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Jan Oelofse, who was involved in the animal capture and training portion of this classic John Wayne movie, has just published his memoirs. Details are on his website, www.janoelofsesafaris.com I bought a copy in Reno last week, and it's well worth the money. Bill Quimby | ||
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Thanks for the link Bill. Hatari has been one of my favourite movies. | |||
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The amazing thing about this book is that it was written, designed and self-published by Jan's wife, Annette, who also did most of the wildlife photography. As you'll see, she did a great job despite no previous experience in these areas. She is a remarkable woman. I was with Jan and Annette a couple of years ago when they went out to check a black rhino cow she had raised after an elephant killed its mother. We drove to a brush-covered hill about 10 miles from their home, and she got out and started calling the rhino's name. Within a minute or so, the cow and its young calf came off the hill and Annette, scratched its ears and crawled under its stomach to play with the calf. I was warned to stay in the vehicle, and I did. Bill Quimby | |||
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I bought Hatari off Amazon a few years ago. It's a classic and lots of fun to watch. ~Ann   | |||
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Yep...and one could picture John Wayne actually carrying that .458 and shooting a rhino, ele, buff, lion, etc. One of the reasons I have not gone to see the "new" True Grit. Hard to imagine Jeff Bridges even owning a gun. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ J. Lane Easter, DVM A born Texan has instilled in his system a mind-set of no retreat or no surrender. I wish everyone the world over had the dominating spirit that motivates Texans.– Billy Clayton, Speaker of the Texas House No state commands such fierce pride and loyalty. Lesser mortals are pitied for their misfortune in not being born in Texas.— Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to Texas in May, 1991. | |||
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If the story I heard yrs ago was true. John Wayne wanted to go on Safari with Red Buttons and some of the other members of the cast so they arranged to make Hatari and went on Safari while making the movie. On the studio's dime  . | |||
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As far as I know, only John Wayne went hunting while making the film. He was guided to elephant and buffalo by Jan Oelofse. Bill Quimby | |||
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I've been told that the movie Hatari was loosely based on the life of Frank Buck. It's still one of my favorite movies. Frank Buck | |||
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John Wayne Now there was a great American. They broke the mold there guys! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ J. Lane Easter, DVM A born Texan has instilled in his system a mind-set of no retreat or no surrender. I wish everyone the world over had the dominating spirit that motivates Texans.– Billy Clayton, Speaker of the Texas House No state commands such fierce pride and loyalty. Lesser mortals are pitied for their misfortune in not being born in Texas.— Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to Texas in May, 1991. | |||
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You got that right Pilgrim | |||
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Lane The New True Grit is pretty good ! I had the same thoughts about Bridges, but he is a bullet spraying machine and did a Oscar worthy job on the new flick. Of course it will go to a thing called The King Speech which about 17 people have seen and looks pretty lame ( Oscar Gold) Grit is a winner ! Dave Fulson | |||
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I remember a picture of Wayne posing with an Impala, wearing a cowboy hat, holding a Weatherby rifle and a cigarette. It was in one of Weatherby's early catalogs. The caption said he shot the Impala with a 300Wea. I no longer have the catalog but I'll see if I can find the picture on the Internet. 114-R10David | |||
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Hi Dave, I'll probably go see it. After all Bridges did a jam-up good job as Hickock! I actually like Jeff OK. He just ain't no John Wayne! But then again...who is??? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ J. Lane Easter, DVM A born Texan has instilled in his system a mind-set of no retreat or no surrender. I wish everyone the world over had the dominating spirit that motivates Texans.– Billy Clayton, Speaker of the Texas House No state commands such fierce pride and loyalty. Lesser mortals are pitied for their misfortune in not being born in Texas.— Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to Texas in May, 1991. | |||
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I find all of the Coen brothers" movies worth watching. This one stayed closer to the book than the orignal. Still prefer John Wayne, Kim Darby and Dennis Hopper over their replacements though. | |||
