Want to know the best John Saxon movies? How about the worst John Saxon movies? Curious about John Saxon box office grosses or which John Saxon movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which John Saxon movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences and which got the worst reviews? Well, you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information.
John Saxon (1935-2020) was an American actor. Saxon was known for his work in Westerns and horror movies, and for his role in the martial arts classic, Enter The Dragon (1973). Saxon appeared in movies in 7 different decades. His IMDb page shows 198 credits from 1954 to 2021. This page will rank John Saxon movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Television shows, cameos, and movies not released in North America theaters were not included in the rankings.
John Saxon Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews and awards.
| Year | Movie (Year) | Rating | S |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Movie (Year) | Rating | S |
| 1962 | Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962) |  |
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| 1963 | The Cardinal (1963) | |
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| 1979 | The Electric Horseman (1979) | |
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| 1960 | Portrait in Black (1960) |  |
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| 1960 | The Unforgiven (1960) | |
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| 1984 | A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) | |
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| 1959 | The Big Fisherman (1959) | |
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| 1987 | A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987) | |
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| 1972 | Joe Kidd (1972) | |
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| 1958 | The Reluctant Debutante (1958) | |
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| 1956 | Rock, Pretty Baby! (1956) |  |
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| 1996 | From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) | |
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| 1958 | The Restless Years (1958) |  |
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| 1994 | New Nightmare (1994) | |
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| 1958 | This Happy Feeling (1958) | |
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| 1974 | Black Christmas (1974) | |
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| 1957 | Summer Love (1957) | |
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| 1960 | The Plunderers (1960) | |
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| 1956 | The Unguarded Moment (1956) | |
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| 1973 | Enter the Dragon (1973) | |
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| 1961 | Posse From Hell (1961) | |
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| 1969 | Death of a Gunfighter (1969) | |
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| 1966 | The Appaloosa (1966) |  |
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| 2008 | God's Ears (2008) | |
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| 1980 | Battle Beyond the Stars (1980) | |
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| 1994 | Beverly Hills Cop III (1994) | |
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| 1977 | Moonshine County Express (1977) |  |
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| 1979 | Fast Company (1979) | |
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| 2017 | The Extra (2017) |  |
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| 1980 | Running Scared (1980) | |
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| 1982 | Wrong Is Right (1982) | |
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| 1966 | Queen of Blood (1966) | |
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| 1962 | War Hunt (1962) | |
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| 1979 | The Glove (1979) | |
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| 1985 | Fever Pitch (1985) |  |
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| 1990 | Crossing the Line (1990) | |
John Saxon Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies any way you want.
- Sort John Saxon movies by co-stars of his movies.
- Sort John Saxon movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort John Saxon movies by yearly domestic box office rank
- Sort John Saxon movies how they were received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
- Sort by how many Oscar® nominations each John Saxon movie received and how many Oscar® wins each John Saxon movie won.
- Sort John Saxon movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR Score puts box office, reviews, and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
