Wichita's Vera Miles in "Molly and Lawless John" (1972)

Starring Wichita's, Vera Miles

"Molly and Lawless John" (1972) is an American Western film directed by Gary Nelson - his first - and starring Vera Miles and Sam Elliott.

Plot:
In New Mexico, Molly, a shy, unhappy, romance-starved wife of an arrogant frontier sheriff, finds herself drawn to a prisoner in her husband's jail. This prisoner, a handsome young man named Johnny, plays on Molly's sympathy and convinces her to help him escape. He perceives her restlessness, flatters her, and tells her of his unhappy childhood. She breaks John out of jail and they ride off together. Molly then accompanies Johnny on his cross-country flight, pursued by the sheriff's posse, but soon learns he's simply been using her. Molly makes the best of the situation, however, and by the time the sheriff's posse catches up with them, Molly shows that she's learned how to assert herself.

Molly And Lawless John is an engaging and intense western drama that explores themes of love, redemption, and survival in a lawless land.

Cast:
Vera Miles as Molly Parker
Sam Elliott as Johnny Lawler
Clu Gulager as Deputy Tom Clements
John Anderson as Sheriff Marvin Parker
Cynthia Myers as Dolly Winward
Charles Pinney as Reverend
Bob Westmoreland as Telegraph Operator
Melinda Chavaria as Pregnant Apache
Grady Hill as Deputy

Molly and Lawless John was Gary Nelson's directorial debut. Nelson went on to direct a number of films including "Freaky Friday" (1976) with Jodie Foster, "The Black Hole" (1979), "Get Smart, Again!" (1989), and several films starring Johnny Cash. Nelson was a television director for many years and second assistant director on The Searchers.

Filming began in June 1971 in New Mexico reusing some locations filmed in Clint Eastwood's Hang 'Em High. Scenes filmed in Las Cruces took about a week. Scenes were filmed near the Rio Grande, in a cave, and a mining shaft. Scenes were filmed in Mesilla. Some scenes were also filmed in Santa Fe. The weather had been brutally hot as to where Miles passed out in triple digit temperatures according to Elliot who told columnist Marilyn Beck. Miles was 15 years her senior to Elliot. White Sands Monument was used in scenes.

Molly and Lawless John was officially released in Los Angeles on December 15, 1972. It was in New Mexico theatres on October 25 with Miles, Elliott, and Dennis Durney.

Take Me Home was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song in at the 30th Golden Globe Awards in 1973. Take Me Home has lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman and sheet music by Johnny Mandel.

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