{ "id": "epcgt3a7h7", "slug": "the-tin-star", "title": "The Tin Star", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure", "label": "Action and adventure films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980", "label": "Westerns before 1980", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980.yr-1930-1960", "label": "Released 1930 to 1960", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980.yr-1930-1960" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980.yr-1930-1960", "label": "United States · 1946 to 2000: Released 1930 to 1960", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980.yr-1930-1960", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946", "label": "United States · 1946 to 2000", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure", "label": "Action and adventure films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980", "label": "Westerns before 1980", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980.yr-1930-1960", "label": "Released 1930 to 1960", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980.yr-1930-1960" } ] } ], "excerpt": "The Tin Star is a 1957 Paramount black-and-white VistaVision Western directed by Anthony Mann, starring Henry Fonda as bounty hunter Morg Hickman and Anthony Perkins as greenhorn sheriff Ben Owens; based on the story The Tin Badge, Oscar-nominated for its screenplay.", "snippet": "The Tin Star is a 1957 Paramount black-and-white VistaVision Western directed by Anthony Mann, starring Henry Fonda as bounty hunter Morg Hickman and Anthony Perkins as greenhorn sheriff Ben Owens; based on the story The Tin Badge, Oscar-nominated for its screenplay.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.action-adventure.westerns-before-1980.yr-1930-1960", "markdown": "# The Tin Star\n\n**The Tin Star** is a 1957 American black-and-white Western directed by Anthony Mann, starring [Henry Fonda](https://www.edgepedia.org/henry-fonda) as bounty hunter Morg Hickman and [Anthony Perkins](https://www.edgepedia.org/anthony-perkins) as the inexperienced acting sheriff Ben Owens, and produced by William Perlberg and George Seaton for Paramount Pictures.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/53589-THE-TINSTAR?cp=1&pos=1&sid=7732d20f-1efe-454f-8740-9cfd2538637f&sr=0.12783985) The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Story and [Screenplay](https://www.edgepedia.org/screenplay) (Written Directly for the Screen) and for a BAFTA Award for Best Film from any Source.[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051087/awards/)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Release | New York opening 23 October 1957; general release 6 November 1957[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/53589-THE-TINSTAR?cp=1&pos=1&sid=2b0a3816-164b-4627-9d69-01b9bc16a7ea&sr=0.049322844) |\n| Format | Black and white, VistaVision widescreen, 92–93 minutes[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/53589-THE-TINSTAR?cp=1&pos=1&sid=2b0a3816-164b-4627-9d69-01b9bc16a7ea&sr=0.049322844) |\n| Source | Story \"The Tin Badge\" by Barney Slater and Joel Kane; screenplay by Dudley Nichols[4](https://www.tcm.com/articles/189016/the-tin-star) |\n| Key crew | Cinematographer Loyal Griggs; editor Alma Macrorie; music Elmer Bernstein; costumes Edith Head[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/53589-THE-TINSTAR?cp=1&pos=1&sid=2b0a3816-164b-4627-9d69-01b9bc16a7ea&sr=0.049322844) |\n| Awards | Oscar nominee, Best Story and Screenplay; BAFTA nominee, Best Film from any Source (1958)[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051087/awards/) |\n| Reception | 89% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (9 reviews); 75% audience score[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tin_star) |\n| Production | Shot 22 October to 6 December 1956, partly on location in California[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/53589-THE-TINSTAR?cp=1&pos=1&sid=2b0a3816-164b-4627-9d69-01b9bc16a7ea&sr=0.049322844) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Plot\n\nMorg Hickman (Henry Fonda), a veteran bounty hunter, rides into a small western town with a dead outlaw draped over a pack horse to claim his reward.[4](https://www.tcm.com/articles/189016/the-tin-star) The town's sheriff has recently been killed, and the timid temporary replacement, Ben Owens (Anthony Perkins), must verify the outlaw's identity before paying the bounty.[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/53589-THE-TINSTAR?cp=1&pos=1&sid=2b0a3816-164b-4627-9d69-01b9bc16a7ea&sr=0.049322844) Once Owens learns that Hickman was once a sheriff himself, he treats him as a mentor and asks for help keeping his position. Hickman calls being a sheriff a foolish and dangerous quest, but agrees to teach the young man to handle people, which he considers a more important skill than handling a gun.