apparent. This is an unusually mature Western with a very intense story line that builds in intensity under Daves' assured direction. Ford plays Jubal Troop, a troubled loner and drifter, who is saved from certain death in the mountains by Shep Horgan (Ernest Borgnine), a boisterous but kind prominent rancher who nurses Jubal back to health and rewards him with a job on his ranch. It...
- 7/5/2013
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Following the release of over a dozen films and just a year before the release of his pinnacle endeavor, Delmar Daves utilized his love of the Native American heritage and the never ending translation finesse of Shakespeare to come up with a new twist on the old west. Criterion is bringing his 1956 Jubal to Blu-ray this month as another of it’s Criterion classic collection. The film marks an approximate mid-point in a career that spanned three decades and saw the auteur move from actor to writer and producer/director. The film sets precedent for the more critically acclaimed films to come that would eventually earn the director his own star on the famed Hollywood Walk.
While riding through the mountains, wealthy rancher Shep Horgan (Ernest Borgnine) encounters Jubal Troop (Glenn Ford), a wandering cowhand who can barely stand on his feet. Shep takes him back to his ranch where...
While riding through the mountains, wealthy rancher Shep Horgan (Ernest Borgnine) encounters Jubal Troop (Glenn Ford), a wandering cowhand who can barely stand on his feet. Shep takes him back to his ranch where...
- 6/4/2013
- by Larry Peel
- IONCINEMA.com
Blu-ray & DVD Release Date: July 30, 2013
Price: DVD $19.99, Blu-ray $29.95
Studio: Olive Films
Gary Cooper is put on trial in 1955's The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell.
Gary Cooper (High Noon) portrays a controversial American general in the 1955 biographical war drama about one of the most sensational military trials in U.S. history in The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell.
It’s the end of Wwi and the birth of aerial warfare. Though airplanes had only been used for reconnaissance, Brigadier General Billy Mitchell (Cooper) has foreseen their deadly power and importance in future combat as bombers and fighter planes. But his superiors in the Army Air Service are blind to what Mitchell senses and when he begins to campaign to build an armed Air Force against their will, they brand him a traitor and summon him for court-martial. Although the Army attempts to cover up the trial, it becomes an explosive media event...
Price: DVD $19.99, Blu-ray $29.95
Studio: Olive Films
Gary Cooper is put on trial in 1955's The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell.
Gary Cooper (High Noon) portrays a controversial American general in the 1955 biographical war drama about one of the most sensational military trials in U.S. history in The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell.
It’s the end of Wwi and the birth of aerial warfare. Though airplanes had only been used for reconnaissance, Brigadier General Billy Mitchell (Cooper) has foreseen their deadly power and importance in future combat as bombers and fighter planes. But his superiors in the Army Air Service are blind to what Mitchell senses and when he begins to campaign to build an armed Air Force against their will, they brand him a traitor and summon him for court-martial. Although the Army attempts to cover up the trial, it becomes an explosive media event...
- 5/31/2013
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
Cloud Atlas The Wachowskis and co-director Tom Tykwer tackled some interesting things with Cloud Atlas and it had one of the best scores of last year, but I can't deny the fact I really have no interest in returning to it. The Blu-ray does have a large number of features to explore and perhaps a little more discussion could improve my impression, but after seeing it in Toronto last year, and discussing it there, I'm not sure there is much that could be revealed to change my opinion that much.
A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III Written and directed by Roman Coppola, this one arrived shortly after he and Wes Anderson were nominated for an Oscar for their Moonrise Kingdom screenplay, but the reviews and comments I've seen don't suggest this is a film worth searching out and, in all honesty, the involvement of Charlie Sheen turns...
A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III Written and directed by Roman Coppola, this one arrived shortly after he and Wes Anderson were nominated for an Oscar for their Moonrise Kingdom screenplay, but the reviews and comments I've seen don't suggest this is a film worth searching out and, in all honesty, the involvement of Charlie Sheen turns...
