Walking Tall ( 1973 film ) - wikipedia Walking Tall ( 1973 film ) For the 2004 remake, see Walking Tall ( 2004 film ). Walking Tall Theatrical release poster Directed by Phil Karlson Produced by Mort Briskin Written by Mort Briskin Stephen Downing John Michael Hayes ( uncredited ) Starring Joe Don Baker Elizabeth Hartman Music by Walter Scharf Cinematography Jack A. Marta Edited by Harry W. Gerstad Production company Bing Crosby Productions Distributed by Cinerama Releasing Corporation Release date February 22, 1973 ( 1973 - 02 - 22 ) Running time 125 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $500,000 Box office $23 million Walking Tall is a 1973 American action semi-biopic film of Sheriff Buford Pusser, a professional wrestler - turned - lawman in McNairy County, Tennessee. It starred Joe Don Baker as Pusser. The film was directed by Phil Karlson. Based on Pusser 's life, it was a combination of very loosely based fact and Hollywood revisionism. It has since become a well known cult classic with two direct sequels of its own, a TV movie, a brief TV series and a remake that had its own two sequels. Two actresses associated with this film went on to commit suicide : Brenda Benet, who was married to Bill Bixby from 1971 - 1979, took her life in April 1982 ; Elizabeth Hartman jumped from the 5th floor of a Pittsburgh apartment building in June 1987. Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Sequels 4 Remake 5 Reception 6 See also 7 References 8 External links Plot Buford Pusser ( Joe Don Baker ), at his wife Pauline 's ( Elizabeth Hartman ) behest, retires from the professional wrestling ring and moves back to Tennessee to start a logging business with his father, Carl Pusser ( Noah Beery, Jr. ). With a friend, he visits a gambling and prostitution establishment, the Lucky Spot, and is beaten up after catching the house cheating at craps. Pusser is seriously injured with a knife and receives over 200 stitches. He complains to the sheriff but is ignored, and soon becomes aware of the rampant corruption in McNairy County. Later, working at his father 's lumber mill, Pusser makes a club out of a tree branch. Late one night, Pusser waits until after the Lucky Spot is closed and beats up the same thugs that left him for dead. The next day, Pusser is arrested and represents himself at trial. At one point, he rips off his shirt and shows the jury his scars. He informs them that `` If you let them do this to me and get away with it, then you 're giving them the eternal right to do the same damn thing to any one of you ! '' The jury finds Pusser not guilty, and he decides to clean up the county and runs for sheriff. Pusser wins, and becomes famous for being incorruptible, intolerant of crime, and for his array of four - foot hickory clubs which he uses to great effect in dispatching criminals and destroying their clandestine gambling dens and illegal distilleries. Some residents praise Pusser as an honest cop in a crooked town ; others denounce him as a bully willing to break some laws to uphold others. Pusser is attacked several times, and finally he and Pauline are ambushed in their car. Pauline is killed and Pusser is seriously injured. He is admitted to the hospital after being shot and while still in a neck and face cast, attends his wife 's funeral. Afterward he rams a sheriff cruiser through the front doors of the Lucky Spot, killing two of his would - be assassins. As he leaves with two deputies, the townspeople arrive and begin throwing the gambling tables out into the parking lot. They light a bonfire as an overwhelmed Pusser wipes tears from his eyes. Cast Joe Don Baker as Buford Pusser Elizabeth Hartman as Pauline Pusser Lurene Tuttle as Helen Pusser Noah Beery, Jr. as Carl Pusser Dawn Lyn as Dwana Pusser Leif Garrett as Mike Pusser Felton Perry as Obra Eaker Logan Ramsey as John Witter Rosemary Murphy as Callie Hacker Gene Evans as Sheriff Al Thurman Bruce Glover as Grady Coker Kenneth Tobey as Augie Mccullah Don Keefer as Dr. Lamar Stivers Douglas Fowley as Judge Clarke Pepper Martin as Zolan Dicks Ted Jordan as Virgil Button Red West as Sheriff Tanner Brenda Benet ( Brenda Benét ) as Luan Paxton Arch Johnson as Buel Jaggers Russell Thorson as Ferrin Meaks Gil Perkins as 1st Bouncer Carey Loftin as Dice Player Warner Venetz as Stickman Gene LeBell as 2nd Bouncer Del Monroe as Otie Doss Sequels The original Walking Tall was a hit, but the sequels, Walking Tall Part 2 ( September 28, 1975 ), and Walking Tall : Final Chapter ( August 10, 1977 ), both starring Bo Svenson, were far less profitable. On December 9, 1978, CBS aired A Real American Hero, with Brian Dennehy as Buford Pusser. Remake Main article : A Real American Hero ( TV film ) In 1978, CBS aired a television movie titled