HI GANG AFTER TALKING IT OUT WITH ROBBIE AND LITTLEDUKE WE CAME UP WITH SEVERAL IDEAS.TO SAVE JOHN WAYNES FILMS ON IMDB. ONE WAS TO SEND A PETITION CHAIN-EMAIL IF YOU RECEIVE THIS PLEASE DO NOT DELETE IT JUST FORWARD IT TO ANOTHER MEMBER AND SO ON THE MORE FOLKS WE GET THE BETTER.PLEASE GIVE YOUR SUPPORT THE DUKE NEED'S YOU. MEANWHILE PLEASE TAKE ANY OPPOTUNUTY YOU GET TO VOTE AND LEAVE A COMMENT ON ANY AND ALL JOHN WAYNE FILMS ON www.imdb.com
THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT.
CHANCE, LITTLEDUKE AND ROBBIE :stunned:
PS. WHO EVER GETS THE MAIL NEXT PLEASE ENSURE YOU MAKE A COPY OF IT BEFORE YOU FORWARD IT AND PLEASE MAKE A COMMENT .

Needless to say but I'll certainly be fowarding that email. Good work Chance, hope everyone else on this board will back your proposal.

:agent:

PLEASE GIVE YOUR SUPPORT TO THIS TOPIC IT IS IMPORTANT . :stunned:

Hey there,

Count on me! I have been voting for the last 9 days for The Searchers, and the other Duke titles in the top 250. Be aware that we are in for a battle for current titles, that come in like a lion. The movie Kill Bill, Vol. 1 was just released and is currently #92, which surprises me to say the least, so we have a lot of ground to catch up on. I have some friends in the area to vote as well, or so they say. I will followup on that this week.

I know that you want this movie in the top 100, but I see a lot of great ones that is not listed and some really bad ones out in the top 250. You figure! :unsure: I mean Full Metal Jacket #98? Give me a break! :uhuh: The Princess Bride #93. :stunned: Toy Story 2 #90? God help us! :dead: And the one that confirms that this is a hoax of a poll, The Shawshank Redemption #2. :angry: That was an alright movie, but not #2! Not even in the top 250 as far as I am concern. The Usual Suspects #17. Need I say more? :headbonk:

Don't put too much stock in this poll. I don't, but I will continue to vote in this to get The Searchers back in the top 100.


Cheers, Hondo B)

Hello all. First time over here. Nice set up. I'll have to jump back over to imbd and get in on things as well. So far am enjoying the board.

I think you raise some good points, Hondo. Duke's films have A LOT of competition, and there are a lot of people out there who wouldn't know a good movie if it sat on them!

Well despite all setbacks our efforts are paying off the Searchers has now moved up to position 104 from 107 a increase of three positons in one day. It seems as well as high votes IMDB also look for positive user comments when decideing where the movie is located in the list so the next time you have a few spare minutes post on a positve review, I have noticed that both chance and little duke have already done this and it is partly because of this that the Searchers position has increased. There is also a messageboard regarding the searchers on the main page at imdb a positive comment there regard the movie would also be a help.

Is the Chain letter still circulating remember to keep a copy of it and to note whom you post it to next because that person may not foward it on.

So keep posting on positive comments and voting 10 stars to improve the movies position!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:agent:

Just to show people that this is a great movie and that others think so as well, check out this link.

http://pages.prodigy.net/zvelf/critic100.htm

Hondo I agree with you that the IMDB isnt the most accurate regarding best movies but what we are trying to do is keep Dukes legacy alive. If someone who hasn't heard of Duke(some do exist) but see his movies doing well on a globally recognised site they might check it out, like it tell their friends and help dukes legacy. Isn't that what this site is mainly about.

I would also ask for this post of Chances to be pinned for a short while so that nobody misses it.

Thanks

:agent:

Good point Robbie. Uh, I mean great point!

We do need to get the message out about The Searchers for those who haven't heard of this movie or even Duke. Can't believe that there are people who haven't heard of Duke, but I do know that the majority of the youth today (teenage years) are not fans of the western or even John Wayne. They have been poisoned by the media and those who despised Duke. It is our duty to get the message out and get Duke back to the people.

