Clint Eastwood Was an Extra!

[philamopolis]

For Eastwood's 50's films, was he an extra in any or did he play in a cameo performance?

I'm not too sure about this if you could help that would be appreciated.

Also, one other movie listed on Eastwood's filmography over at www.imdb.com they is called (1967) The Magnificent Stranger Anyone know anything about this and Eastwood's role (cameo)? etc. Lastly (1967) The Witches anyone know anything about that was Eastwood just a cameo in this one?

For his role as cameo or extra etc. Could you please list it with each movie.

Thank you I've been wondering about that for a while and I hope someone can help?

[mgk]

Most of the roles Mr. Eastwood had in the movies in the 1950's were very small roles and many of them are uncredited.

As for your question about The Witches, see this thread where it has been discussed before.  You will also find additional links in that thread.

http://www.clinteastwood.org/forums/index.php?board=7;action=display;threadid=2461

Hope that helps with some of your questions.

[Pete Nolan]

For Eastwood's 50's films, was he an extra in any or did he play in a cameo performance?

he did have small cameo roles in Tarantula and Away All Boats. i am sure there are others too.

hope that helps!

[KC]

As for El Magnifico extranjero, as the IMDb gives the title (in English, The Magnificent Stranger), it's nothing other than a couple of episodes of Rawhide that were strung together for distribution as a feature film in order to capitalize on Eastwood's sudden fame after his appearance in the "Dollars" movie. Completely without authorization from Eastwood or the producers of Rawhide, of course ... the culprit was Jolly Film, producers of A Fistful of Dollars. According to Richard Schickel (Clint Eastwood, p. 175) ...

Clint was obliged to stop work on The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and fly to Rome, where he held a press conference and launched a civil action against his sometime employer, Jolly Film. It had licensed a couple of old Rawhide episodes and was in the process of splicing them together to make a feature they proposed calling ... The Magnificent Stranger.

I can't find out anything further about the fate of this legal action. Eastwood was shooting The Good, the Bad and the Ugly in 1966 ... according to the IMDb, The Magnificent Stranger was actually released in West Germany in July, 1967, Publicity materials for it were certainly produced and occasionally turn up for sale in the usual outlets.

As for Eastwood's early roles, recall that he was an apprentice in the film business, and not a very successful one, until his breakthrough on the weekly TV series Rawhide in 1959. He wasn't actually an extra (no credit, no lines) in any film, as far as I know, but in all the films in which he appeared, except for the last, he played very minor roles. You wouldn't call them cameos exactly; that term is usually applied to a small role taken by a well-known person. You could call them bit parts. Here is the list, with Eastwood's role:

Revenge of the Creature (1955) (uncredited) .... Lab Technician (has a minute or so of screen time in a "comic relief" role; a few lines)

Francis in the Navy (1955) .... Jonesey (one of the hero's Navy pals; quite a bit of screen time, but no memorable lines and no closeups)

Lady Godiva (1955) (uncredited) .... First Saxon (I think he may have one line, something like "They went that way," but I don't recall for sure)

Tarantula (1955) (uncredited) .... Jet Squadron Leader (in charge of napalming the monster; has a couple of lines with reference to this)

Never Say Goodbye (1956) (uncredited) .... Will, another lab assistant of some sort (a few seconds of screen time with Rock Hudson and a few words)

Star in the Dust (1956) (uncredited) .... Tom, ranch hand (passes the hero in the street and says something like "A good day for a hanging," anyone have the exact quote? I do remember that he is obliged to deliver the line with his back to the camera)
 
Away All Boats (1956) (uncredited) .... Marine (Medic) (again, a few seconds on screen and I think one line: "Dr. Bell's waiting for him in surgery")

The First Traveling Saleslady (1956) .... Lt. Jack Rice, Roughrider (about a five or ten minute part as Carol Channing's love interest; enough screen time to garner him his first mention in the press)

Escapade in Japan (1957) (uncredited) ....  Pilot of "One Dumbo," a rescue plane (couple of pilotish lines)

Lafayette Escadrille (1958) .... George Moseley (insignificant character, part of the WWI American flying corps along with hero, Tab Hunter)

Ambush at Cimarron Pass (1958) .... Keith Williams (this was his first co-starring role, but he called the film "The lousiest Western ever made).


 

[Kal Varnsen]

I watched Tarantula a while ago, Eastwood appears as the Jet Squadron Leader in the very last scene of the movie. I don't recall exactly what he said, but he had about four or five lines.
I really only wanted to see Tarantula for Clint, but the movie really stinks and I didn't know he was in the last scene, so I just kept waiting and waiting.

Of course, very few actors start with a leading role in a big budget movie. Most famous actors were, like Eastwood, a nobody in the movie business at one point. I remember seeing The Prisoner of Second Avenue (with Jack Lemmon) some time ago. I immediately recognized Sylvester Stallone as "Youth in park" (a small part in the movie), but back when it was released very few people would even have heard of him.

[KC]

Thanks, Kal. I checked out the film, and can report that Eastwood's dialogue consists of the following lines:

All right, men ... Fire two rockets on this first pass. ... Here goes ...  Dropping napalm, follow in order! Dump 'em all!

They are the last lines spoken in the film, as the monster is destroyed in a fearful conflagration (wonder what roast spider smells like?), and in fact, the last two lines don't sound like Clint at all; it's possible someone else looped them.

I'll edit my post, above, to reflect this. I guess it would be interesting to take the time to go through all these films and post Clint's complete dialogue (for all the ones where he has only one scene and a couple of lines, at least).

[Brendan]

When I saw it about a year ago it sounded like Clint to me. I guess I'd have to see it again though... are you watching it on an old VHS tape KC or DVD? Because if it's a VHS it could be worn enough that it doesn't sound like him.

