Brigham Young (film)

Brigham Young (also known as Brigham Young – Frontiersman) is a 1940 American biographical western film starring Tyrone Power, Linda Darnell and Dean Jagger that describes Young's succession to the presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after founder Joseph Smith was assassinated in 1844. The supporting cast features Brian Donlevy, Jane Darwell, John Carradine, Mary Astor, Vincent Price and Tully Marshall.

Brigham Young
1940 theatrical release poster
Directed by	Henry Hathaway
Written by	Louis Bromfield
Screenplay by	Lamar Trotti
Produced by	Kenneth Macgowan (associate producer)
Starring	Tyrone Power Linda Darnell Brian Donlevy Jane Darwell John Carradine Mary Astor Vincent Price Jean Rogers Ann Todd Dean Jagger
Cinematography	Arthur C. Miller
Edited by	Robert Bischoff
Music by	Alfred Newman
Production company	20th Century Fox
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date	September 27, 1940 (1940-09-27)
Running time	114 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$2.5 million[1]

Plot

In frontier-town Nauvoo, Illinois in 1844, the main body of the church are forced to leave Illinois, choosing to settle temporarily in Nebraska. They then to travel by wagon train to the Great Basin.

Cast

• Tyrone Power as Jonathan Kent
• Linda Darnell as Zina Webb – The Outsider
• Dean Jagger as Brigham Young
• Brian Donlevy as Angus Duncan
• Jane Darwell as Eliza Kent
• John Carradine as Porter Rockwell
• Mary Astor as Mary Ann Young
• Vincent Price as Joseph Smith
• Jean Rogers as Clara Young
• Ann E. Todd as Mary Kent
• Willard Robertson as Heber Kimball
• Moroni Olsen as Doc Richards
• Marc Lawrence as Prosecutor
• Stanley Andrews as Hyrum Smith
• Dickie Jones as Henry Kent
• Selmer Jackson as Caleb Kent
• Arthur Aylesworth as Jim Bridger
• Chief John Big Tree as Big Elk
• Claire Du Brey as Emma Smith
• Tully Marshall as Judge
• Dick Rich as 1st Mob Leader
• Edwin Maxwell as 2nd Mob Leader
• George Melford as John Taylor
• Russell Simpson as U.S. Army Major
• Tom London as Raider (uncredited)
• Charles Middleton as Mob Member (uncredited)

Production

Parts of the film were shot in Lone Pine, California, in the plains west of Parowan Gap, and in Utah Lake for the seagull scenes.^[2]: 287 The Salt Lake City sequences were filmed in California, while the trek across Nebraska and Wyoming was shot in southern Utah.^[3]

Reception

Michael and Henry Medved included Brigham Young in their 1984 book describing film financial failures, The Hollywood Hall of Shame, stating "Twentieth Century-Fox tried to emphasize its star power and to downplay the religious elements (eventually re-titling it Brigham Young, Frontiersman), but the picture still failed, even in Utah."^[4]

See also

• List of American films of 1940
• George D. Pyper

References

1. "'Brigham Young' Cost Reported to be $2,500,000". Los Angeles Times. September 3, 1940. p. 8.
2. D'Arc, James V. (2010). When Hollywood came to town: a history of moviemaking in Utah (1st ed.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. ISBN 9781423605874.
3. "Ten movies that speak to Utah's history and character". The Salt Lake Tribune.
4. Medved & Medved, The Hollywood Hall of Shame (1984), p. 205

External links

• Brigham Young at IMDb
• Brigham Young at the TCM Movie Database
• Brigham Young at AllMovie
• Brigham Young—Frontiersman at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
• Brigham Young Souvenir Program Reprint. MSS SC 388; 20th Century Western and Mormon Manuscripts; L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University.