Above: Liberty Valance played by Lee Marvin; Below: Nathan Burdette played by John Russell
Liberty Valance
VP candidate for Power Party (1984)
Running mate with nominee: Nathan Burdette
Popular vote: ? (0.00%)
Electoral vote: 0/538
The campaign:
James Combs, a political science professor at Valparaiso University in Indiana, noted that all kinds of characters were filing with the FEC to run for President. "Then 1984 came along and I decided just for the Hell of it to run Nathan Burdette."
Burdette is also a character-- but a fictitious one. In the John Wayne film Rio Bravo (1959) Burdette is the villainous and corrupt cattle dealer played by John Russell (1921-1991).
Linus D. Combs, the professor's pet dog, served as campaign treasurer which should give you an idea on how serious an effort this was.
The political engine for this run was called the Power Party after a quote from Burdette in the film, "Every man should have a little taste of power before he's through."
Combs presented some arguments in favor of electing Burdette: He was experienced in finance and capitalism and he supported ethic diversity by employing people of different cultures.
The professor had high hopes for the campaign. "I think he'll win a landslide. Once the people get his message that every man should have a little taste of power before he's through, they'll see it's not something Reagan and Mondale have to offer. Indeed, my faith in the American people will be destroyed forever if Nathan loses."
Although not exactly officially deemed a running mate, Combs felt Liberty Valance, the title character played by Lee Marvin (1924-1987) in the film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) (also with John Wayne) would be the ideal Vice-President.
The following year John Russell went on to play the totally evil Marshal Stockburn in Clint Eastwood's Pale Rider. In 1984 Marvin was in his second-to-last film Dog Day (which, by the way, was really bad-- and I'm saying that as a Marvin fan!). I cannot locate any recorded reaction by either one of these actors about the Presidential candidacy of the Burdette/Valance ticket.
Election history:
18--? - Delegate to Territorial Convention of generic Southwestern location - defeated [i.e defeeted]
Other occupations: outlaw, mercenary, gambler, gunslinger
Buried: ?
Notes:
Pocket Money (1972) is my favorite Lee Marvin film, along with Iceman Cometh (1973)
