Don Guerro

Dorothy Mitchum called me in the early seventies and commissioned an oil paint of Don Guerro for famous husband, Robert Mitchum. I had created a painting of Belmont Scare, a AAA racing stallion which she gave to Robert for his 1967 Christmas present. That was apparently well received and another Christmas was coming.

On the first painting she took me to some Hollywood producers well manicured estate, Blue Hills Farm, at Solvang. This was a horse boarding farm where Robert stabled a few horses as he started to develop his Quarter Horse breeding and racing program.

Dorothy said she had a place for me to stay while there. It was the producer's huge home, which I don't think he used often. I remember the porch had a total covering of grape vines with huge clusters of Concord grapes handing solid down from the patio roof. I ate so many grapes, had I been a horse I would have foundered. I was always treated like a celebrity, which was a surprise. I was sleeping in the car the week before.

This time Dorothy took me to Atascadero, CA where Robert had purchased his own horse farm of 76 acres retaining a couple dozen mares and boarded some for other Hollywood associates. It was a typical pretty California horse farm. To the south was a wide dry creek bed which I selected for the painting background.

Although some that commissioned portraits expected their horse to look totally perfect, often making every painting look like the same horse. I worked to make likenesses where a true horsemen could see quickly the anatomy and recognize the particular conformation. As the lady who kissed the cow said, "It is just a matter of taste."

My subject, Don Guerro (1970--1996) was by War Chic and out of Donetta by Don Bar. He was 1974 AQHA Champion Running Aged Stallion. He had earned $171,869. He had 35 starts with a Speed Index of 99. He was athletic in appearance. Robert certainly had to be proud of him. His hair glistened and every muscle rippled as he danced around avoiding a correct pose.

Robert liked fast horses. I had first met him at Ruidosa Downs in New Mexico, up in the Club house. A lot of high rollers congregated there. I know Dale Robertson and his brother Chet were there that day.

Roger Ebert called Mitchum his favorite movie star. Prior to Hollywood Robert participated in 27 professional boxing matches but retired from the ring after a fight that broke his nose in several places. That was always a part of his Hollywood looks. Anyone can Google his 71 movies, and awards won, which is extensive.

Mitchum was a Republican who campaigned for Barry Goldwater in the 1964 presidential election. Mitchum supported his close friend Ronald Reagan in 1980 for president narrating a brilliant film for playing at the GOP national convention. Everyone recalls the deep gravely voice when Robert did the beef commercials touting "Beef......it's what's for dinner."

The Mitchums and son Cris were always nice to me. They ordered post cards of the painting for the Don Guerro promotion. Cris rode Zhivago when in Colorado.