Stan Paregien, Editor
Lew A. Lacey
Lew A. Lacey writes fiction under the name of "Morgan Hill".
Alan Ladd
(Deceased)
Alan Ladd, actor, was born Alan Walbride Ladd, Jr., on September 3, 1913 in Hot Springs, Arkansas. His father died when he was four, and he and his mother moved to Oklahoma City, OK., and she remarried. That new family soon moved to California.Alan Ladd played sports in high school and also held roles in drama productions. After high school, he held a series of odd jobs--everything from a lifeguard to a gas station attendant. But along the way he also held small parts in local theatrical shows and radio programs.
He made the bridge to movies by working at Warner Brothers for two years as a grip, behind the scenes. But his obvious good looks and charm eventually won him a few small roles in movies. In October 1936, he married Marjorie Jane Harrold. They had their first child a year later. And shortly after that, his alcoholic mother moved in with them. Then one day she comitted suicide by drinking rat poison.
Alan and Marjorie divorced and in 1942 he married his agent, Sue Carol. And it was that same year that he got his first real break and major exposure in Paramount's film, "Gun for Hire" (1942). However, World War II was in full swing and he was drafted into the U.S. Army in January of 1943. By November he had received a medical discharge due to a double hernia and an ulcer.
His most famous role was as the lead character in the classic Western, "Shane" (1953). Alan Ladd's other credits in Western films includes The Light of Western Stars (1940), In Old Missouri (1940), Whispering Smith (1948), Branded (1950), Red Mountain (1951), Shane (1953), Saskatchewan (1954), Drum Beat (1951), The Big Land (1957), The Proud Rebel (1958), The Bandlanders (1958) and Guns of the Timberland (1960).
Alan Ladd is in danger of having his pistol stolen
by Lizabeth Scott in the film, "Red Mountain".Alan Ladd, like his mother, had a problem with alcohol and many believe it not only hurt his career but shortened his life. He apparently tried to commit suicide in November of 1962, when he was discovered shot near his heart. But he survived.
On January 29, 1964 Alan Ladd was found dead at his home in Palm Springs, Ca., apparently due to an accidental combination of alcohol and sedatives. The official autopsy report said he died of a "cerebral edema". He was just 51 years of age. His remains are in the Forest Lawn Cemetery (Freedom Mausoleum, Sanctuary of Heritage) in Glendale, CA.
W. David Laird
W. David Laird is the Librarian at the University of Arizona. He is an editor and co-owner of Peccary Press. He is also the editor of Books of the Southwest, a monthly review of articles and books. He is the author of Hopi Bibliography.
Gregory Lalire
Gregory Lalire lives in Virginia and writes both fiction and nonfiction. He is an associate editor of WILD WEST MAGAZINE.
Page Lambert
A Colorado native now living on a ranch in Wyoming, Page Lambert attended the University of Colorado and the University of Arizona.
Page Lambert's articles have appeared in Range Magazine, Bugle Magazine, The Christian Science Monitor, Cow Country and Parabola Magazine of Myth and Tradition. Reader's Digest featured an excerpt from her first book, In Search of Kinship: Modern Pioneering on the Western Landscape. Her first novel of the West was released in 1997: Shifting Stars (Forge/Tor Books). She is a member of Western Writers of America and is a founding member of Women Writing the West.
Louis L'Amour
(Deceased)
Louis L'Amour was born as Louis Dearborn LaMoore on March 22, 1908 in Jamestown, North Dakota. His parents were both Western history buffs and instilled in young Louis a love of the West at a very early age.
Louis L'Amour was fifteen when he and his parents moved to Choctaw, Oklahoma. The year was 1923. It was then that L'Amour decided to end his formal education and to hit the open road in search of adventure, fame and fortune. He found adventure long before he found the other two. He worked as a longshoreman, lumberjack, elephant handler, hay shocker, miner, and cattle skinner. He also boxed professionally in preliminary events before the big fights.
In the late 1930's L'Amour returned to Oklahoma to pursue the writing career which he had always intended to do. He very first book was . . . a book of poetry in 1939 (since reprinted and generally available). In fact, I have in my personal library a copy of An Anthology of Oklahoma Poetry: Bicentennial Edition, 1776-1976 ( published in 1976 by the Poetry Society of Oklahoma). And it contains this poem:
Let Me Remember
by Louis L'Amour
Let me remeber when my youth is gone
The twilight on an Oklahoma road,
The magic transmutation of the dawn,
The slender silver moon that days corrode;Let me remember then the slow-winged night,
The arching of a dream across the years---
The shadows of the clouds when suns are bright,
The locust trees that bloom like frosted tears.Let me remeber when my fires are low
The way you spoke to me, the words you used---
The charm of those dim moments long ago
When through the web of night our spirits fused;Let me recall the sweep of green grown hills,
And black-jack trees that darkly silhouette
Against the sky an ancient dream distills
From these remembered things I'll not forget.
