Hat trick

Sam Elliott tells the Kansas City Star that the "Tom Mix-style hat" he wears in The Golden Compass, which opens Friday at theaters and drive-ins everywhere, didn't come from the wardrobe department. Rather, it's his very own chapeau, a gift he received 35 years ago after making a series of beer commercials.

"I have never worn it since. But I took it with me when we started doing the wardrobe fitting for Golden Compass. We tried on several hats. I got the hat out of the car and everybody said that's the hat. With Western characters, it all starts with the hat," Elliott says.

Yesterday, Times Square! Tomorrow, the world!

The cover of our December issue -- spotlighting the great Sam Elliott -- looms large in Times Square. And next week, you can find the magazine at fine newsstands everywhere.

Sam Elliott, Flying Cowboy

Sam Elliott -- the subject of a cover-story profile in the next issue of Cowboys & Indians -- hosted the world premiere launch of the official trailer for The Golden Compass Tuesday evening at the Ice Rink at Rockefeller Center in New York. Elliott plays a dashing cowboy figure named Lee Scoresby in the lavish fantasy, which opens Dec. 7 at theaters and drive-ins everywhere. And just in case you missed the Manhattan extravaganza, you can link to the trailer here.

Sam Elliott: Riding high

Sam Elliott is back in the saddle again -- for a blockbuster fantasy due in theaters next December.