High Noon 2004, The 1981 science fiction film "Outland", starring Sean Connery as a federal agent on an interplanetary mining outpost, has been compared to "High Noon" due to similarities in themes and plot. The plot for the 1987 high school comedy film Three O'Clock High was loosely based on "High Noon". A teen desperately attempts to avoid a fight with a menacing bully, set to happen at 3 o'clock. "High Noon" is referenced several times on the HBO drama series "The Sopranos". Tony Soprano cites Gary Cooper's character as the archetype of what a man should be, mentally tough and stoic.
High Noon probably intensified by pain from recent surgery to remove a bleeding ulcer. The running time of the story almost precisely parallels the running time of the film itself—an effect heightened by frequent shots of clocks, to remind the characters (and the audience) that the villain will be arriving on the noon train. The movie's theme song, "Do Not Forsake Me, My Darling", became a major hit on the Country-Western charts for Tex Ritter, and later, a pop hit for Frankie Laine as well. Its popularity set a precedent for theme songs that were featured in many subsequent Western films. Composer