How did everyone come to like Clint Eastwood?

[Brendan]

I remember I was talking with my mom, and I asked her who her favourite actor was. She said it was Clint Eastwood. At the time I must've been 6 or 7, so I had no clue who this guy was.

I remember seeing 'Unforgiven' when I was 8, actually all I can remember is the shot of Eastwoods eyes at the end, after Little Bill says 'see you in hell.' I suppose the movie shouldnt be viewed by an 8 year old, but dont get the wrong impression about my parents, they were there with me and they knew I wouldnt understand what was going on... they were right. Just to clarify, it didnt 'scare me' for me life... at least not that I know of...

But anyways, I cant exactly remember what sparked me to start watching Eastwood movies. Maybe it was when we rented 'In the Line of Fire'.

That blew my away.

But it wasnt until I was 13 that I started renting two Eastwood movies almost every weekend for a year. I came across this site a long time ago, and printed out his filmography and highlighted the ones I saw. I've since lost that sheet, wish I hadnt but oh well.

I eventually stopped renting the movies, and thats why theres a select few I havent seen.

During my renting of his movies stage, Absolute Power came to theatres. My mom asked me if I wanted to go, and I jumped at the oppurtunity. Absolute Power was my first Eastwood movie I saw on the big screen. Thats why it holds special place in my heart.

Since then I've seen every Eastwood movie in theatres except Space Cowboys.

Im glad I had that talk with my mom, and Im glad Im a Clint Eastwood fan.

Wow, sorry for the little 'biography' there, but Im just curious as to how some of you came to like Eastwood.

Was it through a friend? Parent? Just becuase he rocks?

[Christopher]

My dad has been watching Clint Eastwood since he was a kid. He's told me that he remembers watching Rawhide when he was little.

Based on a TV spot of Mississippi Burning, I know that we taped Sudden Impact from television in 1988. That is likely when I watched it. I was probably five years old. I don't know if that was the first Eastwood movie I saw or not, but I'm pretty sure I was introduced to Eastwood through the Dirty Harry movies. I know we taped Magnum Force off of HBO or something like that. I was older when I watched that, probably the first R-rated movie I saw (can't remember the age, but certainly older than five). I can remember watching that with my older brother. At the beginning when the cop shoots the guy in the head at point blank range, I can remember we rewinded it and watched some of it in slow motion. Kinda gross, huh?

My dad taped a lot of Eastwood movies during that time period, but I didn't watch most of them until I was older. Plus, I remember seeing a few minutes of GBU, near the end of the movie, once while dad was watching it on TV. Of course, it was several years later until I saw the whole movie.

It wasn't until I was older, though, before he became my favorite.

[Hemlock]

Just becuase he rocks?

That`s it!
When I started to go to the movies I was about 11 years old and was huge western fan.Thanks to films of John Wayne.There were lots of re-runs in the local cinema.Many of them were Eastwood`s westerns.So I went to see GBU just because it was western and loved it.Next week went to see FFDM and loved it even more.
My first film that I watched just because it was Clint Eastwood film was Magnum Force and after that there were no turning back.I was Eastwood fan.

[Agent]

That's a very difficult question for me to pinpoint exactly - mainly because I've liked his flicks ever since I can remember - since watching them in the early 70s. Eastwood was always different, in that he didn't have to "act"  or try to be cool. Matter of fact, he was 'beyond' cool. McQueen and Dean were cool. Eastwood has always been......Eastwood. Ain't no comparison.  He always seemed to distance himself from the rest of mainstream Hollywood. His movies just seemed to "hit the spot," so to speak. Really can't pin it down in words. His way of dealin' with the bad guys/gals in the movies was his style and his alone -- no one can ever take that away from Clint....although multitudes have attempted to duplicate it.

[the stranger]

I was about 8 years old (1972) Clint was on TV during the Christmas season, I had just got a tape recorder as a present, one of the old push button type, with the Mic' on a chord..
Anyhow, I remember being drawn to the music, from which point I set the Mic up next to the TV speaker and taped the whole movie, yes on Audio tape!
I played that tape over and over and over again, drove my parents and my sister insane
From there on, I've always been the Clint fan, and my family have finally come to accept it
-Stranger-

[Christopher]

Quote from Stranger: Anyhow, I remember being drawn to the music, from which point I set the Mic up next to the TV speaker and taped the whole movie, yes on Audio tape!

That reminds me of when my brother and I used to try to tape music off of the TV. That was just a song usually, though, not the whole movie.

