Quiet Man

[Irish in Tacoma]

I'm a big fan of the movie. I've been watching The Quiet Man since I was a kid, and had a chance to visit the town of Inishfree (Cong, Ireland) back in 1992. However, it is only recently that I discovered something I hadn't seen before:

Sean Thornton's Saddle

In the horse racing scene, John Wayne is clearly riding a US Army McClellan Cavalry saddle. All the other riders are in English saddles. Which got me thinking:

Was it Sean Thornton, the character, who brought this saddle with his other stuff from America, or was it John Wayne, the actor, who just preferred to ride a McClellan over an English saddle?

Anyone got the inside scoop, or care to venture a guess? My bet goes to Duke riding in the saddle he was used to.....

[BoldHighlander]

I'm a big fan of the movie. I've been watching The Quiet Man since I was a kid, and had a chance to visit the town of Inishfree (Cong, Ireland) back in 1992. However, it is only recently that I discovered something I hadn't seen before:

Sean Thornton's Saddle

In the horse racing scene, John Wayne is clearly riding a US Army McClellan Cavalry saddle. All the other riders are in English saddles. Which got me thinking:

Was it Sean Thornton, the character, who brought this saddle with his other stuff from America, or was it John Wayne, the actor, who just preferred to ride a McClellan over an English saddle?

Anyone got the inside scoop, or care to venture a guess? My bet goes to Duke riding in the saddle he was used to.....

Being a cav guy, and owning an original like his, I notice horse tack whenever its on the screen, so yeah, noticed it right off.

I own the special edition of the 'Quiet Man', have watched the features, and own various Wayne bios (books) but have never heard or read a reference to the saddle used.

Originally I thought it was the perhaps the Americanized character, but then I don't recall seeing him bring any horse tack with him. And a McClellan isn't easily hid in a sleeping bag with buttons on it

So I think you might've hit upon something there with the Duke utilizing a saddle he was most familiar with, and one that wouldn't have stood out too much in shots with English style saddles featured prominently in it ---
one must remember that Hollywood wouldn't have anticipated AMC, Turner or dvd's & repeated viewings where we would pick up on such things when this was originally filmed

[macwilkin]

I'm a big fan of the movie. I've been watching The Quiet Man since I was a kid, and had a chance to visit the town of Inishfree (Cong, Ireland) back in 1992. However, it is only recently that I discovered something I hadn't seen before:

Sean Thornton's Saddle

In the horse racing scene, John Wayne is clearly riding a US Army McClellan Cavalry saddle. All the other riders are in English saddles. Which got me thinking:

Was it Sean Thornton, the character, who brought this saddle with his other stuff from America, or was it John Wayne, the actor, who just preferred to ride a McClellan over an English saddle?

Anyone got the inside scoop, or care to venture a guess? My bet goes to Duke riding in the saddle he was used to.....

It was Wayne that had it brought over during the filming.

How do I know? I read Des McHale's The Complete Guide to the Quiet Man, a veritable treasure-trove of trivia about the movie. McHale is a uversity professor in Ireland and a founding member of the Quiet Man Movie club. The book is out of print, but your local library should be able to interlibrary loan it for you.

T.

[BoldHighlander]

It was Wayne that had it brought over during the filming.

How do I know? I read Des McHale's The Complete Guide to the Quiet Man, a veritable treasure-trove of trivia about the movie. McHale is a uversity professor in Ireland and a founding member of the Quiet Man Movie club. The book is out of print, but your local library should be able to interlibrary loan it for you.

T.

Thanks