Was Trigger a stallion?
Yep, Fury, the story of a horse and the boy who loved him (Bobby Diamond w/ Peter Graves as the dad).
And loved Jimmy Stewart’s horse too. So two out of three- unfortunately I met Little Joe’s horse at the Houston Livestock Show back in the day- no way, Jose. Nasty critter with a serious biting problem.
[QUOTE=spotsinabox;6433546]
Since some of us may have grown up on the old western movies … who’s your favorite horse??
And what are some of your favorite horses in the movies …
For example I love the sorrel that Ben Johnson is riding in the John Wayne western She Wore A Yellow Ribbon, I also liked a sorrel in an old Robert Taylor movie --can’t remember the name of the film, had a bunch of ladies in covered wagons going west …
I think John Wayne really got cheated when they put him on that short Appaloosa in El Dorado. But I loved his big sorrel in Chisolm, “Dollar” was a more modern looking horse.
Trigger was a big favorite as was Buttermilk… Gene Autry’s Champ … Loved the Cisco Kid’s loud black and white Paint. Charlton Heston rode a great looking black and white overo in The Big Country.
My family always rolls their eyes when the first thing I mention is the quality of the horses in the western, or the fact that the fellow was riding a bay–but they showed a sorrel bucking…LOL[/QUOTE]
I hear that!
We got a box of 50 olllld Western movies on DVD, and most are so bad they’re just about unwatchable, but you know I’m sitting there going, “Ooo, is that a flaxen chestnut?”
Some of the better ones in the set are those that have the horse in the cast. Like, ‘Sparky the Wonder Horse.’ 
Speaking of Jimmy Stewart, just enjoyed ‘Winchester 73’ (1950) with Shelley Winters, Dan Duryea and others including Rock Hudson as the Indian chief.
Just did a little surfing and found this fun site:
http://horsefame.tripod.com/stunt3.html
If you scroll a bit down to Chuck Connors and the Rifleman horse ‘Razor,’ I actually knew that horse- he was bought in an auction of tv horses in the latter half of the 60s and ended up at our barn in Houston. The owner never rode him, he was retired to a grass paddock, but we used to amuse ourselves figuring out his camera cues.
$2500 for trigger in the 30s makes a lot more sense than the $30,000 I heard. In the book “Happy Trails”, a biography of sorts for Roy, Dale etc. it says that Roy turned down $200,000.00 for Trigger in the 1940s. That must have been a record for the time.
There was quite a few “Triggers”, I like this site…
http://www.happytrails.org/trigger.html
Also this one…
[QUOTE=Leather;6435131]
I think Gunsmoke is where I got my love of buckskins. That must have been a huge horse since James Arness was 6’7".
People say my horse looks like Little Joe’s Cochise.
Great collection of movie horses: http://www.cowboypal.com/hosses.html[/QUOTE]
Thanks to this great link, I learned the horse ‘with the white mane’ I referred to is Koko— and how could I forget Fury?
Fury… loved that movie. Wonder if it’s available these days.
Is My Friend Flicka (the original w/Roddy MacDowell) considered a ‘Western?’ That was another fave.
Wasn’t Koko the flashy chestnut, flaxen mane and tail and chrome that Nick Barkley/Peter Breck rode in The Big Valley? My kinda man! He rode ok, but was rough with his hands. Lee Majors rode well. Lotta hunks on that western – love the reruns, LOL!
PennyG
Koko was Rex Allen’s horse and I did get to pat him at the Houston Livestock show way back in the day! Might have technically been a shade of chestnut but really more like chocolate w/flaxen mane and tail.
[QUOTE=Beverley;6438389]
Koko was Rex Allen’s horse and I did get to pat him at the Houston Livestock show way back in the day! Might have technically been a shade of chestnut but really more like chocolate w/flaxen mane and tail.[/QUOTE]
Yes, it was a black-n-white movie I saw him in… holy cow, I LOVE that color on a horse. Lucky you!
Not really an “old” Western, but I loved Mouse - the horse Newt rode in the Lonesome Dove miniseries. Nothing really special or beautiful about him, but I thought he was just a cute little horse.
I saw Robert Duvall being interviewed once and he said the bucking his horse did near the beginning of “Lonesome Dove” when they are starting their trip North was spontanious and he insisted on it being left in.
Same here with being an Eastwood fan, and yes, absolutely love the horse he rode in Pale Rider – I was going to mention it if no one else had.
The horse reminds me of the one he rode in High Plains Drifter.
I also love Pie – Jimmy Stewart’s mount in nearly every one of his westerns.
[QUOTE=Beverley;6438389]
Koko was Rex Allen’s horse and I did get to pat him at the Houston Livestock show way back in the day! Might have technically been a shade of chestnut but really more like chocolate w/flaxen mane and tail.[/QUOTE]
Koko and Rex Allen came to our local fair and rodeo when I was a kid. I remember that he coliced while he was here and there was a big to do about getting the vet out and whether he was going to be ok. He did recover from the colic but Rex had to ride a substitute in his appearances while at the rodeo.
My best friend and I tracked that big sorrel for years.
There are so many that caught my attention then and now on TV reruns and old movies.
The cute black horse Robert Conrad rode in The Wild Wild West, Nick Barkleys’ chocolate/flaxen mane/tail horse. FYI - Peter Breck has alzhiemers :no:. The horses ridden by the Virginian and Trampas. I vaguely remember the horse ridden by Paladin, of course I loved everything Paladin did.
Anytime Ben Johnson swing a leg over a horse, John Ford always included his riding in his movies.
Randolph Scott always rode really nice sorrels with flaxen mane/tail. It looked to be the same horse in several movies.
Joel McCrea - wonderful rider and always well horsed.
Stuart Whitman in the Cimaron Strip - had a really neat dark bay/black horse he rode.
Fetus and his mule were very special. Interesting to note he was/is a trained actor and singer. He was in several old John Wayne movies, western and military.
Oh gosh! I had forgotten about The Wild Wild West!!
As I mentioned, I just loved Ben Johnson and the sorrel horse he was riding in “She Wore A Yellow Ribbon”. I noticed Joel McCrea had a couple different movies where he was riding a bald face, stocking legged, blue eyed sorrel.
I wonder where they found all these great horses? I’m sure there are some interesting stories … 
I liked the horse Slim Pickens rode in Blazing Saddles. Now, THERE was a horse!!
Strangely, no matter how bad the western, I always notice the horse first!!
I always loved all the horses in the old TV westerns. Talk about bomb proofed!!
BTW, does anyone know about the horse Steve McQueen rode in Tom Horn?? The horse was shot out from underneath him and that’s when Steve/Tom went haywire. The way the horse dropped, it was a little too real!! Anyone know if the horse was actually shot?? The bald faced bay, I think he was. If not, that horse had falling down pat.