Stranger, do you remember what movie that was that you taped?

[the stranger]

Hi Chris,
I can't be sure, thinking about it, I think it was closer to 10 years old (1974), I think it was A Fistful of Dollars.
-Stranger-

[Daisy Abigael]

I was four.  My mum and dad took me to see Where Eagles Dare.  I was blown away!  Couldn't stop talking about it - and my favourite from the movie?  You have to ask?  

Shortly after that I saw Paint Your Wagon on a rainy afternoon at a second run theatre in Torquay on holiday.  Again I was transfixed (I was five remember!)

Had to wait a long time to see him again - but I was sold.

My parents used to go to all his films - rated too high for a child to go to.  I made them tell me everything in detail.  I read the novellisations.

Then the Leone westerns were shown on TV for the first time - heaven!

Then finally Home Video came along and the first movie I had my mum rent for me was....  Dirty Harry!

I guess these days she'd be called socially irresponsible renting adult material for a child.  But I loved it.

BTW my second home rental was The Texas Chainsaw Massacre!   So, yeah, I guess she was socially irresponsible!  

Hasn't done ME any harm...  slash, slash, blood, hack, spurt!!!!  

[misty71]

For me it strated last year  on Clint's birthday (ain't that sweet) No but really, they were runningan eastwood special on TBS and I just happened to be searching for something to watch, and There was a movie called dirty harry staring a certain Clint eatwood (Wich I never even heard of at the time) so I watched it. It was like the best damn movie I'd ever seen My jaw was on the floor (because of the movie,of course but also because clint "looked to damn good")And so I got home starting babling to my mom about this movie I'd seen and she's like:Well yeah, I watched tht some 30 years ago. Then later thatnight, there was In the line of fire. I watched it and it was all it took:I was defenitaly an eastwood fan. Next day I started looking on the net for a list of his films (and came across this site) and started buying some movies. The first I bought was "the rookie" at a garage sale, then the enforcer . Im not lying when I say I watched the enforcer up to 3 times a day sometimes. Now I have a growing collection (35 movies +3 rawhide) and Im very happy that I came across Dirty Harry that night!

[EwFan62]

I can't remember the year exactly but it was sometime in the very early 70's and on a Sunday night the local ABC affiliate was running a network airing of "The Good, The Bad And The Ugly". Because of it's long running time and of course, commercials, it ran I believe in the timeslot of 7:30PM to 11:00PM. Anyway, my folks were watching it and I started to but because I was young and had to be asleep at a decent hour, I pretended to fall asleep on the couch. Well, it worked because I pretty much peeked my way through the whole film! I loved it instantly and the scene with Tuco in the graveyard has stayed with me ever since.

As time went on, Clint's films popped up on TV and of course cable but the next big Eastwood jolt for me came when we saw "Pale Rider" on the big screen during it's opening weekend. It just re-affirmed my liking for the man and his films that carries on to this day.

[jjgonski]

I would have to say that it was watching Clint movies with my brothers in the mid seventies.  They were quite a few years older than I so they often got stuck with the chore of babysitting me.  While doing so, they were always Clint fans and I remember watching all the Dirty Harry flicks and by then I had developed my own fondness for Clint.  I remember seeing Firefox in the movies and being blown away.  Remember this was a time when special effects were not quite as advanced as they are now.  Every since then, I have always made it to all the Clint movies as they debut in the theaters.  I think the only one that I missed in the theter was White Hunter, Black Heart.  Now I just stick at home with my DVD collection, watching old Clint movies and anxiously awaiting the arrival of his next film.

[Conan]

  I always thought he was ok, and then I watched "Unforgiven" in the theater and realized he was better than "just ok".  After this epiphany, I watched a ton of his older flicks that I hadn't seen and re-watched a few that I had seen when I was younger; and he became my favorite actor by a mile.

[Ravenwind]

Who can watch "Dirty Harry" and not come to like him? Man's got it all.Looks,toughness,coolness and wit.

[ajay]

saw fistfull of dollars in 1984 on tv and there was no looking back

[Joey]

I remember watching Back to the Future Part III as a kid and being captivated by the scene where Marty watches AFOD. It only showed about 15 seconds of the movie and the great man himself, but it was enough to make me want to find out more about this guy. Such is Clint's presence, I guess.

Several years later and now here I am posting about him!  

How about you, Matt? I'm keen to hear your story that lead you to become Lord of the Clint-philes!

[Matt]

How about you, Matt? I'm keen to hear your story that lead you to become Lord of the Clint-philes!

