professionals (with Raza and Maria) at the US border. The wealthy rancher tells Fardan that their contract has been satisfactorily concluded. He then orders one of his men to kill the wounded Raza. But before he can fire, Dolworth shoots the guns from his hand. The other professionals step in to protect Maria and Raza. They collect the wounded Raza, put him on a carriage and, with Maria at the reins, send both back to Mexico. Grant angrily turns to Fardan and says "You bastard!" to which he retorts: "Yes, sir, in my case an accident of birth. But you, sir, you are a self-made man." The professionals ride behind the fleeing carriage back into Mexico. Cast Burt Lancaster as Bill Dolworth Lee Marvin as Henry "Rico" Fardan Claudia Cardinale as Maria Grant Robert Ryan as Hans Ehrengard Woody Strode as Jake Sharp Jack Palance as Jesus Raza Ralph Bellamy as Joe Grant Joe De Santis as Ortega Rafael Bertrand as Fierro Marie Gomez as Chiquita Production Writing The film was adapted for the screen by its director Richard Brooks, who based the screenplay on the novel A Mule for the Marquesa by Frank O'Rourke. Filming The movie, which was shot in Technicolor, was filmed in Death Valley and the Coachella Valley in California, as well as Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada. The rail scenes were filmed on Kaiser Steel's Eagle Mountain Railroad. The steam locomotive seen in the movie currently resides on the Heber Valley Railroad. During filming, the cast and crew stayed in Las Vegas. Actor Woody Strode wrote in his memoirs that he and Marvin got into a lot of pranks, on one occasion shooting an arrow into Vegas Vic, the famous smiling cowboy neon sign outside The Pioneer Club. Soundtrack The musical score was composed by Maurice Jarre. Reception Box office By 1976, it was estimated the film had earned $8.8 million in rentals in North America. It was the ninth most popular movie at the French box office in 1966, after La Grande Vadrouille, Doctor Zhivago, Is Paris Burning?, A Fistful of Dollars, Lost Command, A Man and a Woman, For a Few Dollars More and The Big Restaurant. Critical response On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 89% based on reviews from 18 critics. Award and nominations See also List of American films of 1966 References External links 1966