John Ford

Directing

John Ford

Born February 1, 1894 · Cape Elizabeth, Maine, USA

Died August 31, 1973 · aged 79

John Ford (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973) was an American film director. He was famous for both his westerns such as Stagecoach (1939), The Searchers (1956), and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962), and adaptations of such classic 20th-century American novels as The Grapes of Wrath (1940). His four Academy Awards for Best Director (1935, 1940, 1941, 1952) is a record, and one of those fil…

Known For

UnforgivenUnforgiven · 1992
Unforgiven
7.91992
MovieWestern
William Munny is a retired, once-ruthless killer turned gentle widower and hog farmer. To help support his two motherless children, he accepts one last bounty-hunter mission to find the men who brutalized a prostitute. Joined by his former partner and a cocky greenhorn, he takes on a corrupt sheriff.
The SearchersThe Searchers · 1956
The Searchers
7.71956
MovieWestern
As a Civil War veteran spends years searching for a young niece captured by Indians, his motivation becomes increasingly questionable.
How the West Was WonHow the West Was Won · 1962
How the West Was Won
7.01962
MovieWestern
The epic tale of the development of the American West from the 1830s through the Civil War to the end of the century, as seen through the eyes of one pioneer family.
StagecoachStagecoach · 1939
Stagecoach
7.61939
MovieWestern
A group of people traveling on a stagecoach find their journey complicated by the threat of Geronimo, and learn something about each other in the process.
The Grapes of WrathThe Grapes of Wrath · 1940
The Grapes of Wrath
7.81940
MovieDrama
Tom Joad returns to his home after a jail sentence to find his family kicked out of their farm due to foreclosure. He catches up with them on his Uncle’s farm, and joins them the next day as they head for California and a new life... Hopefully.
The Man Who Shot Liberty ValanceThe Man Who Shot Liberty Valance · 1962
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
7.81962
MovieWestern
Questions arise when Senator Stoddard attends the funeral of a local man named Tom Doniphon in a small Western town. Flashing back, we learn Doniphon saved Stoddard, then a lawyer, when he was roughed up by a crew of outlaws terrorizing the town, led by Liberty Valance. As the territory's safety hung in the balance, Doniphon and Stoddard, two of the only people standing up to him, proved to be very important, but different, foes to Valance.
My Darling ClementineMy Darling Clementine · 1946
My Darling Clementine
7.51946
MovieWestern
Three brothers stop off for a night in the town of Tombstone. The next morning they find one of their brothers dead and their cattle stolen. They decide to take revenge on the culprits.
The AlamoThe Alamo · 1960
The Alamo
7.11960
MovieWarAdventure
The legendary true story of a small band of soldiers who sacrificed their lives in hopeless combat against a massive army in order to prevent a tyrant from smashing the new Republic of Texas.

Filmography

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Wagon TrainWagon Train · 1957
Wagon Train
6.61957
SeriesWesternDrama
The series initially starred veteran movie supporting actor Ward Bond as the wagon master, later replaced upon his death by John McIntire, and Robert Horton as the scout, subsequently replaced by lookalike Robert Fuller a year after Horton had decided to leave the series. The series was inspired by the 1950 film Wagon Master directed by John Ford and starring Ben Johnson, Harry Carey Jr. and Ward Bond, and harkens back to the early widescreen wagon train epic The Big Trail starring John Wayne and featuring Bond in his first major screen appearance playing a supporting role. Horton's buckskin outfit as the scout in the first season of the television series resembles Wayne's, who also played the wagon train's scout in the earlier film.

Director