A Real American Hero : Buford Pusser, starring Brian Dennehy as the title character. The film is set in 1967 and focused on the real - life sheriff Buford Pusser who goes after a criminal who has killed young people with his illegal moonshine. Main article : Walking Tall ( 2004 film ) In 2004, a remake starring professional wrestler Dwayne `` The Rock '' Johnson was made. Although it utilized many elements from Pusser 's life and the original Walking Tall, many things were changed. Johnson 's character 's name was now Chris Vaughn, the sheriff is trying to stop the selling of illegal drugs instead of illegal moonshine, and the film 's setting became semi-rural Kitsap County, Washington, although it was filmed in Squamish, B.C., Canada. Two sequels to the remake were produced, and released in 2007 : Walking Tall : The Payback and Walking Tall : Lone Justice, both made in Dallas, Texas and released directly to DVD. These sequels starred Kevin Sorbo as Nick Prescott, the son of the town 's sheriff who takes the law into his own hands when his father is killed in a suspicious car accident. Reception The film holds a 75 % `` Fresh '' rating on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes. Walking Tall was a box office smash. Produced on a budget of $500,000, the film grossed $23 million domestically, earning an estimated $8.5 million in North American theatrical rentals in 1973. The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists : 2003 : AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Heroes & Villains : Buford Pusser -- Nominated Hero See also List of American films of 1973 Vigilante film References ^ Jump up to : `` Walking Tall, Worldwide Box Office ''. Worldwide Box Office. Retrieved January 17, 2012. Jump up ^ Vincent Canby ( 1974 - 02 - 09 ). `` ' Walking Tall ' : Film Depicts Violence in a Small Town ''. The New York Times. Retrieved 2012 - 01 - 25. Jump up ^ http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/24319/Walking-Tall/trivia.html Jump up ^ `` ' Walking Tall ' ''. Retrieved 2013 - 07 - 02. Jump up ^ `` Big Rental Films of 1973 '', Variety, 9 January 1974, pg 19. Jump up ^ `` AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Heroes & Villains Nominees '' ( PDF ). Retrieved 2016 - 08 - 06. External links Walking Tall on IMDb Walking Tall at AllMovie Walking Tall at the TCM Movie Database Walking Tall at the American Film Institute Catalog Walking Tall at Rotten Tomatoes Walking Tall Originals Walking Tall ( 1973 ) Walking Tall Part 2 ( 1975 ) Walking Tall : Final Chapter ( 1977 ) Remakes Walking Tall ( 2004 ) Walking Tall : The Payback ( 2007 ) Walking Tall : Lone Justice ( 2007 ) Television productions A Real American Hero ( 1978 ) Walking Tall ( 1981 ) Related topics Buford Pusser Films directed by Phil Karlson A Wave, a WAC and a Marine ( 1944 ) G.I. Honeymoon ( 1945 ) There Goes Kelly ( 1945 ) The Shanghai Cobra ( 1945 ) Live Wires ( 1946 ) Swing Parade of 1946 ( 1946 ) Dark Alibi ( 1946 ) Behind the Mask ( 1946 ) Bowery Bombshell ( 1946 ) Wife Wanted ( 1946 ) Black Gold ( 1947 ) Louisiana ( 1947 ) Ladies of the Chorus ( 1948 ) Rocky ( 1948 ) Above All Laws ( 1948 ) Fury ( 1948 ) The Big Cat ( 1949 ) Down Memory Lane ( 1949 ) The Iroquois Trail ( 1950 ) Lorna Doone ( 1951 ) The Texas Rangers ( 1951 ) Mask of the Avenger ( 1951 ) Scandal Sheet ( 1952 ) The Brigand ( 1952 ) Kansas City Confidential ( 1952 ) 99 River Street ( 1953 ) They Rode West ( 1954 ) Tight Spot ( 1955 ) Hell 's Island ( 1955 ) 5 Against the House ( 1955 ) The Phenix City Story ( 1955 ) The Brothers Rico ( 1957 ) Gunman 's Walk ( 1958 ) Hell to Eternity ( 1960 ) Key Witness ( 1960 ) The Secret Ways ( 1961 ) The Young Doctors ( 1961 ) Kid Galahad ( 1962 ) The Scarface Mob ( 1962 ) Rampage ( 1963 ) The Silencers ( 1966 ) A Time for Killing ( 1967 ) The Wrecking Crew ( 1968 ) Hornets ' Nest ( 1970 ) Ben ( 1972 ) Walking Tall ( 1973 ) Framed ( 1975 ) Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Walking_Tall_(1973_film)&oldid=809443581 '' Categories : 1973 films English - language films 1970s action thriller films 1970s biographical films American action thriller films American biographical films American films Films set in Tennessee Films shot in Tennessee McNairy County, Tennessee Television programs based on films Walking Tall ( films ) Films directed by Phil Karlson Hidden categories : Use mdy dates from June 2012 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch Español Français Italiano Nederlands Polski Simple English Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Türkçe Edit links This page was last edited on 9 November 2017, at 03 : 46. 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Question: who was the original actor in walking tall
Answer: Joe Don Baker