Like many others, Louis L'Amour's plans were interrupted by the start of World War II. He joined the U.S. Army in 1942. He was an officer in tank destroying and transportation units in France and Germany.
He returned to his writing. And he began to sell stories to magazines ranging from sports to detective types. Slowly he found he had a talent for writing Western material. He sold his first novel, Hondo, in 1953. And until his death in 1988 he produced at least three Western novels each and every year. His more than 100 books sold hundreds of millions of copies around the world.
Louis L'Amour was the only novelist in America to receive the Congressional Gold Medal as well as the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Both were awarded to him by President Ronald Regan.
He was was of the most prolific of the Western novelists. I met him once, in Tulsa, when he was on a nationwide tour promoting his books. He was traveling in a customized bus with a Western scene painted the full length of the bus.
Louis L'Amour, a non-smoker, died of lung cancer on June 10, 1988 in Los Angeles, CA. His remains are in the Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale, CA. You might think that his tombstone would cite some quotation from this man, one of the world's most successful writers, or from one of the characters in his novels. Nope. It simply reads, "Beloved husband and father."
CLICK HERE to go to the official Louis L'Amour web site, packed with info about one of America's favorite writers.
Some 26 of his works were turned into movies. CLICK HERE to see that complete list.
Burt Lancaster
(Deceased)
Burt Lancaster, actor, was born on November 2, 1913 in New York City. He discovered early on that he was good in gymnastics, and he soon joined a circus as an acrobat -- gliding across the sky with the greatest of ease. That is, until an injury ended that career.He went from the circus to the U.S. Army. It was during World War II. And while he was stationed overseas, he was recruited to help entertain the troops through acting with the USO. And he liked it.
Handsome, athletic and 6' 2" , Burt Lancaster finally found his calling as he returned home and won roles on Broadway. His physique, his intensity and electrifying personality all worked to charm both audiences and directors.
Then, of course, Hollywood came calling. His first film was 'The Killers" (1946). Two years later the never timid Lancaster set up his own production company and he was off and running.
Gary Cooper and Burt Lancaster in "Vera Cruz" (1954)Burt Lancaster's Western films included "The Flame and the Arrow" (1950), "Vengence Valley" (1951), "Vera Cruz" (1954), "Apache" (1954), "The Rainmaker" (1956), "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" (1957), "The Unforgiven" (1960), "Elmer Gantry" (1960), "The Hallelujah Trail" (1965), "The Scalphunters" (1968), "Lawman" (1971), "Valdez Is Coming" (1971), "Ulzana's Raid" (1972), "Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson" (1976), and "Cattle Annie and Little Britches" (1981).
According to the Sunday July 2, 2000 issue of Parade Magazine, Burt Lancaster was married three times. In addition, he was a womanizer who also liked to have sex with other men. Those and other intimate details of his life can be found in Burt Lancaster: An American Life, by Kate Buford.
Burt Lancaster had a stroke and then a heart attack. He died on Oct. 20, 1994. He is buried in Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles, CA.
CLICK HERE to see the complete filmography of Burt Lancaster.
Michael Landon
(Deceased)
Michael Landon was born Eugene Maurice Orowitz on Oct. 31, 1936 in Forest Hills, NY. His father, Eli Orowitz, was a Jew. And his mother, Peggy O'Neill, was a an Irish Catholic with serious mental problems. Between the conflicts between his parents, not to mention the persecution from kids in the non-Jewish community in which they lived, life was miserable for him.In a 1987 Redbook interview with Toni Reinhold, Michael said of his father, "I loved my father because I learned a lot from him. He never disciplined me, and he only hit me once. He didn't even want to hit me then, but my mother goaded him into it. He didn't know how to hit me-by the time it happened, I was a half-foot taller than he was-so he slapped me with the back of his hand. A ring he was wearing cut my lip, and I started to bleed. It didn't bother me, but my father started to cry and left the room. I was really glad it happened because it was the first time my father showed any emotion."
And when asked what his mother was like, Michael Landon replied, "She was a stabber, a kicker and a wacko. She was off her rocker. She was very abusive. My mother would sit on the sofa in her nightgown-she always wore her nightgown when she was upset-holding a Bible, asking God to kill me. My mother was sad. She never got better. And she always kept me a little off balance. I could do all the bad things-- fail a grade, skip school for weeks --and she wouldn't say a word. But If I drank milk out of a bottle, she'd dropkick me all over the kitchen."
Young and athletic Eugene Orowitz was offered a scholarship from UCLA for his expertise with the javelin. He was on his way to what he thought would be a successful career in sports.
Meanwhile, his dysfuctional family moved to Hollywood. Eli Orowitz had be head of RKO Pictures publicity unit in New York City. But he could not connect in Hollywood and wound up as a projectionist in a rundown Los Angeles movie theater.
