Who Are Those Guys? - Jackie Bezard

Jacques Gaston Bézard was born in Nancy, Meurthe-et-Moselle, France on July 9, 1930. Bézard was a French producer and film actor who appeared in over 30 films starting with “A Woman of Evil” in 1954. His last film appearance was in “Général... nous voilà!” (1978). His most remembered film was probably his role in “Kiss Kiss, Kill Kill” (1966) in the role of Captain Olson. As Jackie Bézard, he appeared in only one Euro-western: “Black Eagle of Santa Fe” as Pasqual in 1964. Jackie died on April 10, 2004 in Sallanches, Haute-Savoie, France.

 

BEZARD, Jackie (aka Bézard, Jacky Bezard, Jakie Bezard) (Jacques Gaston Bézard) [7/9/1930, Nancy, Meurthe-et- Moselle, France – 4/10/2004, Sallanches, Haute-Savoie, France] - producer.
Black Eagle of Santa Fe - 1964 (Pasqual)

RIP Dario De Grassi

Italian actor and voice dubber Dario De Grassi died in Rome, Italy today September 19^th. He was 74. De Grassi appeared in four Euro-westerns: “The Man Who Came to Kill” (1965), “Dynamite Joe” as Foster, “My Name is Pecos” as Pratt and “A Taste for Killing as Steve the last three all in 1966.

THE SIGN OF THE COYOTE

Il segno di Coyote – Italian title

Il vendicatore di California – Italian title
El vengador de California – Spanish title
La marca del Coyote – Spanish title
Het teken van de Coyote – Dutch title
La griffe du coyote – French title
La signe du coyote – French title
Mit Colt und Maske – German title
I ekdikisi tou coyote – Greek title
The Sign of the Coyote – English title
 
A 1963 Italian, Spanish co-production [P.E.A. (Rome), Copercines Cooperativa Cinematográfica, Hispamer Films P.C. (Madrid)]
Producer: Aldo U. Passalacqua
Director: Mario Caiano
Story: José Mallorqui (José Figueroa)
Screenplay: José Mallorqui (José Figueroa)
Cinematography: Carlo Fiore, Aldo Greci [Agfacolor]
Music: Francesco De Masi, Manuel Parada
Running time: 80 minutes
 
Cast:
Leon/César de Echagüe/Galiardo/’Coyote’ – Fred Canow (Fernando López)
Leonor/Mary Acevedo – María Lux (Luz Galicia)
Governor Parker – Mario Feliciani
Madam Acevedo – Paola Barbara (Paolina Prato)
Lenny – Piero Lulli (Giusva Lulli)
Judge Clemens – Arturo Dominici
Beatrice – Giulia Rubini (Giuliana Rabini)
Señor Diego de Echagüe - Jesús Tordesillas (Jesús Fernández)
Señora de Echagüe - Maruja Tamayo
Lupita – Nadia Marlowa (Nadia Marlova)
‘One Ear’ Raf Baldassarre (Raffaele Baldassarre)
Wilkes – Giuseppe Fortis
Lugones – Fernando Sancho (Fernando Les)
Guard – Pedro Fenollar
Beatrice’s mother – Virginia Field (Ermelinda Siniscalchi de Venosa)
Sergeant Hogg – Alfonso Rojas (Alfonso Melquíades)
Bearded Samaritan – José Jaspe (José Rivas)
Captain Gray – José Marco Davo
Doctor Valdez – Santiago Rivero
Don Goyo’s son – Andrea Scotti
Joaquin Gallardo – Fernando Hilbeck (Fernando Gavalda)
Don Goyo – Félix Fernández (Félix Garcia)
Sheriff – José Villasante
Colonel – Porfirio Tamayo
Lenny henchmen – Simón Arriaga, Gonzalo Esquirez, Antonio Padilla
Army doctor Captain – Luis Rivera
Barman – Agustin Bescos
With: Román Ariznavarreta

In the newly annexed California Yankee officials, led by Governor Parker, discriminate and try to strip the local Hispanic population of their land deeds. Caesar Echagüe, who belongs to an long time family of ranchers, pretending to be a coward and a dandy, but is actually in disguise fighting against injustice under the secret identity of the Coyote. The alleged Caesar simpleton attitude shames his fiancée, Leonor, until Coyote saves her from a plot by the evil Parker and reveals his true identity.

 

Film link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSOhczkMPAA

 

Happy 85th Birthday Adam West

William West Anderson was born on September 19, 1928 in Walla Walla, Washington. At 14 Adam attended Lakeside School, then went on to Whitman College, where he got a degree in literature and psychology. During his last year of college he also married 17-year-old Billie Lou Yeager.

 
Adam got a job as a DJ at a local radio station, and enrolled at Stanford for post-grad courses. Drafted into the army, he spent the next 2 years starting military TV stations. Afterwards, Adam and his wife toured Europe, visiting Germany, Switzerland and Italy's Isle of Capri. When the money ran out, he joined a childhood and college buddy, Carl Hebenstreit, who was starring in the kiddie program "The Kini Popo Show" in Hawaii. Adam would eventually replace Carl but not the other star, Peaches the Chimp. In 1956 he was divorced and married Ngatokoruaimatauaia Frisbie. They had a daughter, Jonelle, in 1957 and a son, Hunter, in 1958. In 1959 Adam came to Hollywood. He adopted the stage name "Adam West", which fit his roles, as he appeared in a few westerns.
 
