1904-10-16 Pattonsburg, Missouri, USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Wild Bill Elliott (October 16, 1904 – November 26, 1965) was an American film actor. He specialized in playing the rugged heroes of B Westerns, particularly the Red Ryder series of films. By 1925, he was getting occasional extra work in films. He took classes at the Pasadena Playhouse and appeared in a few stage roles there. By 1927, he had made his first Western, The Arizona Wildcat, playing his first featured role. Several co-starring roles followed, and he renamed himself Gordon Elliott. But as the studios made the transition to sound films, he slipped back into roles as an extra and bit parts, as in Broadway Scandals, in 1929. For the next eight years, he appeared in over a hundred films for various studios, but almost always in unbilled parts as an extra. Elliott began to be noticed in some minor B Westerns, enough so that Columbia Pictures offered him the title role in a serial, The Great Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok (1938). The serial was so successful, and Elliott so personable, that Columbia promoted him to starring in his own series of Western features, replacing Columbia's number-two cowboy star Robert "Tex" Allen. Henceforth Gordon Elliott would be known as Bill Elliott. Within two years, he was among the Motion Picture Herald's Top Ten Western Stars, where he would remain for the next 15 years. In 1943, Elliott signed with Republic Pictures, which cast him in a series of Westerns alongside George "Gabby" Hayes. The first of these, Calling Wild Bill Elliott, gave Elliott the name by which he would be best known and by which he would be billed almost exclusively for the rest of his career. Following several films in which both actor and character shared the name Wild Bill Elliott, he took the role for which he would be best remembered, that of Red Ryder in a series of sixteen movies about the famous comic strip cowboy and his young Indian companion, Little Beaver (played in Elliott's films by Bobby Blake). Elliott played the role for only two years but would forever be associated with it. Elliott's trademark was a pair of six guns worn butt-forward in their holsters. Elliott's career thrived during and after the Red Ryder films, and he continued making B Westerns into the early 1950s. He also had his own radio show during the late 1940s. His final contract as a Western star was with Monogram Pictures, where budgets declined as the B Western lost its audience to television. When Monogram became Allied Artists Pictures Corporation in 1953, it phased out its Western productions, and Elliott finished out his contract playing a homicide detective in a series of five modern police dramas, his first non-Westerns since 1938. Elliott retired from films (except for a couple of TV Western pilots which were not picked up). He worked for a time as a spokesman for Viceroy cigarettes and hosted a local TV program in Las Vegas, Nevada, which featured many of his Western films.
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It's Showtime | Self (archive footage) | 1976-03-31 |
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Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch | (archive footage) | 1976-05-01 |
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Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? | Self (archive footage) | 1975-08-06 |
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Chain of Evidence | Andy Doyle | 1957-01-06 |
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Footsteps in the Night | Andy Doyle | 1957-04-14 |
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Calling Homicide | Andy Doyle | 1956-09-30 |
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Sudden Danger | Andy Doyle | 1955-12-14 |
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Dial Red O | Andy Flynn / Andy Doyle | 1955-03-13 |
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Bitter Creek | Clay Tyndall | 1954-02-21 |
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The Forty-Niners | Sam Nelson | 1954-07-30 |
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The Homesteaders | Mace Corbin | 1953-03-22 |
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Rebel City | Frank Graham | 1953-05-10 |
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Vigilante Terror | Tack Hamlin | 1953-11-15 |
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Topeka | Jim Levering | 1953-08-09 |
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The Maverick | Pete Devlin | 1952-12-14 |
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Waco | Matt Boone | 1952-02-24 |
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Fargo | Bill Martin | 1952-09-07 |
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Kansas Territory | Joe Daniels | 1952-05-04 |
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The Longhorn | Jim Kirk | 1951-11-25 |
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The Marshall of Trail City | Wild Bill Elliott | 1950-05-10 |
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The Savage Horde | Ringo | 1950-05-22 |
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The Showdown | Shadrach Jones | 1950-08-15 |
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The Last Bandit | Frank Norris / Frank Plummer | 1949-02-25 |
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Hellfire | Zeb Smith | 1949-05-29 |
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Old Los Angeles | Bill Stockton | 1948-04-24 |
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The Gallant Legion | Gary Conway | 1948-05-24 |
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Wyoming | Charles Alderson | 1947-07-28 |
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The Fabulous Texan | Josie Allen | 1947-11-09 |
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Sun Valley Cyclone | Red Ryder | 1946-05-10 |
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California Gold Rush | Red Ryder | 1946-02-04 |
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The Plainsman and the Lady | Sam Colton | 1946-11-11 |
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In Old Sacramento | Johnny Barrett / Spanish Jack | 1946-05-31 |
