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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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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Singer Jim Mckee | 'Singer' Jim McKee | 1924-03-03 |
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Hello, 'Frisco | William S. Hart | 1924-09-28 |
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Hollywood | William S. Hart | 1923-08-19 |
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Wild Bill Hickok | Wild Bill Hickok | 1923-12-18 |
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Travelin' On | J.B., The Stranger | 1922-03-22 |
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O'Malley of the Mounted | Sergeant O'Malley | 1921-02-06 |
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The Whistle | Robert Evans | 1921-04-08 |
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White Oak | Oak Miller, a gambling man | 1921-02-01 |
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Three Word Brand | Three Word Brand / Governor Marsden / Ben Trego | 1921-10-15 |
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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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Sand | Dan Kurrie | 1920-06-19 |
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The Cradle of Courage | 'Square' Kelly | 1920-09-19 |
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John Petticoats | 'Hardwood' John Haynes | 1919-11-02 |
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The Poppy Girl's Husband | Hairpin Harry Dutton | 1919-03-16 |
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Breed of Men | Careless Carmody | 1919-02-02 |
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Square Deal Sanderson | Square Deal Sanderson | 1919-06-15 |
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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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'Blue Blazes' Rawden | Blue Blazes Rawden | 1918-02-01 |
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Branding Broadway | Robert Sands | 1918-12-15 |
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Riddle Gawne | Jefferson 'Riddle' Gawne | 1918-08-03 |
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A Lion of the Hills | 1918-05-01 | |
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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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Selfish Yates | 'Selfish' Yates | 1918-05-12 |
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The Border Wireless | Steve Ransom | 1918-10-06 |
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Wolf Lowry | Tom 'Wolf' Lowry | 1917-05-27 |
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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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All-Star Production of Patriotic Episodes for the Second Liberty Loan | 1917-10-01 | |
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The Cold Deck | Jefferson "On the Level" Leigh | 1917-10-31 |
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The Gun Fighter | Cliff Hudspeth | 1917-02-11 |
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The Narrow Trail | Ice Harding | 1917-12-30 |
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The Silent Man | Budd Marr | 1917-11-26 |
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The Aryan | Steve Denton | 1916-04-09 |
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The Devil's Double | 'Bowie' Blake | 1916-11-26 |
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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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Between Men | Bob White | 1916-01-01 |
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The Apostle of Vengeance | David Hudson | 1916-06-25 |
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The Captive God | Chiapa | 1916-07-23 |
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The Patriot | Bob Wiley | 1916-03-09 |
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The Return of Draw Egan | 'Draw' Egan aka William Blake | 1916-10-14 |
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Hell's Hinges | Blaze Tracy | 1916-03-05 |
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The Taking of Luke McVane | Luke McVane | 1915-04-16 |
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Pinto Ben | Boss Rider | 1915-08-25 |
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The Ruse | 'Bat' Peters | 1915-07-14 |
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The Roughneck | Dave Page | 1915-04-09 |
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Keno Bates, Liar | Keno Bates | 1915-08-27 |
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The Man from Nowhere | "Buck" Farley | 1915-05-06 |
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Grit | 1915-01-01 | |
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The Scourge of the Desert | Bill Evers | 1915-01-06 |
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The Sheriff's Streak of Yellow | Sheriff Hale | 1915-02-26 |
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Tools of Providence | Steve Blake | 1915-06-06 |
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Bad Buck of Santa Ynez | Bad Buck Peters | 1915-05-20 |
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The Disciple | Jim Houston | 1915-10-16 |
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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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On the Night Stage | Texas | 1915-04-15 |
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Knight of the Trail | Jim Treen | 1915-08-19 |
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The Grudge | Rio Ed | 1915-02-24 |
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Mr. 'Silent' Haskins | Lon Haskins | 1915-02-19 |
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Cash Parrish's Pal | Cash Parrish | 1915-06-21 |
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Two-Gun Hicks | Two-Gun Hicks | 1914-12-23 |
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The Bargain | Jim Stokes | 1914-12-03 |
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In the Sage Brush Country | Jim Brandon | 1914-01-01 |
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Jim Cameron's Wife | Andy Stiles | 1914-07-23 |
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His Hour of Manhood | Pete Larson | 1914-07-02 |
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Ben Hur | Messala | 1907-12-07 |
