Tombstone 25 - A Western Classic's Reunion

- Phil Spangenberger

It’s not often that a movie becomes a cult classic almost immediately after its release, but such was the case with the 1993 motion picture Tombstone, starring Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer, Sam Elliott, Dana Delaney and a host of other Hollywood stars. Ironically, because of a number of problems and costly delays during a mid-Arizona sweltering summer prodution, Hollywood had little faith in the success of this approximately 25 million-dollar budgeted horse opera. However, once released, it quickly surpassed expectations by garnering well over 56.5 million dollars in the USA alone.

Since 1993, Tombstone has seen steady sales in DVDs and television airings, and is now considered perhaps the best Western made in the past quarter century. Besides its unique style of retelling one of the Old West’s most iconic shootouts (need we mention the infamous Gunfight at the OK Corral?), much of Tombstone’s lasting appeal is often attributed to its vivid and authentic 1880s costuming, lavish sets, and of course, the captivating period dialogue and colorful portrayals of historical characters, including Val Kilmer’s Doc Holliday, Powers Booth’s Curly Bill Brocius and Stephen Lang’s Ike Clanton.