Rory Calhoun

Rory Calhoun (August 8, 1922 – April 28, 1999) was an American film and television actor, screenwriter and producer.

Calhoun was born Francis Timothy McCown in Los Angeles, California, and spent his early childhood in Santa Cruz, California. McCown worked a number of odd jobs before signing with agent Henry Willson. Soon after, he changed his name to Rory Calhoun. His first appearance on film was in Alfred Hitchcock's Spellbound (1945).

Spouses

Lita Baron (1948–1970)
Sue Rhodes (1971–1979; 1982–1999)

Children - 5

Biography

Early life

Born Francis Timothy McCown in Los Angeles, California, Calhoun spent his early years in Santa Cruz, California. The son of a professional gambler, he was of Irish ancestry. He was only nine months old when his father died; Calhoun's mother remarried, and he occasionally went by Frank Durgin, using the last name of his stepfather.

At age thirteen, he stole a revolver, for which he was sent to the California Youth Authority's Preston School of Industry reformatory at Ione, California. He escaped while in the adjustment center (jail within the jail). After robbing several jewelry stores, he stole a car and drove it across state lines. This made it a federal offense, and when he was recaptured, he was sentenced to three years in prison. He served his sentence at the United States Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Missouri. He remained there until he was paroledshortly before his twenty-first birthday.

Career

Calhoun worked at a number of odd jobs. In 1943, while riding horseback in the Hollywood Hills, he met actor Alan Ladd, whose wife, Sue Carol was an agent. She landed Calhoun a one-line role in a Laurel and Hardy comedy, The Bullfighters, credited under the name Frank McCown. Shortly afterwards, the Ladds hosted a party attended by David O. Selznick employee Henry Willson, an agent known for his assortment of young, handsome and marginally talented actors to whom he gave new, unusual names. Willson signed McCown to a contract and it was soon changed to "Rory Calhoun". Willson carefully groomed his new client.

Calhoun's first public appearance in the film capital was as Lana Turner's escort to the premiere of Alfred Hitchcock's Spellbound (1945), a Selznick production. The glamorous blonde and her handsome companion attracted the paparazzi, and photos appeared in newspapers and fan magazines. Selznick then began loaning his contract player to other studios; subsequently, Calhoun appeared in Adventure Island with Rhonda Fleming, The Red House with Edward G. Robinson, and That Hagen Girl with Shirley Temple.

As Calhoun's career gained momentum, he next appeared in several westerns, musicals and comedies, including Way of a Gaucho with Gene Tierney, With a Song in My Heart with Susan Hayward, How to Marry a Millionaire (as the love interest of Betty Grable) and River of No Return. The last two films featured Marilyn Monroe.

Willson maintained careful control over his rising star, arranging his social life and ending his engagement to French actress Corinne Calvet. In 1955, Willson disclosed information about Calhoun's years in prison to Confidential magazine in exchange for the tabloid not printing an exposé about the secret homosexual life of Rock Hudson, another Willson client. The disclosure had no negative effect on Calhoun's career and only served to solidify his "bad boy" image.

In 1955, Calhoun and Julie Adams co-starred in the film The Looters (it), the story of a plane crash in the Rocky Mountains. Part of the picture was filmed about Tarryall Creek in Park County in central Colorado. The advertising poster reads: "Five desperate men ... and a girl who didn't care ... trapped on a mountain of gale-lashed rock!"

In 1957, Calhoun formed Rorvic, a production company with his partner, Victor Orsatti, to make and star in The Hired Gun and Apache Territory.

In 1958, on the recommendation of studio boss Desi Arnaz, Sr., Calhoun co-produced and starred in the CBS western television series The Texan, which aired on Monday evenings until 1960. While filming The Texan, Calhoun would continue to produce and write screenplays throughout his career. The Texan could have filmed a third year had Calhoun not desired to concentrate on films. On March 26, 1959, he appeared as himself in the episode "Rory Calhoun, The Texan" on the CBS sitcom December Bride, starring Spring Byington, a series then in its fifth and final season of production.

