REMEMBERS JOHNNY’S FRIEND, PRODUCER JOHN LONGENECKER AND THEIR FILMS AT 2026 BRONCHO BILLY FESTIVAL TRIBUTE

By L. Waskin

A rare showing of The Resurrection of Broncho Billy, 1970’s Oscar winning Short Film starring Johnny Crawford, was held at the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum’s Edison Theater on Saturday, July 18, 2026. The event was part of a Tribute to John Longenecker, Johnny’s good friend and the film’s producer, which took place during the Museum’s annual Broncho Billy Festival weekend in Fremont (Niles), CA. Another Tribute highlight were two never before publicly screened comedic shorts starring Johnny from 1968:  The Box Movie and The Picnic, the latter which co-stars John’s friend Carla Breer (Howard).  Directed by John, both films were co-written with Johnny and offered the audience a singular opportunity to enjoy this trio of remarkable short films in a theatrical setting. In addition to the Museum’s large array of artifacts, photos and studio equipment from the silent era, the John Longenecker Tribute showcased several displays of stirring personal reminiscences by his friends, plus a smaller remembrance for Johnny Crawford.  

Prior to the screenings, the audience was treated to an introductory talk by special programs/public relations director Rena Kiehn, who coordinated the Tribute. This was followed with further commentary by Johnny’s close friend Laurie, who also knew John Longenecker. Numerous behind the scenes stories and details about the movies were brought to life, insightfully covering a multitude of topics. These included John’s filmmaking background which began in high school, and the creative energy that helped craft his short films. In 1968, John and Johnny Crawford collaborated on a couple of USC Cinema Short Film assignments starring Johnny:  The Box Movie and The Picnic.  The Picnic also co-stars John’s close friend, Carla Breer (Howard).  John and Johnny co-wrote both films together. 

John’s next short film was The Resurrection of Broncho Billy shot in 1969 while John was a student at the University of Southern California. It originated as a senior year USC Cinema Project in 16mm sound film production. As the student producer and co-writer, he brought together several fellow student filmmakers to work with him:  John Carpenter (theme music composer/editor/co-writer), former grade school classmate Nick Castle (cinematographer/co-writer), James Rokos (director/co-writer) and Trace Johnston (co-writer). John also invited his friend, Emmy nominated actor Johnny Crawford, to star in the film. Kristin Nelson played the Artist, whose family lived next door to the Longeneckers growing up. Both John’s mother, Academy Award nominated actress Ruth Hussey, and Kristin’s husband, Ricky Nelson, provided voiceovers. 

Along with his starring role, behind the scenes Johnny had a strong hand in the film’s creation, too.  He contributed screenplay ideas, sang on the end credits and improvised dialogue. This included the park scene with Kristin, which was almost entirely ad libbed between the two actors. For the final sequence, Johnny suggested both the scenic shooting location and a dreamlike special effects camera technique. This scene also co-starred Johnny’s own pinto horse, Two Bits.

The movie’s title emerged during early groundwork as John and Johnny deliberated on significant western heroes. Finally, the name – with its unmistakable spelling variation of “Broncho” – was suggested by Johnny as a tribute to the movies first cowboy star Broncho Billy (G.M. Anderson). Anderson was also co-founder of Essanay Studios, and made many of his popular films in both Niles, CA and the Chicago studio during the 1910s. Johnny, a silent film enthusiast and collector since childhood, had eagerly visited Chicago’s original Essanay Studio and planned to journey to California’s historic Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum, too, someday.

The Resurrection of Broncho Billy took 16 weekends to shoot, with one completed scene per day. A semester was also needed for editing.  Following the film’s completion, John and Johnny met with Universal Studios executives to invite them to release The Resurrection of Broncho Billy theatrically. It opened on Christmas Day, 1970 in Westwood Village at the Mann National Theaters for what was intended as a one-week Academy Award qualifying run. But due to popular demand, Broncho Billy continued playing for a total of 14 weeks! And for the first time in history, members of the Academy placed a student film in nomination for an Academy Award.  In the spring of 1971, when 23 year old John Longenecker stepped on stage to accept the Oscar for “Best Live Action Short Film,” he became the youngest producer at age 23 to ever win an Academy Award.  Over the next two years, The Resurrection of Broncho Billy continued to play at theaters across the United States and Canada as an accompaniment to Universal feature films. 

The short film, which tells the story of a young man who lives in a big city in present time, but whose dreams are of the Old West and its film heroes, was Johnny’s personal favorite out of all the movies he made in his career. The Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum’s Tribute to John Longenecker also paid homage to Johnny’s work in The Resurrection of Broncho Billy both in front of the camera and behind the scenes.

After Broncho Billy, John Longenecker worked as production assistant on another Oscar winning film The Sting (1973) followed by The Trial of Billy Jack (1974) and others before continuing his film career as cinematographer on music videos. A prolific photographer, John’s credits extend to countless celebrity publicity stills over the years, as well as album covers including Rick Nelson.

Rounding out the Tribute were shared reminiscences contributed by John’s friends and colleagues. These include John Carpenter, who wrote “John Longenecker was dedicated to making Broncho Billy the best movie we could make. Thank you for keeping the film alive.”  The Picnic costar Carla Breer (Howard) was also complimentary of John’s abilities. Sam Nelson, Kristin and Ricky Nelson’s son, told of his family’s close relationship with John and his “humor, wit, and incredible talents,” which brought out a great honesty in Kristin’s acting performance. Sam also recalled the strong, lifelong bond of friendship between Kristin and John.

A truly special celebration by the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum honoring producer John Longenecker’s creativity and dedication, as well as star Johnny Crawford’s contributions to the Oscar winning Short Film The Resurrection of Broncho Billy.  Further information about the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, can be found at  www.nilesfilmmuseum.org  

The Museum’s predecessor, Niles Essanay Studios, was a hub of silent film activity during the 1910s where the movies first cowboy star Broncho Billy (G.M. Anderson), Charlie Chaplin and others made some of their most famous shorts. Today, the historic Niles section of Fremont still looks much the way it did in Essanay’s heyday, including the well preserved Edison Theater where stars regularly viewed their film rushes. In the 21^st century, the atmospheric former nickelodeon is part of the Museum, which regularly presents silent film-related screenings and events. 1970’s The Resurrection of Broncho Billy is considered silent inspired, and like The Artist (2011) – another mainstream theatrical film – are the only two of this genre from the sound era that have won Academy Awards. 

SPECIAL NOTE:  The online version of Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum’s 2022 “Tribute to Johnny Crawford” is available for viewing on the Museum’s YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/@nilesessanaysilentfilmmuse6456/videos

This Tribute features the Museum’s 4K digital restoration of The Resurrection of Broncho Billy, an exclusive video interview with Johnny’s siblings Bobby and Nance Crawford, a Slideshow, and Clips from Across the Years. 

Original theater poster of Broncho Billy (G.M. Anderson) of Essanay Studios during the 1910s

Essanay Film Studio commemorative plaque in Fremont (Niles), CA, at the busy location where it once stood

Laurie inside the Museum’s Edison Theater with a selection of the John Longenecker and Johnny Crawford Tribute displays

David Kiehn – Museum President/Film Programmer/Historian/Author with some of the Museum’s impressive artifacts

Tracey Bacus inside the Museum with a well dressed “Broncho Billy.” Tracey is Johnny’s longtime Legacy Facebook page administrator & Crawford family friend

Johnny Crawford Remembrance & Tribute 2022

Contributed by L. Waskin for the Crawford Family