| R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Actual B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | B.O. Rank by Year | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | S |
| 3 | Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962) | James Stewart & Maureen O'Hara |
11.40 | 190.5 | 190.50 | 18 | 75 | 00 / 00 | 95.1 | |
| 2 | The Cardinal (1963) | John Huston & Burgess Meredith |
15.10 | 219.1 | 219.10 | 15 | 66 | 06 / 00 | 94.7 | |
| 1 | The Electric Horseman (1979) | Robert Redford & Jane Fonda |
81.90 | 407.8 | 407.80 | 7 | 64 | 01 / 00 | 92.8 | |
| 6 | Portrait in Black (1960) | Lana Turner & Anthony Quinn |
10.00 | 181.2 | 181.20 | 22 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 88.8 | |
| 7 | The Unforgiven (1960) | Burt Lancaster & Audrey Hepburn |
8.90 | 160.5 | 160.50 | 30 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 87.7 | |
| 5 | A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) | Heather Langenkamp & Johnny Depp |
25.50 | 94.9 | 94.90 | 41 | 82 | 00 / 00 | 87.1 | |
| 8 | The Big Fisherman (1959) | Howard Keel | 8.60 | 178.6 | 178.60 | 26 | 50 | 03 / 00 | 85.9 | |
| 9 | A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987) | Heather Langenkamp & Robert Englund |
44.80 | 143.2 | 143.20 | 24 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 84.8 | |
| 11 | Joe Kidd (1972) | Clint Eastwood & Robert Duvall |
17.20 | 126.4 | 126.40 | 24 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 83.5 | |
| 10 | The Reluctant Debutante (1958) | Rex Harrison & Kay Kendall |
4.40 | 92.6 | 177.40 | 53 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 83.0 | |
| 12 | Rock, Pretty Baby! (1956) | Sal Mineo & Fay Wray |
4.10 | 92.9 | 92.90 | 76 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 78.7 | |
| 13 | From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) | George Clooney & Harvey Keitel |
25.80 | 73.1 | 167.80 | 60 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 75.1 | |
| 14 | The Restless Years (1958) | Sandra Dee & Teresa Wright |
2.40 | 50.3 | 50.30 | 93 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 68.8 | |
| 15 | New Nightmare (1994) | Heather Langenkamp & Robert Englund |
18.10 | 55.4 | 55.40 | 80 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 67.3 | |
| 16 | This Happy Feeling (1958) | Debbie Reynolds & Curd Jürgens |
2.30 | 47.6 | 47.60 | 100 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 65.3 | |
| 16 | Black Christmas (1974) | Olivia Hussey & Margot Kidder |
2.60 | 17.2 | 17.20 | 96 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 62.2 | |
| 19 | Summer Love (1957) | Fay Wray | 2.20 | 48.8 | 48.80 | 109 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 62.1 | |
| 18 | The Plunderers (1960) | Jeff Chandler | 1.80 | 32.3 | 32.30 | 106 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 61.7 | |
| 21 | The Unguarded Moment (1956) | Esther Williams & George Nader |
2.60 | 58.4 | 58.40 | 125 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 61.5 | |
| 17 | Enter the Dragon (1973) | Bruce Lee | 0.00 | 0.2 | 0.50 | 194 | 77 | 00 / 00 | 61.5 | |
| 20 | Posse From Hell (1961) | Audie Murphy | 1.40 | 23.4 | 23.40 | 109 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 57.4 | |
| 22 | Death of a Gunfighter (1969) | Richard Widmark & Lena Horne |
2.60 | 22.6 | 22.60 | 85 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 54.6 | |
| 24 | The Appaloosa (1966) | Marlon Brando | 3.50 | 39.8 | 39.80 | 70 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 44.2 | |
| 23 | God's Ears (2008) | Margot Farley | 0.10 | 0.1 | 0.10 | 330 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 43.8 | |
| 26 | Battle Beyond the Stars (1980) | George Peppard & Robert Vaughn |
11.00 | 52.9 | 52.90 | 69 | 50 | 00 / 00 | 43.3 | |
| 27 | Beverly Hills Cop III (1994) | Eddie Murphy | 42.60 | 130.6 | 365.20 | 34 | 26 | 00 / 00 | 43.0 | |
| 26 | Moonshine County Express (1977) | Susan Howard | 3.00 | 16.7 | 16.70 | 98 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 36.8 | |
| 27 | Fast Company (1979) | William Smith | 0.10 | 0.6 | 0.60 | 168 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 32.4 | |
| 28 | The Extra (2017) | Tyrone Power, Jr. | 0.10 | 0.1 | 0.10 | 343 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 19.7 | |
| 29 | Running Scared (1980) | Judge Reinhold | 2.20 | 10.7 | 10.70 | 134 | 51 | 00 / 00 | 18.7 | |
| 30 | Wrong Is Right (1982) | Sean Connery | 3.60 | 15.2 | 15.20 | 103 | 48 | 00 / 00 | 16.3 | |
| 31 | Queen of Blood (1966) | Basil Rathbone | 2.20 | 25.6 | 25.60 | 93 | 44 | 00 / 00 | 15.4 | |
| 32 | War Hunt (1962) | John Saxon & Charles Aidman |
1.10 | 19.0 | 19.00 | 117 | 45 | 00 / 00 | 13.4 | |
| 33 | The Glove (1979) | Joan Blondell | 2.00 | 9.9 | 9.90 | 122 | 45 | 00 / 00 | 11.2 | |
| 34 | Fever Pitch (1985) | Ryan O'Neal | 0.60 | 2.2 | 2.20 | 162 | 42 | 00 / 00 | 5.6 | |
