Search the Encyclopedia Mavericana:   ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

Search the Encyclopedia Mavericana:   ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

Boetticher, Budd

Born July 29, 1916;
Chicago, Illinois, USA

Died November 29, 2001;
Ramona, California, USA

Maverick Director[1]

After his college years, Budd Boetticher went to Mexico and became a professional matador. His school chum, Hal Roach, Jr., got him involved in the film industry, most notably as a Technical Advisor, using his expertise as a bullfighter and horseman. Following an apprenticeship as studio messenger and assistant director, Boetticher was given the chance to direct other directors’ minor scenes, and low-budget westerns of his own.[1]

In 1957, Boetticher was hired by Warner Bros. to direct the pilot for Maverick, “War of the Silver Kings.” Jack Warner, head of the studio, invited him to watch some dailies of Marlon Brando in “Sayonara,” a film then in production. The scene involved Brando, completely unprepared for his scene. Everything on the set was distracting and aggravating him, but the film kept rolling, hoping to capture the scene. Brando is seen turning to a young actor in a green uniform, asking him if he has his line. The other actor replied “I’m ready, Marlon. Go right ahead.” Brando stumbled through the scene for a full nine minutes. The waste of technicolor film angered Warner so much that he wanted to fire Brando.[2]

Through it all, Boetticher had been watching the other actor in the green uniform, thinking of the pilot he had just been hired to direct and who to cast as Maverick. He asked who the young actor was and someone replied, “That’s James Garner.” Boetticher didn’t know it at the time, but Garner was already series creator and producer Roy Huggins’ choice for the role. When Garner returned from Japan where he had been filming “Sayonara,” he and Boetticher hit it off, and Garner became Bret Maverick.[2]

As a horseman, Boetticher was impressed with Garner’s own horsemanship. Boetticher didn’t like any of the horses the studio had available for Maverick’s horse, and decided to bring one in from his own stable. The horse, Gitano, was a large roan, and Garner handled him beautifully. The studio rented their horses from local stables, so naturally Boetticher could make a little money beyond his director’s pay if he also provided horses. He suggested to Roy Huggins that Maverick should always ride the same horse. Boetticher knew westerns, and claimed that western heroes have their own horse. Huggins disagreed. Huggins had created Maverick to be unique in the genre, the antithesis of the expected western hero. He told Boetticher a secret about Maverick...he doesn’t like horses. He would sell his horse in a heartbeat for a stake in a poker game.[2]

Boetticher and series creator Roy Huggins disagreed on some key aspects of the Maverick character. Huggins had created Bret Maverick to be someone that did not want to be a hero. But Boetticher, with a well-established reputation as a director of westerns, felt he had authority to change dialog and scene content to suit his own vision.[2]

In a scene in “According to Hoyle,” Big Mike McComb was supposed to say something like, “Let’s go back in there and get this guy.” to Maverick. Maverick’s response was to be along the lines of “Hey, wait a minute, Mike. Let’s think this over.” But Boetticher didn’t feel a western hero would think that way, so he exchanged the lines between the characters. Huggins demanded Boetticher respect the character as he was created and Boetticher had to comply. But Boetticher directed no more episodes of Maverick after “According to Hoyle,” the third episode of the series.[2]