Well, it's no surprise that Turner saved Sinatra for the final Friday of "Summer Under the Stars." Impossible for me to pick a favorite role. Sinatra won his only Oscar for his supporting role in 1954 in "From Here to Eternity," a film that also featured two of the best roles ever in the careers of Burt Lancaster and Monty Clift.

Now, Frank was in competition that year with not one but with two characters from one of the greatest Westerns ever; Shane (1953), a film shown today on Turner starring Alan Ladd and the beautifully funny and talented Jean Arthur, who was featured today on TCM's final day of "Summer Under the Stars."

I had no idea that "Shane" would mark Arthur's final role ever on screen. She was SO pretty and talented, and one of tne pioneers in 'screw-ball comedy' of the 30's and 40's, and was also known for doing a number of roles with Jimmy Stewart. Despite being 51 at the time Of "Shane," she still had the look of a young, flaxen goddess. But it would be her only film ever done in color and the only time the world ever got to see her beautiful golden hair in color on screen. She dropped out of film altogether, apparently never remarrying the next 40 yrs and remaining childless. Obviously this was unheard of for women in those days, and she was really a true hero just for her efforts to stay her own course in life and not let herself be defined by society's norms.


Now, as for the competition that year for the Oscar's best supporting role, among others, Sinatra was up against an 11 year old and a guy who had spoken only a handful of lines, both from "Shane." It was the young boy who played Arthur's son, Joey, and a future contemporary American star in big, bad Jack Palance (who would of course many years later co-star in the modern western acclaim, "City Slickers") for his role as the gunfighter; Jack Wilson, despite his character only speaking only a handful of lines the entire film. But this was just a such a powerful, stirring film that each of the characters resonated right off the screen and into our laps.

Shane is a film that filmmakers have tried to emulate over and over again thoughout the generations, I know for a fact that guys like Turnbull and SC revel in this film, and I've been watching Westerns since youth and I'd say it's the pinnacle of the genre. Arguably one of the best climaxes to any film ever, it's as if every moment of the film leads specifically and exculsively to the final gunfight - a gunfight was featured in the film's trailor, apparently producers had no problem filling in the audience to the film's ending. Thus, I'm not really spoiling the film by showing this classic ending b/c the producers put in the trailor for everyone to see.

Notice the powerful performance from the young boy in this closing scene, absolutely Oscar worthy even at such a young age! And Jack Palance is stone-faced and chilling in the villian role as he squares off to meet Shane. Again, arguably the greatest finale to any film ever made...But there was never any doubt about how this one was gonna end. 'He never would have even cleared the holster, would he, Shane.'


And Jack,
"I've heard that you're a low-down, Yankee liar."