On this episode of A Word on Westerns, host Rob Word and producer/co-host RJ Word welcome Michael Beck, best known for his cool, stoic performance in Walter Hill’s cult classic The Warriors. Yet before and after crossing bats with the “Baseball Furies,” Beck rode west, exploring iconic tales of rugged heroes and flawed legends.
From Triumphs of a Man Called Horse, where he played the son of Richard Harris’s legendary character, to portraying Jim Bowie opposite Sam Elliott’s Sam Houston in Gone to Texas, Beck sheds light on stepping into the boots of real-life American heroes. He recalls enduring tough on-location shoots in Mexico and Texas, contending with the relentless heat, and capturing the essence of frontier figures who are both epic and deeply human.
Whether you know him from the electrifying streets of The Warriors or simply love delving into the thrills and tribulations of western cinema, saddle up for an engaging conversation that spans Michael Beck’s early stage experiences, the classic TV westerns he grew up on, and the excitement of bringing history’s boldest legends to life.