"Camille on Horseback" and Inger in Reno

Inger Stevens arrived at Reno Municipal Airport via United Airlines on August 22, 1959. She wasn't alone that Saturday morning. The plane carried a passenger list that included Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Yvonne DeCarlo, and Vaughn Moore. The group exited the plane to cheers from a crowd of local officials, press, Native Americans from the Nixon, NV reservation plus the Twirleens and Reno Rodeo Queen. After receiving gifts (cowboy hats, of course) and posing for publicity, Inger and the others were rushed to downtown Reno for the Bonanza parade. It would be a full two days of publicity and celebration in honor of a new all-color western drama set to air on NBC the following month. Inger and Yvonne DeCarlo's episodes ("The Newcomers" and "A Rose for Lotta", respectively) were selected for a special premiere at Granada Theater that evening.

Inger (center) arrives in Reno.

Inger examines the cowboy hats with Dan Blocker and Lorne Greene.

There was much for the stars to do between the noon parade (in which Miss Nevada was none other than a 21-year-old Dawn Wells) and the eight o'clock premiere. After traveling in stagecoach from the State House, Inger headed north on Virginia Street to follow a route to Fifth then Sierra before the parade ended in front of the Riverside Hotel on the Truckee River. 

Former actor-turned-politician, Rex Bell led the parade.
Bell was married to actress Clara Bow.

Although she is not visible in this poor quality photo, Inger is in this
 stagecoach shared with Yvonne DeCarlo.

The celebrities were then whisked away for lunch in the Shore Room of the Holiday Hotel before touring the downtown stores—merchants had dressed their windows in western wear and theme for a Bonanza contest. By 5:00 p.m., Inger was meeting citizens and signing autographs at Powning Park. Dinner was at the Nugget in Sparks before entertaining the crowd again at the Granada Theater, where "The Newcomers" and "A Rose for Lotta" were screened for the public (adults only) free of charge.

RCA sponsored the premiere and RCA recording artist Vaughn Moore served as the emcee. Moore received a key to the city for his efforts.

Inger at dinner with the cast in Reno.

Invisible except for the top of her blonde hair and lovely hands,
Inger signs autographs beside Lorne Greene.

After a day full of action, the cast and crew retired to their rooms at the Riverside, Mapes, and Golden hotels. On Sunday, they viewed the gun collection at Harold's Club before traveling back to Los Angeles on Sunday evening.

On Tuesday, August 25, the Today television show devoted a segment to the premiere footage. The massive publicity campaign, color episodes, engaging actors, and highly popular western genre would make Bonanza a hit for 14 seasons. Many don't realize that Inger Stevens was a major player in its initial publicity campaign and contributor to the show's success.

"The Newcomers"

Columnist Dwight Newton summarized the "The Newcomers" as “Inger Stevens…Camille on horseback.” And he's not wrong. Inger played many fragile, sickly or trauma-stricken characters between 1959 and 1962. However, Inger enjoyed freelancing on television and made light of the tragic string when she stated:

Come to think of it, my TV career is beginning to look as if it were sponsored by Blue Cross. I was a nurse in the last Playhouse 90 I did. I play a tubercular in Bonanza. And in Twilight Zone I haven’t long to live.

This interview and the Bonanza premiere came just eight months after Inger's suicide attempt. It cannot be emphasized enough how diligently Inger worked after recovering from the attempt. She participated in two routines on the April 6, 1959 broadcast of the 31st Academy Awards and received an "unusually warm reception...like an outstretched hand of sympathy for a girl who has undergone emotional stress." After that welcome, Inger went back to work on "Diary of a Nurse" for Playhouse 90, "The Indestructible Mr. Gore" for Sunday Showcase, and this Bonanza episode. 