- 5/14/2013
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
If you're a cinephile then you don't mark the coming and going of months by birthdays, holidays, or any of that nonsense, you go by the monthly slate of new releases from the Criterion Collection as they push on in their mission to preserve classic and modern films deemed artistically and culturally deserving of preservation for future generations. For May 2013, Criterion unleashes upon Blu-ray two westerns by Delmer Daves (3:10 to Yuma, Jubal), Haskell Wexler's Medium Cool, Mike Leigh's Life is Sweet, and Jean-Luc Godard's Band of Outsiders. For the full details on each of these Blu-ray releases, just keep reading.
Read more...
Read more...
- 5/2/2013
- by Lex Walker
- JustPressPlay.net
Blu-ray & DVD Release Date: May 14, 2013
Price: DVD $19.95, Blu-ray $29.95
Studio: Criterion
Emotions run high for Valerie French and Ernest Borgnine in Jubal.
A trio of exceptional performances from Glenn Ford (3:10 to Yuma), Ernest Borgnine (Johnny Guitar), and Rod Steiger (On the Waterfront) form the center of 1956’s Jubal, an overlooked Hollywood gem from western genre master Delmer Daves, whose 1957 3:10 to Yuma is also being issued by Criterion this month.
Ford is an honorable itinerant cattleman, befriended and hired by Borgnine’s bighearted ranch owner (Borgnine) despite his unwillingness to talk about his past. When the new hand becomes the target of the flirtatious attentions of the owner’s bored wife (Valerie French) and is entrusted by the boss with a foreman’s responsibilities, his presence at the ranch starts to rankle his shifty fellow cowhand (Steiger). The result is a quite-remarkable showdown of both actions and emotions.
A western tale of jealousy and betrayal,...
Price: DVD $19.95, Blu-ray $29.95
Studio: Criterion
Emotions run high for Valerie French and Ernest Borgnine in Jubal.
A trio of exceptional performances from Glenn Ford (3:10 to Yuma), Ernest Borgnine (Johnny Guitar), and Rod Steiger (On the Waterfront) form the center of 1956’s Jubal, an overlooked Hollywood gem from western genre master Delmer Daves, whose 1957 3:10 to Yuma is also being issued by Criterion this month.
Ford is an honorable itinerant cattleman, befriended and hired by Borgnine’s bighearted ranch owner (Borgnine) despite his unwillingness to talk about his past. When the new hand becomes the target of the flirtatious attentions of the owner’s bored wife (Valerie French) and is entrusted by the boss with a foreman’s responsibilities, his presence at the ranch starts to rankle his shifty fellow cowhand (Steiger). The result is a quite-remarkable showdown of both actions and emotions.
A western tale of jealousy and betrayal,...
- 2/22/2013
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
Blu-ray & DVD Release Date: May 14, 2013
Price: DVD $29.95, Blu-ray $39.95
Studio: Criterion
Van Heflin (l.) and Glenn Ford star in 1957's 3:10 to Yuma.
The beautifully shot and acted 1957 western movie 3:10 to Yuma was directed by Delmer Daves (Jubal).
Van Heflin (My Son John) stars as a mild-mannered cattle rancher who takes on the task of shepherding a captured outlaw, played with cucumber-cool charisma by Glenn Ford (Gilda), to the train that will take him to prison. What begins as an apparently simple plan turns into a nerve-racking cat-and-mouse game that will test each man’s particular brand of honor.
Based on a story by Elmore Leonard (Freaky Deaky), the classic 3:10 to Yuma is considered to be one of the most psychologically complex and humane Westerns of its time—and certainly some than the 2007 remake starring Russell Crowe (Robin Hood) and Christian Bale (The Fighter), which is still available on DVD and Blu-ray.
Price: DVD $29.95, Blu-ray $39.95
Studio: Criterion
Van Heflin (l.) and Glenn Ford star in 1957's 3:10 to Yuma.