After seven years in Hollywood, he achieved fame in 1966 in his signature role as Batman, in the wildly popular ABC-TV series "Batman" (1966). The series, which lasted three seasons, made him not just nationally but internationally famous. The movie version, Batman (1966), earned Adam the "Most Promising New Star" award in 1967. The downside was that the "Batman" fame was partly responsible for ruining his marriage, and he would be typecast and almost unemployable for a while after the series ended.
 
In 1972 he met and married Marcelle Tagand Lear, and picked up two stepchildren, Moya and Jill. In addition, they had two children of their own: Nina West in 1976 and Perrin in 1979. You can't keep a good actor down -- Adam's career took off again, and he has been in about 50 projects since then: movies, TV-movies and sometimes doing voices in TV series. Adam wrote his autobiography "Back to the Batcave" in 1994. One of his most prized possessions is a drawing of Batman by Bob Kane with the inscription "To my buddy, Adam, who breathed life into my pen and ink creation".
 
West appeared in one Euro-western: “The Relentless Four” (1965). Today we celebrate Adam West’s 85^th birthday.

RIP Richard C. Sarafian

Vanishing Point director Richard C. Sarafian died today in Santa Monica of complications from pneumonia. He was 83. The New York City-born Sarafian had suffered a fall recently where he broke several ribs and back. He contracted the infection while recovering from that incident. Sarafian’s helming of the iconic 1971 car pic was an inspiration to Quentin Tarantino, who gave the director a Special Thanks in the credits of 2007’s car-themed Death Proof. The director was also behind the camera on a number of episodes of TV shows like Batman, I Spy, 77 Sunset Strip and Gunsmoke as well. His last directing job was a 1990 episode of Zorro: The Legend Continues. Sarafian was a presence in front of the camera too. Among his various acting jobs, his good friend Warren Beatty cast him in both Bullworth and Bugsy. Sarafian also was the director on the 1971 Euro-western "Man in the Wilderness" starring Richard Harris.

 

Remembering Franco Franchi

Franco Franchi was born (Francesco Benenato) on September18, 1928 in Palermo, Sicily, Italy. He began with small funny performances in the streets using the nickname Ciccio Ferraù. In 1955 he and Ciccio Ingrassia formed a comedy team and acted in low-class stage shows until they were discovered by the movie director Mario Mattoli who gave them two bit parts in "Appuntamento a Ischia" alongside the singer and actor Domenico Modugno. Modugno used them in an important stage performance in the musical comedy "Rinaldo in campo". Franchi & Ingrassia's specialties were low budget, quickly turned movies: twelve of their films were made in one year, one in four Sundays. Their careers really took off in the 1960s. Franco starred in a few dramatic roles such as Luigi Comencini's “Adventures of Pinocchio” (1972), in which they paired memorably as the Fox and the Cat and in the film “Due Marines e un Generale” (1966), with Buster Keaton. Franchi appeared in eleven Euro-westerns from: “Two Mafiamen in the Wild West” (1964) to “Grandson of Zorro” (1975).

 
Franchi is the father of actor Massimo Franchi [1965- ]. Franco died in Rome, Italy on December 9, 1992. Today we remember Franco Franchi on what would have been his 85^th birthday.

SHUNA: THE LEGEND

Las Cruces: Silver Starr - Italian title

Shuna: the Legend - English title
 
A 2011 Italian production [West 46th Films (Rome)]
Producer: Alessandro Parrello, Giampaolo Duranti    Massimo Sperati
Director: Emiliano Ferrera
Story: Emiliano Ferrera
Screenplay: Emiliano Ferrera, Igor Maltagliati, Alezzandro Parello   David Tettoni
Cinematography: Cosimo Fiore [color]
Music: Vittorio Giannelli  Emiliano Ferrera
Running time: ?
 
Cast:
Shuna – Ada Perotti (Hong Hu)
Joe Galvez – Alex Parrello (Alessandro Parrello)
Randall McNally - Stefano Fregni
Dickins - Franco Trevisi
Stark - Francesco Cabras
Liz – Laura Baldi
with: Enzo Castellari (Enzo Girolami), Simone Pieroni, Francis Goat, Andrea Fitoavanti, Angela Pablico, Marco Caldoro, Hong Hu
Stunts: Angelo Allegretti, Benedetto Lo Monaco

2009 Cast:
Shuna - Monica Pellini, Joe Galvez - Mendez Maurizio Sinibaldi, Sciamana - Vanda Carboni, Zeb - Angelo Amoretti, Stark - Benedetto Lo Monaco, Jhon - Giuseppe Cannistraro, Frank p Emiliano Ferrera, with: Stefano Liberati, Paolo Galiano

New Mexico, 1874. Indians are being persecuted and killed by the Americans. A woman has survived a massacre and with her rifle and Winchester she seeks justice. Known under the name of Shuna, she encounters and kills the brother of Joe Galvez a feared bandit who now wants revenge and a closer of accounts with the Indio, keeper of a secret that concerns them both.

 

[The film was originally begun in 2009 with Massimo Sperati as Executive Producer and a story by David Tettoni. Director was still Emiliano Ferrera. The cast was completely different even mentioning Giuliana Gemma as a possible participant. The following cast and crew were: Shuna - Monica Pellini, Mendez - Maurizio Sinibaldi, Sciamana - Vanda Carboni, Zeb - Angelo Amoretti, Stark – Benedetto lo Monaco, Jhon - Giuseppe Cannistraro, Frank - Emiliano Ferrerea, Joe - Paolo Galiano and with Stefano Liberati. This production was never completed and two years later in 2011 Shuna: The Legend was completed with the crew and cast listed above.]

 

YouTube 2009 trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=___kZTDOnUU