Her suicide attempt, outspokenness about the loneliness and superficiality associated with Hollywood success, and refusal to appear in subpar movies would find Inger working solely in television—after The World, The Flesh, and The Devil premiered in 1959, audiences wouldn't see Inger on their theater screens until 1964 when she appeared in a small, but striking role in the unfortunately subpar movie The New Interns. The amount and quality of the work Inger did on television in those five years between movies is quite astounding—two Twilight Zones, an Emmy-nominated part in Dick Powell Theater, two Route 66 episodes, a powerful Sam Benedict plot and suspenseful Alfred Hitchcock Hour. That list is merely a third of the shows in which Inger appeared at that time and does not even include her starring role in her own show The Farmer's Daughter!

Inger as Emily Pennington

Inger studies "The Newcomers" script.

Inger liked the role of Emily Pennington in "The Newcomers". She said:

They kind of apologized when they asked me to play it, because it’s a western. But I liked the script and it turned out so well that it will be released in Europe as a motion picture–if Paramount approves.

The episode can be viewed in full on Youtube (click here.) In it, Inger's Emily Pennington is the fiancé of prospector Blake McCall (John Larch), a man Emily's brother John (Robert Knapp) says "will do anything for gold." McCall believes there's gold hidden on the Cartwright company but is warned that mining for it will destroy the land. A man who was born without wealth, McCall believes he must make his fortune in order to keep up with the more prosperous Penningtons. Emily assures her fiancé that money means nothing to her and says:

Just give me a chance to get well and just give me a chance to be everything you want me to be.

Battling tuberculosis, Emily Pennington coughs frequently ("Can't you control that miserable coughing?" Blake barks at her. ) but doesn't reveal the gravity of her situation to Hoss (Dan Blocker). Hoss accompanies the Penningtons for protection and is hurt when she backs away from him in fear. Emily softens when she watches the gentle way Hoss brushes and speaks to his horse. 

Emily: You really love horses, don't you?

Hoss: Oh, yes ma'am. I love all animals. You can trust 'em.

Emily: But you can't trust people?

Hoss: Well, I wouldn't say that. It's just that some folks have got a natural mean streak in them that animals just don't know nothin' about, I guess.

As her fiance's mean streak becomes more obvious, Emily develops feelings for gentle giant Hoss.

Inger with Dan Blocker behind the scenes.

Sources: 

“Bonanza Day Premier—” Reno Evening Gazette. August 20, 1959. 

“Bonanza Premir is Staged Here.” Reno Evening Gazette. August 24, 1959. 

“Delegation Arrives for Bonanza Premier.” Reno Evening Gazette. August 22, 1959. 

“Reno Merchants.” Reno Evening Gazette. August 21, 1959. 

“Inger Stevens Gets No Money for TV Stints. Philadelphia Enquirer. September 24, 1959. 

“Movie Stars Arrive for Bonanza Premier Saturday.” Reno Evening Gazette. August 21, 1959. 

“Reno’s Bonanza Permiere in Pictures.” Reno Evening Gazette. August 24, 1959. 

TV-Radio Highlights. San Francisco Examiner. September 26, 1959.

A Time for Killing (1967)

Director Phil Karlson with Inger and Glenn.

Inger stars as Emily Biddle in the 1967 western A Time for Killing, one of four westerns she would make within two years. Inger's status as the Western dream gal of 1967-1968 prompted Roger Ebert, in his review of Hang 'Em High, to write, "You can tell it's a Hollywood Western because Inger Stevens lives in the boarding house..."

In his book on western filmmakers, Henryk Hoffman praised Inger:

Despite the unimpressive quality of her westerns, Inger Stevens delivered four interesting performances and earned the distinction of one of the most original western leading ladies of the period. 

Inger as Emily Biddle in A Time for Killing, 1967.

Originally titled The Long Ride Home and directed by Roger Corman (who "couldn't get out of his old ways. He was pushing the actors, they were upset, the crew was upset") but quickly taken over by director Phil Karlson, A Time for Killing was based on the 1961 novel A Southern Blade by Nelson and Shirley Wolford. The male leads are Glenn Ford and George Hamilton. Max Baer, Jr. and Paul Petersen also appear and a young Harrison Ford is seen briefly. Paul Petersen would later say that the dismissal of Roger Corman as director was unfair and that the film would've been "ultimately better served" if Corman had continued, because Corman "tried to compensate for the lack of character development in the story by incorporating the Utah landscape."