Only one thing, Robbie, when we get The Searchers back in the top 100, how can we put in a great classic into the same catagory with such duds? :lol:

Have a great Day, all and you too, Robbie!

Cheers, Hondo B)

I had a class in college called "Films as Literature." We used not only The Searchers as one of the best examples of the Western Genre, but Stagecoach as well. Both are great movies, and I think The Searchers is one of Wayne's best.

Robbie,

Where did you get that site of the lists of top movies? Interesting lists.

I just voted today for The Searchers a rating of 10 as well as the other John Wayne movies in the top 250. I also voted "1" for some of those listed bad movies close to The Searchers for a little help to move them to their place at the bottom 100.

Keep up the votes, everyone!

Cheers, Hondo B)

Hondo I was just searching the Internet to see how popular 'The Searchers' was and I cam across this list. Although some list are dubious to say the least with 'The Searchers nearly always finsihing in 96th position.

Hope you are all still voting and writting positive user comments for this great movie

:agent:

Robbie,

As you noticed, I pinned this topic for the board to see, and hopefully it will get more press.

I am still voting daily as you might figure, and about to do so again tonight.

I see that The Searchers is in the top 100, and I think that it is a great accomplishment, for the endless movie titles of moives ever made. And though we might think of this as a #1 movie. I must admitt that it is really great to have it at the top 100.

Be Cool!

Cheers, Hondo B)

Thanks very much Mike for pinning this topic.

I hope everyone is still voting for this movie and writting positive user comments, I'm looking foward to Itdo as he is a film critic he will be able to give a proffessional view. :D

So keep voting

:agent:

Hello All especially Robbie,

I wanted to inform you that I have been voting daily on the imdb poll of the top 250 movies for over a month and possibly almost two months daily. I haven't missed a day of voting for The Searchers, Rio Bravo, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Stagecoach, Red River and The Quite Man a vote of 10.

I'm sorry to say that The Searchers is now ranked 110 in the poll, and the others a bit higher. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance has been moving up slowly from 158 to 161 in the past month. Even though Stagecoach has been steady, it is ranked 205, it's still ahead of Rio Bravo which has been moving up to 218. Red River, and The Quiet Man is bringing up the rear at 231, and 234 respectively.

Everyone needs to keep up the vote and bring these movies to the top places. Take note that in the western gerne that The Searchers is #4. Red River #5, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance #7, Stagecoach #11, and Rio Bravo #13. Not bad, but still need you to vote daily. Please help.

Cheers, Hondo B)

Mike I'm glad your still voting, so am I, I hope everyone else will continue to vote as well whenever they can.

:agent:

Hi Robbie & the Vigilantes who help to save The Searchers!
I've kept quiet about this, but you kinda cornerd me here, Robbie, and you deserve an answer because you put all this effort in it, and this certainly is your baby!
Now this is going to be one that I might better shut up to but I feel I should express why I'm not really participating. So here it goes.
I have voted - once. Where I come from we think very strongly about voting. Everybody gets one. If I encounter a film list, I'm not voting more than once just to shoot JW to the top. I think that's not the way to do it. I think JW himself wouldn't have wanted it any other way. I can't think seriously about a list that is put together like that. "Lists" are fun, of course. But even when the AFI is putting together they're 100-best-list, I would like to change it.
There's one thing to consider voting on this imdb.com thing: this is a platform for users, sure, but at the same time it can be used for SELLING. And it is used for that. I don't mind it - one just has to be aware of it. So if Lord of the Rings for example gets more hits than The Searchers it's also because there are people out there actually working for studios, hyping things up. Imdb is used to promote films. Those lists on Amazon for example? "A list of the 10 best westerns", things like that? Come on. We movie buffs like to check out what other movie addicts think, don't we? So the industry is putting up those lists. There's a buy-it-now-link to every title.
One more thing why I don't like to discuss matters like The Searchers on the Internet - and this will sound rather snubbish (oh, did I spell that right? a word I'm not using too often). Look at the comments for The Searchers. People write about a masterpiece but haven't got a clue. But then, film is open to discuss for everybody. Even for wacky people. They give The Searchers a bad vote because not to many injuns bite the dust. Come on. Volumes have been written about the importance and the influence of that film. Some wacko isn't gonna change that because he posts something on this site.
Don't put too much trust in imdb. It's just another internet site (and hell, there are a LOT!) The Searchers will be here and kicking when this site is gone and forgotten. You won't get people to like the film only because it has a high "rating". If somebody thinks "Dude where's my car" is a masterpiece he is a hopeless case. Don't waste your time.
Aaagh, after reading my post again I feel I haven't nailed what I was trying to say.
It's the same when people want to "discuss" film with me. Because they know I like to go to the movies, ok? Problem is, they want to tell me Steven Seagal is the best actor alive. How do you argue? It's not only a matter of taste. It's a matter of KNOWLEDGE.

