part six page three
Born Henry Branch Bell on 21 January 1892 in Los Angeles, California, USA, From his first film, Don Quickshot of the Rio Grande 1923, to his last, Fancy Pants 1950 American supporting player Hank Bell specialized in westerns. While still relatively young, Bell adopted the "grizzled old desert rat" characterization, that sustained him throughout his career, simply by removing his teeth and growing a thick, inverted handlebar mustache. Though occasionally given lines to speak, he was usually consigned to "atmosphere roles:" if you'll look closely at the jury in the Three Stooges 2-reeler Disorder in the Court, you'll see Bell in the top row on the left, making swimming motions when Curly douses the jurors with a fire hose. A fixture of "B"-pictures, Hank Bell occasionally surfaced in "A" films like Abraham Lincoln 1930, Trail of the Lonesome Pine 1936, The Plainsman 1936, Geronimo 1939 and My Little Chickadee 1940. Hank appeared in eleven movies with John Wayne, Picture from The Shepherd of the Hills 1941, Hank passed away on 4 February 1950 in Hollywood, California,
Born Antonio Garride Monteagudo on 26 September 1887 in Madrid, Spain, Spanish actor Antonio Moreno was in films from 1912, and in the pre-1920 years had built himself up into one of the bigger stars of Vitagraph Studios. A beefy, handsome man who could spring into rugged action at the turn of a camera crank, Moreno also appeared in several silents serials, with titles like The House of Hate and Invisible Hands. Like many pioneer movie players, Moreno found his star waning in the early '20s, until the arrival of Rudolph Valentino created a demand in Hollywood for Latin Lover types. Moreno's career was revitalized, and by 1926 he was pitching woo to Greta Garbo and engaging in a bloody bullwhip duel in The Temptress. When talkies came in, Moreno was kept busy starring in Spanish-language versions of Hollywood film hits, and continued making films in his native tongue both in the USA and below the border. As an actor, Moreno was rather locked in the declamatory style of his Vita-graph days, as witness his florid performance as an amorous gypsy in Laurel and Hardy's The Bohemian Girl 1936. But he worked often, if not for the high salaries of his silent days, in character roles in such Hollywood costume epics as The Spanish Main 1945 and Captain from Castile 1948. John Ford devotees will be familiar with Moreno for his role as Emilio Figueroa in Ford's influential western epic The Searchers 1955. Antonio appeared in three movies with John Wayne, Picture from The Searchers 1956, Antonio passed away on 15 February 1967 in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Born Harry Franklin Price on 24 June 1886, Wauseon, Ohio, USA, Balding, stocky-framed vaudevillian and stock company player who came to films in middle age at the advent of sound. He served primarily in a minor but very reliable capacity in the 30s and 40s, appearing in hundreds of movies mostly westerns portraying various bartenders, mayors, store owners, ranchers and staunch town leader types. Sometimes he was Hal Price, other times he was Harry Price. Sometimes (in fact, much of the time) he wasn't billed at all. Whatever the case, Hal Price was one of the more ubiquitous performers in the field of B-Westerns and serials. He was the bald, mustachioed frontiersman who usually said something like, "We got a nice, quiet town here, stranger...and we aim to keep it that way." Hal appeared in eight movies with John Wayne, Picture from Riders of Destiny 1933, Hal passed away on 15 April 1964 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
Born J. M. Kerrigan on 16 December 1884 in Dublin, Ireland, Irish actor J. M. Kerrigan was a stalwart of Dublin's Abbey Players, though from time to time he'd make the crossing to America to appear in such films as Little Old New York 1923 and Song O' My Heart 1930 His film debut was 1916's Food of Love. Kerrigan settled in Hollywood permanently in 1935 when he was brought from Ireland with several other Abbey performers to appear in John Ford's The Informer. Kerrigan was given a generous amount of screen time as the barfly who befriends the suddenly wealthy Victor McLaglen, then drops his "pal" like a hot potato when the money runs out. Not all of Kerrigan's subsequent Hollywood performances were this meaty, and in fact the actor did a lot of day-player work, sometimes showing up for only one or two scenes. It was in one of these minor roles that J. M. Kerrigan shone in Gone with the Wind 1939, playing Johnny Gallegher, the seemingly jovial mill owner who whips his convict labour into "cooperation." Kerrigan appeared in two movies with John Wayne, Picture from The Fighting Seabees 1944, Kerrigan passed away on 29 April 1964 in Hollywood, California USA.
Born Myron Healey on 8 June 1923 in Petaluma, California, USA, American actor and occasional screenwriter. One of the most frequently seen heavies in films and television programs of the 1950s, his name is nevertheless well known only to buffs. Occasionally he played minor leads and sympathetic characters, but his stern good looks and rich deep voice made him a memorable villain, particularly in Westerns. Myron appeared in three movies with John Wayne, Picture from Rio Bravo 1959, Myron passed away on 21 December 2005 in Burbank, California, USA.