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I don't think anybody could say: "fill your hand you son-of-a-bitch!" any better than John Wayne. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ J. Lane Easter, DVM A born Texan has instilled in his system a mind-set of no retreat or no surrender. I wish everyone the world over had the dominating spirit that motivates Texans.– Billy Clayton, Speaker of the Texas House No state commands such fierce pride and loyalty. Lesser mortals are pitied for their misfortune in not being born in Texas.— Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to Texas in May, 1991. | |||
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Not really sure if any of the animals were ones he captured, but as a little kid I went to the Frank Buck Zoo in Gainseville whenever I visited the grandparents. Caleb | |||
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Take my kids there (Frank Buck Zoo) ALL the time. Will research that next time. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ J. Lane Easter, DVM A born Texan has instilled in his system a mind-set of no retreat or no surrender. I wish everyone the world over had the dominating spirit that motivates Texans.– Billy Clayton, Speaker of the Texas House No state commands such fierce pride and loyalty. Lesser mortals are pitied for their misfortune in not being born in Texas.— Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to Texas in May, 1991. | |||
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My PH in Tanzania in 2006 was Paul Horsely, hunting for Adam Clements' company. Paul told me one day that his father worked on the set of Hatari over at Lake Manyara. When the movie was finished John Wayne gave one of those trucks, as I recall it was that old jeep to Paul's dad. I assume it must have been the one the indian and the german were roaring around in. Anyway, Paul said it was stored on the family farm west of Loboir Seraette, up on blocks. No it wasn't for sale, I already asked. Throw in Hemmingway, Ruark, and Selby, and I'm sure dozens more, and Lake Manyara is sort of hallowed ground  Every time I watch that movie I think of many things, one of which is just how small Arusha was in 1962 (?). Yikes | |||
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Oelofse was given one of the film's trucks, too. He said it had a dilapidated body with a new engine and undercarriage. He removed the old body and made a Jeep-like buggy from the frame up, then drove it to Zululand where he also was hired to capture animals. Bill Quimby | |||
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I will add my thanks for posting this, Bill. I am definitely going to order this book. Mike Wilderness is my cathedral, and hunting is my prayer. | |||
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Hunted at Jan's place in August of 2009, and had a great time. Saw and talked to Jan and Annette at SCI last week and bought their book. Very well done and consider them to be friends. they are very hospitable and was I was pleasured to have dinner with them during my hunt. | |||
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On "True Grit" I questioned Jeff Bridges in John Wayne's role too. I saw it and liked it. Bridges played the character a little differently. It made me wonder if he did so deliberately anticipating the comparison. Wayne may be the true Rooster Cogburn, but you gotta admit, Bridges is the true Lebowski! Tanzania in 2006! Had 141 posts on prior forum as citori3. | |||
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I haven't seen the Jeff Bridges version, but I suspect he played Rooster Cogburn closer to the way he was in the book -- a slovenly, disgusting and unprincipled drunk. I read the book before seeing the movie, and I remember thinking at the time that John Wayne's Rooster was too clean. too civilized, and too likeable. Bill Quimby | |||
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John Wayne will always be King with me!!! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ J. Lane Easter, DVM A born Texan has instilled in his system a mind-set of no retreat or no surrender. I wish everyone the world over had the dominating spirit that motivates Texans.– Billy Clayton, Speaker of the Texas House No state commands such fierce pride and loyalty. Lesser mortals are pitied for their misfortune in not being born in Texas.— Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to Texas in May, 1991. | |||
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John Wayne is just one of the characters I've long suspected of making mediocre movies as an aside to getting someone to pay for his hunting trips. Stewart Granger is another. Check out "The Last Safari" sometime. Not that I blame them. If I had the kind of influence with a movie producer, and with movie audiences, to the point I could guarantee that I could deliver something watchable and moneymaking incidental to pursuing my avocation I'd have used it, too. | |||
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I have been trying to get my hands on a copy of the last safari for some time now but have not found one yet. I remember it was kinda cheesy when I saw it as a kid. | |||
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We need more actors like that instead of the vegetarians who as I think about it aren't really hugging the bunnies, they are wrestling with them for food. Caleb | |||
