1891-04-10 Saginaw, Michigan, USA
One of the great stars of early American Westerns. McCoy was the son of an Irish soldier who later became police chief of Saginaw, Michigan, where McCoy was born. He attended St. Ignatius College in Chicago and after seeing a Wild West show there, left school and found work on a Wyoming ranch. He became an expert horseman and roper and developed a keen knowledge of the ways and languages of the Indian tribes in the area. He competed in numerous rodeos, then enlisted in the U.S. Army when America entered the First World War. He was commissioned and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel. At the end of World War I, he returned to his ranch in Wyoming, only to be called by Governor Bob Carry to the post of Adjutant General of Wyoming, a position he held until 1921. The position carried with it the rank of Brigadier General (a brevet promotion) and it has been reported that this made him the youngest general officer in the U.S. Army. His reputation as a friend to the Wind River Reservation Indians, both Arapahoe and Shoshone, preceded him and in 1922, he was asked by the head of Famous Players-Lasky, Jesse L. Lasky, to provide Indian extras for the Western extravaganza, The Covered Wagon (1923). He resigned from the state position and recruited several hundred Indians to the Utah movie location. When the film wrapped, he was asked to choose several Indians to accompany him to Hollywood. There the production company developed a live 'prologue' to be presented just prior to the movie showing. The idea was a success and McCoy and his Indian group toured the U.S. and eventually, Europe as well. After touring this country and Europe with the Indians as publicity, McCoy returned to Hollywood and used his connections to obtain further work in the movies, both as a technical advisor and eventually as an actor. MGM speedily signed him to a contract to star in a series of Westerns and McCoy rapidly rose to stardom, making scores of Westerns and occasional non-Westerns. He retired from the army and from films after the war, but emerged in the late 1940s for a few more films and some television work. In 1942 he ran for the Republican Nomination for the U.S. Senate in Wyoming. He was defeated and returned to Hollywood and an uncertain future. In 1946 he sold his Wyoming ranch and moved to Bucks County, Pennsylvania and the life of the gentleman farmer. While living there, he met and married Danish writer Inga Arvad. He later built a home in Nogales, Arizona where Inga subsequently died in 1973. He spent his later years as a retired rancher. He died at the U.A. Army hospital at Ft. Hauchuca, Arizona on January 29 1978 at the age of 86. Inducted into the Cowboy Hall of Fame in 1974. During World War I, he served as an artillery officer in the US Army in France. Spouse Inga Arvad (1945 - 1973) (her death) Alice Miller (? - 1931) (divorced) (3 children)
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Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch | (archive footage) | 1976-05-01 |
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Hollywood: The Dream Factory | Self (archive footage) | 1972-01-10 |
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Requiem for a Gunfighter | Judge Irving Short | 1965-06-30 |
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Run of the Arrow | Gen. Allen (as Colonel Tim McCoy) | 1957-09-05 |
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Around the World in Eighty Days | Colonel | 1956-10-17 |
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Injun Talk | Himself | 1946-09-16 |
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Down Texas Way | U. S. Marshal Tim McCall | 1942-05-22 |
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Ghost Town Law | Marshal Tim McCall | 1942-03-27 |
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Below the Border | Marshal Tim McCall | 1942-01-30 |
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West of the Law | Marshal Tim McCall | 1942-10-02 |
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Riders of the West | Marshal Tim McCall | 1942-08-21 |
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The Texas Marshal | Marshal Trigger Tim Rand | 1941-07-12 |
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The Gunman From Bodie | Marshal Tim McCall | 1941-09-19 |
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Arizona Bound | Marshal Tim McCall / 'Parson' McCall | 1941-07-19 |
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Forbidden Trails | Marshal Tim McCall | 1941-12-25 |
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Outlaws of the Rio Grande | Marshal Tim Barton | 1941-02-26 |
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Arizona Gang Busters | Trigger Tim Rand | 1940-09-16 |
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Texas Renegades | 'Silent' Tim Smith | 1940-01-17 |
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Riders of Black Mountain | Marshal Tim Donovan | 1940-11-11 |
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Gun Code | Marshal Tim Hammond posing as Tim Hays | 1940-08-03 |
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Frontier Crusader | Trigger Tim Rand | 1940-06-14 |
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Texas Wildcats | 'Lightning' Bill Carson | 1939-04-09 |
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Trigger Fingers | 'Lightning' Bill Carson | 1939-11-01 |
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Outlaws' Paradise | William Carson / Trigger Mallory | 1939-04-18 |
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Code of the Cactus | Bill Carson | 1939-02-25 |
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The Fighting Renegade | Bill Carson posing as El Puma | 1939-08-31 |
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Straight Shooter | "Lightning" Bill Carson | 1939-08-12 |
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Two Gun Justice | Tim | 1938-04-29 |
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Code of the Rangers | Tim Strong | 1938-04-07 |
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Lightning Carson Rides Again | Lightning Bill Carson / Jose | 1938-10-09 |