Filming took place in Utah and Arizona. Realty specialist Darwin Nelson wrote:

Last summer several scenes for The Long Ride Home were made on public domain near the Paria River, and for several weeks Kanab was 'home' for such stars as Glenn Ford, George Hamilton, Max Baer, Jr., Inger Stevens and Paul Petersen. It wasn't the first time Glenn Ford had been on location in Kenab; 25 years ago he spent some time off the set participating in a local rodeo. 

Due to a drought that dried out a riverbed essential to filming, thousands of gallons of water had to be imported from Tucson.  

Inger with actor Todd Armstrong

Glenn Ford was newly married and his wife Kathryn Hayes (known for her decades-long work on As The World Turns plus many guest appearances on 1960's television) visited the set. Glenn's son Peter was happy to be cast in a small role opposite "beautiful Inger Stevens" and made friends with cast members Harrison Ford, Harry Dean Stanton, Timothy Carey, and Paul Petersen. George Hamilton's girlfriend Lynda, daughter of President Lyndon Johnson, also visited the set—with Secret Service agents. 

According to author Patterson, Inger made a rare move and arrived on set with her husband Ike Jones on the first morning of filming. Patterson doesn't reveal the source of this story, but he writes that Inger, with Ike by her side, was confident as she greeted a cast and crew that reacted with "dead silence" and viewed it as an "awkward situation." Inger was seen crying later in the morning and Ike had left by the afternoon. 

Inger waits for dress repairs.

Inger observes a scene.

The film begins with missionary nurse Emily Biddle (Inger) watching her fiance Major Wolcott (Glenn) enforce a death sentence on a Confederate soldier. Major Wolcott must follow the orders of a cruel Colonel, which mercilessly prolong the death of a soldier until Wolcott puts the man out of his misery with a single shot. The treatment of the man's sentence causes a fury among the imprisoned Confederate soldiers, led by Captain Dorrit Bentley (George Hamilton). When he returns to his cabin, Major Wolcott realizes his fiancé witnessed the killing.

Emily: I was watching.

Wolcott calls for a missionary wagon to take Emily to a safe place.

Emily: You're not sending me away?...Why? I've come most of the way across this country to see you.

Wolcott: You couldn't have picked a worse time or place.

Emily: I didn't pick it. The war did. Is it too much to want to share a few days with you?

Wolcott: There are a lot of things I wanted to share with you, Emily, but this was not one of them.

Emily: Couldn't you have done something to stop it? He was a child.

Wolcott: Child or man, he was a soldier and this is a war. And I don't like you seeing it.

Emily:...I've seen the war, Tom, and I hate what I've seen.

Wolcott: I know. I like to see things grow. I don't like to see things die.

The enraged soldiers watch a touching scene as Major Wolcott bids a loving goodbye to Emily and Captain Bentley visibly seethes at the sight of their embrace. After Emily departs, Captain Bentley confronts Wolcott about his sensitivity toward the soldiers.

Bentley: I can see you're frettin' all over their feelings, all leaky-eyed, lovin' them like a brother. Major, they don't have one damn bit of love for you. Whether you own up or not, you hate them.

Wolcott: I hate no man.

Bentley: Well, there's a little time yet.

Wolcott: Captain, what do you want?

Bentley: Well, for you to feel the way I do, that's all.

Wolcott: The war's nearly over.

Bentley: Major, this war will never be over.

The Confederate soldiers make a violent escape from the Union camp overnight. At daybreak, they meet the missionary wagon carrying Emily to safety and overtake it. They kill the Union soldiers protecting Emily and then Captain Bentley abducts her.

