A Tiger Walks roared into theaters on this day in 1964, telling the story of an escaped circus tiger and a sheriff’s young daughter, who must convince her father and others not to kill the beast. While the film enjoyed only mediocre success, it boasted a wildly successful all-star cast. Vera Miles appeared in a half dozen Disney films, such as Follow Me, Boys! and The Castaway Cowboy and such Hollywood classics as Psycho and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. Brian Keith is well-known to baby boomers as Uncle Bill on the television series Family Affair, but Disney fans immediately remember him as the father to twins Sharon and Susan in The Parent Trap, although he appeared in more than a dozen Disney films. Sabu appeared in his final film performance, following a successful career in non-Disney films such as playing Mowgli in a live-action version of The Jungle Book and Abu in The Thief of Bagdad. Then, of course, there was the tiger, who during the filming, leapt through a sheet of plate glass that had been placed between him and the camera. Nobody was injured and the tiger was quickly contained and then went on to earn his stripes as an actor.