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Sheriff of Redwood Valley | Red Ryder | 1946-03-29 |
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Conquest of Cheyenne | Red Ryder | 1946-07-29 |
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Bells of Rosarita | Wild Bill Elliott | 1945-06-19 |
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Phantom of the Plains | Red Ryder | 1945-09-07 |
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Marshal of Laredo | Red Ryder | 1945-10-06 |
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Lone Texas Ranger | Red Ryder | 1945-05-20 |
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Great Stagecoach Robbery | Red Ryder | 1945-02-15 |
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Colorado Pioneers | Red Ryder | 1945-11-14 |
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Wagon Wheels Westward | Red Ryder | 1945-12-21 |
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Hidden Valley Outlaws | Bill Elliott | 1944-04-01 |
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Tucson Raiders | Red Ryder | 1944-05-14 |
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Sheriff of Las Vegas | Red Ryder | 1944-12-31 |
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Cheyenne Wildcat | Red Ryder | 1944-09-30 |
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San Antonio Kid | Red Ryder | 1944-08-16 |
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Vigilantes of Dodge City | Red Ryder | 1944-11-15 |
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Mojave Firebrand | Wild Bill Elliott | 1944-03-19 |
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Marshal of Reno | Red Ryder | 1944-07-02 |
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Bordertown Gun Fighters | Wild Bill Elliott | 1943-07-08 |
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Death Valley Manhunt | Wild Bill Elliott | 1943-11-25 |
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Wagon Tracks West | Wild Bill Elliott | 1943-08-18 |
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Overland Mail Robbery | Wild Bill Elliott | 1943-11-20 |
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The Man from Thunder River | Wild Bill Elliott | 1943-06-11 |
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Calling Wild Bill Elliott | Wild Bill Elliott | 1943-04-30 |
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The Lone Star Vigilantes | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1942-01-01 |
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Vengeance of the West | Joaquin Murietta aka The Black Shadow | 1942-08-16 |
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Bullets for Bandits | 'Wild' Bill Hickok / Prince Katey | 1942-02-12 |
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The Devil's Trail | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1942-05-14 |
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North of the Rockies | Sergeant Bill Cameron | 1942-04-02 |
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Prairie Gunsmoke | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1942-07-16 |
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The Valley of Vanishing Men | Wild Bill Tolliver | 1942-12-17 |
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The Son of Davy Crockett | Dave Crockett | 1941-07-15 |
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North from the Lone Star | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1941-03-30 |
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Roaring Frontiers | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1941-10-15 |
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King of Dodge City | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1941-08-14 |
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Hands Across the Rockies | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1941-06-19 |
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Across the Sierras | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1941-02-13 |
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Tank Patrol | Bluey | 1941-06-16 |
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The Return of Daniel Boone | Wild Bill Boone | 1941-05-07 |
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The Wildcat of Tucson | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1940-12-31 |
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Pioneers of the Frontier | Wild Bill Saunders | 1940-02-14 |
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Beyond the Sacramento | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1940-11-11 |
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The Man from Tumbleweeds | Wild Bill Saunders | 1940-05-02 |
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The Return of Wild Bill | Wild Bill Saunders | 1940-06-26 |
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Prairie Schooners | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1940-09-29 |
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Frontiers of '49 | John Freeman | 1939-01-19 |
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The Roaring Twenties | Bootlegger (uncredited) | 1939-10-28 |
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The Law Comes to Texas | John Haynes | 1939-04-16 |
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Overland with Kit Carson | Kit Carson | 1939-07-21 |
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The Taming of the West | Wild Bill Saunders | 1939-12-07 |
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In Early Arizona | Whit Gordon | 1938-11-02 |
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Boy of the Streets | Dr. Allan | 1938-01-08 |
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The Lady in the Morgue | Chauncey Courtland | 1938-04-22 |
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Letter of Introduction | Backgammon Man (uncredited) | 1938-08-05 |
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The Great Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok | 'Wild' Bill Hickok | 1938-06-30 |
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Midnight Court | City Attorney Seabrook | 1937-03-06 |
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You Can't Have Everything | Lulu's Bathing Companion (uncredited) | 1937-08-02 |