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Six-Gun Trail | Captain William Carson | 1938-11-25 |
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Phantom Ranger | Tim Hayes | 1938-05-27 |
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West of Rainbow's End | Tim Hart | 1938-01-12 |
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Aces and Eights | 'Gentleman' Tim Madigan | 1936-06-06 |
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Border Caballero | Tim Ross | 1936-03-01 |
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Ghost Patrol | Tim Caverly | 1936-08-02 |
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Roarin' Guns | Tim Corwin | 1936-01-29 |
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Lightnin' Bill Carson | Marshal Lightnin' Bill Carson | 1936-04-14 |
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The Lion's Den | Tim Barton | 1936-07-07 |
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The Traitor | Tim McCoy: Sergeant Tim Vallance - Texas Ranger | 1936-08-29 |
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Bulldog Courage | Slim Braddock / Tim Braddock | 1935-12-30 |
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The Revenge Rider | Tim O'Neil | 1935-03-18 |
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The Outlaw Deputy | Tim Mallory | 1935-06-20 |
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Riding Wild | Tim Malloy / Tex Ravelle | 1935-06-28 |
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Justice of the Range | Tim Condon | 1935-05-25 |
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Square Shooter | Tim Baxter | 1935-01-21 |
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Law Beyond the Range | Tim McDonald | 1935-02-15 |
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Fighting Shadows | Constable Tim O'Hara | 1935-04-18 |
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The Man from Guntown | Tim Hanlon | 1935-08-15 |
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Speed Wings | Tim | 1934-02-05 |
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A Man's Game | Tim Bradley | 1934-06-16 |
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Voice in the Night | Tim Dale | 1934-04-06 |
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Hell Bent for Love | Police Captain Tim Daley | 1934-05-19 |
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Beyond the Law | Tim Weston | 1934-07-31 |
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The Westerner | Tim Addison | 1934-12-10 |
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Prescott Kid | Tim Hamlin | 1934-11-08 |
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Police Car 17 | Tim Conlon | 1933-09-30 |
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Man Of Action | Ranger Tim Barlow | 1933-01-20 |
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The Whirlwind | Tim Reynolds | 1933-04-13 |
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Hold the Press | Tim Collins | 1933-10-25 |
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Rusty Rides Alone | Tim Burke | 1933-05-25 |
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Silent Men | Tim Richards | 1933-03-03 |
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Straightaway | Tim Dawson | 1933-12-22 |
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The Riding Tornado | Tim Torrant | 1932-05-04 |
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Texas Cyclone | Texas Grant | 1932-02-24 |
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End of the Trail | Captain Tim Travers | 1932-12-19 |
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Cornered | Sheriff Tim Laramie | 1932-08-05 |
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Hollywood on Parade | Self | 1932-06-05 |
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Fighting for Justice | Tim Keene | 1932-08-28 |
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Daring Danger | Tim Madigan | 1932-06-22 |
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The Fighting Fool | Sheriff Tim Collins | 1932-01-20 |
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Two-Fisted Law | Tim Clark | 1932-06-08 |
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The Western Code | Tim Barrett | 1932-09-15 |
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Shotgun Pass | Tim Walker | 1931-11-01 |
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The One Way Trail | Tim Allen | 1931-10-15 |
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The Fighting Marshal | Tim Benton | 1931-11-25 |
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The Indians Are Coming | Jack Manning | 1930-10-09 |
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The Overland Telegraph | Captain Allen | 1929-03-02 |
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Morgan's Last Raid | Capt. Daniel Clairbourne | 1929-01-05 |
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Sioux Blood | Flood | 1929-04-20 |
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The Desert Rider | Jed Tyler | 1929-05-11 |
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The Adventurer | Jim McClellan | 1928-07-14 |
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The Law of the Range | Jim Lockhart | 1928-01-21 |
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Beyond the Sierras | The Masked Stranger | 1928-09-15 |
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Spoilers of the West | Lieutenant Lang | 1927-12-10 |
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Foreign Devils | Capt. Robert Kelly | 1927-09-03 |
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California | Capt. Archibald Gillespie | 1927-05-07 |
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The Frontiersman | John Dale | 1927-06-11 |
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Winners Of The Wilderness | Col. Sir Dennis O'Hara | 1927-01-15 |
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War Paint | Lt. Tim Marshall | 1926-10-09 |
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The Thundering Herd | Burn Hudnall | 1925-03-01 |
