photo by Vincent Kish, Old Westbury Gardens

Mr. T, aka Harbor Mist, hams it up for the camera on the set of Arthur in Long Island at the Old Westbury Gardens.   Mr. T had several scenes with funnyman Russell Brand who stars as the lead character, Arthur, in the new film of the same name.  Russell  was quite apprehensive about horses until he met T.  They bonded throughout the filming and Russell soon learned to trust T in all the scenes which required some dialogue with the horse as well as riding double behind Jennifer Garner who plays his chosen bride to be.

Mr. T is a seasoned Hollywood horse who has spent many months on various sets filming complex scenes.  It is hard to believe he was a race horse off the track transformed by master horse trainer, Rex, into a professional actors dream horse.

Lucas Black from All the Pretty Horses, is currently working on a new film with Rex in Texas called Seven Days in Utopia.  Robert Duvall requested Rex work on the set which is being shot on location at a beautiful ranch in Texas.  Harbor Mist (Dreamer, Secretariat, Temple Grandin, Arthur) will be working on the film as the rearing horse.

This new film is a small budget picture about a pro golfer who ends up spending some time on a horse ranch in Texas.

Cari and Rex riding Mr. T and Lizard in the Old Westbury Gardens where the new film, Arthur was shot on location for a few days.  The horses performed every scene without any problems, Mr. T took care of Jennifer Garner and Russell Brand who had to ride double for most of the shots.  The staff of the gardens were wonderful, providing shade and water for the horses throughout the day.

Fiona learns to roman ride on Goldie, the four year old filly by RJ and Mr. T with Rex helping.

Lizard doubles the famous Hollywood Horse Harbor Mist, aka, Mr. T for Jennifer Garner and Russell Brand in the remake of the film Arthur.  Lizard shares the exact markings of Mr. T, fooling the script supervisor into thinking he was the main cast horse.  Here he is with the stunt doubles performing the faster scenes for the actors.  Many people are unaware that it takes several horses to create a scene in a film because of the many takes required to capture the shot.  We were on set for two days, using both horses alternately to give the other a rest between takes.  This set was particularly difficult for the horses because of the July heat and the fact that they had to carry two riders for the duration.

Jenn has a natural talent for riding, proving with every take she was mastering the skills to ride Mr. T with confidence and balance.  Over the course of several days she was able to control Mr. T at the walk trot and canter with some outside support of Rex and Cari.  The costume department did not help outfitting Jenn in high heels and a fancy Morgan Le Fay gown.  The remake of the favorite film starring Dudley Moore, Arthur, will be released next year.

Harbor Mist also known as Mr. T is practicing rearing double for an upcoming film.  It is easy to sit on the horse when he stands up on his hind legs, almost like riding a jump.  Staying in balance with the horse who makes is so easy.

You are never too young to start riding and Matilda gets the ride of a lifetime on RJ, the star horse from Hidalgo.  She has no fear and loved working with Rex on RJ who performed his many tricks for Matilda and her older sister, Estella.

For insight in teaching young and older riders, read the new book by Cari and Rex, Whoa Means Whoa available on the web site or at Order Whoa Means Whoa! from Blurb now.

Fiona is learning to ride in balance on Black Gold, RJ’s four year old daughter who is an amazing horse.  She is patient and has perfect rhythm to teach the kids how to ride balanced bareback and with no hands.  The kid who rode in the Black Stallion had to spend hours in the round pen riding without reins or a saddle, resulting in a balanced confident rider.

We recommend all students take a lunge lesson without reins to develop an elastic seat that moves with the motion of the horse.  One very bad habit many green riders have is to balance off the horses mouth.  You are not water skiing, you are riding as one with your horse.

Here is Harbor Mist training for an upcoming feature film that will be shot on location in Long Island later this month.  He has several days working on the film with the principal actors in a scene where he has to rear and run through the gardens.  People do not realize the hours of training that go into horses used on camera and the amount of work involved in creating the scene.  Most horses have a double because of long hours of work.