Happy Birthday to Classic Movie Legend, Gary Cooper, Born May 7th, 1901!
In an episode of the Sopranos, Mob Boss Tony Soprano asks “What ever happened to Gary Cooper?” Of course he’s not actually talking about the actual Gary Cooper. The real Gary Cooper was laid to rest decades before the utterance. What Tony Soprano was talking about is all that the Gary Cooper persona represented: the myth of the stoic, everyday American man. Gary Cooper represented a specific mythos in American culture. It was a culture of un-emotive dignity, a time when Americans went about their business with sparkle or pizzazz, without fanfare or swagger. Unlike the Schwarzenegggers and Stathoms of today, Cooper didn’t fall into the overly macho and militarized image of the modern screen hero. It was not for nothing that Gary Cooper was chosen by Sergeant Alvin York himself to play him in his autobiography. It’s not abs and egos that create the great myth of Gary Cooper, it’s conviction and firm belief in your own action. So, celebrate this great American myth of man, let’s look at his some of his most stoic heroics.
…..
Gary Cooper in Sergeant York (1941, Howard Hawks director)
…..
Gary Cooper in The Pride of the Yankees (1942, Sam Wood director)
…..
Gary Cooper in High Noon ( 1952, Fred Zinneman director)
…..
Minoo Allen for Classic Movie Hub
Visit CMH’s BlogHub for more posts about Gary Cooper by Veteran and Emerging Classic Movie Bloggers.
,
After viewing the movie ‘The Fountainhead’, co-starring Patricia O’Neil, at least 10 times, I finally got to purchase the book on which the movie was based, written by Ayn Rand.
I was hooked from the very first sentence and the 727 pages took me less than a week to read. Wow! I also want to mention ‘They Came to Cordura’, another solid performance, so typical of Gary Cooper! Thanks for this bog.