<Tr> <Th> Budget </Th> <Td> $14,483,000 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Box office </Th> <Td> $50,000,000 </Td> </Tr> <P> How the West Was Won is a 1962 American Metrocolor epic - western film . The picture was one of the last "old - fashioned" epic films made by Metro - Goldwyn - Mayer to enjoy great success . Set between 1839 and 1889, it follows four generations of a family (starting as the Prescotts) as they move from western New York to the Pacific Ocean . The picture was one of only two dramatic films made in the curved - screen three - projector Cinerama process, which added to its original impact . </P> <P> The all - star cast includes Carroll Baker, Lee J. Cobb, Henry Fonda, Carolyn Jones, Karl Malden, Gregory Peck, George Peppard, Robert Preston, Debbie Reynolds, James Stewart, Eli Wallach, John Wayne, and Richard Widmark . The film is narrated by Spencer Tracy . </P>

When was the movie how the west was won made