Joey is now officially my favorite Newbie.  Anyone who calls me Lord! LMAO

Okay, since I've been asked, and so damn nicely... I'll respond in this thread.  I was avoiding it because anyone who's been around here has heard the same story, probably word for word, about a dozen times.  But here it is again.

It was about 1983.  My older brother had a small television in his room, about 14" screen, we had no cable so it had those rabbit ear antennas... and basically, it was an awful set by today's standards, but back then, we didn't know better.  

Anyway, my brother's room was off-limits, and it was the only other TV in the house, so I didn't watch too much.  He went out one night, and I snuck in there and started flipping through the UHF channels.  I came upon the very first minutes of Hang 'em High, where you see Jed Cooper with the calf.  It looked picturesque, and caught my attention, so I stopped flipping.  Then the riders came in, breaking up the serenity of the scene.  I was intrigued... what's going to happen?  I watched the next few minutes, now literally on the edge of my seat... and then they hung Clint.  The title came up "Hang 'em High" and I knew I was gonna watch the rest of the film.   I had never before seen a western, didn't know who Clint Eastwood was, though I'd heard his name.  I loved it.  

Then, the announcer came on and said something about how it was a Clint Eastwood double-feature night, and to stay tuned for High Plains Drifter.  Thank God my brother was out late that night, because I wasn't leaving until it was over.  I was a solid fan by the end of that one.  I've been ever since.

[Christopher]

I remember watching Back to the Future Part III as a kid and being captivated by the scene where Marty watches AFOD. It only showed about 15 seconds of the movie and the great man himself, but it was enough to make me want to find out more about this guy. Such is Clint's presence, I guess.

Oh yeah, I love those Back to the Future movies. I believe it was in Part II when we see Biff watching part of A Fistful of Dollars (when he's in the hot tub with those ladies). I can remember when I first saw that, I had wondered what movie that scene was from. I knew who Eastwood was at the time (as I stated in this thread, I've known who he was for much of my life), but I wasn't familar with his westerns. Then in Part III, when Marty goes to the old west, he says his name is Clint Eastwood (and, of course, that scene from FOD becomes handy to Marty at the end of that movie).

Anyhow, I guess that's a cool way of coming across Eastwood's work for the first time.

[Meridico]

First let me thank everyone for sharing thier stories, I have found them all very interesting.  I have one of my own, hopefully you will find it interesting as well.

I am 22 years old, so I don't recall much of anything that happened to me before around 1984 or so.  Anyway, just saying that I am probably younger than most of the fans here, but still a devoted fan nonetheless.  

Anyway, how I first became interested.  Once, on a Sunday afternoon when I was around nine or ten years old I was playing around in the house making noise and otherwise frustrating my father.  He told me to sit down on the couch and shutup.  He stopped on one channel and said I should watch a movie with him that was about to come on.

While the comercials were running he told me about how Grandpa had loved westerns and how he liked them a lot too.  He said they were entertaining to watch.  I sat there through the story and thought of what I coud have been doing had I stayed in my room.  Every other western he had made me watch had seemed really corney to me because the villians always missed and they'd have campy music and unrealistic sets in the films.  

What was this film?  "The Good the Bad and The Ugly"?  "What the heck is this nonsense?"  I thought to myself.  But, the music seemed kinda cool to me in some odd way.  I started to get up and sneak out of the room.  My dad told me to sit back down and relax.  So I gave in and sat there.

Next thing I knew this unknown guy played by Eastwood was shooting the noose off of Tuco's neck and collecting money again and again.  I thought "Wow, that guy is pretty creative with that little scheme."  Then I just decided to watch, people were dying and the plot was getting thicker with a promise of buried Gold from the lips of a dying Bill Carson.  

I was hooked, I watched the movie all the way through until the end.  My dad had long since fallen asleep, as he tends to do on Sunday afternoons, but I still sat there and watched.  The awesome three way showdown at the end and the music, oh the music fit perfectly and set the mood all the way through.  Eastwood had given that poor confederate soldier a puff on his cigar before the lad died.  They had blown the bridge and granted the dying Union Captain his last request.  Would Tuco and Blondie turn on each other at the end?  I wondered how things would turn out.  

I smiled and laughed at the end the way Blondie ended things.  I was so impressed, I thought then, and probably still think now that it is the best western I've ever seen.  

Then when it was all over, I sat there feeling satisfied that Eastwood had delivered a film that, as another member here put so gracefully, "Hit the spot."

