Cat Ballou

So this movie was hilarious. I think I first watched it when I was really young, like too young to remember, and definitely too young to understand it. All I remember is the ending scene which I caught a couple of times over the years. It must have made an impression though because I named my childhood bear Ballou, on account of this movie and, of course, the Jungle Book. Cat Ballou is the story of an aspiring schoolteacher traveling by train who unwittingly helps Clay Boone (so dreamy) elude his captor. She reaches her father's ranch to find that the Wolf City Development Corporation is trying to take the ranch away from her father, whose only defender is an educated Indian, Jackson Two-Bears (also dreamy). Clay and Jed appear and reluctantly offer to help Cat. She also hires legendary gunfighter Kid Shelleen (Lee Marvin) to come and help protect her father from fast-drawing Tim Strawn (also Marvin, funny), alias Silvernose, the hired killer who is threatening Frankie.

Strawn kills Frankie, and when the townspeople refuse to bring him to justice, Catherine becomes a revenge-seeking outlaw known as Cat Ballou. She and her four gang members rob a train carrying the Wolf City payroll, and Shelleen, inspired by his love for Cat (unrequited because she loves Clay), shapes up and kills Strawn. Later he casually reveals that Strawn was his brother. Love it. It gets better.

Cat poses as a lady of loose morals and confronts town boss Sir Harry Percival (this is the part I've seen at least five times), owner of the Wolf City Development Corporation. A struggle ensues, Sir Harry is killed, and Cat is sentenced to be hanged on the gallows. Just after the noose is placed around her neck, Uncle Jed (again as a fake preacher) cuts the rope as she falls through the trapdoor. Her gang then spirits her away in a daring rescue. I think westerns were more a part of my childhood than I realize. Cat Ballou was perhaps my first feminist role model...