Page M - 9Stan Paregien, Editor
Doug McClure
(Deceased)
Doug McClure, actor and painter, was born on May 11, 1935 in Glendale, CA. He was educated at U.C.L.A.
The teenager Doug McClure was the absolute epitomy of what the stereotype image of a young Californian should be: tall, blond and knock-down handsome. Her parlayed that physique into movie stardom.
He seemed to age very slowly, so he was able to play characters much younger than his actual age. He made countless TV appearances and scores of movies during his career.
I met him in person in about 1985 or 1985 when he was at the Lazy-E Arena in Guthrie, Okla., to participate in the Ben Johnson Pro-Celebrity Roping for charity. He was a pleasant person and easy to talk with. I remember him telling me that as a kid he worked at the Will Rogers State Park, near Santa Monica, and cared for one of Will Roger's favorite horses.
He also talked about his love of art and how he was trying to devote as much of his spare time as possible to painting.
He is best remembered as Trampas in the Western TV series "The Virginian," "Overland Trail," and in "The Men from Shiloh." He also made guest appearances on such TV shows as Death Valley Days, Maverick, The Adventures of Jim Bowie, Lawman, and Zorro.
Doug McClure's movie Western credits include The Unforgiven (1960), Shenandoah (1965), Backtrack! (1969), The Bull of the West (1971, TV), Wild and Wooly (1978, TV), The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw (1991, TV), Maverick (1994) and Riders in the Storm (1995).
Doug McClure sufferred from lung cancer the last two or three years of his life. But he kept on working, as he appeared in the "Maverick" movie as one of the gamblers, as well as in "Riders in the Storm" and episodes of "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues".
McClure got a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame shortly before his death.
Doug McClure died of lung cancer on Feb. 5, 1995. in Sherman Oaks, CA. His remains are in Woodlawn Cemetery in Santa Monica, CA.
CLICK HERE to visit "Mary's Doug McClure Web Site," a particularly well-designed site loaded with excellent photos of Doug McClure.
CLICK HERE for the complete filmography of Doug McClure.
David McComb
A professor of history at Colorado State University, David McComb is the author of Houston, A History (won the Tullis Award of the Texas State Historical Association); Big Thompson: Profile of a Natural Disaster; Agricultural Technology and Society in Colorado; Galveston, a History; Texas, a Modern History; and Texas, an Illustrated History.
Howard McCord
Howard McCord has written 23 books and many articles and short stories. He is the Director of the Creative Writing Program at Bowling Green State University in Ohio. His poetry has been translated into Spanish, Hindi and Bengali. He enjoys backpacking. And he operates a gun shop.Howard McCord is the author of The Selected Poems of Howard McCord (Crossing Press, 1975), Fire Visions (Twowindows Press, 1970), The Old Beast (Copper Canyon, 1975), The Great Toad Hunt and Other Expeditions (Crossing Press, 1980), Maps (Kayak, 1971), Mirrors (1973).
John McCord
John McCord, a former military officer, is the author of several Western novels. He lives in Texas.
Tim McCoy
(Deceased)
Tim McCoy, cowboy and actor, was born Timothy John Fitzgerald McCoy on April 10, 1891, in Saginaw, MI. When he was just seven, in 1898, he met the man who was to become and remain his personal hero during his lifetime: Buffalo Bill Cody.
As a youngster, McCoy went off and worked on ranches in Montana and Wyoming. The history of the Indian wars was fresh in the minds of the people, and he soaked up the stories and came to have great appreciation for the Indians and their culture.
He went to war in 1919, served with Teddy Roosevelt's "Rough Riders," and came back to Wyoming as a decorated hero. And at age 28 he became the adjudant general (one star) in charge of recruiting and training troops.
He traveled all around Wyoming. And when Hollywood needed Indians for films, he was on such good terms with the Indians that he negotiated fair deals for them and accompanied them to the filming locations and, eventually, to Hollywood for "Grand Opening" appearances.
The flamboyant and theatrically-oriented McCoy was in his element. He was first hired as a consultant to help with technical details of Western movies. But in 1925 Tim McCoy was signed by MGM to star in a series of Westerns based on episodes in American frontier history. Five years later, thanks to talented actors and generous production budgets, McCoy was one of Hollywood's most popular Western stars. He was the hero of the first sound serial at Universal, "The Indians Are Coming."
In 1935 he toured with the Ringling Brothers circus as one of their main attractions. He thought there was money in that form of entertainment, so he started his own Wild West show in 1938. It fell flat. (In Sept., 2000 I heard Montie Montana, Jr., at the National Cowboy Symposium in Lubbock, Texas say that there had been about 135 "Wild West Shows" in history--and every single one of them, including a few that he started, went bust.