[4](https://www.tcm.com/articles/189016/the-tin-star)\n\nThe crisis comes when outlaws led by the McGaffey brothers ([Lee Van Cleef](https://www.edgepedia.org/lee-van-cleef) and Peter Baldwin) and the hotheaded Bart Bogardus ([Neville Brand](https://www.edgepedia.org/neville-brand)) kill the town doctor, and a lynch mob forms to take revenge.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tin_star) Owens wants to bring the killers in alive for a fair trial, and must curb Hickman's ruthless methods while facing down the mob.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tin_star) The supporting cast includes [Betsy Palmer](https://www.edgepedia.org/betsy-palmer) as Nona Mayfield, Michel Ray as her son Kip, and John McIntire as Dr. McCord.[6](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/the-tin-star)\n\n## Production\n\nThe working title was The Tin Badge, the name of the story by Barney Slater and Joel Kane on which the film is based.[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/53589-THE-TINSTAR?cp=1&pos=1&sid=2b0a3816-164b-4627-9d69-01b9bc16a7ea&sr=0.049322844) A September 1956 Hollywood Reporter item noted that the picture had originally been set to be shot in color but was switched to black and white.[7](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/53589) According to the same trade-paper record, [Jeffrey Hunter](https://www.edgepedia.org/jeffrey-hunter) was briefly considered for the role of Ben Owens because of Anthony Perkins' illness, but the starting date was pushed back to let Perkins recuperate.[7](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/53589)\n\n**Location work.** Some scenes were filmed on the Morrison Ranch and the Janss Ranch, two [San Fernando Valley](https://www.edgepedia.org/san-fernando-valley) properties, as well as in the vicinity of the [Prado Dam](https://www.edgepedia.org/prado-dam) in [Riverside, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/riverside-california).[7](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/53589) Principal photography ran from 22 October to 6 December 1956, with additional sequences beginning in late January 1957.[3](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/53589-THE-TINSTAR?cp=1&pos=1&sid=2b0a3816-164b-4627-9d69-01b9bc16a7ea&sr=0.049322844)\n\n**Perkins's preparation.** Rodd Redwing, a [Chickasaw](https://www.edgepedia.org/chickasaw) actor who had been in films since 1922, coached Perkins in drawing and firing six-guns; Perkins reportedly got the rhythm right only by practicing to a jazz recording of \"Shine On, Harvest Moon.\" The ex-policeman turned stuntman Mickey Finn taught him screen fighting, and Perkins rehearsed between takes.[4](https://www.tcm.com/articles/189016/the-tin-star)\n\n## Anthony Mann and the change of leading man\n\nThe film marked the end of Anthony Mann's five-western collaboration with [James Stewart](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-stewart). Mann and Stewart's partnership ended over a disagreement regarding another western, which Mann backed out of to make The Tin Star with Henry Fonda; Stewart went on to make that movie himself, 1957's Night Passage, which flopped.[8](https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/8171-darkness-visible-anthony-mann-and-james-stewarts-westerns) Critics have compared the results: Time Out found the film more predictable than the Stewart westerns but praised Mann's \"classical elegance,\"[9](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-tin-star) while a Slant Magazine review called it less bleak than the Stewart films yet still an unwelcoming vision of the Old West.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tin_star)\n\nThe film carries Mann's recurring theme of the emotional damage done to heroes of high ideals by those who have none, seen earlier in [Winchester '73](https://www.edgepedia.org/winchester-73) (1950) and [The Man from Laramie](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-man-from-laramie) (1955).[4](https://www.tcm.com/articles/189016/the-tin-star) It was shot in black and white in the VistaVision widescreen process, and is noted for its wordless opening sequence, its deep-focus photography, and more indoor action than is usual in a Mann western.[10](https://mro.massey.ac.nz/server/api/core/bitstreams/27552296-e85d-4620-9933-c60323553586/content)\n\n## Themes and context\n\nThe film is concerned with the merits and pitfalls of standing up for right and wrong alone, a theme [Fred Zinnemann](https://www.edgepedia.org/fred-zinnemann)'s High Noon (1952) had treated in the context of McCarthyism, which was still felt in Hollywood in the late 1950s. Fonda, an ardent opponent of McCarthyism, brought that background to his role.[4](https://www.tcm.com/articles/189016/the-tin-star) A Sight and Sound survey of the psychological western places The Tin Star among the films that followed High Noon in decrying the greed and self-interest the Red Scare had illuminated.