Eugene Orowitz's dreams also hit the skids when he tore a ligament in his arm throwing the javelin. His sports career was over and he left UCLA.
However, he got interested in acting and started using the stage name Michael Landon. He played in a pilot episode of a show starring John Payne. And it was that exposure that caught the attention of writer and director David Dortort. He was working on his own prospective TV Western tentatively called, "Bonanza". And he created the role of "Little Joe" Cartwright explicitly for Michael Landon.
When offerred the part of Little Joe, Michael Landon accepted and it changed his life and career. Bonanza wound up being one of the most popular and longest-running shows in TV history. And it was there that Lando would develop his skills as an actor, but also as a writer and director.
Of course, life was not as uncomplicated for Michael Landon as it was for Little Joe. There was a period in his life when he drank heavily and abused tranquilizers.
When Bonanza ended, he moved on to "Little House on the Prairie." And there, once again, he not only acted but also wrote many of the scripts and directed others.
Michael Landon was the only actor (so far) to have three consecutive shows on television, each of which ran for five years or more: "Bonanza" (1959-1973), "Little House on the Prairie" (1974-1983), and "Highway to Heaven" (1984-1989). Interred at Hillside Memorial Park, Culver City, California, USA
Michael Landon was more then just a talented actor and writer and director and producer, as though that should not be enough for one human being. He was also a recording artist. In 1957 Michael Landon recorded "Gimme A Little Kiss" and "Be Patient With Me" for Candlelight Records. Unfortunately the record went no where on the charts. However after Landon made it big on Bonanza the record was re-released by Fono-graph records, in 1961 and eventually made it's way to the top 5 charts in Sweden. He made his second and last solo recording, "Linda Is Lonesome" and "Without You" for RCA records in 1964.
During the late 1950's Michael Landon appeared on such TV Western shows as "The Adventures of Jim Bowie," "Zane Grey Theatre," "Cheyenne," "Wanted: Dead or Alive," "The Rifleman," "Frontier Doctor," and "Tombstone Territory."
Michael Landon died of pancreatic cancer on July 1, 1991 at Malibu, CA. His remains are at Hillside Memorial Park in Culver City, CA.
CLICK HERE to see the complete acting credits of Michael Landon.
Allan "Rocky" Lane
(Deceased)
Allan "Rocky" Lane, actor, was born Harry Albershart on Sept. 22, 1904 in Mishawaka, Indiana. Lane was a smart, athletic and good looking young man. He began his acting career in theatrical productions in the mid-1920's, and made his first movie in 1929. However, his career flounded and he made no movies at all from 1932 to 1936. And from 1936 to 1944 he only had minor roles.
Then in 1944 he found Westerns. Or perhaps Westerns found him. And by 1947 he was starring as "Red Ryder".
And in 1948 he was billed as, Allan "Rocky" Lane, in those Westerns. And he rode a stallion named "Black Jack." The studio often teamed with Eddy Waller, a veteran actor who played the grizzly old prospector Nugget Clark.
Allen "Rocky" Lane was one of the Top Ten Western money-maker stars in 1951 and 1953. But that era was fading fast, as was his career. So he accepted the role, again, as Red Ryder -- only this time it was on a TV series in 1956.
Allen Lane's last acting job was behind the camera as the voice of "Mr. Ed," a talking horse series that ran from 1961-66. And, of course, it is now on eternal rerun status. It had to be more than just a little humorous and/or humiliating or both for Lane to go from riding horses to speaking for one.
Allan "Rocky" Lane died from a bone marrow disorder on Oct. 27, 1973 in Woodland Hills, CA. He was buried in Inglewood Park Cemetery (Rosehill, Lot 70, Grave A) in Inglewood , CA.
CLICK HERE to see the complete filmography of Allan "Rocky" Lane.
Joe R. Lansdale
Joe R. Lansdale also writes as Ray Slater. He edited The Best of the West (Doubleday, 1986), a project to which many WWA members contributed articles. And he and Mort Castle wrote Nukes: Four Horror Writers on the Ultimate Horror (Maclay Assoc., 1986). He is the author of Act of Love (Zebra, 1981), Dead in the West (1986), Magic Wagon (Doubleday, 1986).
Ruth Willett Lanza
Ruth Willett Lanza's short stories and features articles have appeared in Steamboat Springs Magazine, True West,Good Old Days, Grit, Wild West, and Old West.
This listing is far from complete and may contain errors.
Therefore, all Western entertainers and/or their agents
are requested to submit recommended changes by
contacting Stan Paregien through his e-mail address.
Delight yourself in the Lord
and he will give you the desires
of your heart.
--- Bible: Psalm 37:4
© 2003 by Stan Paregien, Sr.