Warning: There are major plot spoilers in this paragraph. Please pick up reading after the two shots of Inger and Glenn below if you want to skip them. What follows is a long chase between Major Wolcott and his Union troops and Captain Bentley and his band of Confederate soldiers. Emily Biddle's safety is threatened throughout the film as Captain Bentley lewdly smiles at her. Emily watches as the men imprisoning her become more uncouth and violent toward one another. Emily never backs down. She threatens to kill Bentley several times and insults him many more. Eventually, after many spoken and unspoken suggestions that he will, Captain Bentley viciously rapes Emily—to cause her pain, to cause Major Wolcott pain, and because the ruthless, terrorizing man says "somehow, someplace we got to win before we lose." The build-up to the assault and the assault scene itself are extraordinarily difficult for me to watch. 

Although Inger is exceptional in the scenes she's been given—adding poignancy to her limited lines and a strength of character to Emily—and her striking beauty absolutely glows in Panavision and Pathecolor, I've only been able to watch this movie two times. It's a major trial to sit through, and I'm not alone in this assessment.

Inger and Glenn on set

Inger and Glenn on set

Composer Van Alexander, in his autobiography, remembered that the the movie was "in deep trouble. Directors had been changed in the middle of filming, there were many rewrites on the script and the picture was still lousy...Jonie Taps called me in to save the picture with a good musical score." Alexander scored the film and wrote a main theme for Eddy Arnold to sing.

Alexander wrote that at the film's preview, "the audience laughed in all the wrong places. They laughed during the dramatic sequences. They hissed at the hero and applauded the villain. God, it was awful! Talk about embarrassing! I wanted to crawl under the table."

Later the film would be rescored by guitarist Mundell Lowe to the frustration of Alexander.

Inger and Glenn prepare for the wagon departure scene

Promotion of the film was weak. The promotional materials suggested that exhibitors bring audiences in by focusing on the movie being Glenn Ford's 100th release. The also urged that Inger's character being a nurse from Massachusetts should attract New England women; if you've seen the film you know how ludicrous that tactic would prove. The movie is quite brutal and certainly not what would be termed a "women's picture" in the 1960's.

Peter Ford was right in his summary that the movie had "some strong scenes, but there was a choppy, unfinished feeling to it, perhaps a result of the directorial transference. A Time for Killing went virtually unnoticed on release."

Author Lee Pfeiffer wrote:

If Sigmund Freud had written a Western, the result would be something like A Time for Killing. Admittedly a B Western, the film has the distinction of at least attempting to be something more. However, the script suffers from making the only interesting characters the least important...the film is unremittingly grim and made even grimmer by the efficient but downbeat performances of the cast. 

Halliwell's Film Guide called it a "savage" western about the "corruption of war" while Leonard Maltin kept his response brief by noting, "Director Karlson has made some good minor films in the past; this isn't one of them."

All photos in this post are scans of color transparencies in my collection. You can view more on set photos that are unfortunately not in my collection (including my favorite on set Inger shot—this one! and my second favorite shot—Inger singing) at this site here.

In 2021, A Time for Killing was released on Region 1 DVD as part of a Glenn Ford triple feature. The DVD can be found here. The western had long been available on other region DVDs.

You can read about Inger's other westerns on the blog: Firecreek, 5 Card Stud, and Hang 'Em High.

Inger and Glenn

Sources:

Alexander, Van. From Harlem to Hollywood. Bear Manor Media. 2009.

Ebert, Roger. "Hang 'Em High." https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hang-em-high-1968

Ford, Peter. Glenn Ford: A Life. University of Wisconsin. 2011.

Hoffman, Henryk. 'A' Western Filmmakers. McFarland. 2008.

Joyner, C. Courtney. The Westerners. McFarland. 2009.

Maltin, Leonard. Leonard Maltin's 2015 Movie Guide. Penguin. 2004.

Nelson, Darwin. "Little Hollywood." Our Public Lands. 1967.

Pfieffer, Lee. The Films of Harrison Ford. Kensington Publishing. 2002.

Weaver, Tom. Science Fiction Stars and Horror Heroes. McFarland. 2006.

Zane Grey Theatre: Calico Bait (1960)

Inger costarred with Robert Culp in the Calico Bait episode of Dick Powell’s Zane Grey Theatre. This episode served as episode 26 of season 4 and aired on March 31, 1960. Recently, someone on Youtube shared the full episode in colorized form (it was originally aired in black and white) and you can watch that episode by clicking here. If you have not watched it, you may want to so that the rest of this post does not spoil the story for you.

