8/23/2023 0 Comments My friend flickaNow people say we need more shows today where parents are more restrictive.” Many episodes included a line by Gene to Johnny, “You did what you thought was right son, and that’s the important thing.” Most of us brought up on series like “Flicka” still live by those words today. Recently, when “My Friend Flicka” was on TV Land reruns, Gene told me, “Some people thought I was too strict with my son-too stern on Ken. But Gene sure got a kick out of cooling-off everyone else.” The actors couldn’t join in because of our costumes and make-up. Gene would often turn on the fire hose and wet down the crew with it. It got very hot there in the summer, sometimes up to 110 degrees. “All our outdoor shooting was done in Malibu Canyon. Pranks would be pulled to relieve tension and Evans frequently took part in the hi-jinx. I never found anyone having as much fun as I was doing ‘Flicka’.”Īt the same time, Washbrook observed that the grind of doing a series could sometimes be stressful. “I can remember visiting friends on the sets of other shows at the time. Now a New England banker, he told Ray Nielsen of the Memphis Film Festival, following Evans’ death, “Gene was one of the reasons why the company was so bonded and worked so well together.” He called Evans ‘Dad’ on and off camera to get into the feel of his role. Johnny Washbrook (born 10/16/44) was 10 years old when the series began. We shot on the Fox western street and the Fox Ranch in Malibu Canyon.” Johnny was a great kid with saucer-like eyes. Frank was a great guy to work with-a good fisherman. When we were shooting, Anita had her own schedule and Johnny Washbrook was only able to work certain hours because he was a minor so you know who got the first and last shot everyday. ![]() ![]() A year later she had a ‘whim’ to not do it any longer, leaving the rest of us unemployed. Gene recalled, “Anita Louise was married to Fox honcho (Buddy Adler) and had a ‘whim’ to do a series. Gene Evans once told me Ferguson was also a noted acting coach at Columbia. Superb character actor Frank Ferguson (1899-1978) was Gus, the ranch foreman. The horse, Flicka (actually an Arabian sorrel named Wahama), was owned by livestock supplier Ralph McCutcheon with his training handled by Les Hilton. Anita Louise (1915-1970) replaced the film’s Rita Johnson as Ken’s mother, Nell, in the half hour color series which ran for 38 episodes. Toronto, Canada, born Johnny Washbrook essayed the role of young Ken McLaughlin (played in the films by Roddy McDowall) and the late Gene Evans was his father, Rob (Preston Foster in the films). As in the films, the Fox produced TV series revolved around the popular theme of a boy and his horse and the struggles of the McLaughlin family on a ranch in Montana. We shut them up, keep their natural food and water away from them that. Though the strong bond between boy and horse only fuels his father's disdain, Ken's growing love for his friend Flicka is changing him-leading a once-aimless young man down the path to responsible adulthood, forging a new respect and understanding between father and son, and inspiring a fierce loyalty that nearly costs Ken his life.“My Friend Flicka” (CBS 2/10/56-2/1/57) took its lead from two successful 20th Century-Fox films, “My Friend Flicka” (‘43) and “Thunderhead, Son of Flicka” (‘45). Theres a responsibility we have toward animals. Then one day, Ken's life is filled with new purpose when he finds Flicka, a magnificent filly as wild as she is fast. To his brusque, practical father, the boy is an enigma and a disappointment. ![]() ![]() The show was set on a ranch in Montana, around 1900 and starred 12-year old. This novel has sentiment and quality.”- Donald GordonĪ timeless favorite of adults and children alike, My Friend Flicka resides in “that borderland where some of the best-loved books in the English tongue hold their immortality.” ( New York Herald Tribune)Ī daydreamer and a time waster, young Ken McLaughlin spends his days on his family's Wyoming ranch with his head in the clouds, surrounded by endless blue skies, wide-open spaces, and beautiful horses. On this day in 1956, the TV series 'My Friend Flicka' premiered on CBS. “A blend of Steinbeck’s short gem, The Red Pony, and Rawling’s The Yearling.
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