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 | Himself | 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 Testing Block | 'Sierra' Bill | 1920-12-26 |
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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 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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John Petticoats | 'Hardwood' John Haynes | 1919-11-02 |
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The Money Corral | Lem Beason | 1919-04-20 |
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The Tiger Man | Hawk Parsons | 1918-04-30 |
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Wolves of the Rail | 'Buck' Andrade | 1918-01-01 |
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'Blue Blazes' Rawden | Blue Blazes Rawden | 1918-02-01 |
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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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A Lion of the Hills | 1918-05-01 | |
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Shark Monroe | Shark Monroe | 1918-06-30 |
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Branding Broadway | Robert Sands | 1918-12-15 |
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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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Truthful Tulliver | Truthful Tulliver | 1917-01-07 |
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Wolf Lowry | Tom 'Wolf' Lowry | 1917-05-27 |
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The Narrow Trail | Ice Harding | 1917-12-30 |
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All-Star Production of Patriotic Episodes for the Second Liberty Loan | 1917-10-01 | |
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The Desert Man | Jim Alton | 1917-04-22 |
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The Square Deal Man | Jack O'Diamonds | 1917-05-25 |
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The Silent Man | Budd Marr | 1917-11-26 |
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The Gun Fighter | Cliff Hudspeth | 1917-02-11 |
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The Cold Deck | Jefferson "On the Level" Leigh | 1917-10-31 |
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Hell's Hinges | Blaze Tracy | 1916-03-05 |
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The Aryan | Steve Denton | 1916-04-09 |
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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 Return of Draw Egan | 'Draw' Egan aka William Blake | 1916-10-14 |
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The Apostle of Vengeance | David Hudson | 1916-06-25 |
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Between Men | Bob White | 1916-01-01 |
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The Devil's Double | 'Bowie' Blake | 1916-11-26 |
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The Patriot | Bob Wiley | 1916-03-09 |
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The Captive God | Chiapa | 1916-07-23 |
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The Roughneck | Dave Page | 1915-04-09 |
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The Man from Nowhere | "Buck" Farley | 1915-05-06 |
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Pinto Ben | Boss Rider | 1915-08-25 |
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Cash Parrish's Pal | Cash Parrish | 1915-06-21 |
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On the Night Stage | Texas | 1915-04-15 |
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The Darkening Trail | Yukon Ed | 1915-05-31 |
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The Scourge of the Desert | Bill Evers | 1915-01-06 |
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Knight of the Trail | Jim Treen | 1915-08-19 |
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The Taking of Luke McVane | Luke McVane | 1915-04-16 |
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Keno Bates, Liar | Keno Bates | 1915-08-27 |
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The Ruse | 'Bat' Peters | 1915-07-14 |
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The Disciple | Jim Houston | 1915-10-16 |
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Grit | 1915-01-01 | |
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The Grudge | Rio Ed | 1915-02-24 |
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Bad Buck of Santa Ynez | Bad Buck Peters | 1915-05-20 |
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Mr. 'Silent' Haskins | Lon Haskins | 1915-02-19 |
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The Conversion of Frosty Blake | Frosty Blake | 1915-06-02 |
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Tools of Providence | Steve Blake | 1915-06-06 |
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The Sheriff's Streak of Yellow | Sheriff Hale | 1915-02-26 |
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His Hour of Manhood | Pete Larson | 1914-07-02 |
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The Bargain | Jim Stokes | 1914-12-03 |
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Two-Gun Hicks | Two-Gun Hicks | 1914-12-23 |
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Jim Cameron's Wife | Andy Stiles | 1914-07-23 |
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In the Sage Brush Country | Jim Brandon | 1914-01-01 |
