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Robert Duvall, 86, played Augustus McCrea as the most beloved character in Lonesome Dove and his legacy is as strong as ever in the cowboy culture. Duvall, who brought the character to life in the CBS miniseries 28 years ago, visited with our editor, Bob Welch, about what the iconic role meant to his career, and also shared some behind-the-scenes stories from the set.

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HOW DID YOU BECOME ATTACHED TO THE LONESOME DOVE CAST?

I read that wonderful book in 10 days. My ex-wife said it was the first book she liked better than Dostoyevsky. She said, “You must play Augustus McCrea.” I don’t see her often, but when I do, I thank her for that advice. They wanted me to play Call and I totally disagreed with that. My agent handled James Garner, too, and they wanted him to play Augustus McCrea. I told my agent, if you could get Garner to switch parts, I would do it. I would not have been ready to claim that part so intensely had my ex-wife not said that to me. My agent called back four hours later and said James Garner cannot be on a horse for 16 weeks. He declined and I took the part of Augustus McCrea. That’s the way it started.

I CAN’T IMAGINE ANYONE ELSE AS AUGUSTUS MCCREA.

At least not in that era. When we finished shooting, I said, “I can retire now, I’ve done something I can be proud of.” Playing Augustus McCrea was kind of like my Hamlet. It may be my favorite role.

WHAT ABOUT THE ROLE MADE IT SO SPECIAL FOR YOU?

[Gus is] full of contradictions—a very interesting guy. I followed the pages and it was so well-written; it just flowed. It was a part that came easy to me. I followed my instincts. Suffie it to say, I can’t ride a cutting horse like my friend Buster Welch, but I did start working.... I was in California and I’d use an English saddle, Western saddle, bareback until I could get a good seat on a horse. A seat on a horse and a hat are the most important things. All the horse work, I did myself. It was 28 years ago and I was a lot younger then.

THAT’S WHY COWBOYS LOVE THAT MOVIE—YOU AND TOMMY LEE JONES CAN RIDE. YOU STUCK THAT HORSE PRETTY WELL WHEN HE STARTED BUCKING DURING THE COMANCHERO ATTACK.