| 35 | Crossing the Line (1990) | Kenny Ireland & Liam Neeson |
0.10 | 0.2 | 0.20 | 224 | 38 | 00 / 00 | 3.3 |
Possibly Interesting Facts About John Saxon
1. Carmine Orrico was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1935.
2. Henry Willson (an agent) saw John Saxon’s picture on the cover of a detective magazine and immediately contacted the boy’s family in Brooklyn. With his parents’ permission, the 17-year-old Orrico contracted with Willson, and he was renamed, John Saxon.
3. John Saxon was proficient in Judo and Shotokan Karate.
4. John Saxon is an alumnus of Stella Adler Studio of Acting.
5. John Saxon was cast in 1973’s Enter The Dragon because he had a black belt in karate. Saxon on Enter The Dragon. The crew filmed fight scenes for eight days in a row. John Saxon recalled, “I got to tell you, after those eight days I had enough of doing a karate movie.”
Check out John Saxon’s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.
Academy Award® and Oscar® are the registered trademarks of the Academy of Motion Arts and Sciences. Golden Globes® are the registered trademark of the Hollywood Foreign Press.
John Saxon, is the # 6 most connectible actor of the 1970’s.
John Saxon was # 53 on the 2020 Oracle of Bacon Top 1000 Center of the Hollywood Universe list. The man made so many films that have nobody that was ever on the list, in pretty modern times. These are the actors on the 2020 list he appeared with.
2 HARVEY KEITEL From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
13 SEAN CONNERY Wrong Is Right (1982)
16 DENNIS HOPPER Queen of Blood (1966)
31 ROBERT DUVALL Joe Kidd (1972)
34 FRANCO NERO Jonathan degli orsi (1993)
36 ANTHONY QUINN Portrait in Black (1960)
38 CHARLTON HESTON Gengis Khan (1992)
48 JOHNNY DEPP A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
65 JACKIE CHAN Enter the Dragon (1973)
68 JOHN CARRADINE The Bees (1978)
72 RON PERLMAN Night Class (2001)
76 DEAN STOCKWELL Wrong Is Right (1982)
77 JOHN SAVAGE Killing Obsession (1994)
89 DANNY TREJO From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
107 MICKEY ROONEY Maximum Force (1992)
108 JAMES MASON A Star Is Born (1954)
113 ROBERT VAUGHN Battle Beyond the Stars (1980)
120 CLINT EASTWOOD Joe Kidd (1972)
131 BURT LANCASTER The Unforgiven (1960)
142 LANCE HENRIKSEN The Last Samurai (1991)
154 MARC LAWRENCE From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
168 JAMES HONG Gengis Khan (1992)
185 GIANCARLO GIANNINI Fever Pitch (1985)
190 HERBERT LOM The Big Fisherman (1959)
200 MARTIN BALSAM Mitchell (1975)
207 JEFF COREY Battle Beyond the Stars (1980)
207 JEFF COREY Moonshine County Express (1977)
243 LESLIE NIELSEN Wrong Is Right (1982)
244 ED LAUTER The Big Score (1983)
248 ANGELA LANSBURY The Reluctant Debutante (1958)
255 TOMAS MILIAN Il cinico, l’infame, il violento (1977)
262 KEENAN WYNN Running Wild (1955)
262 KEENAN WYNN The Glove (1979)
265 HENRY SILVA Wrong Is Right (1982)
268 BURGESS MEREDITH The Cardinal (1963)
299 JOE DON BAKER Mitchell (1975)
302 JULIETTE LEWIS From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
310 JACK LEMMON It Should Happen to You (1954)
