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Guy Madison

 
Actor:

Guy Madison

  • Born: Jan 19, 1922 in Bakersfield, California
  • Died: Feb 06, 1996
  • Occupation: Actor
  • Active: '50s-'60s
  • Major Genres: Adventure, Western
  • Career Highlights: Five Against the House, Old Shatterhand, Red Snow
  • First Major Screen Credit: Till the End of Time (1946)

Biography

Ex-telephone lineman Guy Madison was serving his country in the Navy at the time he made his screen debut as an extra in David Selznick's Since You Went Away (1944). After the war, Madison was signed by RKO, where he was given the star buildup in such films as Till the End of Time (1946) and Honeymoon (1947). Unpleasant publicity surrounding his stormy marriage to actress Gail Russell very nearly put an end to Madison's burgeoning career. Salvation came in the form of a syndicated TV series, Wild Bill Hickok, which starred Madison in the title role and which ran from 1951 through 1958. Thanks to his Hickok popularity, Madison was able to secure major roles in such "A" pictures as The Charge at Feather River (1953) and On the Threshold of Space (1956). After the cancellation of Wild Bill Hickok in 1958, Guy Madison's star faded somewhat, though he went on to make a good living as a leading man in German and Italian westerns and swashbucklers of the 1960s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
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Guy Madison

Top
Guy Madison
Born Robert Ozell Moseley
January 19, 1922(1922-01-19)
Bakersfield, California, United States
Died February 6, 1996 (aged 74)
Palm Springs, California, United States
Occupation Actor
Years active 1944-1988
Spouse(s) Gail Russell (1949-1954)
Sheila Connolly (1954-1964)
Official website

Guy Madison (January 19, 1922 – February 6, 1996) was an American film and television actor.

Contents

Early life

Born Robert Ozell Moseley in Bakersfield, California, Madison attended Bakersfield College, a junior college, for two years and then worked briefly as a telephone lineman before joining the United States Coast Guard in 1942.

Career

In 1944, while visiting Hollywood on leave from the Coast Guard, Madison's boyish good looks and physique caught the eye of Henry Willson, the head of talent at David O. Selznick's newly formed Vanguard Pictures. Willson was widely known for his stable of good-looking, marginally talented actors with unusual names he bestowed upon them, and he immediately cast the rechristened Madison in a bit part in Selznick's Since You Went Away. Following the film's release in 1944, the studio received thousands of letters from fans wanting to know more about him.

Madison was signed by RKO Pictures in 1946 and began appearing in romantic comedies and dramas, but his wooden acting style hurt his chances of advancing in films. In 1951, television came to the rescue of his faltering career when he was cast in The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok, which ran for six years. Following his television series, he appeared in several more films before leaving for Europe, where he found greater success in spaghetti westerns.

Personal life and death

Madison was married to actresses Gail Russell (1949-1954) and Sheila Connolly (1954-1964). Both marriages ended in divorce. He had three daughters, Bridget Catherine (born April 26, 1955), Erin Patricia (born July 21, 1956), and Dolly Ann (born September 10, 1957).

Madison died from emphysema at the age of 74 and was buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Cathedral City, California. For his contribution to the television industry, Guy Madison has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6331 Hollywood Boulevard.

Selected filmography

Film
Year Film Role Notes
1944 Since You Went Away Sailor Harold E. Smith
1946 Till the End of Time Cliff W. Harper
1947 Honeymoon Corporal Phil Vaughn Alternative title: Two Men and a Girl
1948 Texas, Brooklyn and Heaven Eddie Tayloe Alternative title: The Girl from Texas
1949 Massacre River Lieutenant Larry Knight
1951 Drums in the Deep South Major Will Denning
1952 Red Snow Lieutenant Phil Johnson
1953 The Charge at Feather River Miles Archer
1954 The Command Captain Robert MacClaw
1955 5 Against the House Al Mercer
1956 On the Threshold of Space Captain Jim Hollenbeck
1957 The Hard Man Steve Burden
1958 Bullwhip Steve Daley
1959 Jet Over the Atlantic Brett Murphy
1960 La Schiava di Roma Marco Valerio Alternative title: Slave of Rome
1962 Rosmunda e Alboino Amalchi Alternative title: Sword of the Conqueror
1963 Il Boia di Venezia Rodrigo Zeno Alternative titles: The Executioner of Venice
Blood of the Executioner
1964 Il Vendicatore mascherato Massimo Alternative title: Gentlemen of the Night
1965 Das Vermächtnis des Inka Jaguar/Karl Hansen Alternative titles: Legacy of the Incas
Viva Gringo
1967 Bang Bang Kid Bear Bullock Alternative titles: The Bang-Bang Kid
Bang, Bang
1971 Reverendo Colt Reverend Miller Alternative title: Reverend's Colt
1975 The Pacific Connection The Old Man Alternative titles: South Pacific Connection
South Pacific Connection
1976 Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood Star at screening Alternative title: Won Ton Ton
1978 Where's Willie? Tony Flore Alternative titles: Computer Kid
Computer Wizard
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1951-1958 The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok U.S. Marshal James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok 112 episodes
1955-1956 The Ford Television Theatre John
Phil Quade
2 episodes
1955-1957 Climax! 2 episodes
1957 Wagon Train Riley Gratton 1 episode
1958 General Electric Theater Adam Tenney 1 episode
1959 The Red Skelton Show Prospector 1 episode
1960 Death Valley Days Luke Short 1 episode
1961 Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater Jericho 1 episode
1979 Fantasy Island Brick Howard 1 episode
1987-1988 Crossbow Gerrish 2 episodes

Awards

Year Award Result Category
1954 Golden Globe Award Won Special Award (Best Western star)
1986 Golden Boot Awards Golden Boot

External links


 
 

 

Copyrights:

Actor. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Guy Madison" Read more

 
TV Listings
Guy Madison at LocateTV.com

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