Back to his movie-making roots, in 1952 Cooper starred in perhaps his best-known western, Fred Zinnemann's HIGH NOON (1952), also starring Grace Kelly and Thomas Mitchell. Although by the time he made the film, Cooper had appeared in some two-dozen westerns, for HIGH NOON's director, Fred Zinnemann, the film marked his first of only two forays into the genre.

Cooper about to marry his Quaker bride Amy (Grace Kelly) in HIGH NOON. One of the film's four Academy Awards went to Dmitri Tiomkin for his Best Song of 1952, "Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin' (On This Our Wedding Day)."

HIGH NOON'S seven total Oscar nominations also included one for Best Picture of the Year.

Cooper as lawman Will Kane preparing to meet killer Frank Miller in the climactic finale of HIGH NOON (1952).  The screen veteran earned his fifth nomination and second Best Actor Oscar for his performance in this classic western.

Music Clip:

"Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin'" (clip) music by Dmitri Tiomkin, sung by Tex Ritter (a .MP3 file).

(For help opening any of the multimedia files, visit the plug-ins page.)

In 1956, Cooper once again played a pacifist in wartime, as Jess Birdwell, a Quaker struggling to maintain his faith during the Civil War.  Directed by William Wyler and co-starring Dorothy McGuire and a young Anthony Perkins, FRIENDLY PERSUASION is simply a beautiful film.

More Memorable Quotations:

• "You know, you're not the prettiest girl I ever saw." --as Cole Hardin in THE WESTERNER (1940).
• "Let's have it out. I made an ass of myself and I know it." --as Professor Bertram Potts in BALL OF FIRE (1941).
• "Let me get this straight. You came to tell me you're not coming?" --as Frank Flannagan in LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON (1957).
• "He who loves and runs away lives to love another day." --as Frank Flannagan in LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON (1957).

Cooper engaged in a May-December romance with Parisian schoolgirl and cello player Audrey Hepburn in Billy Wilder's LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON (1957), one of the best and most subtle mockeries of the French I've ever seen on film, and a pretty good little romantic comedy too.

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