322 ROBERT REDFORD The Electric Horseman (1979)
322 ROBERT REDFORD War Hunt (1962)
342 JENNIFER JASON LEIGH Wrong Is Right (1982)
357 BURT YOUNG Blood Beach (1980)
373 FERDY MAYNE The Killers Within (1995)
391 LAURENCE FISHBURNE A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
422 MARLON BRANDO The Appaloosa (1966)
423 BO HOPKINS The Final Alliance (1990)
423 BO HOPKINS The Road Home (2003)
424 TOM SKERRITT War Hunt (1962)
432 RICHARD ROUNDTREE The Big Score (1983)
440 SALMA HAYEK From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
462 STUART WHITMAN A Special Magnum for Tony Saitta (1976)
477 LIN SHAYE A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
485 DICK MILLER Trapped Ashes (2006)
492 JANE FONDA The Electric Horseman (1979)
502 RICHARD WIDMARK Death of a Gunfighter (1969)
510 JOHN IRELAND The Swiss Conspiracy (1976)
512 RAY MILLAND The Swiss Conspiracy (1976)
517 WOLFGANG PREISS The Cardinal (1963)
522 MICHAEL PARKS From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
522 MICHAEL PARKS Nightmare Beach (1989)
532 DUB TAYLOR A Star Is Born (1954)
532 DUB TAYLOR Death of a Gunfighter (1969)
532 DUB TAYLOR Moonshine County Express (1977)
533 ELKE SOMMER The Swiss Conspiracy (1976)
534 CURT JURGENS This Happy Feeling (1958)
543 CHEECH MARIN From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
544 OLIVIA HUSSEY (I) BLACK CHRISTMAS (1974)
554 PAT HINGLE Running Scared (1981)
603 GEORGE CLOONEY From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
623 BRION JAMES Joseph’s Gift (1998)
629 ROYAL DANO Death of a Gunfighter (1969)
629 ROYAL DANO Posse from Hell (1961)
643 JAMES WHITMORE The Restless Years (1958)
667 PETER LAWFORD It Should Happen to You (1954)
671 SYLVIA MILES SHALIMAR (1978)
684 SENTA BERGER The Swiss Conspiracy (1976)
687 STEPHEN MCHATTIE BEVERLY HILLS COP III (1994)
707 RAF VALLONE The Cardinal (1963)
722 JOHN HUSTON The Cardinal (1963)
749 KATHLEEN FREEMAN Death of a Gunfighter (1969)
754 RYAN O’NEAL Fever Pitch (1985)
756 DEBBIE REYNOLDS This Happy Feeling (1958)
760 LEE VAN CLEEF Posse from Hell (1961)
761 WILFORD BRIMLEY THE ELECTRIC HORSEMAN (1979)
806 HENRY GIBSON Trapped Ashes (2006)
808 JOANNA CASSIDY The Glove (1979)
809 SEAN YOUNG Night Class (2001)
811 MICHAEL J. POLLARD The Arrival (1991)
815 REX HARRISON Shalimar (1978)
815 REX HARRISON The Reluctant Debutante (1958)
846 HARDY KRUGER Wrong Is Right (1982)
847 CORBIN BERNSEN Final Payback (2001)
851 ALDO RAY The Glove (1979)
861 ROSSANO BRAZZI Mister Kingstreet’s War (1973)
869 CAMERON MITCHELL Crossing the Line (1991/I)
877 JOHN HAWKES From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
882 ANTON DIFFRING The Swiss Conspiracy (1976)
884 PATRICIA ARQUETTE A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3: DREAM WARRIORS (1987)
892 ROBERT WEBBER Wrong Is Right (1982)
926 PATRICK O’NEAL The Cardinal (1963)
971 ROBERT ENGLUND A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
971 ROBERT ENGLUND A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
986 OSSIE DAVIS The Cardinal (1963)
992 ROMY SCHNEIDER The Cardinal (1963)
John appeared with 20 Oscar winners.