[Jed Cooper]

They are the last lines spoken in the film, as the monster is destroyed in a fearful conflagration (wonder what roast spider smells like?), and in fact, the last two lines don't sound like Clint at all; it's possible someone else looped them.

Funny you should mention that, KC.  It sounds like Clint's lines were overdubbed in "Away All Boats", too.  It sounds like Robert Wagner!

[philamopolis]

Thank you all for your help. Back to The Magnificent Stranger (1967) It is listed on www.imdb.com but it isn't listed here in Eastwood's filmography section. I understand that it really isn't a movie, but more of archive footage put together. But still shouldn't it be counted as a movie? And listed a a Clint Eastwood movie?

What are your thoughts on this?

[Jed Cooper]

Howdy.  If I'm not mistaken, The Magnificent Stranger was the original title of A Fistful Of Dollars.  It may have even been released in Italy under that title, but changed by the time it reached the states.

[KC]

"The Magnificent Stranger" WAS the working title of A Fistful of Dollars, but it was never released under that title in any market, as far as I know. This image is of the advertisement for the film's "wide" premiere in Italy on October 13, 1964 (slightly "enhanced" by me from a printout from the microfilm edition of the Milan daily Corriere della Sera).



The IMDb isn't always accurate. The film it lists as El Magnifico extranjero or The Magnificent Stranger isn't "archive footage," it is two episodes of Rawhide back to back. It isn't a movie. The following information is from the excellent German language reference work Das Western-Lexikon, the expanded edition by Benjamin Hembus of the Joe Hembus work (c1976; 1995 printing). This work lists Westerns under their German release title and for the film in question, that is Maledetto Gringo (obviously, that is Italian, not German; the intent was to sell the piece as an "Italian Western").

Maledetto Gringo
(IL MAGNIFICO STRANIERO)
Italy/USA 1965. Directed by Herschel Daugherty, Justus Addiss ... [and a bunch of other credits familiar to viewers of Rawhide ] Rowdy Yates attempts to prevent a robbery of a fort. The production credit under which this film was released in the Federal Republic of Gemany — "A production of Jolly Film, Rome" — was intentionally misleading. Jolly was one of the three companies that had produced Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars. Before and after this film was shot, Eastwood played the lead in the American television Western series Rawhide, a cowboy named Rowdy Yates. Not content with the millions they earned with A Fistful of Dollars, Jolly bought two episodes of this television series, pasted them together to make a feature film, and gave the product the title Il magnifico straniero; in A Fistful of Dollars, Eastwood is called "The stranger without a name" or simply "The stranger." Eastwood sued to prevent the distribution of this film.

[KC]

When I saw it about a year ago it sounded like Clint to me. I guess I'd have to see it again though... are you watching it on an old VHS tape KC or DVD? Because if it's a VHS it could be worn enough that it doesn't sound like him.

It was a brand new VHS tape. It wouldn't have been odd for his voice to have been dubbed; he was wearing a mask and his voice probably couldn't have been recorded live. No one knew who he was at the time, he was probably only around the production for the one day that scene was shot, and there was no reason for him to dub his own lines if it could be done cheaper by someone on hand during postproduction.

[Hemlock]

When I saw it about a year ago it sounded like Clint to me. I guess I'd have to see it again though... are you watching it on an old VHS tape KC or DVD? Because if it's a VHS it could be worn enough that it doesn't sound like him.

I just saw couple of nights ago Tarantula for the first time.I think also that it was Eastwood who spoke those last(corny)lines.
By the way I quite liked the film.Obviously not a masterpiece but a decent B-movie.

[The Schofield Kid]

The First Traveling Saleslady (1956) .... Lt. Jack Rice, Roughrider (about a five or ten minute part as Carol Channing's love interest; enough screen time to garner him his first mention in the press.

This film is being shown on Turner Classic Movies here in Australia on the 7 and 8 May 2005.I haven't seen this yet and even if it's bad,a film with Clint ( even in a small role )has to be seen at least once.

[Gant]

Nice shot from Tarantula KC.. It could be a young Mitchel Gant... 

[philo]

Having worked on the BBC's widescreen master of Away all boats, I can confirm Clint was revoiced on the print we had.


Philo .

[Jed Cooper]

Having worked on the BBC's widescreen master of Away all boats, I can confirm Clint was revoiced on the print we had.

Philo .

Thanks for that info, Philo. 

[The Schofield Kid]

The First Traveling Saleslady (1956) .... Lt. Jack Rice, Roughrider (about a five or ten minute part as Carol Channing's love interest; enough screen time to garner him his first mention in the press.

This film is being shown on Turner Classic Movies here in Australia on the 7 and 8 May 2005.I haven't seen this yet and even if it's bad,a film with Clint ( even in a small role )has to be seen at least once.

It wasn't a bad film but it wasn't very memorable either but seeing a young Clint play the shy quiet type was very amusing.The little grin he gives Carol Channing is worth watching the movie just for that.

[TWOMULES]

He wasn't actually an extra (no credit, no lines) in any film, as far as I know, but in all the films in which he appeared, except for the last, he played very minor roles. You wouldn't call them cameos exactly; that term is usually applied to a small role taken by a well-known person. You could call them bit parts.

KC, I know this is an old topic but I was recently reading that Clint did 14 appearances as a contract actor at Universal but only 6 to any visible degree. I first read about this in the book by Gerald Cole and Peter Williams but I have also seen other articles on Clint appearing in other small roles during the 1950s. Does anyone know if this is true? Did Clint work on other films as a day player in other Universal B movies?

[KC]

Sorry, but I don't know of any. It's certainly possible and we have had some "sightings" here from time to time, but none that have been proven for sure.