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 Credited with being the first 'theatrical' film ever made, THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY, made in 1903 for Thomas Edison's production company by Edwin Porter, gave birth to three great traditions in film history: film editing, the chase scene, and the Western. It presented a strong dramatic story complete with touches of romance, comedy, and suspense. This film inspired people to become 'moviegoers,' thanks to a narrative story. Eventually shown to peoples of all nations around the world, it was also a chronicle of a world of mythology and larger than life characters of the American West.
 In 1924 William Matthew Tilghman was 70 years old, a retired lawman who had served in Dodge City with Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp, who was the lawman who caught outlaw Bill Doolin, and in the course of his life met with Wild Bill Hickock and chased Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Having served a lifetime as a lawman, Tilghman had the reputation of being an honest and forthright individual at a time when such commodities were rare. It was the turn of the century, the opening of the West to civilization, and the end of the cowboy and the horse. Train travel was becoming more common, as was the automobile. Oil wells were pushing cattle off the landscape. 'Prohibition' was a new concept and was being enacted by men deputized in the name of a new branch of the Federal government and run by a Washington autocrat by the name of Herbert Hoover. Some prohibition agents in regions far from the nation's capitol were hired without much care. Wily Lynn was such an agent, who happened to sell moonshine and take payoffs from the local house of prostitution and certain businessmen. Marshall Bill Tilghman was far out of his league. The world he knew was dying or gone, and the few townspeople who appreciated him were not as powerful as those who did not. One night when he came upon a drunken Wiley Lynn he escorted him to the jail to 'sleep it off.' Lynn drew a hidden pistol and shot Tilghman fatally, leaving his widow and children without a father, and the new territory of Oklahoma without its natural protector.
 There are few actors alive today who can play such stalwart individuals with the commanding presence and grace of Sam Elliott. This month TNT premiered YOU KNOW MY NAME, the story of Tilghman's last years as a lawman. Elliott portrays Tilghman with strength, dignity, and conviction. In his 30th year in the film business, Elliott says he has finally accepted the typecasting that film studios have seemed to given him, and he will no longer fight their pigeonholing him as the lanky cowboy with a heart of gold and a back of iron. His career includes over a dozen westerns, including many taken from Louis L'Amour books and history itself. In 1969 he was a bit player in BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID, and ten years later met the female lead of that film, Katherine Ross, in a horror film, THE LEGACY. They were married soon after and have been producing their own films often since then. Elliott's more notable work includes a supporting role in MASK, the hunk in LIFEGUARD (long before Baywatch, kids), as Morgan Earp in TOMBSTONE, the cop drama RUSH, and most recently as the narrator of THE BIG LEBOWSKI. Elliott is something of a holdover from earlier times; a strong, stoic character whom you can count on to take responsibility for his actions. It is no wonder he has been relegated to the Western and the small screen.
 Other players in YOU KNOW MY NAME include Aliss Howard as FBI agent Wiley Lynn. Howard's other credits of note include MEN DON'T LEAVE, FULL METAL JACKET, and AMISTAD. He is a thorough actor with dimension, and gives an accurate portrayal of corruption having taken control of an individual's soul. Carolyn McCormick is Zoe Tilghman, spouse, mother, and chronicler of her husband's life. This actress has also starred in ENEMY MINE and A SIMPLE TWIST OF FATE. YOU KNOW MY NAME was directed by John Kent Harrison, who also wrote the film. Elliott co-executive produced with Brandon Stoddard and Amy Adelson.
 YOU KNOW MY NAME is not necessarily true to history, but it is true to a code of ethics and morality that seems sadly lost in our modern, cynical times. It provides an interesting perspective on that time a century ago when our country was overrun with opportunists who saw a brave new world without end for filling their pockets no matter the cost to our society and quality of life. Something to think about as we approach the new millenium.
Del Harvey, founder of FM, lives in Chicago. He is a devout Bears fan, and therefore deserving of our sympathy.
Got a problem? Email Del at filmmonthly@hotmail.com |