Born James William Flavin Jr on 14 May 1906 in Portland, Maine, USA, Jut-jawed and jaunty-looking Irish-American character actor appeared in countless Hollywood films of the 1930s and '40s in which he almost always portrayed a keeper of order: e.g., a ship's second mate or a US Marine platoon sergeant or a big-city police investigator. The only exception to his good-guy rule was his brief appearance as a thug in the comedy Brother Orchid 1940 Although he graduated from West Point, James Flavin decided on an acting career instead of the military. After touring with several stock and repertory companies, he arrived in Hollywood and broke into films in the early 1930s. A fast-talking, granite-jawed Irishman, Flavin appeared in hundreds of films during his career and was often cast as a big-city homicide detective, street cop, prison guard or Marine sergeant. One of Flavin's closest friends, oddly enough, was legendary cheapo producer Sam Katzman. James appeared in five movies with John Wayne, Picture from Operation Pacific 1951, James passed away on 23 April 1976 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
Born Cyrus Willard Kendall on 10 March 1898 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA, Cyrus W. Kendall was eight years old when he made his acting debut at the fabled Pasadena Playhouse. As an adult, the portly Kendall became a charter member of the Playhouse's Eighteen Actors Inc., acting in and/or directing over 100 theatrical productions. In films from 1936, he was usually typecast as an abrasive, cigar-chomping detective, gangster or machine politician. He showed up in roles both large and small in feature films, and was prominently cast in several of MGM's Crime Does Not Pay short subjects. Typical Kendall assignments of the 1940s included Jumbo Madigan in Alias Boston Blackie (1941) and "Honest" John Travers in Outlaw Trail (1944). Remaining active into the early years of live television, Cyrus W. Kendall essayed several guest spots on the 1949 quiz show/anthology Armchair Detective, and co-starred with Robert Bice, Spencer Chan and Herb Ellis on the Hollywood-based ABC weekly Mysteries of Chinatown (1949-50). Cy appeared in six movies with John Wayne, Picture from King of the Pecos 1936, Cy passed away on 22 July 1953 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Born Hermann Katt on 21 May 1915 in Brooklyn, New York, USA, Educated at the Pratt Institute, Brooklyn-born Bill Williams broke into performing as a professional swimmer. Williams went on to work as a singer/actor in regional stock and vaudeville before making his film bow in 1943. After World War II service, he was signed by RKO Radio Pictures, which gave him the star buildup with such 1946 releases as Till the End of Time and Deadline at Dawn. Also in 1946, he wed another RKO contractee, Barbara Hale, with whom he co-starred in A Likely Story (1948) and Clay Pigeon (1949). His film career on the wane in the early 1950s, Williams signed up to star in the weekly TV western The Adventures of Kit Carson, which ran from 1952 to 1955. After the cancellation of Kit Carson, he remained active in television starring opposite Betty White in the 1955 sitcom Date with the Angels and showing off his athletic and aquatic prowess in the 1960 Sea Hunt clone Assignment: Underwater. He stayed active into the 1980s, playing rugged character roles. Bill Williams was the father of actor William Katt, star of the 1980s adventure weekly The Greatest American Hero. Picture from Rio Lobo 1970, Bill passed away on 21 September 1992 in Burbank, California, USA.
Born Bertell King on 29 December 1920, I can not find any information on Brett King but he appeared in two movies with John Wayne which were Flying Leathernecks and Operation Pacific, Picture from Flying Leathernecks 1951, Brett passed away on 14 January 1999 in Palm Beach, Florida, USA.
Born Samuel A. Ethridge on 19 October 1882 in Guinette County, Georgia, USA, Chances are when a doctor made a house call in a '40s movie, that doctor was portrayed by Sam Flint. Silver-haired, authoritative, and distinguished by an executive-style moustache, Flint entered films in the early '30s after a long stage career. Though his movie roles were usually confined to one or two scenes per picture, Flint was always instantly recognizable in his characterizations of businessmen, bankers, chairmen of the board, politicians, publishers, fathers of the bride--and, as mentioned before, doctors. In addition to his prolific feature-film work, Sam Flint was always welcome in short subjects, appearing in support of everyone from Our Gang to the Three Stooges. Sam appeared in six movies with John Wayne, Picture from Winds of the Wasteland 1936, Sam passed away on 17 October 1980 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Born Henry Brazeale Walthall on 16 March 1878, Shelby City, Alabama, USA, Born in affluence on a plantation near Shelby County, Alabama, one of eight children. His father, Junius Leigh Walthall, was a Virginia native who served as captain in the Confederate Army and later became a respected figure in Alabama politics. His middle name, Brazeale, was passed on to him. It was his grandmother's Irish maiden name. Walthall enlisted in the First Alabama Regiment with the United States Army at the beginning of the Spanish-American War. Serving eleven months, a bout of malarial fever while in camp at Jacksonville, Florida kept him from seeing action. Henry appeared in three movies with John Wayne, Picture from Somewhere in Sonora 1933, Henry passed away on 17 June 1936 in Monrovia, California, USA.