Inger stars as Beth Watkins, a woman in love with a fugitive named Davey Morse (Burt Douglas). Beth has no one else to depend on (her parents have died) and believes that Davey is innocent of the murder he’s accused. When he abandons her on horse and instructs her to lead a deputy to Chino Rocks by nightfall, Beth is hesitant at first, but quickly agrees to it. Davey praises her, saying “You’re never scared. That’s the only thing about you that scares me.” 

Actor Bob Culp is Deputy Sam Anders and he comes across Beth, mistaking her—in western wear and hair up in a hat—for Davey. Beth clearly has contempt for the deputy and every comment she makes to him is brusque and tinged with criticism. When he captures her, Beth responds, “You’re kind of handsome, you know? Now that I see past that badge. Don’t take much of a man to capture a woman.”

 

The deputy assumes that he is using Beth as bait to entice Davey, not realizing that Davey is also using Beth as bait to reel in the deputy. Beth cannot believe that the deputy has accused Davey of murder, responding, “Nobody saw it. Davey couldn’t kill anyone.” Beth attempts to escape Sam when they stop at a saloon. She begs two men to free her, but doesn’t realize how impure their intentions are. The men follow Sam and Beth back to camp. While one man attacks the deputy, the other man attempts to assault Beth. When Sam takes a bullet to the shoulder in rescuing Beth, Beth’s feelings about her captor begin to change. She remarks, “You didn’t have to get yourself shot at. Why’d ya take the chance?...I’m grateful. You’ll never know how grateful I am.” 

Despite her gratitude, Beth continues to lead the deputy to Chino Rocks. When he realizes that he’s in danger and looks to Beth for answers, she calls out, “I had a great choice. Leave you back there to die or bring you here to get shot at. At least here you’ve got a chance.”

Beth soon understands that Davey is more ruthless than she knew. As the deputy is cornered, Beth assumes Davey will let him go. To Davey, Beth pleads for Sam's safety, “He did a decent thing for me. You listen to me...to my feelings. Or maybe you don’t know I got any? I’m in love with someone who didn’t know a thing about me.” As Davey raises his gun to kill Sam, Beth realizes she’s been in love with a murderer. She shoots Davey to save Sam. Numb at what has taken place, Beth ends the episode with the words, “I didn’t really know him. I didn’t know him. You look for something, somebody, you look everywhere. All you find are strangers.”

Inger’s television roles are always compelling and the character of Beth is no different. Inger simply had a discerning eye when it came to the roles she selected. As Beth, Inger delivers perhaps more scathing lines than we typically hear from her. Beth is a world-weary woman who’s been let down by her father and has made the mistake of falling in love with the wrong man—Inger could certainly relate to those facets of Beth. 

Beth has a tough exterior, but we are able to see her softness and her goodness shine as she makes critical decisions throughout the episode. It is this depth of feeling and a complexity of character that Inger supplies time and time again, role after role.

Hang ‘Em High (1968)

Hang 'Em High is a 1968 western directed by Ted Post and starring Clint Eastwood. The film was a big success at the box office and, apart from a few critics who thought it a poor imitation of Italian westerns of its time, it was a critical success as well.

According to director Ted Post, Inger was hesitant at first to take the role since she was unfamiliar with Clint Eastwood's work. Soon that wasn't a problem. Post explained:

Well, as you know, Clint's not intimidating in any way. She began to like him very much as the days went on. Then, very, very much, etcetera. When we got to the love scene, they had already found their way together. At the end of the picture she came over to me and said, 'Anytime you do a picture with Clint and there's a part in it, call me.'

Cattle driver Jed Cooper (Clint Eastwood) survives a lynching by a mob that wrongly pins a crime on him. Cooper unknowingly purchased his cattle from a thief, but the group accuses him of being the thief and a murderer. The men steal his saddle and money before hanging him from a tree.

