Dirty Dingus Magee (1970)

Synopsis: A bawdy, broad comedic western that lampoons the code of the west. This unbridled farce stars Frank Sinatra as an outlaw who is about as successful at stealing as he is at his other occupation, ass-breaking. Sinatra, as the appropriately named Dingus, meets up with old friend Hoke Birdsill... A bawdy, broad comedic western that lampoons the code of the west. This unbridled farce stars Frank Sinatra as an outlaw who is about as successful at stealing as he is at his other occupation, ass-breaking. Sinatra, as the appropriately named Dingus, meets up with old friend Hoke Birdsill (George Kennedy) and immediately tries robs him. When a mayor/whorehouse madame appoints Hoke to be sheriff, it isn't long before Dingus is locked up. He is soon sprung, though, on the promise that he will stir up trouble with local Native Americans in the hopes that the cavalry, the bordello's biggest customers, don't be called out of town. The comedy in this 1970 feature tends to be lowbrow and corny, but it is also a sly send-up of the old west and America's confused morals. In addition, the film boasts historical references to Little Big Horn and John Wesley Hardin (played by character actor Jack Elam). The satiric tone and sense of history could very well come from co-scriptwriter Joseph Heller or the David Markson novel upon which the film is based. Guitarist Billy Strange adds some of his distinct music. [More]