Born Claude Joséphine Rose Cardinale on 15 April 1938 in Tunis, Tunisia, Like many other female Italian film stars, Claudia Cardinale's entry into the business was by way of a beauty pageant. She was 17 years old and studying at the Centro Sperimentale in Rome when she entered a beauty contest, which resulted in her getting a succession of small film roles. Her earthy interpretations of Sicilian women got her noticed by Italian producers, and the combination of her beauty, dark, flashing eyes, explosive sexuality and genuine acting talent virtually guaranteed her stardom. After Senilità 1962 she rose to the front ranks of Italian cinema, and became an international star in Federico Fellini's classic 8½ 1963 with Marcello Mastroianni. American audiences may best remember her from her starring role in Sergio Leone's C'era una volta il West 1968. Claudia only appeared in one film with John Wayne. Picture from The Magnificent Showman 1964.
Born Charlene Holt on 28 April 1928 in New Mexico, USA, Was crowned "Miss Maryland" in 1956 and was a semi-finalist that same year in the, Miss Universe Contest held in Long Beach, California. Charlene only appeared in one movie with John Wayne, Picture from El Dorado 1966, Charlene passed away on 5 April 1996 in Williamson, Tennessee, USA.
Born Gino Corrado Liserani on 9 February 1893 in Florence, Italy, A graduate of his native College of Strada, Corrado finished his education at St. Bede College in Peru, IL, and entered films with D.W. Griffith in the early 1910s, later claiming to have played bit parts in both Birth of a Nation (1915) and Intolerance (1916). By the mid-1910s, he was essaying the "other man" in scores of melodramas, now billed under the less ethnic-sounding name of Eugene Corey. He became Geno Corrado in the 1920s but would work under his real name in literally hundreds of sound films, a career that lasted well into the 1950s and also included live television appearances. In a case of life imitating art, Corrado reportedly supplemented his income by working as a waiter in between acting assignments. Gino appeared in six movies with John Wayne, Picture from Paradise Canyon 1935, Gino passed away on 23 December 1982 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Born Louise Platt on 3 August 1915 in Stamford, Connecticut, USA, An intelligent stage actress, Louise Platt's only memorable screen performance came as the pregnant army wife in John Ford's Stagecoach 1939. She was 24 at the time, not exactly the blushing ingénue type, and she much preferred Broadway. She later appeared in such plays as A Room in Red and White, Spring Dance, The Promise, and, alternating with her sister Jean, as Johnny Belinda. In 1948 Platt created the role of Anne Boleyn opposite Rex Harrison in Anne of a Thousand Days and, the following year, starred with Lee Tracy in The Traitor, the latter produced by her former husband Jed Harris. She later appeared in several television shows, including two episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Picture from Stagecoach 1939, Louise passed away on 6 September 2003 in Greenport, New York, USA.
Jim Burk was born in Newhall, California on November 14, Jim learned leather work from two of the best leatherwork people Art Hugenberger and Cliff Ketchum. Art made saddles and Cliff did the carving. After school, when I wasn’t riding, I’d hang around the shop I really loved the smell of leather. Art would show me how saddles were constructed from fitting a bare tree, to the ground seat, to the finished product. Cliff set me up with some excellent used tools and taught me how to lay out a pattern so that it meant something, it flowed; in other words, the design went somewhere. It was approximately 1963 when I opened a shop in a friend’s feed store the picture business was slow at the time because they weren’t making many Westerns. I had been in the stunt business 5 or 6 years when I wanted to train a falling horse of my own. My dad, Jimmy Louckes, agreed to help me. First we had to find a horse. Danny Sands told my dad that he knew of a horse at the track that someone wanted to sell a thoroughbred gelding that was sound but didn’t have the speed. So Danny bought him for me for $200 as I recall. With the assistance of my dad and Les Hilton trainer of Mr. Ed and Francis the Talking Mule, I was taking him from his back by the third day and doing pretty good. His race track name was Detonator, so I kept it because I thought that was a pretty good name for a falling horse, I was still pretty green in the business and didn’t get too much work for him. Cliff had been so impressed with Detonator that he told my dad he was going to do a big film for John Wayne titled THE ALAMO, and he told him that he wanted Detonator and asked if he could take him. My dad told him that he would have to take his kid, too, because it was Jim's horse and he didn’t want anyone else falling him. The next day I received a call from Mr. Lyons asking if I could come over to the studio to see him. The rest is history. Detonator died when he was 32 years old. He had a lot of heart and I could tell you lots of stories about him, but that would take a whole book all by itself. Jim and Detonator were part of the great scene in the ALAMO were 14 horses all fell at once. Jim as appeared in four movies with John Wayne, Picture from Big Jake 1971, but as done stunt work in numerous other John Wayne movies. This information was supplied by Tim Lilley of Campfire Conversations. Jim passed away on March 10, 2009 in Darby, Montana, USA.
Born Robert B. McKenzie on 22 September 1880 in Ballymena, County Antrim, Ireland. A small man with a big belly, McKenzie entered films in 1915 and spent most of his career in B-Westerns, usually as a gold-watch-chained banker. Robert appeared in seven movies with John Wayne, Picture from Tall in the Saddle 1944, Robert passed away on 8 July 1949 in Manunuck, Rhode Island, USA.