The beautifully shot and acted 1957 western movie 3:10 to Yuma was directed by Delmer Daves (Jubal).
Van Heflin (My Son John) stars as a mild-mannered cattle rancher who takes on the task of shepherding a captured outlaw, played with cucumber-cool charisma by Glenn Ford (Gilda), to the train that will take him to prison. What begins as an apparently simple plan turns into a nerve-racking cat-and-mouse game that will test each man’s particular brand of honor.
Based on a story by Elmore Leonard (Freaky Deaky), the classic 3:10 to Yuma is considered to be one of the most psychologically complex and humane Westerns of its time—and certainly some than the 2007 remake starring Russell Crowe (Robin Hood) and Christian Bale (The Fighter), which is still available on DVD and Blu-ray.
- 2/19/2013
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
2013 is shaping up to be a promising year for those who like their classic and arthouse films loaded with extras and emblazoned with a sterling "C." Titles like Terrence Malick's "Badlands" (March 19th) and Robert Bresson's "A Man Escaped" (March 26th) are among the notable highlights in the crop. Now, right after consuming your holiday plans with their limited free Hulu deal, Criterion has dropped the titles of their May slate. First up, on May 7th, Godard's "Band of Outsiders" gets the Blu-ray treatment, giving you the opportunity to swoon at Anna Karina in higher definition than ever before. May 14th is Delmer Daves week, with two of the prolific director's Westerns getting the DVD and Blu-ray treatment: "3:10 to Yuma" (1957) and "Jubal" (1956). Both films feature Glenn Ford and probably range more towards the overlooked side of Hollywood westerns, the former less so due to it's 2007 remake by.
- 2/15/2013
- by Mark Lukenbill
- Indiewire
Saddle up, because Criterion has dropped the veil on the May releases and they've got a couple of gunslinging classics to share, along with some works from a couple auteurs and much more. So let's dive in. First off, Delmar Davies gets a nice hat tip as both "3:10 To Yuma" and "Jubal" are getting stamped with the C. The former is probably the best known of the pair (partially due to remake by James Mangold in 2007 starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale) about a mild mannered rancher who brings a wanted outlaw to the train station. This disc will carry a high-def transfer, but not much else in the way of extras. Same goes for "Jubal," about a cattleman who becomes the centerpiece in a roiling drama on a ranch. But hell, two movies with Glenn Ford shoud be enough to please anyway. Meanwhile, cinematographer Haskell Wexler's directorial...
- 2/15/2013
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
The “adult” Western – as it would come to be called – was a long time coming. A Hollywood staple since the days of The Great Train Robbery (1903), the Western offered spectacle and action set against the uniquely American milieu of the Old West – a historical period which, at the dawn of the motion picture industry, was still fresh in the nation’s memory. What the genre rarely offered was dramatic substance.
Early Westerns often adopted the same traditions of the popular Wild West literature and dime novels of the 19th and early 20th centuries producing, as a consequence, highly romantic, almost purely mythic portraits the Old West. Through the early decades of the motion picture industry, the genre went through several creative cycles, alternately tilting from fanciful to realistic and back again. By the early sound era, and despite such serious efforts as The Big Trail (1930) and The Virginian (1929), Hollywood Westerns were,...
Early Westerns often adopted the same traditions of the popular Wild West literature and dime novels of the 19th and early 20th centuries producing, as a consequence, highly romantic, almost purely mythic portraits the Old West. Through the early decades of the motion picture industry, the genre went through several creative cycles, alternately tilting from fanciful to realistic and back again. By the early sound era, and despite such serious efforts as The Big Trail (1930) and The Virginian (1929), Hollywood Westerns were,...