After The Texan ended, Calhoun was considered for the lead of James West in the 1965-1969 CBS series The Wild Wild West, but the producers were not impressed with his screen test and instead chose Robert Conrad. Like many American actors, Calhoun also made a variety of films in Europe, notably starring in Sergio Leone's first film, The Colossus of Rhodes.

Calhoun continued to appear in both television and film throughout the 1970s and 1980s, including Thunder in Carolina, Rawhide, Gilligan's Island, Hawaii Five-O, Alias Smith and Jones and Starsky and Hutch. In 1982, Calhoun had a regular role on the soap opera Capitol, having been persuaded to accept the role by his family after his regret over turning down a part on CBS's Dallas. He stayed with the series until 1987.

Calhoun became known to a new generation for several roles in cult films such as Night of the Lepus (1972), Motel Hell (1980), Angel (1984) and its sequel Avenging Angel (1985), as well as Hell Comes to Frogtown (1987).

His final role was that of grizzled family patriarch and rancher Ernest Tucker in the film Pure Country (1992).

Death

Rory Calhoun died in Burbank, California, at the age of 76 from complications resulting from emphysema and diabetes.

Personal life

Calhoun was married twice. He had five daughters, three with first wife Lita Baron (m. 1948-1970), Cindy, Tami and Lori, one with actress Vitina Marcus, and one with his second wife (m. 1971-1979; 1982-1999, his death), journalist Sue Rhodes.

When Lita Baron sued Calhoun for divorce, she named Betty Grable as one of 79 women with whom he had adulterous relationships. Calhoun replied to her charge, "Heck, she didn't even include half of them".

In 1966, Vitina Marcus filed a paternity suit against Calhoun. Both actors were married at the time. The suit was settled in Los Angeles Superior Court for an undisclosed sum.

Legacy

Calhoun has two stars one on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one (at 7007 Hollywood Blvd.) for his contribution to film and a second star (at 1750 Vine Street) for his work in television.

In popular culture

Calhoun was referenced by Mr. Burns in the Season 6 episode of The Simpsons, "Two Dozen and One Greyhounds".

Filmography

• Something for the Boys (1944) as Soldier (uncredited)
• Sunday Dinner for a Soldier (1944) as Soldier in Truck (uncredited)
• The Bullfighters (1945, billed as Frank McCown) as El Brillante - Disgusted Matador (uncredited)
• Where Do We Go From Here? (1945) as Soldier Leaving Canteen (uncredited)
• The Great John L. (1945) as James J. 'Gentleman Jim' Corbett
• Nob Hill (1945) as Jose - Boxer Sparring with Tony (uncredited)
• The Red House (1947) as Teller
• Adventure Island (1947) as Mr. Herrick
• That Hagen Girl (1947) as Ken Freneau
• Miraculous Journey (1948) as Larry Burke
• Massacre River (1949) as Phil Acton
• Sand (1949) as Chick Palmer
• A Ticket to Tomahawk (1950) as Dakota
• Return of the Frontiersman (1950) as Larrabee
• County Fair (1950) as Peter Brennan
• Rogue River (1951) as Ownie Rogers
• I'd Climb the Highest Mountain (1951) as Jack Stark
• Meet Me After the Show (1951) as David Hemingway
• With a Song in My Heart (1952) as John Burn
• Way of a Gaucho (1952) as Martin Penalosa
• The Silver Whip (1953) as Sheriff Tom Davisson
• Powder River (1953) as Chino Bullock
• How to Marry a Millionaire (1953) as Eben
• River of No Return (1954) as Harry Weston
• The Yellow Tomahawk (1954) as Adam Reed
• Dawn at Socorro (1954) as Brett Wade
• A Bullet Is Waiting (1954) as Ed Stone
• Four Guns to the Border (1954) as Cully
• Ain't Misbehavin' (1955) as Jesse Hill
• The Looters (it) (1955) as Kenneth Post
• The Treasure of Pancho Villa (1955) as Tom Bryan
• The Spoilers (1955) as Alex McNamara
• Red Sundown (1956) as Alec Longmire
• Raw Edge (1956) as Tex Kirby
• Flight to Hong Kong (1956) as Tony Dumont
• Utah Blaine (1957) as Utah Blaine
• The Big Caper (1957) as Frank Harper
• The Hired Gun (1957) as Gil McCord
• Domino Kid (1957) as Domino
• Ride Out for Revenge (1957) as Tate
• The Saga of Hemp Brown (1958) as Hemp Brown
• Apache Territory (1958) as Logan Cates
• Thunder in Carolina (1960) as Mitch Cooper
• The Colossus of Rhodes (1961) as Dario
• The Treasure of Monte Cristo (1961) as Captain Adam Corbett
• Marco Polo (1962) as Marco Polo
• The Young and The Brave (1963) as MSgt. Ed Brent (escaped POW)
• The Gun Hawk (1963) as Blaine Madden
• Face in the Rain (1963) as Rand
• Young Fury (1964) as Clint McCoy
• Finger on the Trigger (1965) as Larry Winton
• Black Spurs (1965) as Santee
• Apache Uprising (1966) as Jim Walker
• Our Men in Bagdad (1966) as Alex
• Operation Delilah (1967) as Rory
• Operation Cross Eagles (1968) as Sgt. Sean McAfee
• The Emerald of Artatama (1969) as Jack Cooper
• Las Virgenes de la nueva ola (1969)
• Night of the Lepus (1972) as Cole Hillman
• Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood (1976) as Philip Hart
• Mission to Glory: A True Story (1977) as Capt. Juan Monje
• Love and the Midnight Auto Supply (1977) as Len Thompson
• Mule Feathers (1977) as Bonaparte Shelby
• Flatbed Annie and Sweetie Pie: Lady Truckers (1979) as Farmer
• Revenge of Bigfoot (1979) as Bob Spence
• The Rebels (1979) as Breen
• Bitter Heritage (1979) as Manuel
• Runnin' Hot (1980)
• Motel Hell (1980) as Vincent Smith
• Smokey and the Judge (1980) as Matt Polsky
• Angel (1984) as Kit Carson
• Avenging Angel (1985) as Kit Carson
• Hell Comes to Frogtown (1988) as Looney Tunes
• Roller Blade Warriors: Taken by Force (1989) as Old Turkel
• Bad Jim (1990) as Sam Harper
• Pure Country (1992) as Ernest Tucker

