Old Yeller

"All the heart, all the excitement of a great frontier adventure!"

1957 1h 24m EN

👍

6.9

SOLID

★6.9TMDB · 315

AdventureDramaFamilyWestern

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Young Travis Coates is left to take care of the family ranch with his mother and younger brother while his father goes off on a cattle drive in the 1860s. When a yellow mongrel comes for an uninvited stay with the family, Travis reluctantly adopts the dog.

“All the heart, all the excitement of a great frontier adventure!”

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Cast

Tommy Kirk
Travis Coates
Dorothy McGuire
Katie Coates
Fess Parker
Jim Coates
Kevin Corcoran
Arliss Coates
Jeff York
Bud Searcy
Beverly Washburn
Lisbeth Searcy
Chuck Connors
Sanderson

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Robert Stevenson
Writers: Fred Gipson, William Tunberg
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

84 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

69 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Part of the "The Old Yeller Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Robert Stevenson, shot by Charles P. Boyle. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Will Schaefer. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Stanley E. Johnson shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Tommy Kirk and Dorothy McGuire and Fess Parker carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Robert Stevenson directs. Charles P. Boyle behind the camera. Will Schaefer scores. Stanley E. Johnson cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

184 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
269 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Part of the "The Old Yeller Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
5Directed by Robert Stevenson, shot by Charles P. Boyle. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Will Schaefer. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Stanley E. Johnson shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Tommy Kirk and Dorothy McGuire and Fess Parker carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "All the heart, all the excitement of a great frontier adventure!".
10IMDB entry: tt0050798 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 9 themes, including "texas", "ranch", "dog", "cattle".