Roland,

Very interesting insight. I tend to agree that we have the one vote concept, and stuffing the ballots have a way of tarnishing what the poll is all about. Robbie's point (I'm sure he'll comment very soon) is getting people to see this movie and all the other Duke movies. There is a lot of people who never seen John Wayne. They know him but don't have any informeation about his works. Robbie wants people out there to see The Searchers like we do, and put John Wayne in that most popular star of all time. Duke does have a ways to go to compete with today's stars who relate to the people.

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/6304696566.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

Duke has the history like the rest who have also left us with only their movies.

I think I know what you are talking about, and see your view. As for those who like Steven Seagal, "LORD HELP US." :lol:

Cheers, Hondo B)

A very intelligent and insightful post, Roland. The freedom to vote on anything entails responsibility, and as Hondo indicated, tarnishing it by stuffing the ballot box endangers the integrity of the vote. I must admit that in this particular instance, I have been directly involved as well (though not as faithfully as Robbie and Hondo), but have considered some of the things you have brought up.

Also, if you read the "fine print" on imdb regarding the formulas they use to determine the ranks, it seems they take into account to some degree ballot stuffing, and I've wondered if we might be doing more harm than good.

While I think Robbie's goals are honorable, I'm beginning to think that even if we had a thousand members voting every day, we might still not make the difference we desire.

In this day and age, new movies are released every week, and with the popularity of some of the most recent ones, I'm sure the Duke's movies have dropped a little, with some of the upper spots (closer to #1) being taken over by the likes of The Cat in the Hat, Lord of the Rings (the third one is coming out in a week), and Pirates of the Caribbean, just to name a few.

Let's face it, not everybody in the world has the same great taste in movies that we do :D .

Chester :newyear: and the Mrs. :angel1:

(I sure love the Christmas season, when we can use these neat smilies)

Just an update from IMDB. The Searchers keeps moving down the list and is ranked #111 as of December 23, 2003. There are so many movies junping in the poll, and it's getting harded to get this back in the top 100. The Lord of the Rings: The Coming of the King jumped in for example to #3 this week, and it is very hard to take on today's fans, and the movies that keep jumping in the fold. The Man who shot Liberty Valance is maintaining it's #160 ranking, and the others, Stagecoach, Rio Bravo, Red River, & The Quiet Man are in the 200's. Keep the vote going, fellows.

Cheers, Hondo B)

I noticed that after I spoke my own mind about this IMDB thing, this topic wasn't so vividly celebrated as before. Now I hope I did not administer the coup de grace to a still honorable and very noble idea of one of our most active participants, Robbie. I know he'll do what he can to keep The Searchers alive wherever he can. So don't mind me. :)

I'm very happy to say that I still vote daily, and hopefully get The Searchers back to the top 100. It's been a long road and the numbers are not going well right now. I'm still battling new movies that come in like a lion, and jumps classics to a higher ranking. I am proud to see in AFI's Top 100 moives of all time rank The Searchers is in the top 100. IMBD poll takes into account of movies that most youngester will almost always vote for the newer movies.

Heck, I wasn't born when The Searchers came out. But I love the classics, and my all time top three movies were released on the big screen before I was born. You figure.

Itdo, you didn't discourage me. I agree with you at what you said, but I like the idea that I do have a voice, and will make it known. So, don't worry about that, I listen to what you say, but I do things that suit me, and that does.

Robbie said that we need to get the message out to those who may never know who Duke was, and we need to show them his passion. That's why I do what I do in voting. Someday I will cease doing this, and go on to something else.