Television

• Death Valley Days (2 episodes, 1963, as the Arizona Ranger Burt Mossman, who captures the notorious outlaw Augustine Chacon, played by Michael Pate; 1966, as William A. Richardson a pioneer entrepreneur of the future San Francisco, California) as William Richardson / Capt. Burt Mossman
• The Texan (1961) as Bill Longley
• Bonanza (1 episode, 1964) as Tom Wilson
• Gunsmoke (1 episode, 1965) as Ben Stack
• Rawhide (1 episode, 1965) as Joseph Denner
• I Spy (1 episode, 1966) as Dimitri
• Gilligan's Island (1 episode, 1967) as Jonathan Kincaid
• Custer (1 episode, 1967) as Zebediah Jackson
• Lancer (1 episode, 1970) as Buck Addison
• The Doris Day Show (1 episode, 1972) as Matt Lawrence
• Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law (1 episode, 1972) as Bwana Bill
• Hec Ramsey (1 episode, 1973) as Jim Patton
• Police Story (1 episode, 1973) as Pete Eastman
• Petrocelli (1 episode, 1974) as Edgar Richardson
• Police Woman (1 episode, 1974) as Lou Gerard
• Movin' On (1 episode, 1975) as J.C. Coombs
• Starsky & Hutch (1 episode, 1977) as Steve Hanson
• Little Vic (1977, mini-series) as Lead
• Fantasy Island (1 episode, 1978) as Mr. Watson
• The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo (1 episode, 1981) as Mr. Hobbes
• Hart to Hart (1 episode, 1982) as Jim Bailey
• The Blue and the Gray (miniseries, 1982) as Gen. George Meade
• Family Feud (2 episodes, 1985) as Himself
• The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1 episode, 1988) as Jimmie Thurson
• Tales from the Crypt (1 episode, 1993) as Spider (final television appearance)

Producer

• The Hired Gun (1957)
• Domino Kid (1957)
• Apache Territory (1958)
• The Texan
• Fists of Steel (1991)

Writer

• Shotgun (1955)
• Domino Kid (1957)