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Michael O'Halloran | Little Lord Fauntleroy (uncredited) | 1937-05-15 |
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Wife, Doctor and Nurse | Bruce Thomas | 1937-09-17 |
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Love Takes Flight | Bill Parker | 1937-11-05 |
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Roll Along, Cowboy | Odie Fenton | 1937-10-18 |
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Swing It Professor | Randall | 1937-03-13 |
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Boots and Saddles | Jim Neale | 1937-10-04 |
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Melody for Two | Walter Wilson | 1937-05-01 |
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Trailin' West | Jefferson Duane | 1936-09-04 |
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Two Against the World | News Commentator (uncredited) | 1936-07-11 |
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Down the Stretch | Robert Bates | 1936-09-18 |
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Guns of the Pecos | Wellman, a Dude | 1936-12-28 |
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Romance in the Air | Announcer | 1936-05-16 |
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Fugitive in the Sky | Ramon Duval | 1936-11-28 |
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The Murder of Dr. Harrigan | Kenneth Martin | 1936-01-11 |
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The Case of the Velvet Claws | Carl Griffin | 1936-07-03 |
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Bullets or Ballots | Hunter - Bank Worker (uncredited) | 1936-06-06 |
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China Clipper | Pilot (uncredited) | 1936-08-11 |
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The Case of the Black Cat | Sam Laxter | 1936-10-31 |
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Polo Joe | Don Trumbeau | 1936-11-04 |
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King of Hockey | 2nd Radio Announcer | 1936-12-19 |
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The Big Noise | Sharp, Board of Directors Member (uncredited) | 1936-06-22 |
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Murder by an Aristocrat | Dave Thatcher | 1936-06-13 |
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The Goose and the Gander | Teddy | 1935-09-21 |
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The Payoff | Maxine's Casino Escort (uncredited) | 1935-01-09 |
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A Night at the Ritz | Vincent's Assistant (uncredited) | 1935-03-23 |
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The Girl from 10th Avenue | James, Clerk at College Club | 1935-06-01 |
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Bright Lights | Backstage Actor | 1935-07-27 |
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Moonlight on the Prairie | Jeff Holt | 1935-11-02 |
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Dr. Socrates | Tom Collins - Greer's Associate | 1935-10-19 |
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Traveling Saleslady | Freddie | 1935-03-28 |
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'G' Men | Bootlegger Who Gives Eddie the Bottle Outside the Club (uncredited) | 1935-05-04 |
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Dangerous | 1935-12-25 | |
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Personal Maid's Secret | Warren Sherrill | 1935-10-26 |
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Broadway Hostess | Playboy in 'Playboy of Paree' Number (uncredited) | 1935-12-07 |
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The Right to Live | Wedding Guest | 1935-01-26 |
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Broadway Gondolier | Reporter | 1935-07-27 |
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Page Miss Glory | Reporter (uncredited) | 1935-09-07 |
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While the Patient Slept | Bank Teller (uncredited) | 1935-03-09 |
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Stars Over Broadway | Minor Role | 1935-11-23 |
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The Woman in Red | Stuart Wyatt | 1935-02-16 |
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Man of Iron | Charlie Fagan | 1935-12-21 |
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Go Into Your Dance | Jackson's Secretary / Dorothy's Dance Partner | 1935-04-20 |
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Desirable | Party Guest | 1934-09-08 |
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Upperworld | Police Photographer (uncredited) | 1934-04-28 |
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The Secret Bride | Governor's Secretary (uncredited) | 1934-12-22 |
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Wonder Bar | Norman (uncredited) | 1934-03-31 |
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Registered Nurse | Male Nurse | 1934-04-06 |
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The Case of the Howling Dog | Reporter in Courtroom (uncredited) | 1934-09-22 |
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A Lost Lady | Polo Match Spectator (uncredited) | 1934-09-29 |
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The Merry Frinks | Dancer (uncredited) | 1934-05-26 |
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Murder in the Clouds | Lt. Saunders | 1934-12-15 |
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Smarty | Nightclub Patron (uncredited) | 1934-05-19 |
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Made on Broadway | Night Club Patron | 1933-05-19 |
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The Keyhole | Partygoer (uncredited) | 1933-03-25 |
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Cocktail Hour | Party Guest (uncredited) | 1933-06-05 |
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Gold Diggers of 1933 | Night Club Patron (uncredited) | 1933-05-27 |
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Private Detective 62 | Man at Roulette Table (Uncredited) | 1933-06-10 |
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The Little Giant | Guest at Polly's Party (uncredited) | 1933-05-20 |
