You were a towering man who played towering parts, whose affable aura made Cheyenne Bodie one of television's most celebrated cowboys.
On the big screen, you started small, but left a distinct impression as a Tarzan imprint in the Bowery Boys' "Jungle Gents", which then led to a cameo in the epic "Ten Commandments". Thereafter, you occupied a barrage of rough-and-tough action yarns, including "The Dirty Dozen"; "Fort Dobbs"; "Gold of the Seven Saints"; "The Great Bank Robbery"; "Maya"; "More Dead Than Alive"; "None But the Brave"; "Pancho Villa"; "Sam Whisky"; "Yellowstone Kelly"; "Yuma"; and the nail-biting "Night of the Grizzly".
You also swaggered your way into the weird and wonderful, with such productions as "Scream of the Wolf"; "Killdozer!"; "The Mysterious Island of Beautiful Women"; "The Serpent Warriors"; "Snowbeast"; and "The White Buffalo".
Beyond a doubt, Mr. Walker, you were a hero to many, whether on or off the screen. Lord knows we need more of your virtuous likes these days, but we'll at least be grateful that your legendary stature blessed us for all these many decades.
It's been a while since I've promoted a mag in "bizarrechats", mostly because lots you have bypassed such posts. (The stats don't lie.) At the same time, I can't help but acknowledge a historic landmark for one of my favorites, Filmfax.
Filmfax has hit a historic #150!!! Whoopee!!! This is important since so many similar mags have come and gone over the years: most casualties of the Internet, high prices (for the sake of their skimpy content) and a general lack of support from the damn, high-and-mighty Generation Y. It's amazing that Filmfax has endured despite it all, but then while other publishers have ultimately shunned us old guys in their ill-fated attempts to make a buck, Filmfax has continued to embrace its core audience no matter what the pop-cultural circumstance. Wise move!!!
Issue #150 is another great one (of course), featuring articles on Clint "Cheyenne" Walker; Gerry "Thunderbirds" Anderson; Peter "The Manster" Dyneley; Phyllis "Lois Lane" Coates; Lila "She Shoulda Said No" Leeds; Kelli "Night of the Comet" Maroni; the great Lon Chaney Sr. (in "London After Midnight"); plus that ageless, yellow-garbed detective, Dick Tracy. There's also valuable tidbits and scoops on the "San Francisco's Summer of Love"; '50s sci-fi cosplay and the third-part history of the cinematic "Death Ray". Super cool!!!
Filmfax #150 should be hitting the newsstands and book shops soon, so keep your eyes peeled for this extra-special, anniversary issue. BTW: Contrary to what the cover image exclaims, what you see is (give or take some caption details) the final version, and boy, does it ever strike a perfect, nostalgic chord!!!
