Gregory Walcott
Gregory Walcott | |
---|---|
Walcott in Plan 9 from Outer Space. | |
Born |
Bernard Mattox January 13, 1928 Wendell, North Carolina, U.S. |
Died |
March 20, 2015 87) Los Angeles, California, U.S. | (aged
Other names | Greg Walcott |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1952–1994 |
Spouse(s) | Barbara (m. 1954; d. 2010) |
Children | 3 |
Gregory Walcott (January 13, 1928 – March 20, 2015) was an American television and film actor. Although he had roles in many successful Hollywood films and television series, he is perhaps best known for having appeared in the 1994 film Ed Wood and Wood's cult classic Plan 9 from Outer Space from 1959.
Life and career
Born Bernard Mattox in Wendell, North Carolina, Walcott was raised in Wilson, North Carolina. Walcott served in the United States Army towards the end of World War II and the Korean War. While serving in the United States Army, he appeared as a drill instructor in the film Battle Cry (1955), then as a military policeman in 1955's war-themed classic Mister Roberts with Henry Fonda, as the drill instructor with Tony Curtis in The Outsider (1961), and later Midway (1976) as Capt. Elliott Buckmaster.
He would appear in a number of western films, beginning with an uncredited role in Red Skies of Montana (1952) opposite Richard Widmark, then later more prominently as a gunslinger who tries to romance Claudette Colbert in 1955's Texas Lady.
Walcott had roles in many television series, including that of Stone Kenyon in two episodes of the NBC sitcom, The People's Choice with Jackie Cooper. He was frequently cast in westerns like Bonanza (seven times), Maverick, Frontier Doctor, Wagon Train, The High Chaparral, 26 Men, Sugarfoot (with Will Hutchins and cast opposite another guest star, Joi Lansing, in the 1958 episode "Bullet Proof"), Laramie, The Rifleman, The Tall Man, The Dakotas, and in several episodes of CBS's Rawhide, through which he began a long collaboration with Clint Eastwood. Walcott had featured roles in Eastwood's films Joe Kidd (1972), Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974), The Eiger Sanction (1975), and Every Which Way But Loose (1978).
Walcott made a guest appearance on Perry Mason as Bill Johnson in the 1959 episode, "The Case of the Howling Dog." He also was one of the stars of a 1961–1962 NBC television series, 87th Precinct, as Detective Roger Havilland. Walcott accepted guest roles on many popular television series, such as CBS's Dennis the Menace, with Jay North. He had recurring roles too in the original Dallas, Murder, She Wrote, and he appeared as Captain Diggs on the 1970s series Land of the Lost.
His theatrical film work included the comedy On the Double (1961) alongside Danny Kaye, the 1963 Gregory Peck film Captain Newman, M.D., Prime Cut (1972) with Lee Marvin, The Last American Hero (1973) starring Jeff Bridges, and the chase film The Sugarland Express (1974), directed by a 27-year-old Steven Spielberg. Walcott played a sheriff in the 1979 film Norma Rae, the film that won an Oscar for star Sally Field, and appeared in the Brooke Shields film Tilt the same year. He made a cameo appearance in the 1994 Ed Wood bio-pic starring Johnny Depp, directed by Tim Burton, which was Walcott's final role.
Walcott long regretted having anything to do with Plan 9, but in a September 10, 2000 Los Angeles Times interview, he said, "It's better to be remembered for something than for nothing, don't you think?"[1]
Walcott died of natural causes on March 20, 2015 in his home in Canoga Park, Los Angeles, California, aged 87.[2]
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1952 | Red Skies of Montana | Randy O'Neill | Uncredited |
Fearless Fagan | MP at Gate | Uncredited | |
Battle Zone | Rifleman | Uncredited | |
Above and Beyond | Burns | Uncredited | |
1955 | Battle Cry | Sgt. Jim Beller | |
Strange Lady in Town | Scanlon | ||
Mister Roberts | Shore Patrolman | ||
The McConnell Story | Military Policeman | ||
Texas Lady | Deputy Jess Folley | ||
The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell | Howard Millikan | Uncredited | |
1956 | The Lieutenant Wore Skirts | Lt. Sweeney | |
The Steel Jungle | Guard Weaver | ||
Thunder Over Arizona | Mark Warren | ||
1957 | The Persuader | Jim Cleery | |
1958 | Jet Attack | Lt. Bill Clairbone | |
Badman's Country | Bat Masterson | ||
1959 | Plan 9 from Outer Space | Jeff Trent | |
1960 | Simon Lash: The Black Book | Lt. Wile | |
1961 | On the Double | Colonel Rock Houston | |
The Outsider | Sgt. Kiley | ||
1963 | Captain Newman, M.D. | Capt. Howard | |
1967 | Bill Wallace of China | Bill Wallace | |
1969 | Changes | Businessman / Job Interviewer | Uncredited |
1972 | Prime Cut | Weenie | |
Joe Kidd | Mitchell | ||
Man of the East | Bull Schmidt | ||
1973 | The Last American Hero | Cleve Morley | |
1974 | The Sugarland Express | Mashburn | |
Thunderbolt and Lightfoot | Used Car Salesman | ||
Chi ha rubato il tesoro dello scia? | |||
1975 | The Eiger Sanction | Pope | |
1976 | The Quest | Blacksmith | |
Midway | Cpt. Elliot Buckmaster | ||
1978 | Donner Pass: The Road to Survival | Will McKutcheon | |
Every Which Way but Loose | Putnam | ||
1979 | Norma Rae | Lamar Miller | |
Tilt | Mr. Davenport | ||
1980 | To Race the Wind | Don Summerfun | |
1987 | House II: The Second Story | Sheriff | |
1994 | Ed Wood | Potential Backer | (Last appearance) |
References
- ↑ Downey, Mike (2000-09-10). "When Bad Gets Good". latimes.com. p. 2. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
- ↑ "Gregory Walcott, Reluctant Star of 'Plan 9 From Outer Space,' Dies at 87". Hollywood Reporter.com. Retrieved March 22, 2015.