- 1/4/2013
- by Bill Mesce
- SoundOnSight
Stocky supporting actor who won an Oscar when he was cast against type as a lonely butcher in Marty
With his coarsely podgy features, bug eyes, gap-toothed grin and stocky build, Ernest Borgnine, who has died aged 95 of renal failure, seemed destined to remain one of nature's supporting actors in a string of sadistic and menacing parts. Instead he won an Oscar for a role which was the antithesis of all his previous characters.
In 1955, the producer Harold Hecht wanted to transfer Paddy Chayefsky's teleplay Marty to the big screen, with Rod Steiger in the title role, which he had created. But Steiger was filming Oklahoma! so was unavailable. Borgnine was offered the role after a female guest at a Hollywood reception quite disinterestedly remarked to Hecht that, ugly as he was, Borgnine possessed an oddly tender quality which made her yearn to mother him. "That," Hecht said later,...
With his coarsely podgy features, bug eyes, gap-toothed grin and stocky build, Ernest Borgnine, who has died aged 95 of renal failure, seemed destined to remain one of nature's supporting actors in a string of sadistic and menacing parts. Instead he won an Oscar for a role which was the antithesis of all his previous characters.
In 1955, the producer Harold Hecht wanted to transfer Paddy Chayefsky's teleplay Marty to the big screen, with Rod Steiger in the title role, which he had created. But Steiger was filming Oklahoma! so was unavailable. Borgnine was offered the role after a female guest at a Hollywood reception quite disinterestedly remarked to Hecht that, ugly as he was, Borgnine possessed an oddly tender quality which made her yearn to mother him. "That," Hecht said later,...
- 7/9/2012
- by Ronald Bergan
- The Guardian - Film News
Ernest Borgnine, the rugged, stocky actor with a brassy voice and the face of the local butcher, died today in Los Angeles at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center of renal failure. He was 95.
Borgnine was known for playing characters both brutal and gentle. On the brutal side was the cruel Sgt. "Fatso" Judson in From Here to Eternity, Coley Trimble, the right-hand goon in Bad Day at Black Rock, Dutch Engstrom, in the enduring classic The Wild Bunch and Shack, the train bull after Lee Marvin in Emperor of the North. On the gentle side he was known as the love-lorn Marty in the 1955 film of the same name (for which he earned an Oscar for Best Actor), Lt. Commander Quinton McHale from "McHale's Navy," Rogo, the cop with the prostitute-wife in The Poseidon Adventure and, to a whole new generation, as the voice of the starfish-donning, geriatric Mermaid Man on "SpongeBob SquarePants."
A first generation American Ernest Borgnine was born Ermes Effron Borgnino on January 24, 1917, in Hamden, Connecticut. His father was Camillo (later Charles) Borgnino of Ottiglio, in northern Italy and his mother was Anna Bosselli, from Capri, Italy.
Borgnine showed no real interest in acting until well after a ten-year stint in the Navy. He was 32 when his mother suggested that he become an actor, observing "you like to make a fool of yourself in front of other people" so Ernie enrolled in the Randall School of Drama in Hartford and then moved to Abingdon, Virginia for Robert Porterfield's famous Barter Theatre.
Times were lean for Borgnine. He had married for the first time and moved from the Barter to New York, quickly getting noticed for his role as a male nurse in a Broadway production of "Harvey" but he soon moved back to the Barter school again. He then returned to New York but the nascent medium of television, not the stage, sustained him for a while. Borgnine prided himself on not being picky. His original TV work included a stint in the action serial "Captain Video and His Video Rangers." He was noticed by Delbert Mann, himself a budding director, who encouraged Borgnine and gave him small roles.
Borgnine's true break came when he moved to Los Angeles and landed the role of Sergeant "Fatso" Judson in Eternity, a smash hit that, in addition to launching Borgnine's helped reinvigorate numerous careers including Frank Sinatra's and Deborah Kerr's. He played the bad guy again, though one of the goons this time, in Johnny Guitar. Borgnine then parlayed his new-found notoriety with the lead in a screenplay written by Paddy Chayefsky, that of Marty, in the film of the same name, slated to be directed by his mentor, Delbert Mann. The story was about an underdog named Marty, a self-avowed ugly man, who has to evolve beyond his dedication to his overbearing mother and his bonds with his best friend, when he falls in love with Clara, a woman who is also unpopular and unattractive, played by Betsy Blair.