Cooper survives this incident and is cleared of any wrongdoing by Judge Fenton (Pat Hinkle) who then offers Cooper a job as a marshal. The film focuses on Cooper's work as a marshal as well as his hunt for the lynch mob that attempted to murder him.

Inger Stevens plays storeowner and widow Rachel Warren. Rachel first locks eyes with Cooper when she peers into a tumbleweed wagon full of prisoners. He has not yet been deemed innocent by Judge Fenton at this point.

Rachel takes her time silently circling the wagon, closely examining each man's face. It is clear that the man she hunts is not inside.

When we see her next, Rachel is again inspecting prisoners. The judge and officers allow Rachel to inspect all new prisoners, because she is desperately seeking the men who wronged her.

Rachel is let down and it is obvious she's been following this routine of wary hope for quite a long time. Cooper suggests that her behavior is strange and Rachel immediately takes offense. She responds, "We all have our ghosts, Marshal. You hunt your way and I’ll hunt mine."

During a public lynching of the actual rustlers, Cooper visits the local brothel and is there ambushed by some members of the mob. Rachel insists on going to the brothel to care for Cooper herself. She tends to his wounds and stands guard from a chair by the bed.

The madam warns Rachel that she is growing too attached to the marshal, by saying "...but one of these days he's gonna get better. Then you'll have a man on your hands."

Rachel is undeterred. She nurses Cooper back to health and takes the weak marshal on a picnic. He kisses her several times and she asks him to stop and then shares her story. Rachel was married to a doctor. They relocated from Denver because her husband wanted to go where doctors were most needed. As they sat by a fire at their camp, Rachel and her husband were approached by men who asked for food. The men then shot her husband and raped Rachel, as she says in a heart-rending speech, "they took me...and took me...and took me."

Cooper asks what Rachel will do if she never finds her attackers in the prison wagons or cells and she cannot answer. Since that awful event, Rachel's been consumed with bringing the men to justice.

The picnic is interrupted by a violent rainstorm so Rachel and an unwell Cooper seek shelter in a nearby shed. Rachel covers him with a blanket and flour sack, rubs his back and arms to combat his shivering, and finally lies down and holds him close to her.

When he awakes, Cooper gently kisses Rachel and they make love.

Time moves on. Rachel sees Marshal Cooper and meets him outside her store. She looks at him with eyes full of longing and hope for the future. Rachel says that since she met him she knows that she can let go of her ghosts and embrace life again. Cooper tells her that he doesn't know what comes next for him and rides off as the film ends. It's a bittersweet and appropriate ending for a western about a loner lawman, but I still yearned for him to invite sweet, dedicated Rachel to share his saddle and ride off into the sunset together.

Inger's performance in the role is often quiet but intense. As she does in so many of her performances, Inger says so much about her character in her eyes alone. Inger would've made a fantastic actress in silent films as well. She doesn't need words to convey her character's feelings or motivations, but when Inger delivers her lines it is slowly, thoughtfully. Each word and the pause before and after are meaningful.

Source:
Schickel, Richard. Clint Eastwood: A Biography. Vintage Books, 1997.

Firecreek (1968)

Directed by Vincent McEveety in 1968, Firecreek is a western starring James Stewart, Henry Fonda, Inger Stevens, Jack Elam, Jacqueline Scott, James Best, Gary Lockwood, and J. Robert Porter.

Farmer Johnny Cobb (James Stewart) takes his two boys to town to fetch a doctor for his wife Henrietta (Jacqueline Scott) who is in labor, but also to attend a church service and stay out of the way during the birth.

Bob Larkin (Henry Fonda) and his gang ride into the sleepy little town. Although Bob is nursing a gunshot wound and wants nothing but rest, his posse have made up their minds to indulge in intoxication, destruction of personal property, physical violence with the menfolk, and sexual violence with the women. Larkin warns his men to stay out of trouble, but he literally allows them to get away with murder before all is said and done.

We soon discover that Johnny's wearing a homemade sheriff's badge, made with pride by his two boys, and signifying his role as honorary sheriff in the town. But the town's never had any trouble before and Johnny's never had to lead. He's clearly uncomfortable around the violent gang and just wants to peacefully reason with them.

