The Three Godfathers a John Wayne Western

Bandits Become Guardians of Orphaned Infant in the Arizona Desert

Aug 18, 2009

The Three Godfathers is an American Western, directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne, Pedro Armendariz and Harry Carey Jr., set in the parched Arizona desert.

The Three Godfathers (1948) is an American western film directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne, Pedro Armendariz and Harry Carey, Jr. The Three Godfathers is the story of three bandits who become guardians of an orphaned baby and experience redemption in the parched Arizona desert.

The Three Godfathers, directed by John Ford, was based upon a bestselling novel by Peter B. Kyne from 1913. The 1948 film was a remade of two previous films; The Three Godfathers (1916) starring Harry Carey and Three Godfathers (1936) starring Chester Morris.

The Three Godfathers is about three bandits on the run from the law; Robert Marmaduke Sangster Hightower (John Wayne), Pedro Roca Fuente (Pedro Armendariz) and William Kearney – The Abilene Kid (Harry Carey Jr.). The 1916 film starred Harry Carey, the father of Harry Carey Jr., who portrayed The Abilene Kid in the 1948 film.

Three Bandits and a Baby

As the three bandits travel across the barren Arizona desert, they are parched and thirsty from the lack of water. Their situation worsens when they lose their horses, and they need to travel on foot. The film is in color but has a washed out quality which may be due to age but is suitable for the mood of the dusty, dry desert.

The bandits happen upon a wagon with a pregnant woman inside, about to give birth. Pedro helps her to deliver the infant and she asks the three bandits to be the godfathers to her baby and take care of him before she dies. The men bury the mother and Harry Carey Jr. sings a hymn in a deep, mellow voice.

The three gruff men experience redemption while caring for the baby, named after all three of them, as they traveled through the barren landscape. They bicker about childcare offering some comic relief to the film.

The film has grim moments, particularly as The Abilene Kid and Pedro do not make it out of the desert. Robert Hightower makes it to the town of Jerusalem and puts the infant on the bar of the town saloon, just as the law catches up with him.

The outlaw is put on trial, but because of his devotion and commitment to the child he is given the minimum sentence, 1 year and 1 day. The sheriff and his wife are left to take care of the baby as Hightower is being sent off to prison, with promises to return. The ending of the film is upbeat, as the townspeople sing Christmas carols and welcome the bandit to return to Jerusalem when he gets out of prison.

The Three Godfathers was directed by John Ford and produced by Merian C. Cooper. Music was by Richard Hageman. The film was based on a 1913 bestseller by Peter B. Kyne. The screenplay was written by Frank S. Nugent and Laurence Stallings.

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