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I saw Hatari when I was a kid. Maybe 8 or 9 years old. It really made me interested in Africa. Now I can't quit thinking about Africa until I'm back there again. I love that movie! I even name my male Rhodesian Ridgeback “Hatari”! I'd like to see Hollywood try to remake Hatari but I don't think it could be done today. They would want to use too many special effects and the animal rights people would have something to say about it I’m sure. It's amazing that all those animal captures were done without the use of special effects. I’m available for John Wayne’s part when they are ready to try!  | |||
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Had the pleasure to visit MOMELLO LODGE (the sight of Hatari base) a few years back. certainly an experience to walk where the Duke walked "in Africa". If you ever have a day spare in Arusha it is worth a trip there via Aursha National Park. | |||
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John Wayne owned two ranches in Arizona, and one of them was near our cabin in the White Mountains. I never could get used to seeing him buying cigarettes at the local Circle K. I now wish I had introduced myself and shook his hand. Oelofse's book has a number of anecdotes about running around with the Duke in Tanganyika and Hollywood. The one about taking a python into a bar in Arusha is especially funny. Bill Quimby | |||
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It's still cheesy. It's more than cheesy; it's also incoherent. Which is what makes it fun to watch. It's like watching the out takes from someone's "What I did on vacation" video. Except they cobbled it together and propped it up as a commercially viable product. And presumably made money. Now, that's a racket I'd like to get in on. Stewart Granger liked to hunt. Gabriella Licudi married a South African and ran a safari lodge for a while, which explains why she was willing to unbutton her shirt and dance with the WaKamba as long as she got a free trip to Kenya out of the deal. Apparently she too liked the bush. I still to this day have no idea who Kaz Garras is, except for the fact I've seen what is apparently is his only movie. I'd guess he was the guy who rogered up and said he was prepared to pretend to be able to act when Stewart Granger announced in the LAX departure lounge bar that anyone willing to star in his next flick would get a free safari. | |||
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I met Duke in Vietnam when he did his tour there in 1966. He was just like he was in his movies. I got his autograph on an MPC note I had in my pocket. He drank beer with the enlisted Marines and then had dinner with the staff NCOs and kept drinking. He did answer questions and when he was asked about the long hair college demonstrators back home, he replied that when he was at USC his fraternity brothers/football team would have gone over and "kicked their ass". He was pretty well wasted by the time I got the autograph. It was in the dark while he was being escorted to his quarters for the night. His escort was a pair of army green berets, who tried to stop me from talking with him. He basically told them that he never failed to speak with a Marine. I never quite understood the army escort until his movie "The Green Berets" came out in 1968. I realized then that he was doing some research on the green beenies for the pending movie. I still have that MPC bill with the Dukes' autograph on it. Semper Fi Mike ______________ DSC DRSS (again) SCI Life NRA Life Sables Life Mzuri IPHA "To be a Marine is enough." | |||
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Great story, Mike. Lot of actors out there, but precious few, if any, icons, and no Dukes at all. Mike Wilderness is my cathedral, and hunting is my prayer. | |||
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A good friend of mine was an Army green beret, until he wised up and went to college and went Navy. He was a PITA to watch John Wayne's "The Green Berets" with. How many times can you say, "Yeah, got it. They're doing it wrong." He also took considerable offense to the supposed IR signature of the Navy summer white uniform. I had to promise he had my permission to shoot me if I was ever stupid enough to patrol the jungle in my summer whites. | |||
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As I read this I'm watching "Trader Horn" ,always a fascinating movie. Not like the later movies at all !! | |||
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I found it in my sacred pile of stuff! Rich Elliott   Rich Elliott Ethiopian Rift Valley Safaris | |||
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As I have said...they broke the mold when they made John Wayne. He was a tribute to the United Sates of America!  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ J. Lane Easter, DVM A born Texan has instilled in his system a mind-set of no retreat or no surrender. I wish everyone the world over had the dominating spirit that motivates Texans.– Billy Clayton, Speaker of the Texas House No state commands such fierce pride and loyalty. Lesser mortals are pitied for their misfortune in not being born in Texas.— Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to Texas in May, 1991. | |||
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Rich: That's the one! I remembered it as an impala, but obviously I was wrong. Great photo though. Thanks for finding it. 114-R10David | |||
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