Marty was a surprise hit, was nominated for eight Oscars (including Best Picture and Best Director for Mann) and won four, including Borgnine's unexpected win over a very crowded field which included his co-star in Bad Day at Black Rock,Spencer Tracy, and a posthumous nod to James Dean (who had died the previous September in a car crash) for his role in East of Eden.
The Oscar helped keep the actor in the game and the next seven years included a mix of TV and film work including A Catered Affair, Jubal, The Vikings and various "Playhouse" appearances on the small screen.
1962 brought "McHale's Navy," with Borgnine assaying the role of Lt. Commander Quinton McHale, the put-upon chief of PT boat 73. The cast included Joe Flynn and Tim Conway (Conway would, 35 years later, team up again with Borgnine as the voice of Mermaid Man's sidekick, Barnacle Boy, on "SpongeBob SquarePants"). "McHale's" had a healthy following for four years.
Borgnine had a mid-life Renaissance in the late '60s and early '70s. He played a small but pivotal role in The Dirty Dozen, was Boris Vaslov in Ice Station Zebra and was Dutch Engstrom, the taciturn but decisive bandit throwing in with Sam Peckinpah's Wild Bunch. He also joined the capsized cast of The Poseidon Adventure, played Shack, the train bull in The Emperor of the North Pole and was the simple-minded but helpful Cabbie in Escape from New York.
Borgnine was married five times. His second marriage was to the fiery actress Katy Jurado. It began in 1959 but was over four years later. Reports differ on when he met his third wife, Ethel Merman. She claimed it was in November of 1963, the same month that he was finalizing his divorce to Jurado. He insisted it wasn't until the next spring. Regardless they were married on June 24th, the following year. It lasted less than a month. In her autobiography entitled "Merman," the actress intimated that Borgnine was abusive stating, "I just feel lucky to have been able to 'walk' away from the marriage." She devoted an entire chapter to their union, entitled "My Marriage to Ernest Borgnine"--it consisted of one blank page.
His last marriage, to Tova Traesnaes, lasted over 35 years and until his death. Borgnine had four children: Gina Kemins-Borgnine, the child from his first marriage to Rhoda Kemins, and three from his fourth wife, Donna Rancourt, named Diana Rancourt-Borgnine (born December 29th 1970), Sharon (born 1965) and Cristofer (born 1969). Oddly, in his autobiography, "Ernie" Bornine only acknowledged the first three children, dropping Diana out entirely.
Borgnine was known for playing characters both brutal and gentle. On the brutal side was the cruel Sgt. "Fatso" Judson in From Here to Eternity, Coley Trimble, the right-hand goon in Bad Day at Black Rock, Dutch Engstrom, in the enduring classic The Wild Bunch and Shack, the train bull after Lee Marvin in Emperor of the North. On the gentle side he was known as the love-lorn Marty in the 1955 film of the same name (for which he earned an Oscar for Best Actor), Lt. Commander Quinton McHale from "McHale's Navy," Rogo, the cop with the prostitute-wife in The Poseidon Adventure and, to a whole new generation, as the voice of the starfish-donning, geriatric Mermaid Man on "SpongeBob SquarePants."
A first generation American Ernest Borgnine was born Ermes Effron Borgnino on January 24, 1917, in Hamden, Connecticut. His father was Camillo (later Charles) Borgnino of Ottiglio, in northern Italy and his mother was Anna Bosselli, from Capri, Italy.
