1864-12-06 Newburgh, New York, USA
The first Western superstar, the taciturn Hart actually was a successful Shakespearean actor who played Messala in “Ben-Hur” on Broadway in 1899 before riding the range in movies. A longtime fan of the Old West, Hart was friends with Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson. His film career began in 1914. After two supporting roles he gained fame as the lead in the feature-length western “The Bargain” shot on location at the Grand Canyon. Hart strove to make his westerns realistic with detailed attention played to costumes and props. Though Hart could be cast as a villain, he imbued all of his characters with honor and integrity. After making western shorts for producer Thomas Ince, he went to Famous Players-Lasky, which merged with Paramount Pictures in 1917. At Paramount he made such gritty feature westerns as “Square Deal Sanderson” and “The Toll Gate.” His star began to fade in the early 1920s when audiences grew tired of his moralistic Western tales. Not helping his career was his 1923 divorce from his wife, Winifred, who accused him of having two children by another woman. He made one last film, 1925’s “Tumbleweeds, which he financed himself. In 1939, the film was reissued this time with a prologue featuring a 75-year-old Hart shot on location at his ranch in Newhall talking about the West and his days in films. He died in 1946 at age 81. His home and ranch were turned into William S. Hart Park in Newhall.
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Decasia: The State of Decay | Self - Cowboy (archive footage) | 2002-01-10 |
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It's Showtime | Self (archive footage) | 1976-03-31 |
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The Great Chase | 1962-12-20 | |
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The Legend of Rudolph Valentino | Self (archive footage) | 1961-05-24 |
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Yesterday and Today | (archive footage) | 1953-12-02 |
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Variety Time | Texas Tex (archive footage) (uncredited) | 1948-08-21 |
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Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 1 | Self (uncredited) | 1941-10-02 |
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The Hollywood Gad-About | Self (uncredited) | 1934-10-04 |
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The House That Shadows Built | (archive footage) | 1931-07-08 |
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Stars of Yesterday | Self | 1931-12-31 |
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Show People | Self (uncredited) | 1928-11-20 |
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Tumbleweeds | Don Carver | 1925-12-27 |
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Hello, 'Frisco | William S. Hart | 1924-09-28 |
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Singer Jim Mckee | 'Singer' Jim McKee | 1924-03-03 |
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Wild Bill Hickok | Wild Bill Hickok | 1923-12-18 |
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Hollywood | William S. Hart | 1923-08-19 |
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Travelin' On | J.B., The Stranger | 1922-03-22 |
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White Oak | Oak Miller, a gambling man | 1921-02-01 |
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The Whistle | Robert Evans | 1921-04-08 |
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Three Word Brand | Three Word Brand / Governor Marsden / Ben Trego | 1921-10-15 |
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O'Malley of the Mounted | Sergeant O'Malley | 1921-02-06 |
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The Cradle of Courage | 'Square' Kelly | 1920-09-19 |
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Sand | Dan Kurrie | 1920-06-19 |
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The Toll Gate | Black Deering | 1920-04-15 |
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The Testing Block | 'Sierra' Bill | 1920-12-26 |
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The Poppy Girl's Husband | Hairpin Harry Dutton | 1919-03-16 |
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Square Deal Sanderson | Square Deal Sanderson | 1919-06-15 |
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Breed of Men | Careless Carmody | 1919-02-02 |
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John Petticoats | 'Hardwood' John Haynes | 1919-11-02 |
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Wagon Tracks | Buckskin Hamilton | 1919-07-28 |
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The Money Corral | Lem Beason | 1919-04-20 |
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Wolves of the Rail | 'Buck' Andrade | 1918-01-01 |
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The Tiger Man | Hawk Parsons | 1918-04-30 |
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Branding Broadway | Robert Sands | 1918-12-15 |
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Selfish Yates | 'Selfish' Yates | 1918-05-12 |
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Riddle Gawne | Jefferson 'Riddle' Gawne | 1918-08-03 |
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'Blue Blazes' Rawden | Blue Blazes Rawden | 1918-02-01 |
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Shark Monroe | Shark Monroe | 1918-06-30 |
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Staking His Life | Bud Randall | 1918-01-01 |
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The Border Wireless | Steve Ransom | 1918-10-06 |
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A Lion of the Hills | 1918-05-01 | |
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The Cold Deck | Jefferson "On the Level" Leigh | 1917-10-31 |
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The Square Deal Man | Jack O'Diamonds | 1917-05-25 |
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The Desert Man | Jim Alton | 1917-04-22 |
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Truthful Tulliver | Truthful Tulliver | 1917-01-07 |
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Wolf Lowry | Tom 'Wolf' Lowry | 1917-05-27 |
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All-Star Production of Patriotic Episodes for the Second Liberty Loan | 1917-10-01 | |
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The Narrow Trail | Ice Harding | 1917-12-30 |
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The Gun Fighter | Cliff Hudspeth | 1917-02-11 |
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The Silent Man | Budd Marr | 1917-11-26 |
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Hell's Hinges | Blaze Tracy | 1916-03-05 |
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The Return of Draw Egan | 'Draw' Egan aka William Blake | 1916-10-14 |
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Between Men | Bob White | 1916-01-01 |
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The Dawn Maker | Joe Elk | 1916-09-23 |
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The Primal Lure | Angus McConnell | 1916-05-21 |
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The Apostle of Vengeance | David Hudson | 1916-06-25 |
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The Patriot | Bob Wiley | 1916-03-09 |
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The Devil's Double | 'Bowie' Blake | 1916-11-26 |
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The Aryan | Steve Denton | 1916-04-09 |
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The Captive God | Chiapa | 1916-07-23 |
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The Man from Nowhere | "Buck" Farley | 1915-05-06 |
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Mr. 'Silent' Haskins | Lon Haskins | 1915-02-19 |
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Knight of the Trail | Jim Treen | 1915-08-19 |
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The Scourge of the Desert | Bill Evers | 1915-01-06 |
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The Roughneck | Dave Page | 1915-04-09 |
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Tools of Providence | Steve Blake | 1915-06-06 |
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The Ruse | 'Bat' Peters | 1915-07-14 |
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The Grudge | Rio Ed | 1915-02-24 |
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Pinto Ben | Boss Rider | 1915-08-25 |
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The Conversion of Frosty Blake | Frosty Blake | 1915-06-02 |
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The Darkening Trail | Yukon Ed | 1915-05-31 |
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The Sheriff's Streak of Yellow | Sheriff Hale | 1915-02-26 |
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On the Night Stage | Texas | 1915-04-15 |
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The Taking of Luke McVane | Luke McVane | 1915-04-16 |
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Bad Buck of Santa Ynez | Bad Buck Peters | 1915-05-20 |
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Grit | 1915-01-01 | |
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Keno Bates, Liar | Keno Bates | 1915-08-27 |
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Cash Parrish's Pal | Cash Parrish | 1915-06-21 |
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The Disciple | Jim Houston | 1915-10-16 |
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His Hour of Manhood | Pete Larson | 1914-07-02 |
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Jim Cameron's Wife | Andy Stiles | 1914-07-23 |
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Two-Gun Hicks | Two-Gun Hicks | 1914-12-23 |
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In the Sage Brush Country | Jim Brandon | 1914-01-01 |
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The Bargain | Jim Stokes | 1914-12-03 |
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Ben Hur | Messala | 1907-12-07 |