Inger Stevens in Firecreek, 1968.

At the inn where he is recuperating, Bob Larkin meets Evelyn (Inger Stevens). Evelyn tends to his wound but is suspicious of his intentions in the town. She knows that Bob's a hired killer and asks him why he wants to lead a bunch of men to kill. Bob answers, "Today I'm one of the few. I lead. That's important to me."

Evelyn is a widow living with her disabled grandfather. We learn about her deceased husband in an exchange between Bob and herself.

Evelyn: He was a wagon scout. Killed in the same Indian raid that crippled my grandfather.

Bob: Did he mean somethin' to ya?

Evelyn: We were good friends.

Bob: How long ago he die?

Evelyn: Ten years.

Bob: And you've buried yourself in this town ever since.

When the attacks on the townspeople grow more violent and end in tragedy, Johnny must take control. He realizes that all of the citizens, like himself, moved here because they did not want to be involved in any action. They like the boring life of the town and knowing what to expect day-to-day. In fact, Johnny learns that a lot of the townspeople led more exciting lives before choosing to come to Firecreek to escape life.

Evelyn, developing feelings for the outlaw, pleads with Bob Larkin to end the siege on Firecreek.

Evelyn: You're humiliating this town.

Bob: It's nothing I want.

Evelyn: I thought you placed such great importance on leading.

Bob: Your so-called town sheriff and me are quite a bit alike.

Evelyn: How do you see that?

Bob: We're both riding a greased pig. Have to hold on. I don't know what's going through his mind but in my case I'm not expected to leave behind one of my men with a bullet in his back.

Evelyn: And you placate these animals you call men?

Bob: Certain things are expected of me.

Evelyn: Well, why not do the unexpected? Ride on alone. You don't need these killers.

Bob: Maybe I been alone. Didn't like it. Maybe I don't have your temperament to accept another empty day.

Sheriff Johnny Cobb must face Bob Larkin and his men alone in the empty streets of Firecreek. Will Johnny fight alone or will the citizens come out and defend their home? Will Bob Larkin have a change of heart or will he continue to be an unapologetic killer?

Although she, as in all of her western roles, plays second fiddle to the men, Inger is essential to this film. Through her character Evelyn's words and actions, Inger has some of the most pivotal scenes. Inger possesses understated power, not just in Firecreek but in every single one of her performances.

Firecreek is my favorite of Inger's westerns. It is a well-written, touching drama that draws its viewer along in anticipation. James Stewart and Henry Fonda are flawless not only as the leaders at war with each other, but as men at war in their own hearts.

5 Card Stud (1968)

5 Card Stud is a late 1960's western starring Dean Martin, Robert Mitchum, Inger Stevens, Roddy McDowell, and Katherine Justice. Directed by Henry Hathaway and written by Marguerite Roberts, 5 Card Stud is as much of a murder mystery as it is a classic western film.

A cheater is exposed at the regular gambling table and this revelation leads to a series of murders in small town Rincon. When the cheater is taken by some of the game's players, gambler Van Morgan (Dean Martin) attempts but fails to stop the man's lynching. One by one, men from Van's group of gamblers are murdered.

As he tries to figure out who is responsible for the crimes, Van finds himself falling in love with Lily Langford (Inger Stevens), the madam of a local barbershop/brothel combination. The younger sister of one of Van's gambling partners has had her eyes on Van for some time, but Van finds more in common with the experienced, guarded Lily than the naive Nora (Katherine Justice.)

A mysterious new preacher (Robert Mitchum) shows up in town and cleverly bluffs his way into being accepted by the community before showing his hand. Inger, breathtakingly styled throughout the film, is entirely convincing as the madam who has lost love before and keeps tight control of her business and her heart. The character of Lily is a vulnerable woman hiding under a tough exterior. Unfortunately, Inger is not given many lines in the film and the majority of her lines are flirtatious innuendos— she delivers them perfectly, but I'd wish her storyline had been expanded. She's wonderful in 5 Card Stud and it's a real treat of a western to watch!