Hang 'Em High

Directed by Ted Post

Hang 'Em High is a 1968 Western film directed by Ted Post starring Clint Eastwood. It is the story of an innocent man, Jed Cooper, who survives a lynching by nine men, and becomes a US Marshal to see that justice is done.

Jed Cooper is accused by nine men of killing one of their neighbours and stealing his cattle. When he fails to convince them of his innocence, they hang him. Fortunately, there is a U.S. Marshal in the area and he saves Cooper, who is then brought to Fort Grant for trial. Eventually, it is discovered that the man Cooper bought the cattle from was, in fact, the killer. Cooper is released, but still wants to get the nine men who hung him. The judge warns Cooper about taking the law into his own hands, who responds by saying that he knows the law, being a former lawman. The judge then offers Cooper a job as a Marshal. Cooper, while in a town picking up a prisoner, discovers one of the nine men and kills him after he draws on Cooper. When he returns to Fort Grant, Cooper learns that another member of the mob has turned himself in after learning of Cooper's innocence. He provides Cooper with the names of the rest and Cooper leaves to round them up. On his way to bring in the lynchers, Cooper is sidetracked by a report of another rustling and murder. Upon finding the rustlers, one of whom was in the posse that lynched Cooper, the posse wants to lynch them, but Cooper insists that they need to be tried and is left to bring them in on his own. Following a difficult road back to Fort Grant, the remaining members of the posse that hung him try to buy him off, and then decide that the only way they can live free is to finish the job and kill him.

Director

Ted Post

Writers

Leonard Freeman

Mel Goldberg

Cast

Clint Eastwood ... Marshal Jed Cooper

Inger Stevens ... Rachel Warren

Ed Begley ... Captain Wilson, Cooper Hanging Party

Pat Hingle ... Judge Adam Fenton

Ben Johnson ... Marshal Dave Bliss

Charles McGraw ... Sheriff Ray Calhoun, Red Creek

Ruth White ... Madame 'Peaches' Sophie

Bruce Dern ... Miller, One of the lynching party, the 3 rustlers, and murderer

Alan Hale Jr. ... Matt Stone, black smith, Cooper Hanging Party

Arlene Golonka ... Jennifer, the Prostitute

James Westerfield ... Prisoner

Dennis Hopper ... The Prophet

L.Q. Jones ... Loomis, Cooper Hanging Party

Michael O'Sullivan ... Francis Elroy Duffy, Prisoner

Joseph Sirola ... Reno, Cooper Hanging Party

James MacArthur ... Preacher

Bert Freed ... Hangman Smith

Trivia

• Sergio Leone was approached to direct this film, but he turned it down since he was working on C'era una volta il West (1968) at the time.
• This was the first film produced by Clint Eastwood's Malpaso Company.