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Stage Mother | Audience Member / Dexter's Party Guest (uncredited) | 1933-09-29 |
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Midnight Mary | Party Guest (uncredited) | 1933-06-30 |
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Handlebars | Bicyclist (uncredited) | 1933-08-26 |
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Only Yesterday | New Year's Eve Reveler (Uncredited) | 1933-11-01 |
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Scarface | Man Outside Theatre (uncredited) | 1932-04-09 |
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Vanity Fair | Bit Role | 1932-03-15 |
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The Rich Are Always with Us | Gambler (uncredited) | 1932-05-19 |
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Night After Night | Escort (uncredited) | 1932-10-29 |
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One Hour with You | Party Guest (uncredited) | 1932-03-23 |
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The Greeks Had a Word for Them | Wedding Guest (uncredited) | 1932-02-03 |
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The Mummy | Party Guest (uncredited) | 1932-12-22 |
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Lady with a Past | Alex Brown (Uncredited) | 1932-02-19 |
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Bachelor's Affairs | Ship's Passenger / Dance Extra (uncredited) | 1932-06-26 |
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Jewel Robbery | Policeman Following Blonde (uncredited) | 1932-07-08 |
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A Successful Calamity | Polo Player (uncredited) | 1932-09-17 |
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Merrily We Go to Hell | Party Guest (uncredited) | 1932-06-10 |
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West of Broadway | Nightclub Patron (uncredited) | 1931-11-28 |
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Sweepstakes | Night Club Patron | 1931-07-10 |
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Traveling Husbands | Hotel Dining Room Guest | 1931-08-15 |
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Blonde Crazy | Nightclub Patron (uncredited) | 1931-09-16 |
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God's Gift to Women | Minor Role (uncredited) | 1931-04-13 |
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Let's Do Things | Music Store Customer (uncredited) | 1931-06-06 |
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The Public Defender | Country Club Guest | 1931-08-01 |
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Broadminded | Hotel Guest on Veranda | 1931-08-01 |
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Born to Love | Hotel Dancer (uncredited) | 1931-04-17 |
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Working Girls | Dance Extra / Lobby Extra (uncredited) | 1931-12-12 |
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Left Over Ladies | Escort (uncredited) | 1931-09-30 |
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Delicious | Larry's Friend | 1931-12-27 |
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Five and Ten | Wedding Guest (uncredited) | 1931-06-13 |
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Party Husband | Wedding Party Guest | 1931-06-06 |
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Platinum Blonde | Ann's Beau (uncredited) | 1931-10-31 |
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The Road to Reno | Party Boy | 1931-09-25 |
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Born Reckless | Customer at Beretti's | 1930-05-11 |
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Double Cross Roads | Party Guest | 1930-04-20 |
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She Couldn't Say No | Gangster | 1930-02-15 |
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The Truth About Youth | Nightclub Patron (uncredited) | 1930-11-03 |
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The Return of Dr. Fu Manchu | 1930-05-02 | |
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Sunny | One of Tom's War Buddies | 1930-11-09 |
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Part Time Wife | Golfer (uncredited) | 1930-11-30 |
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Lord Byron of Broadway | Party-Goer | 1930-02-28 |
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She Who Gets Slapped | Poker Player | 1930-05-15 |
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The Girl Said No | Wedding Guest | 1930-03-15 |
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What Men Want | Party Boy | 1930-07-12 |
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Going Wild | Physical Exam Onlooker | 1930-12-21 |
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Night Parade | Party Guest | 1929-10-27 |
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The Great Divide | Ruth's Friend (uncredited) | 1929-09-15 |
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Broadway Scandals | George Halloway | 1929-11-10 |
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Restless Youth | George Baxter | 1928-11-30 |
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The Boy Friend | Gordon Elliot | 1928-11-10 |
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The Private Life of Helen of Troy | Telemachus | 1927-12-09 |
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The Drop Kick | Aggressive Student at Dance | 1927-09-25 |
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Children of Divorce | Party Guest (uncredited) | 1927-04-25 |
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The Arizona Wildcat | Roy Schyler | 1927-11-20 |
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The Shamrock Handicap | Well-Wishing Villager | 1926-05-02 |
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Napoleon, Jr. | Flora's Father | 1926-11-14 |
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The Plastic Age | Athlete (uncredited) | 1925-12-15 |
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Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ | Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited) | 1925-12-25 |
