Rough Riders (1997) is a small cinematographic jewel that even though it won an Emmy, it is rarely mentioned. Directed by John Milius who has never been a favorite of Hollywood because he is not only great but to much like us. The script is also Milius with Hugh Wilson and it tells us the Story of the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry which shall always be know as The Rough Riders.
In one scene of the miniseries, you see the contingent of New York socialites arriving at the training camp. One of them is given (without telling) a horse that has not been broken yet. Much to the surprise of the cowboys, this dandy not only did not fall off the horse but controlled it.
Now, even John Milius is given to a bit of creative latitude and I thought this was the case even it it was a bit too cliche for him. That was till yesterday when I bumped into this article.
As far as I know, Rough Riders is not in any streaming service, but I would urge you to buy the DVD. You won’t regret it
Update: A friend found the movie in Youtube. The scene is at 36;36
Part 1: https://youtu.be/GDPhoOmW7WA
Part 2: https://youtu.be/HZ2X1jHLnnA
Saw that movie some years ago and thought Berenguer did a great job as TR. Looks like I need to watch it again.
There is a nice book about Roosevelt that helps explain why that horse didn’t bother him one bit: “Roosevelt in the Bad Lands” by Hermann Hagedorn. Published in 1921, so its copyright has expired; you can find it free for the download at gutenberg.org.
It talks about his years as a rancher in the far northwest corner of North Dakota.
While I don’t have much respect for his politics, that book certainly inspires respect for him as a person. Not just his toughness but his way of treating the people around him. No elitism to be found there.
BTW, I don’t do much streaming, instead subscribe to Netflix’s DVD service. It can be found there, too.
You need to get the three books. A lot of the criticism that Teddy gets about his “politics” ha more to do with seeing those times with modern glasses.
Of all so far, he is my favorite president. We talk about the draining the swamp? He did it. Beside, you can’t go wrong with a Prez that carieed concealed every day
https://www.amazon.com/Edmund-Morriss-Theodore-Roosevelt-Trilogy/dp/0812958632/