ANTHONY QUINN Portrait in Black (1960)
AUDREY HEPBURN The Unforgiven (1960)
BURT LANCASTER The Unforgiven (1960)
CHARLTON HESTON Gengis Khan (1992)
GEORGE CLOONEY From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
HUMPHREY BOGART A Star Is Born (1954)
JACK ALBERTSON THE UNGUARDED MOMENT (1956)
JACK LEMMON It Should Happen to You (1954)
JAMES STEWART Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962)
JANE FONDA The Electric Horseman (1979)
JUDY HOLLIDAY It Should Happen to You (1954)
MARLON BRANDO The Appaloosa (1966)
MARTIN BALSAM Mitchell (1975)
MARY ASTOR This Happy Feeling (1958)
PATRICIA ARQUETTE A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3: DREAM WARRIORS (1987)
RAY MILLAND The Swiss Conspiracy (1976)
REX HARRISON Shalimar (1978)
REX HARRISON The Reluctant Debutante (1958)
ROBERT DUVALL Joe Kidd (1972)
SEAN CONNERY Wrong Is Right (1982)
TERESA WRIGHT The Restless Years (1958)
Hey Dan….thanks for these John Saxon list. His moment in the UMR spotlight was pretty short…..and then the news of Olivia de Havilland came out. Wow…he is in 53rd place. I guess all those “man made so many films that have nobody.” helped his ranking. Many of those movies look like C budget movies that few have heard of, and even fewer that have seen the movies.
First list: Most frequent co-star? Mr. Dub Taylor. Probably the first time Mr. Taylor has had that honor. Second list: 20 Oscar winning co-stars is on the low average…..but not bad considered how many C budget movies he made. Good information. Rest in Peace John Saxon.
In 1955 Richard Widmark came over to England to make a movie so that he could escape what he regarded as the US punitive tax rates on his earnings. The film wasn’t one of Richard’s best and has a Cogerson rating of 60% and an adjusted domestic gross of around $40 million. However his English co-star Nigel Patrick made headlines over here by bettering Widmark in a physical encounter in the movie “Brit Nigel floors Hollywood tough guy” screamed out the newspapers.
Unfortunately John Saxon was American and there was not word from the British press when in 1966’s The Appaloosa [called Southwest to Sonora over here] his villain bested hero Marlon Brando in an arm-wrestling competition. It doesn’t really matter though because that movie too was not exactly a “cracker” – 54% rating from WH and a paltry adjusted domestic gross of $29 million. However John did earn a Golden Globe nomination for his strong performance in the movie and he had gotten to work with Brando whom he admired and liked.
In the 1950s John was one of the new Young Turks for whom great things were hoped but although he had a prolific TV career on top of his movie output he never made top stardom and leaves behind just a net worth of under $2 million according to Celeb Net Worth site. I have seen him in the following 10 of the movies listed by Bruce; and the last time that I saw him was in the rerun of a 1977 episode of the TV series Quincy as the villain of the piece and on the big screen in Enter the Dragon which was one of his best roles I thought:
1/Electric Horseman
2/Mr Hobbs Takes a Vacation
3/Enter the Dragon
4/The Unforgiven
5/The Big Fisherman
6/Black Christmas
7/The Plunderers
8/Posse from Hell
9/Death of a Gunfighter
10/Southwest to Sonora [with its horrible US title The Appaloosa]
RIP John.
Hey Bob….good information on John Saxon. Thanks for sharing his net worth, the YoungTurks days, your tally count and some of his television work. Tally count: 12, Cogerson 11, Bob 10 and Flora 5. I am sure he had some Brando stories from their work on The Appaloosa. I have seen half of the ones you have seen…movies 1 through 4 and number 10. Thanks for checking out our John Saxon tribute page. Good stuff as always.
I have seen 5 John Saxon movies. None of them are favourites.
The HIGHEST rated movie I have seen is Mr. Hobbes Takes a Vacation.
The highest rated movie I have NOT seen is The Electric Horseman.
The LOWEST rated movie is This Happy Feeling.
The five John Saxon movie I have seen are:
Mr. Hobbes Takes a Vacation
The Unforgiven
The Reluctant Debutante
The Restless Years
This Happy Feeling
Hey Flora….thanks for checking out this Saxon tribute page. Tally count: Steve 12, Cogerson 11, Bob 10 and you 5. I have seen two of your favorites….Mr. Hobbes Takes a Vacation and The Unforgiven. Liked both of them….but did not love them. Rest in peace Mr. Saxon.