Borgnine showed no real interest in acting until well after a ten-year stint in the Navy. He was 32 when his mother suggested that he become an actor, observing "you like to make a fool of yourself in front of other people" so Ernie enrolled in the Randall School of Drama in Hartford and then moved to Abingdon, Virginia for Robert Porterfield's famous Barter Theatre.
Times were lean for Borgnine. He had married for the first time and moved from the Barter to New York, quickly getting noticed for his role as a male nurse in a Broadway production of "Harvey" but he soon moved back to the Barter school again. He then returned to New York but the nascent medium of television, not the stage, sustained him for a while. Borgnine prided himself on not being picky. His original TV work included a stint in the action serial "Captain Video and His Video Rangers." He was noticed by Delbert Mann, himself a budding director, who encouraged Borgnine and gave him small roles.
Borgnine's true break came when he moved to Los Angeles and landed the role of Sergeant "Fatso" Judson in Eternity, a smash hit that, in addition to launching Borgnine's helped reinvigorate numerous careers including Frank Sinatra's and Deborah Kerr's. He played the bad guy again, though one of the goons this time, in Johnny Guitar. Borgnine then parlayed his new-found notoriety with the lead in a screenplay written by Paddy Chayefsky, that of Marty, in the film of the same name, slated to be directed by his mentor, Delbert Mann. The story was about an underdog named Marty, a self-avowed ugly man, who has to evolve beyond his dedication to his overbearing mother and his bonds with his best friend, when he falls in love with Clara, a woman who is also unpopular and unattractive, played by Betsy Blair.
Marty was a surprise hit, was nominated for eight Oscars (including Best Picture and Best Director for Mann) and won four, including Borgnine's unexpected win over a very crowded field which included his co-star in Bad Day at Black Rock,Spencer Tracy, and a posthumous nod to James Dean (who had died the previous September in a car crash) for his role in East of Eden.
The Oscar helped keep the actor in the game and the next seven years included a mix of TV and film work including A Catered Affair, Jubal, The Vikings and various "Playhouse" appearances on the small screen.
1962 brought "McHale's Navy," with Borgnine assaying the role of Lt. Commander Quinton McHale, the put-upon chief of PT boat 73. The cast included Joe Flynn and Tim Conway (Conway would, 35 years later, team up again with Borgnine as the voice of Mermaid Man's sidekick, Barnacle Boy, on "SpongeBob SquarePants"). "McHale's" had a healthy following for four years.
Borgnine had a mid-life Renaissance in the late '60s and early '70s. He played a small but pivotal role in The Dirty Dozen, was Boris Vaslov in Ice Station Zebra and was Dutch Engstrom, the taciturn but decisive bandit throwing in with Sam Peckinpah's Wild Bunch. He also joined the capsized cast of The Poseidon Adventure, played Shack, the train bull in The Emperor of the North Pole and was the simple-minded but helpful Cabbie in Escape from New York.
Borgnine was married five times. His second marriage was to the fiery actress Katy Jurado. It began in 1959 but was over four years later. Reports differ on when he met his third wife, Ethel Merman. She claimed it was in November of 1963, the same month that he was finalizing his divorce to Jurado. He insisted it wasn't until the next spring. Regardless they were married on June 24th, the following year. It lasted less than a month. In her autobiography entitled "Merman," the actress intimated that Borgnine was abusive stating, "I just feel lucky to have been able to 'walk' away from the marriage." She devoted an entire chapter to their union, entitled "My Marriage to Ernest Borgnine"--it consisted of one blank page.
His last marriage, to Tova Traesnaes, lasted over 35 years and until his death. Borgnine had four children: Gina Kemins-Borgnine, the child from his first marriage to Rhoda Kemins, and three from his fourth wife, Donna Rancourt, named Diana Rancourt-Borgnine (born December 29th 1970), Sharon (born 1965) and Cristofer (born 1969). Oddly, in his autobiography, "Ernie" Bornine only acknowledged the first three children, dropping Diana out entirely.
- 7/8/2012
- IMDb News
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.