The Television then said to stay tuned to see "For a Few Dollars More."  I watched that one too, and ever after I was hooked.  

One regret I have is when Unforgiven hit theaters.  I begged my dad to let me go with him to see it at the theater, but he was going with some friends for work and did not take me.  Another six years went by before I ever actually got to see it.  But I had seen almost all of his other westerns by then.  

I forgot to mention Dirty Harry, I got into those too.  They also played a big part in making me an Eastwood fan.  It is sad that so many kids today do not appreciate Eastwood or even know much of his work.  I was converted by my Dad, and I now collect the films on DVD.  Eastwood is without a doubt my favorite actor now.  That just about wraps it up I guess, I've gone on long enough with this "Short" story.    

[eustressor]

I've always liked Clint Eastwood films, kind of the same way that I've always liked The Beatles - they've always been around, they're always being played, they've always been a big part of the popular culture I grew up with. I'm 34, BTW - Clint already had the Trilogy under his belt before I was born.

Growing up, I really liked Every Which Way and Any Which Way, as well as Bronco Billy and Josie Wales. I had seen bits and sections of all of the Leone films (I think), as well as a few others, like High Plains Drifter, as weekend afternoon movies, and liked them all, but I was a rather pre-occupied kid and usually returned to whatever I had been doing before I walked through the living room and took in a couple of scenes...

I sat and watched Honkytonk Man with my dad when it came out on HBO, because he's a Clint fan, a country music fan, and loves Marty Robbins. I really liked the film. Ditto for Firefox. Clint movies, to me, were always enjoyable.

But I didn't become a fan until years later, when Unforgiven hit. Oh my. To me, Unforgiven splits Clint's body of work much the same way that Beethoven's Fifth Symphony can be said to split Beethoven's work. It's all good, but in light of this one seminal piece, everything else tends to be viewed as either pre- or post-.

So I'm really familiar with most of his post Unforgiven work, because that to me marks the period where Clint has really come into his own as a director. I think he is now one of the finest American directors ever. But I remember fondly my fading memories of the many fine films he made pre-Unforgiven.

I have a lot of catching up to do  

[Clyde]

Eustressor said it best - growing up, Clint always seems to have been part of our culture.  The same applies to my experiences and how I came to be a fan of Clint Eastwood films - Clint and his films have always been there.

Two films seemed to always have been on television when I was young - "Where Eagles Dare" and "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly." How can you watch these films and not think the star is one of the coolest actors?

But it was in the mid 70s when our neighborhood got
cable tv and HBO which really led to a love of Clint's films.  You've got to remember, when cable first started it was an unbelievable experience to get hooked up - -
we were now going to get uncensored films without
commercials in our living room. Remember those medieval days before DVDs and VHS?  Well now we
could see films that we didn't get to see in theaters
the way they were supposed to be seen; not the way ABC's Sunday Night Movie wanted us to see them.

Well HBO in those early days seemed to be showing
"Thundebolt And Lightfoot" twice a night every night of the week!  The novelty of cable drew me to this R-rated
film and it seemed every guy in my high school was watching this film as much as I was.  (Let's face it -
"Thunderbolt and Lightfoot" is the perfect movie for high school guys - cursing, guns, hot girls, fights, stolen cars -
it seemed my entire high school was in love with and swept up by this film.) We were snared. Me, my friends, hell it seemed my entire town, were qouting Clint, acting like Clint, and just loving Clint.

After that, it was only natural that my friends and I would venture out to see whatever Clint film was released in the theaters.  Whatever the film was, you'd
go and see the new Clint film with your friends - - and
I've got to say, we were rarely disappointed.  I realize now that Clint had true box office power -- Clint could get people into the theater just by having his name on a film.

There were a few Clint films we missed, but going to see the new Clint film truly became mind blowing when I plunked down my money for "Unforgiven."  I walked out of that theater stunned.
Clint put together one of cinema's greatest films.

A new Clint film is still something to look forward to,
however the last film I saw of his in the theater was
"Absolute Power" - I feel kind of sad that not all of his films as of late can grab me like those films of yesterday.

However DVD, like HBO in the 70s, is bringing back the joy of seeing Clint films.  I am so thrilled that anytime I want to I can sit down and watch a Clint Eastwood film.
Maybe I'll watch "Thunderbolt And Lightfoot" tonight -- I'm long out of high school, but I still love the cursing,
guns, hot girls, fights, and stolen cars from that film.  I
hope I always will.