When pondering a topic for Women Writers Week, an introductory article for Martin Scorsese’s new film seemed apropos. The article includes insights by Shannon Shaw Duty, the Editor of the Osage News, and member of the Osage Nation. She wrote articles about Grann’s book and filming in Oklahoma; she, her husband, and three of her children were extras in the film. Jim Gray, a former Osage Principal Chief 2002-2010. a total of 8 years, whose Great Grandfather, Henry Roan, was brutally shot and killed during the Osage’ Reign of Terror’ in 1923 and I had a 40-minute Zoom interview—he shed a wealth of light on the topic.
I asked Gray if he had spoken with Martin Scorsese about the film, and he replied, “Yes, the filmmakers did reach out to me, and I visited with him. Descendants of the Gray Horse community victims, a subsection of the Osage community where the murders took place, were concerned about how they would be depicted in the movie. The filmmakers were invited to visit with the descendants of the families; about 200 people were in attendance for a traditional Native American Indian dinner.”
“Furthermore, it was an opportunity to exchange ideas of concepts that aren’t in the book, although helpful for him [Scorsese] to incorporate. I recalled big-budget Hollywood movies with Native American themes, “Little Big Man,” “Dances with Wolves,” and “The Last of the Mohicans.”
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Sarah Knight Adamson© March 8, 2023