FAQ

In 1832, three frontiersmen -- Jim Deakins (Kirk Douglas), Boone Caudill (Dewey Martin), and Boone's Uncle Zeb Calloway (Arthur Hunnicutt) -- join with Frenchy Jourdonnais (Steven Geray), captain of the riverboat Mandan, and his crew to embark on a trip to the head of the Missouri River on a fur-trading expedition into uncharted Blackfoot territory. To ensure the Blackfoot's friendly cooperation, they are returning a Blackfoot princess, Teal Eye (Elizabeth Threatt), who was kidnapped by the Crow and rescued by Frenchy. Although aware that they will be passing through hostile Indian territory, their biggest problem is from the fur trading company, led by Louis MacMasters (Paul Frees) and his henchman Streak (Jim Davis), who wants to keep their monopoly on fur trading with the Indians.

The Big Sky is very loosely based on a 1947 novel by American author A(lfred) B(ertram) Guthrie Jr., the first book in a six novel sequence dealing with the Oregon Trail and the development of the state of Montana. The other five novels include The Way West (1949), These Thousand Hills (1949), Arfive (1971), The Last Valley (1975), and Fair Land, Fair Land (1982). The novel was adapted for the movie by American screenwriter Dudley Nichols.

The Missouri River arises in the Rocky Mountains in west central Montana, flows north then east to North Dakota then meanders south through South Dakota and down through Missouri where it flows into the Mississippi River north of St. Louis. However, the Mandan's journey was upriver, starting at St Louis. Follow the Mandan's journey on this map. Some of the places are mentioned in the film, e.g., Fort Leavenworth (just north of Kansas City), the Platte River, Big Sioux River, the Cheyenne River, and Yellowstone River.

With Teal Eye's help, the Mandan reaches the Blackfoot village where the tribe is eager to trade furs for blankets, mirrors, and whatnot. Teal Eye presents Deakins with a necklace saying that she loves him...like a brother. However, it is Boone that she really loves. After spending some time in Teal Eye's teepee, Boone emerges to find the tribe celebrating their wedding, in return for which he is forced to pay with his rifle and horses. Because Boone paid for his bride, he is free to leave the village so, when the Mandan heads downstream, he joins them, leaving Teal Eye behind. However, a little ways down the river, while everyone is talking about what they're going to do when they get home, Boone decides to burn his scalp and go back to Teal Eye.