Gunfight at the O. K. Corral is a 1957 Western written by novelist Leon Uris, produced by Hal Wallis for Paramount, and directed by John Sturges, starring Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas. It is based on the true event of the same name in 1881 in Tombstone, Arizona, and is the first of two films about the same story directed by John Sturges.
What is ‘Gunfight at the O. K. Corral’ About?
While pursuing outlaws in Griffin, Texas, pious Dodge City Marshall Wyatt Earp (Lancaster) helps tubercular gambler and gunfighter Doc Holliday (Douglas) escape a lynch mob after Doc kills a man in self-defense. They flee to Dodge City, where Wyatt arrests attractive gambler Laura Denbow (Rhonda Fleming) for disturbing the peace by inciting the men. She mocks Wyatt’s righteousness, but he takes a shine to her, and they are soon engaged. Meanwhile, Doc’s common-law wife, Kate Young (Jo Van Fleet), takes up with outlaw Johnny Ringo (John Ireland) in an attempt to make Doc jealous, but Doc refuses to fight. A group of cowboys led by Ringo ride into town, shooting the place up and riding their horses into the Dodge House during a church social. Wyatt and Doc arrest the bunch.
Wyatt’s brother, Virgil (John Hudson), marshal of Tombstone, Arizona, wires Wyatt for help, causing Laura to break off their engagement for fear of being widowed. Doc follows Earp to Tombstone, where Wyatt meets with his brothers, Virgil, James (Martin Milner), and Deadwood marshal Morgan (DeForest Kelley). They discuss the threat of rancher and rustler Ike Clanton (Lyle Bettger) wanting to use the Tombstone railroad to ship his stolen cattle to market. The Earp brothers want Wyatt to lead them in preventing this from happening. Clanton rides into town with his gang, including Ringo, the Clanton and McLaury brothers, and confronts Wyatt, who is ready for them with a posse and turns them away. Ike decides to provoke a blood feud by ambushing Wyatt alone at night, but kills his younger brother, James, by mistake. This leads directly to the titular confrontation at the O. K. Corral.
Why Did Historians Rip ‘Gunfight at the O. K. Corral’ Apart?
The movie was a big hit financially, generally critically well-received, and nominated for several awards. Over time, however, professional and amateur historians began taking issue with many of the “facts” as presented in the film. Historically, the exact events of the shoot-out are controversial and have long been debated. But the actual battle occurred in the block behind and catty-corner from the corral, not inside it as portrayed in the movie. Every credible source cites the true duration of the shoot-out at about thirty seconds. The battle length in the film has been reported variously as five, eight, and eleven minutes long. The version reviewed was eight minutes and thirty-eight seconds long, from the first face-off to the final dissolve. When the smoke cleared, outlaws Tom and Frank McLaury and nineteen-year-old Billy Clanton were each shot multiple times (Frank lastly in the head) and died. Ike Clanton fled. Virgil and Morgan Earp were both shot and wounded, though not mortally. Doc was grazed, and Wyatt was unhurt.
In the movie, however, we see Frank set on fire (didn’t happen), Ike shot (didn’t happen), Doc shoots Ringo (who wasn’t there), and Wyatt follows the wounded Billy into the photography studio (closer to the actual location) where Doc shoots Billy (uncertain). This was apparently deemed to be more dramatic, as earlier in the film, Wyatt had tried to persuade Billy away from life as an outlaw. Wyatt throws down his badge (not true), and Billy dies posed as Christ in the Pieta (highly unlikely). None of this is as eyewitnesses reported. All of it is completely from the imagination of director John Sturges.
More to the point, the birth order of the real-life Earps who factor in the story was James first, then Virgil, Wyatt, and Morgan. The implied birth order in the film seems to be Wyatt, Virgil, Morgan, and James (supposedly eighteen years old), turning from eldest to youngest. The reason for these switches is never explained and makes little sense. The film could easily have gone with the correct names and ages. The historians have a right to be upset. However, once they started finding fault, the nitpickers even called foul on the type of cacti and age of firearms shown. Wikipedia, IMDb, and Prime Video Trivia all have long lists of errors. Prime makes a point of noting that, in fact, the shootout took place at 3 pm, not sun-up. And, despite what you see in the film, Wyatt was a renowned lifelong teetotaler (non-drinker). It’s a blessing no one was tracking the cloud’s movements.
‘Gunfight at the O. K. Corral:’ Some Highlights and A Remake
Otherwise, Uris’ script, based on an article by George Scullin, sticks fairly close to the legend as we have come to understand it. It artfully buries a lot of historical exposition in the easy-flowing dialogue. At its heart is a story of a bromance with a dark and humorous touch. The film cleverly indicates the passage of time by the gradual evolution of period songs emerging from the saloons.
The generally excellent cast makes up for a lot. Ever-pious Lancaster plays well off of Douglas’ eternal brawler and scallywag. Lancaster plays Earp with his usual steel-jawed focus and, a former acrobat, did his own very impressive tumbling. Perfectly cast Jo Van Fleet gives her usual fiery performance as the abused wife Kate and brings real pathos to their tortured love/hate relationship. Laura’s character is used well, illustrating the fears of a lawman’s wife, reminiscent of Grace Kelly in High Noon. Olive Carey is affecting as Ma Clanton and has a touching scene with Dennis Hopper as Billy Clanton, looking incredibly young. John Ireland’s flat portrayal of Ringo exemplifies the eventually wearying habit of the men in these pictures of picking fights with one another as tests of manhood. Star Trek fans will enjoy DeForest Kelley’s early career appearance here.
Sturges uses the imagery of cowboys tearing down fences and cemeteries on the outskirts of city limits as foreboding imagery to suggest the lawlessness and nearness of mortality of life on the plains. He benefits from excellent muted costume design, art direction and lighting. Dimitri Tiomkin and Ned Washington contribute a catchy title tune sung by Frankie Laine at intervals throughout the picture.
Ten years later, Sturges attempted to rectify the historical record by remaking the story as Hour of the Gun for The Mirisch Corporation. The film begins rather than ends at the O. K. Corral (still incorrectly staged within, not behind it). It relates the aftermath, the so-called Earp Vendetta Ride by Holliday (played by the much too old Jason Robards) and the surviving brothers in pursuit of Ike Clanton, Johnny Ringo, and their new gang after the maiming of Virgil (he lost his left arm) in December 1881 and the assassination of Morgan in March 1882. A title at the film’s start falsely declares, “This is the way it happened,” but Sturges still can’t get key facts straight. Gang member Bill Brocious (an early Jon Voight role) was taken by surprise while cooking and killed by Wyatt Earp in the open in Iron Springs, Arizona, rather than in a street fight. Ike Clanton was killed by Constable Jonas Brighton for cattle rustling in 1887, not by Wyatt Earp at all. Sturges made a good try, but no cigar.
Except for the performance of its star, James Garner as Wyatt Earp, which some called career-topping, Hour of the Gun was critically disliked and barely made back its investment at the box office. It has faded into obscurity compared to its predecessor, which only goes to show that “no good deed goes unpunished.”
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
Lawman Wyatt Earp and outlaw Doc Holliday form an unlikely alliance which culminates in their participation in the legendary Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.
- Language
- English
- Studio
- Paramount Pictures
- Run Time
- 122 mins
- Director
- John Sturges
- Release Date
- May 29, 1957
- Actors
- Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas
Gunfight at the O. K. Corral is available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime Video in the U.S.
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