[11](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/features/psychological-western?pubDate=20250224)\n\nThe title invites a comparison that the plot does not fulfill. High Noon was nominally based on John W. Cunningham's 1947 magazine story \"The Tin Star,\" but neither that story nor the 1952 film had the plot of Mann's picture.[12](https://jeffarnoldswest.com/2021/07/the-tin-star-paramount-1957/) In Mann's film the tin star is the sheriff's badge itself, the symbol of law and order that one character has newly taken up and another long ago handed in.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tin_star)\n\n## Music and reception\n\nElmer Bernstein composed the score in the late 1950s, when he wrote music for several westerns including Saddle the Wind and The Magnificent Seven. The main theme returns at dramatic moments tied to Hickman's history, serving the emotional intensity of the plot rather than mimicking the action.[13](https://marianawhitmer.com/films/elmer-bernstein-and-the-tale-of-three-westerns)\n\nContemporary reviews were mostly positive. The New York Post called it \"mighty satisfactory frontier drama,\" praising the simpatico performances of Perkins and Fonda and Fonda's \"quiet, sure, graceful underplaying.\"[4](https://www.tcm.com/articles/189016/the-tin-star) The screenplay by Dudley Nichols, Joel Kane, and Barney Slater received the film's Academy Award nomination, a rare distinction for a low-budget western.[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051087/awards/) On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an 89% Tomatometer score from nine reviews.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tin_star) The film has remained available on home video and streaming, including a 2024 Arrow Video Blu-ray with commentary and video-essay extras.[14](https://trailersfromhell.com/cinesavant/the-tin-star/)\n\n## References\n\n1. [The Tin Star (1957), AFI Catalog of Feature Films](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/53589-THE-TINSTAR?cp=1&pos=1&sid=7732d20f-1efe-454f-8740-9cfd2538637f&sr=0.12783985)\n2. [The Tin Star (1957) – Awards, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051087/awards/)\n3. [The Tin Star (1957), AFI Catalog, details and credits](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/53589-THE-TINSTAR?cp=1&pos=1&sid=2b0a3816-164b-4627-9d69-01b9bc16a7ea&sr=0.049322844)\n4. [The Tin Star, Turner Classic Movies article by Scott McGee (2007)](https://www.tcm.com/articles/189016/the-tin-star)\n5. [The Tin Star, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tin_star)\n6. [The Tin Star, Paramount Pictures](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/the-tin-star)\n7. [The Tin Star (1957), AFI Catalog, history](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/53589)\n8. [Darkness Visible: Anthony Mann and James Stewart's Westerns, The Criterion Collection (2023)](https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/8171-darkness-visible-anthony-mann-and-james-stewarts-westerns)\n9. [The Tin Star review, Time Out](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-tin-star)\n10. [The psychological westerns of Anthony Mann, Massey University research repository](https://mro.massey.ac.nz/server/api/core/bitstreams/27552296-e85d-4620-9933-c60323553586/content)\n11. [The psychological western, Sight and Sound, BFI](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/features/psychological-western?pubDate=20250224)\n12. [The Tin Star (Paramount, 1957), Jeff Arnold's West](https://jeffarnoldswest.com/2021/07/the-tin-star-paramount-1957/)\n13. [Elmer Bernstein and the Tale of Three Westerns, Mariana Whitmer](https://marianawhitmer.com/films/elmer-bernstein-and-the-tale-of-three-westerns)\n14. [The Tin Star Blu-ray review, Trailers From Hell / CineSavant (2024)](https://trailersfromhell.com/cinesavant/the-tin-star/)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Action and adventure films (individual works) › Westerns before 1980 › Released 1930 to 1960*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/the-tin-star", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/the-tin-star.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"The Tin Star\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/the-tin-star. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[The Tin Star](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-tin-star)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/the-tin-star](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-tin-star). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"The Tin Star\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/the-tin-star. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "The Tin Star is a 1957 Paramount black-and-white VistaVision Western directed by Anthony Mann, starring Henry Fonda as bounty hunter Morg Hickman and Anthony Perkins as greenhorn sheriff Ben Owens; based on the story The Tin Badge, Oscar-nominated for its screenplay." }