Walking Tall

Name: Walking Tall
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Released: 1973-02-22
Duration: 2 h 5 min
Rating: 6.9
Cast: Joe Don Baker, Elizabeth Hartman, Gene Evans, Noah Beery Jr., Brenda Benet

The measure of a man is how tall he walks.

Walking Tall (1973)

Timing: 2:5 (125 min)

6.601/10
144

6.336/10
515

6.9/10
7500

All about film

Video 1

Photo 45

Actors and characters

Watch film Walking Tall | Walking Tall (1973) Official Trailer

Release date

1973-02-22

Country

United States

Production

Bing Crosby Productions

Genre

Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller

Budget

$500 000

Revenue

$40 000 000

Website

Director

Phil Karlson

Actors

Joe Don Baker, Elizabeth Hartman, Gene Evans, Noah Beery Jr., Brenda Benet, John Brascia, Bruce Glover, Arch Johnson, Felton Perry, Richard X. Slattery
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Mort Briskin

Producer

Mort Briskin, Charles A. Pratt

Operator

Jack A. Marta

Composer

Walter Scharf

Artist

Stan Jolley

Audition

Irving Lande

Editing

Harry Gerstad
All team (33)

Short description

Ex-wrestler and Tennessee Sheriff Buford Pusser walks tall and carries a big stick as he tussles with county-wide corruption and moonshining thugs.

What's left behind the scenes

Authorities in McNairy County, Tennessee, where the film is set, were so dismayed that their thoroughly corrupt administration had become the center of national attention that they denied the filmmakers permission to shoot, forcing them to film in the neighboring Chester County. The authorities of McNairy County, one of the poorest in the entire state, ignored the influx of funds that the filming would have brought to the county. When the intention to make a remake starring Dwayne Johnson was announced (the film by director Kevin Bray was released in 2004), representatives of the McNairy administration practically pushed their county onto the filmmakers; however, it was all in vain, and the remake was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
The real Buford Pusser wanted Bo Svenson to play him in the movie, but Svenson was unavailable, and the role of Pusser was played by Joe Don Baker. When Baker refused to return to the role in Earl Bellamy's action film 'Walking Tall Part 2' (1975), the part was offered to Svenson, and he immediately agreed.
The character played by Felton Perry is based—albeit with numerous liberties—on Dave Lipford, the first Black sheriff in the history of the state of Tennessee.
John Whittier, played by Logan Ramsey, is based on Carl Douglas White, known as 'Towhead' (1936–1969), a member of organized crime. He died under mysterious circumstances, and some believe that Buford Pusser was involved in his death.
Buford Pusser's home was turned into a museum after his death. The museum displays the car in which he passed away—a red 1974 Corvette.
The madam of the brothel was played by Rosemary Murphy. This character is based on Louisa Hatcock, a brothel owner and notorious criminal. She fell by the hand of Sheriff Buford Pusser while attempting to kill him herself; however, this occurred not in a bar, but in a motel where she had lured him with a false report of a theft. This took place on February 1, 1966, rather than on Christmas Eve.
On August 12, 1967, Buford Pusser's wife (played in the film by Elizabeth Hartman) was shot from a passing car. Pusser himself suffered serious injuries during the attack. The perpetrators were never found. On August 29, 2025, Tennessee law enforcement agencies announced that as a result of investigative actions and the exhumation of his wife's remains, it was determined that he had shot her himself and then faked his own injuries.