John Farkis - The Making of Tombstone

McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Jefferson, North Carolina

Photographs are from the collection of the author unless credited otherwise.

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGUING DATA ARE AVAILABLE

BRITISH LIBRARY CATALOGUING DATA ARE AVAILABLE

e-ISBN: 978-1-4766-3503-3

2019 John Farkis. All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Front cover image: Kurt Russell as Wyatt Earp in Tombstone (Buena Vista Pictures/Photofest); background: A view from the front of the O.K. Corral looking toward Fremont street. The two-story Tombstone Epitaph building is on the far right (photograph by Lee Gray/courtesy Catherine Hardwicke)

McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Box 611, Jefferson, North Carolina 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com

To Jean
Youve supported me for so many years,
kept me on the right path,
and literally saved my life.
I love you more than life itself.
I know this sounds a bit corny, but it sure is appropriate:
I promise to love you the rest of your life.

When I purchase a book of historical interest, the first thing I usually do is browse through the acknowledgments, bibliography and endnote sections, for it is there where one can determine the depth of the authors research. It is also where heretofore unknown manuscripts, letters, books and library collections are at your fingertips, if the author has cited his or her work properly. So once again, I thank my research assistant Leisa Johnson-Kalin for all her hard work and efforts. I owe you big time! Rick Hassler had filled the thankless role of correcting my grammatical and punctuation errors. After four books, you would think my writing would improve. As I told Rick, They wouldnt put the keys on the keyboard unless they wanted you to use them. And I tried to use every stinkin one!

In the bibliography, Ive listed all the individuals Ive interviewed, but there are several additional folks who need to be recognized for going above and beyond the call of duty: Jeff Morey, Sam Dolan, P.J. Lawton, John Peel, Peter Sherayko, Jerry and Judy Crandall, Jerry and Kathy Tarantino, Edie Fasano, Bob Boze Bell, Larry Zeug, Chris Swinney and particularly Anne Lockhart Taylor. Without Annes encouragement and assistance, this project never would have gotten off the ground. The professionals at the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences Margaret Herrick Library, the Arizona State Library and Michigan State University were tireless in their efforts to assist, while members of the Tombstone Original Buckaroo Facebook webpage graciously welcomed me into their group. Virtually all the Buckaroo stories came from my contacts with them and, collectively, they significantly contributed to the quality of this book. Not only did I receive wonderful information, I also made some great new friends.

I also want to thank Joe Musso, Don Taylor, Tony Malowski, Myra MacKay, Frank Thompson and Allan Barra for their assistance in helping me contact many of the individuals whose interviews appear in this work. A special thanks goes out to Michael Blake, author of Hollywood and the O.K. Corral: Portrayals of the Gunfight and Wyatt Earp, who graciously allowed me the use of interviews he conducted for his wonderful book. In addition to some of the folks I have previously mentioned, Id also like to thank Tom and Charley Ward, David Russell, Garrett Roberts, Wendy Wolverton, Billy Lang and Jake Johnson for allowing me to showcase their photographs. If I have failed to properly acknowledge or misidentified an individuals contribution, I sincerely apologize.

Once again, Mike Boldt has created a wonderfully creative book cover and I cant express my thanks enough for his efforts. Sorry we asked for so many changes, Miguel.

This book is about the making of the film Tombstone, told in the words of those who were there. It is not supposed to be a detailed historical summation of what actually transpired in history; I suggest that those who are interested in an analysis of the story, browse through the bibliography section of this book. Authors Casey Tefertiller, Gary Roberts, Ben Traywick, Victoria Wilcox, Mary Dora Russell, Jeff Guinn, Paula Mitchell Marks, Bob Boze Bell and many others who are much more astute, informed and articulate than I, have delved into this storys minutiae. I have a very close friend who, when asked what time it is, will tell you how to build a watch. And thats great! For those who love history, thats the level of detail they desire. But for the casual fan, I instead chose to summarize the actual story and put it into some sort of historical context.

Tombstone is a classic tale of the Old West told in black and white and shades of gray. It is set in 1881 Arizona where former lawman Wyatt Earp, joined by his brothers and Doc Holliday, seek their fortune in a lawless silver-mining town. Their efforts are soon thwarted by a renegade band of outlaws know as The Cowboys, who resent and resist any form of control. Forced to take matters into their own hands after the local sheriff is murdered, the Earps once again pin on badges and attempt to bring law and order to Tombstone. However, once one brother is ambushed and another murdered after the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Wyatt forms a vigilante posse and vows to eliminate the outlaws.

It should come as no surprise that Tombstone itself is not 100 percent historically accurate because, after all, its entertainment! Some events and the sequences in which they occurred have been condensed and modified for purposes of presentation. Historically, for example, Wyatt, Virgil and Morgan Earp did not accompany their wives to Tombstone. Rather, it was just Wyatt, James and Virgil; Morgan and Warren arrived later. Also, Wyatt and Virgil didnt take Morgans coffin to Tucson, James did. Wyatt and his posse accompanied Virgil and Allie several days later. Similarly, Morgan and Virgil were not both attacked on the same night. And the list goes on and on. But for entertainment purposes, its not that important, for a very simple reason: They only had two hours to tell a story.

Nor is this a book about why certain characters recite specific lines, how they react to others in a particular scene, or what their psychological makeup is vis--vis the surrounding environment. Again, there are a plethora of books out there that discuss film theory, scene development and the role of the auteur. This book addresses none of that but rather, how the film was actually made.

As readers are no doubt aware, films are not usually shot in sequential order. Actor availability, weather, soundstage vs. locations, interior vs. exteriors shots, day vs. night and numerous other factors determine when a specific scene is filmed. To add to that complexity, there were two directors on Tombstone, Kevin Jarre and George Cosmatos, and the latter decided to use hardly any of the formers footage. Thus many scenes were filmed a second time. Dialogue was changed and, in some cases, a particular scene might have been filmed several times in different locations. Mid1993 saw the Arizona production crew start filming on the Babocomari Ranch, move to Old Tucson Studios, then to Mescal, back to Old Tucson, and end up back at the Babocomariand that was just the first unit. Throw in Mt. Lemon, Sabino Canyon and Douglas Dry Lake and, well, one can see just how difficult it was to detail what was what. As I have tried to determine day by day what occurred when, this also complicated matters, and the lack of a final shooting schedule only further exacerbated the situation. I have tried to put the shooting schedule in the proper order; any errors of date and content, while inadvertent, are solely mine.