Neil Hamilton

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Neil Hamilton
Neil Hamilton as Commissioner Gordon in the Batman TV series (1966)
Born	James Neil Hamilton September 9, 1899(1899-09-09) Lynn, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	September 24, 1984 (aged 85) Escondido, California, U.S.

James Neil Hamilton (September 9, 1899 – September 24, 1984) was an American actor best known for his role as Commissioner Gordon on the Batman TV series of the 1960s. In the 1920s, he was a popular silent film leading man.

Early life

An only child, Hamilton was born in Lynn, Massachusetts and raised in a devoutly Roman Catholic household.

Acting career

His show business career began when he secured a job as a shirt model in magazine ads, similar to fellow silent film performer Reed Howes who was known in advertisements as "The Arrow Collar Man". After this, he became interested in acting and joined several stock companies. This allowed him to secure his first film role in 1918, but he got his big break from D. W. Griffith in The White Rose (1923). In 1924, he traveled to Germany with Griffith and made the pseudo-documentary Isn't Life Wonderful, co-starring Griffith's muse and then girlfriend Carol Dempster.

Hamilton was signed by Paramount Pictures in the mid 1920s and soon became one of that studio's most popular leading men. In 1926, he played one of Ronald Colman's brothers in Paramount's original silent version of Beau Geste. He was steadily employed in supporting roles, and worked for just about every studio in Hollywood.

Hamilton made the transition to sound pictures at the end of the 1920s and continued appearing in noteworthy productions. In 1930, he appeared in the original production of The Dawn Patrol, playing the squadron commander, a role played by Basil Rathbone in the 1938 remake. In 1934, he appeared in the pre-Code Tarzan and His Mate at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, one of the most daring of the Tarzan films.

In 1960, Hamilton got another break when he replaced Richard Cromwell, who was planning a comeback of sorts. Cromwell took sick and died of complications from liver cancer. Hamilton was quickly signed by producer Maury Dexter for 20th Century Fox's planned production of The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come co-starring Jimmie Rodgers and Chill Wills.

He is probably best known to contemporary audiences as Police Commissioner Gordon in the Batman TV series. He thought highly of Adam West's Batman. Hamilton appeared in all 120 episodes of Batman.

Relatives and non-relatives

Hamilton is a distant cousin of Margaret Hamilton. However, contrary to popular rumor, he is not related to John Hamilton, best known for playing Daily Planet editor Perry White on the 1950s TV series Adventures of Superman, starring George Reeves.

Death

Hamilton died at the age of 85 in 1984 after suffering an asthma attack. His ashes were scattered at sea after his cremation.

Selected filmography

• America (1924)
• Mother Machree (1928)
• The Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu (1929)
• The Return of Dr. Fu Manchu (1930)
• Laughing Sinners (1931)
• This Modern Age (1931)
• Tarzan the Ape Man (1932)
• Blind Date (1934)
• The Saint Strikes Back (1939)
• They Meet Again (1941)
• Brewster's Millions (1945)
• The Patsy (1964)
• Batman (1966)
• Which Way to the Front? (1970)

External links

• Neil Hamilton at the Internet Movie Database
• 1966 Batman TV Heroes - Neil Hamilton
• 1941 They Meet Again - Neil Hamilton as Governor John C. North - at Internet Archive
• Photographs of Neil Hamilton