It was not just a western, it was also a story of unfulfilled love. Ladd and Arthur were extremely attracted to each other, but being moral people, Ladd left. Of course, if the movie were made today, they would be rolling in the hay by the second scene.
Shane ranks with Red River and The Searchers.
My mother-in-law from my first marriage briefly dated Ladd during WWII. It was strictly a publicity thing for the military. She said he was very short and wore more makeup than she did.
I’m a hell of a lot younger than Wile E’s mother and lemme tell ya. He’s hot. After you see This Gun for Hire, rent The Glass Key and watch him get the snot beat out of him. He was an Olympic-caliber diver. I’ve read June Allyson’s autobiography in which she describes her incredibly sad love affair with him.
Ladd was a major contributor to noir in the early '40s.
Absolute hottie - and not only for the grandmas either. 
He suffered from depression and alcoholism later in live but at the time of the said radio broadcast he was as hot as they get and an international star. By the time he did Shane (believe it or not he was only 39 when he shot that movie) the booze and cigarettes took their toll but in the 40’s he looked great. As to his supposed midget height IMDB list him at 5’6" (and a quarter ;)) but his US military record shows 5’7" (I’m inclined to believe the latter). That’s as tall as Tom Cruise. Here he is in a fan video on Youtube. Enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khrh77_lFJE
I’m quite fond of his radio show, “Box 13.” The riff with his secretary is vintage 40’s sexism – cute at the time, but a little painful now. Still, a damn fine show, just the right kind of radio thriller.
You have good taste in westerns.
Shane brought me to the SDMB. I asked Cecil if Shane died in the end. Since then I’ve found the answer.
Ladd wasn’t a big guy, not generally a problem in Hollywood, but he wanted to be a leading man when the big guys like John Wayne, Gary Cooper, and Gregory Peck were all at the top of the charts.
Shane was a fantastic movie, and as one reviewer said, you can’t go wrong shooting in the Grand Tetons. It’s a story that’s been many times since, and I’m sure it wasn’t the first time either, but it’s still one of my favorite movies.
As an aside, I recall seeing a documentary about growing up gay, and Alan Ladd may have been an iconic figure to closeted gay men. Particularly in Shane, with that non-cowboyish outfit, and for some reason the scene with bare-chested Ladd and Van Heflin chopping at the tree stump… How widespread this feeling was, I can’t say.
FYI, if you’ve seen Clint Eastwood’s Pale Rider, you’ve seen a basically remake of Shane.
Randolph Scott.
Bullshirt. Why do people repeat lies about people being gay? Pathetic.
And how did the ‘Family Circus’ handle it?
Aw, Man, no link?
Forgive the highjack, but isn’t it properly established that Randolph Scott was gay? This seems to be the consensus on most of the usual internet sources, Wikipedia and so on.
Yes, Shane is everything that old-school Westerns were supposedly not: subtle, smart, and deep; while at the same time the quintessential example of the genre. An absolute classic.
Unless I’m being WHOOSHED, it’s an obscure reference to Markxxx’s ‘Family Circus’ fanhood. He at one time had a ‘Family Circus’ *parody site, and would commonly comment in a thread something to the effect ‘And this is what Family Circus handled it,’ with a link to his site. I think that might have been one of the things that got him in trouble.
Ladd was very short, about 5’6 or 5’7. He stood on boxes when in scenes with his leading ladies.
One of his leading ladies said that was not true. Perhaps I can find a site when I have had more coffee.
Well, Veronica Lake was tiny herself, so no problem there.
She was practically a pond!
