BajaNomad

Redford post

Osprey - 7-28-2012 at 07:28 AM

Remembering Redford


Redford’s visit to the border and the post about it took me back in time. I worked with the guy up in Utah. I remember we were the same age, born on the same day; him in New York I think, me in Parawan, Utah August 18, 1936.

In 1972 I was training horses in Paradise Valley at the foot of the Cedar mountains near Cedar City, Utah. They shoot lots of movie scenes around “Movie Ranch” near Cedar Breaks and they sometimes contract with me for animals on the westerns.

So I got the deal for Jeremiah Johnson with shots around Lee Valley, Long Valley, all around Zion National Park. Very first day Redford’s regular stunt man broke a rib. The whole crew pointed to me because of my hotshot football star days at Southern Utah state university way back when. Turned out to be a great gig because most of the stunt stuff was on horseback, I was the same build and age as the actor and with the long hair, all that beard and buckskin my uncle Ernie could have doubled. I had done some stunt work before around these parts on other movies and I had my card.

These western sets are usually pretty informal and it’s not unusual for the stars to mingle with the groundlings. It’s not always smooth because there’s that thing hangin’ in the air; “I’m supposed to say this, he’s supposed to say that.” A lot of fumbling around with them trying to be a “regular Joe” and the crew trying hard not to “suck up”, get too personal or too chummy like we knew the people like we all went to grade school together somewhere.

It was a little different with me and Redford because we had to talk a little about the stunts. He wanted to do all of them but he was a hot property even way back then and the bosses didn’t want him taking any chances. We had a down day and he asked me to show him around some so we got in my old Jeep and toured the Breaks and the Zion shoulders. Some stunning views up there and he was enjoying just being off the set while I played local tour guide.

We did enough chit chat that he asked me if I could maybe take some time off to scout around “Color Country”, as they call it, do some fishing. I was honored that he would ask me and I gave him my address and phone number but I never heard from him.

He’s probably talking about me right now. Telling some hotshots about his ole’ buddy stunt man pal in Southern Utah (me and Buster Carrier who did the jump for him in Butch Cassidy) and how sorry he is that he didn’t have more time to relax, just run away and play with his ole’ buddies.

Santiago - 7-28-2012 at 07:36 AM

Dude....:biggrin:

Udo - 7-28-2012 at 07:52 AM

My wife loves you even more now than before, George.

Highly impressive resumé, IMHO.

Osprey - 7-28-2012 at 07:57 AM

I don't have any bad feelings about Redford not contacting me because it was because of him, at a cast party in Cedar, I got to meet Cheryl Sarkisian (you probably know her by just Cher) and that began a whole nother world for me.

DavidE - 7-28-2012 at 08:45 AM

Fascinating Osprey. Thanks.

Ken Bondy - 7-28-2012 at 09:09 AM

Jorge you are my hero.

Osprey - 7-28-2012 at 09:19 AM

I should have (in the first post) dedicated, as I do now, the subject to Dennis -- a little spur of the moment fiction to take his mind off his maladies.

I wish those things had happened. I hate Redford. I particularly hate his hair. No man should be allowed to have hair like that.

vandenberg - 7-28-2012 at 12:24 PM

Jorge,
You still got it.

:biggrin::biggrin:

BajaBlanca - 7-28-2012 at 12:50 PM

great story !!!

JZ - 7-28-2012 at 01:29 PM

I can tell you all about meeting Jack Black at a bar at the Diskill in Austin 2 weeks ago... not the same cache though... LOL

RR is a legend.

thebajarunner - 7-28-2012 at 01:44 PM

Fiction or not,
I bet old RR is still talking about you...

Reminds me of a story (true story, by the way) that my brother in law tells.

Many years ago he served his Army hitch playing viola in the "Strolling Strings" unit of the USA (tough duty, but hey, he is a musician)

I asked him if the president ever spoke to him personally, and he said "Sure"
"One evening LBJ was making the rounds of the room, walked behind our band and growled 'Outta my way, son'"

There you have it, conversation with the rich and famous

durrelllrobert - 7-28-2012 at 06:56 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by thebajarunner
Fiction or not,
I bet old RR is still talking about you...

Reminds me of a story (true story, by the way) that my brother in law tells.

Many years ago he served his Army hitch playing viola in the "Strolling Strings" unit of the USA (tough duty, but hey, he is a musician)

I asked him if the president ever spoke to him personally, and he said "Sure"
"One evening LBJ was making the rounds of the room, walked behind our band and growled 'Outta my way, son'"

There you have it, conversation with the rich and famous

I have a cousin that lives in Park City that is a good friend with Redford. Last time I was there we had dinner with him at a restaurant. I was amazed at how short he is.

Frank - 8-1-2012 at 04:24 PM

Thanks Jorge, you have a great gift