So, at nearly 50 years of age, Tim McCoy went back to doing what he had been doing for so long--making films. Monogram studies teamed him with another couple of oldtimers, Buck Jones and Raymond Hatton, for a series of "Rough Rider" films. Those ended when Jones was killed in a fire.
By this time, World War II was in full tilt. So the aging Tim McCoy volunteered his talents for the military. After the war, he found that a new brand of Westerns had invaded Hollywood -- some danged thing called a "Western musical" -- and he wanted none of it. So he left Hollywood, sold his ranch in Wyoming, and moved back east and married his second wife.
By early 1950 he was back in Los Angeles, doing local TV. Col. Tim McCoy was one of the first people I can remember seeing on TV, when we got our first set back when. He hosted a children's show in 1950, with co-host Iron Eyes Cody. And he was dressed in that big "Tom Mix" style Stetson and with a beaded dearskin jacket with long fringes. He was mighty impressive, I'm here to tell you.
In 1962, the Tim McCoy and his third wife left southern California. They moved to Nogales, Arizona. For a time he toured with Tommy Scott’s traveling show where he did trick shooting and his Australian bullwhip act.
With the death of his wife, Inga, in 1973, Tim McCoy went into serious retirement.
He played in nearly a hundred movies from 1923 to 1950. He was inducted into the National Cowboy Hall of Fame 1974. And in 1977, he co-authored his autobiography with his son, Ronald.
Tim McCoy died of a heart attack at Ft. Huachuca, Arizona, on January 24, 1978. Some nine years later, to fulfill McCoy's wish, his remains were buried at Mt. Olivet cemetery in Saginaw, Michigan.
CLICK HERE to read an extensive and in-depth biography of Tim McCoy.
CLICK HERE to see the complete filmography of Tim McCoy.
Joel McCrea
(Deceased)
Joel McCrea, actor, was born Joel Albert McCrea on Nov. 5, 1905 in Pasadena, CA. He studied acting at Pomona College and got some stage experience at the Pasadena Community Playhouse, all of this in the shadow of Hollywood.In 1928 Joel McCrea gradauted from the University of Southern California. By then he had decided he wanted in the movies, but he had to start by doing stunt work. Then one day, just like they show in the movies, he was picked out of a crowd of would-be-stars and given a big part in the movie, "The Jazz Age".
The handsome 6'2" McCrea also found a friend Will Rogers, one of the biggest names in show biz. Rogers and McCrea hit it off, for one thing, because they shared a love of roping, riding horses and ranching.
However, as much as McCrea wanted to act in Westerns, he was given roles in dramas and comedies. He did then all quiet well. And it was several more years before he finally got to be in a Western movie.
Once he proved he could handle the lead in a Western, he still performed in a variety of films. But by the late 1940's he was doing more and more Westerns.
Director Sam Peckinpah convinced retirees Joel McCrea and Randolph Scott to go before the cameras one more time. The result was the classic Western, "Ride the High Country" (1962). Randold Scott never made another movie, but McCrea made a couple of low-budget movies afterwards. Then, he too, settled back to life as a gentleman rancher. (My uncle, Marvin Paregien, worked for the state of California Agriculture Dept., and had the pleasure of visiting McCrea at his ranch.)
Joel McCrea acted in 96 movies in a career that ran from "The Torrent" in 1926 to "George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey" in 1984. He was inducted into the National Cowboy Hall of Fame for his lifetime of honoring the West. His Western films included "Wells Fargo" (1937), "Union Pacific" (1939), "Buffalo Bill" (1944), "The Virginian" (1946), "Ramrod" (1947), "Four Faces West" (1948), "Colorado Territory" (1949), "Saddle Tramp" (1950), "The Outriders" (1950), "Cattle Drive" (1951), "Black Horse Canyon" (1954), "Stranger on Horseback" (1955), "The Tall Stranger" (1957), "The Oklahoman" (1957), "Gunsight Ridge" (1957), "Cattle Empire" (1958), "Fort Massacre" (1958), "Wichita Town" (1959), "Gunfight at Dodge City" (1959), "Ride the High Country" (1962), "Sioux Nation" (1970), "Cry Blood, Apache" (1970), "The Great American Cowboy" (1973), and "Mustang Country" (1976).
He was married for fifty-seven years to actress Frances Dee , who survived him. And for many years he was on the school board at Moorepark, CA.
Joel McCrae died of pulmonary complications on Oct. 20, 1990 at Woodland Hills, CA.
FOR FURTHER READING: Last of the Cowboy Heroes : The Westerns of Randolph Scott, Joel McCrea, and Audie Murphy by Robert Nott, Budd Boetticher (Hardcover )
CLICK HERE to see the complete filmography of Joel McCrea.
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.
Share with God's people who are in need.
Practice hospitality.
--- Bible: Romans 12:13
© 2003 by Stan Paregien, Sr.
