With a new, and gorgeous, 4K restoration by ClassicFlix, The Missouri Traveler (1958) starring Brandon deWilde, Lee Marvin and Gary Merrill makes its Blu-ray debut this February 2nd!

While on his way to Florida, runaway orphan Biarn Turner (deWilde) finds himself passing through the small town of Delphi, Missouri, where he quickly endears himself to the local populace, and also becomes the protege of two of the hamlet's most prominent citizens: wealthy rancher Tobias Brown (Marvin), frequently at odds with the townsfolk, and newspaper publisher Doyle Magee (Merrill), who sees much of himself in the young traveler.

Previously only available in soft and muddy prints cropped at an incorrect 4:3 aspect ratio, Traveler is sourced from a 5K scan performed by ClassicFlix on an IB Tech print once held in producer C.V. Whitney's personal archive, and was restored in 4K at the correct, 1.85, aspect ratio. The special dye transfer process used to produce IB Tech prints has strongly preserved the film's original deep and rich color which moviegoers saw during its theatrical release in 1958.

More details below.

**SPECIAL NOTE: In 2023, we switched from standard-sized, clear Blu-ray cases (without a logo), to wider cases (same width as DVDs) used by some other boutique labels. We'll likely elaborate on the subject in our next newsletter, but the main takeaway is the wider cases we've been using for the last 3 years are no longer available to us. As such, we are reverting back to the standard-sized, clear Blu-ray cases starting with our upcoming Africa Screams release on January 12th, and all future releases and re-presses.

Newly restored by ClassicFlix in 4K, the 1958 family classic The Missouri Traveler starring Brandon deWilde, Lee Marvin and Gary Merrill makes its Blu-ray debut!

While on his way to Florida, runaway orphan Biarn Turner (deWilde) finds himself passing through the small town of Delphi, Missouri, where he quickly endears himself to the local populace, and also becomes the protege of two of the hamlet's most prominent citizens: wealthy rancher Tobias Brown (Marvin), frequently at odds with the townsfolk, and newspaper publisher Doyle Magee (Merrill), who sees much of himself in the young traveler.

Featuring a spirited horse race, and a climactic knock-down, drag-out brawl between Brown and Magee, The Missouri Traveler is also a wonderful evocation of small-town, turn-of-the-century life (complete with Fourth of July parade) with a Disney-esque feel which can be attributed to the fact that the film was, in fact, distributed by Buena Vista Productions.

Child star Brandon deWilde – familiar to moviegoers for his starring turns in The Member of the Wedding and Shane – makes for an engaging juvenile protagonist, and is assisted with fine performances by Lee Marvin, Gary Merrill, Paul Ford and newcomer Mary Hosford (a real-life society woman married to producer C.V. Whitney at the time). Rounding out the cast of Traveler are a plethora of veteran character actors including Ken Curtis, Frank Cady, Will Wright, Kathleen Freeman and Mary Field.

Directed by Jerry Hopper (The Atomic City), and photographed by Winton C. Hoch (The Quiet Man), The Missouri Traveler was the second entry in producer C.V. Whitney’s “America” trilogy series (the first was the motion picture classic The Searchers).