JOHN FORD
MOVIE DIRECTOR
MADE MONUMENT VALLEY FAMOUS FOR ME
GETTING THERE
From Phoenix it is 316 miles, from Albuquerque it is 318 miles and from Las Vegas 394 miles. There is an airport at Flagstaff (170 miles) but it will require a change in Phoenix.
A good place to stay is Gouldings Lodge that dates back to 1921 and the owner way back sent photos to John Ford and he fell in love with the place . We assume that Ford and Wayne and the others stayed there when filming. It is just outside the park in Utah
The Major Films Made By John Ford in Monument Valley
1939
'Stagecoach'
John Wayne & Claire Trevor
1946
"My Darling Clementine"
Henry Fonda & Linda Darnell
1948
"Fort Apache"
John Wayne & Henry Fonda
1949
"She Wore A Yellow Ribbon"
John Wayne & Joanne Dru
1956
"The Searchers"
John Wayne & Natalie Wood
JOHN FORD WAS BORN JOHN MARTIN FEENEY IN 1894 AND MADE 140 FILMS, WAS AWARDED 5 ACADEMY AWARDS. HE DIED IN 1973.THERE IS A POINT IN MONUMENT VALLEY NAMED AFTER JOHN FORD.
Think back to each movie and match to the scenes below.I have visited four times over many years, the first in 1981. I stopped a few miles out having travelld up from Phoenix to take in the vista and stood on a vast rock. Laying ina gully was a white and blue road sign that simply read
'Watch Out For Indians'
I found the post is was meant to be on and rested it alongside and to this day do not know what it meant; but it was a legitimate road sign.
On the last visit to Monument Valley, we hiked from the entrance about sevenkilometers and around and through the various Buttes on an established walking trail led by a friendly Navajo local dog.who knew the way and had done it often.
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