Ten Who Dared


Ten Who Dared is a 1960 film directed by William Beaudine and starring Brian Keith, Ben Johnson, John Beal and James Drury. It was produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by Buena Vista Distribution. It tells the story of United States Army officer John Wesley Powell, who was the first to travel down the Colorado River, and the dangers that he and nine other men had to face while making a map of the region during their 1869 expedition. Hired by Walt Disney Studios in 1959 as a technical adviser, Otis R. Marston led a film crew through the Grand Canyon to film river running and background scenes for the film.

Plot

Cast

Parts of the film were shot at the Big Bend of the Colorado River, Professor Valley, Arches, Dead Horse Point, Dewey, Castle Valley, and Westwater Canyon in Utah.
One of the replica boats used on the film, the Emma Dean, was recovered by local raconteur, Stan A. Jones, in 1969 from the Golden Oak Ranch, a Disney movie lot in Placerita Canyon, Newhall, Santa Clarita, California.
The boat is on display at the Powell Museum in Page, Arizona.

Reception

According to Allmovie, critics consistently rate this as one of the worst movies made by Disney. Halliwell's Film Guide calls it "tedious and unconvincing". Leonard Maltin's annual publication "TV Movies" gives the film a BOMB rating, describing it as "rock-bottom Disney."

Comic book adaption