No, this was not colorized by Ted Turner. Walt Disney must have had a feeling that the film would have been successful enough on TV viewings so he filmed it in color in preparation for a big screen released after it aired in three parts as part of the Walt Disney television show. Only 1% of Americans had color TV which had been perfected (in 1950s terms) the previous year, so for those who saw it on black-and-white TV, going to see it in the movies made it seem like a new experience. The film itself is a bunch of hogwash as far as history is concerned and the legend of the real Davy Crockett, cleaned up for Disney audiences with a lot of the violence of the period eliminated or only subtly hinted at. Fess Parker is perfectly cast, and he'll forever be known for this role even if his career ends up mostly forgotten.
If we are to believe what is presented here, then Davy Crockett definitely was the Will Rogers of his time, never needing a man he didn't like. Perhaps he would fight them, but he would shake their hands when it was done. Maybe not the character played by Mike Mazurki. He's the only real Dylan in the film, stealing the land from a Cherokee who had papers to prove that he owned it. Crockett fights in the Indian Wars but when it's over, he treats them as if they are his best friend, battling a young chief in a hatchet match and winning, and using that victory to plead for a truce. When he's elected into public office, he promotes protections for the natives, even if he is supporting Andrew Jackson as president.
In the supporting role of Crockett's sidekick, Buddy Ebsen doesn't sing and dance like he did in previous movie roles, but this is definitely what led him to be cast as Jed Clampett on "The Beverly Hillbillies". He doesn't really get a lot to do but react to what Parker does, but he does it with style and homespun charm. Certainly it is very episodic looking with the theme song popping in and out to indicate where the breaks were on television. Helene Stanley is Mrs. Crockett, and Basil Ruysdael is President Jackson. Hans Conried is amusingly droll as the overly dressed man who escorts Crockett to Texas, and gives the photographer the opportunity to show a buffalo stampede as well as a cute prairie dog. More cinematic as a classic than a great film as a classic, but certainly worth seeing for repeat viewings.
If we are to believe what is presented here, then Davy Crockett definitely was the Will Rogers of his time, never needing a man he didn't like. Perhaps he would fight them, but he would shake their hands when it was done. Maybe not the character played by Mike Mazurki. He's the only real Dylan in the film, stealing the land from a Cherokee who had papers to prove that he owned it. Crockett fights in the Indian Wars but when it's over, he treats them as if they are his best friend, battling a young chief in a hatchet match and winning, and using that victory to plead for a truce. When he's elected into public office, he promotes protections for the natives, even if he is supporting Andrew Jackson as president.
In the supporting role of Crockett's sidekick, Buddy Ebsen doesn't sing and dance like he did in previous movie roles, but this is definitely what led him to be cast as Jed Clampett on "The Beverly Hillbillies". He doesn't really get a lot to do but react to what Parker does, but he does it with style and homespun charm. Certainly it is very episodic looking with the theme song popping in and out to indicate where the breaks were on television. Helene Stanley is Mrs. Crockett, and Basil Ruysdael is President Jackson. Hans Conried is amusingly droll as the overly dressed man who escorts Crockett to Texas, and gives the photographer the opportunity to show a buffalo stampede as well as a cute prairie dog. More cinematic as a classic than a great film as a classic, but certainly worth seeing for repeat viewings.