As a matter of fact, I'd like to someday open a theater that shows the classics at a classic price for families to come together, and not worry if the movie is appropriate or not. Yes, that means Duke movies too.

Aren't dreams great. If we do something like that, then we'll see the quality come out of movies, and maybe in society clean up.

Cheers. Hondo B)

Count me in.

Did you know a cowboy hat he wore in The Searchers will be in auction in March?

I know it was sold before at a record-breaking 12000$. Which auction is that?

As of this date, January 14, The Searchers is ranked 115. Not moving in the right direction. But not to be discouraged we keep it going as musch as possible. I am speaking of the IMBD poll. The Man Who Shot of Liberty Valance is ranked 159. Stagecoach is in the 200's at 208. Then there is Rio Bravo is 220. Red River is 233, and The Quiet Man is 243. This movie is in danger of leaving out the top 250.

We need to rally to keep The Quiet Man in the top 250 or we'll loose it.

Just an update for you guys.

Cheers, Hondo B)

Mrs. Chester here . . .

I am one of those weird people who reads all the directions that come with an item, and all the fine print, etc. so I was doing that same thing on IMDb, and came upon the following tidbit I thought might be of interest. Regarding the voting, it says about The Searchers

User Ratings for
Searchers, The (1956)

7644 'IMDb users' have given a weighted average vote of 8.2 / 10


When you click on the phrase "weighted average" it says -

Weighted Average Ratings
IMDb publishes weighted vote averages rather than raw data averages. Various filters are applied to the raw data in order to eliminate and reduce attempts at 'vote stuffing' by individuals more interested in changing the current rating of a movie than giving their true opinion of it.

The exact methods we use will not be disclosed. This should ensure that the policy remains effective. The result is a more accurate vote average.

I don't know how this affects anything, and if we are doing more harm than good by voting over and over (and yes, I did vote a 10 for The Searchers while I was there).

Anyway, just thought you'd want to know . . . :rolleyes: .

Mrs. Chester :angel1:

Hi.

I notice the last post on this subject was in the middle of January. I have kept out of it mainly because although I consider that any John Wayne film is good, and although I have seen the Searchers many times it is not one of my favourite films.
However my reason for writing now is that the March edition of Empire magazine has published its greatest one hundred films of all time the first such list since 1999.
The Searchers is at Number 83
It is described as the biggest, roughest toughest..and most beautiful picture ever made.
"John Ford's epic western is a great film, one that has enormous scope breathtaking physical beauty, and a fascinating, complex lead character".
(Danny Peeary, Guide for the Film Fanatic)
It concludes
take a bow Actor John Wayne - he always gets credit for being an iconic cowboy presence and a great film star, but her he shows that he could also deliver an awards calibre performance.
And there is not a fan alive today who could disagree.
But other posts have pointed out that time passes as do trends for example

At number 1 LOTR - Fellowship of the Rings
2 Star Wars Episode IV - a New Hope
3 LOTR - The Two Towers
4 Star Wars Episode V The Empire Strikes Back

t is not until Number 24 Citizen Kane that you find a film that is not earlier than the 1970's.

and some of the films that are included in the list I wouldn't give elbow room but thats the beauty of one vote.

Regards

Arthur

Arthur,

Thanks for sharing that! What an encouragement. What is the range of dates of movies represented on that list? Any other Duke films there?

Chester :newyear:

Hi Chester

The films chosen range from The Wizard of Oz which is Number 84 to The Lord of the Rings Return of the King. The Searchers which incidentely is a new entry in this listing (obviously showing its worth as a genre picture), is only one of four westerns listed the other three being The Wild Bunch (60), The Good The Bad and the Ugly (64 down from 41). Once Upon A time In the West (61 stays in its same place).

Sadly only one Ford film but at least it did star Duke in a memorable picture. And only one John Wayne film.

Again as a sign of the times pictures such as Fight Club (9), The Usual suspects (18), Donnie Darko (21), Kill Bill Vol 1 (27), American Beauty (31), The Big Lebowski (3O) all beat Gone With The Wind (44), and Singing in the Rain (55)

The director with most films in the list is Steven Spielberg which is slightly strange in that his earlier films many of which deserved oscars are refelected by the popular vote, but certainly in his earlier years was not recognized by his peers.

Best Regards

Arthur

Producer Merain C. Cooper tried to rope his old King Kong colleague David O.Selznick on the Searchers but the gone with the wind mini-mogul sneered that he didn't think a John Wayne western was important enough to bare the sacred Selznick logo. Over the last 30 years in the ten yearly Sight and Sound poll of world critics the Searchers has risen from the 19th best movie of all time to the 5th. Gone with the wind isnt as well like as it once was and none of Selzincks other important pictures are remembered at all.(Segment from Empire Magazine of Greatest action movies of all times)

Like Hondo I havent given up on the voting, I post messages onto the messageboard for the Searchers and I have posted a short user comment. I would again encourage all John Wayne fans to vote for his movies and write user comments and post a comment on the messageboard for the movies. This all helps and anyone who hasnt voted at least once please do even if you are not the biggest fan of the movie. Huh I love Brannigan but I realise it isnt the greatest movie ever it didn't stop me giving it ten stars incidentally anyone here who likes McQ, Brannigan and other lesser recognised Duke movies set a few minutes aside to write a user comment as these movies have very few.

Thanks for your support on this and helping to keep Dukes legacy alive in a positive and honest manner.

:agent:

Hi this is a message to some of the newer members e.g. 'stumpy' & 'Author' and other older members lurking on the board but whom haven't done this yet :D if you haven't already go to www.imdb.com and type in Searchers then on that page rate the searchers 10 stars(no less as this may have an negative effect) to improve its poor position and also write a user comment on the movie as this helps its ranking, you will need to register at imdb.com if you haven't already but this is easy to do. Thanks to all who have done this in the past we can get this movie back into the top one hundred if we try.

:agent:

Originally posted by Robbie@Mar 18 2004, 02:23 PM
Hi this is a message to some of the newer members e.g. 'stumpy' & 'Author' and other older members lurking on the board but whom haven't done this yet* :D if you haven't already go to www.imdb.com and type in Searchers then on that page rate the searchers 10 stars(no less as this may have an negative effect) to improve its poor position and also write a user comment on the movie as this helps its ranking, you will need to register at imdb.com if you haven't already but this is easy to do. Thanks to all who have done this in the past we can get this movie back into the top one hundred if we try.

:agent:
Robbie,
I've already voted on nearly all my favorite movies at the IMDB site, including "The Searchers", which means I can't vote on them again. The biggest problem with voting for films at IMDB is that we have a serious "generation gap" in play. Most folks voting there have never seen any of the older movies and so they just vote for what they've seen, meaning most movies rated very highly by IMDB voters are no more than about 10 or 15 years old. IMO, they don't know what they've missed.

Originally posted by Stumpy@Mar 18 2004, 11:53 AM
I've already voted on nearly all my favorite movies at the IMDB site, including "The Searchers", which means I can't vote on them again.
Actually, it appears that you can vote as many times as you want. Their system won't prevent you from voting more than once; at least that has been my experience. Whether it does any good to vote more than once is another thing entirely. If you read the "fine print" at IMDb, it would appear that their system of rating supposedly takes into account ballot stuffing.

And I agree with you, Stumpy, the older movies are getting shoved down farther and farther simply because they haven't been seen by many of the voting populace of IMDb, and the numbers on the Internet who have seen the older movies is probably proportionally less by a large margin.

Robbie is a few steps ahead of his peers in that regard, by far!

Mrs. Chester :angel1:

Stumpy,

Your concerns are correct. I voted when The Searchers was in the top 100, and saw movies jump in a matter of moments. That's the newer movies coming out every week. When The Lord of the Rings; The Coming of the King came out at the theaters, the movie jumped to number 3 before setting in number 5 movies. Very difficult to keep this movie in, but been plugging along to keep it interesting.

I can only hope that these movies don't lose their spirit from the younger generation. Of course if you look at the Western Genre, The Searchers is number 4 on that list. So, it's not just the older movies having trouble, but the westerns.

Cheers, Hondo B)

Whatever did happen to that chain email graham.

:agent: