Leo Vincent Gordon (December 2, 1922 - December 26, 2000) was an American character actor and screenwriter. Actor: Maverick. Gordon, a real-life villain who served time in San Quentin before turning to acting, died Tuesday at his Los Angeles home after a brief illness, said his daughter Tara Gordon. A League of Their Own. [citation needed]. Leo Gordon. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound,broad-shouldered actor with steely blue eyes was one of the most recognizedcharacter actors of his time. Spouse. . Leo Gordon, tough-guy actor famous for playing the villain in scores of Westerns and television shows over nearly 50 years, has died at the age of 78. Leo Gordon, 78, Villain of Westerns In Films and on TV, https://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/06/arts/leo-gordon-78-villain-of-westerns-in-films-and-on-tv.html. Leos Leo Vincent Gordon attended American Academy of Dramatic Arts, New York, New York. Warmer storms could cause problems, This isnt Rocky: How Michael B. Jordan seized the reins of a legendary franchise, Concerns about Bruce Willis declining cognitive state swirled around sets in recent years, Everything Everywhere All at Once explained: Hot dog hands, empathy challenges and meaning in the absurd, He put $40,000 on credit cards to make his first film. She also worked (with and without Leo) from time to time in association with writer/director/producer Rod Amateau in such frisky movie vehicles as Where Does It Hurt? Gordon died Tuesday at his Los Angeles home after a brief illness, said his daughter, Tara Gordon. Cite this record . You know which is which. During the 1950's and 60's, he seemed to make an appearance on virtually every television western, from ''Bonanza'' to ''Rin Tin Tin.''. Gordon was also a screenwriter, turning out several screenplays for Corman. Gordon died Tuesday at his Los Angeles home after a brief illness, said his daughter, Tara Gordon. View agent, publicist, legal and company contact details on IMDbPro, Famous Faces on "Maverick" (Season One) TV Series. But ``he couldn't take rules'' and was honorably dischargedafter about two years, his daughter said. I should be 5' 8", 142 pounds, wear patches on my elbows and horn-rimmed glasses and smoke a pipe. Siegel wasn't talking about just Gordon's screen presence. For TV, he wrote about 50 scripts for shows such as ``Bonanza'' and``Cheyenne,'' including 21 episodes of ``Adam-12.''. Copy to clipboard. Leo Gordon, who was cast as the villain in scores of westerns and television shows over nearly 50 years, died on Dec. 26 at his home here. After all, I look like a heavy. Lynn's younger sister, Wilburta, born a year later, went on to become an artist. He drifted to Southern California and turned to robbery, his daughter said.After four years in San Quentin prison, Gordon returned to New York and wasworking a construction job when he decided to use his military benefits totake acting classes. The episode also starred Michael Witney as Wild Bill Hickok, who succeeded Smith as marshal. Who are the richest people in the world? In the 1970s Leo and Lynn joined the Group Repertory Theatre company in North Hollywood, California, which was founded by actor Lonny Chapman, where Leo tested and wrote (while Lynn appeared in) several of his stage plays.Lynn ended her career on a sentimental high note after being cast as the senior version of Geena Davis' character who revisits her baseball-playing alumni at the end of the comedy hit film A League of Their Own (1992) starring Davis and Tom Hanks. [2] Gordon was in southern California where he and a cohort attempted to rob a bar and its patrons with a pistol. Lynn (using her real first name Doralyn before condensing it to Lynn) found a couple of meager TV assignments ("Rin Tin Tin," etc.) Leo Gordon was born in Brooklyn in New York City on December 2, 1922. Gordon also was a screenwriter with more than a dozen films to his credit,ranging from 1966's ``Tobruk'' to Roger Corman's B-movie ``Attack of theGiant Leeches.'' Personal Quotes (4) Westerns are fundamental . Gordon died Tuesday at his Los Angeles home after a brief illness, said his daughter, Tara Gordon. They had one child, a daughter named Tara. He played a killer in the 1954 film ''Riot in Cell Block 11,'' filmed in Folsom State Prison in California. Gordon went on to stage work, and a Hollywood agent who saw him in the Los Angeles production of Darkness at Noon launched his film career by offering him a role in the 1953 western City of Bad Men., Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Review: Michael B. Jordan is the one to fly now with Creed III, Hunger Games star Jena Malone says someone I had worked with sexually assaulted her, Review: The gorgeous new movie Pacifiction will hypnotize you. [2], In 1954 Gordon portrayed the outlaw Bill Doolin, a native Arkansan who founded the Wild Bunch gang and operated primarily in Kansas, on the syndicated television series Stories of the Century, starring and narrated by Jim Davis. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. He met his future wife, Lynn Cartwright, when she was studying acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and they were married in 1950. Cartwrights health began to decline in December after the death of her husband of 50 years, screenwriter and western star Leo Gordon. [2] During his time at the ADA, Gordon was enrolled with several future screen legends including Grace Kelly and Anne Bancroft. Help us build our profile of Leo Gordon and Lynn Cartwright! Lynn Cartwright and Leo Gordon were married for 50 years before Leo Gordon died, leaving behind his partner and 1 child. Somehow, Gordon managed to make his character as sympathetic as he was frightening, and in his final scene he gives his life to save the boy. Character Actor Of The Day: Leo Gordon. Tall and broad-shouldered with steely blue eyes, he was one of the most recognized character actors of his time. Gordon went on to stage work and a Hollywood agent who saw the Los Angelesproduction of ``Darkness at Noon'' launched his career by offering him arole in the 1953 Western ``City of Bad Men.''. Tara Gordon. They went on to have a daughter together, Tara Gordon.Leo's career took off after he landed an agent and moved the family West to Los Angeles. [on the "benefits" of playing so many heavies] You get more recognition. Gordon's final role was as Wyatt Earp in a 1994 episode of the television series The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. For television he wrote scripts for shows including ''Bonanza,'' ''Cheyenne'' and ''Adam-12.''. Gordon may be most noted for his recurring Irish character Big Mike McComb on the ABC/Warner Brothers Western television series Maverick, working from 1957 to 1960 alongside James Garner and Jack Kelly. You don't have to go into the psyche to find out his parents were abusive . Born in Brooklyn on Dec. 2, 1922, he was raised by a single father whostruggled to make ends meet. Once more details are available, we will update this section. Davis starred as one of the sisters, Dottie Hinson, and Cartwright portrayed an older version of the same character. videos, lists Lynn Cartwright and Leo Gordon were married for 50 years before Leo Gordon died, leaving behind his partner and 1 child. "Riot in Cell Block 11" was filmed at Folsom State Prison--where Gordon also served time--and the Folsom warden remembered him as a troublemaker.At first he refused to allow the film to be shot there if Gordon was to be in it, but Siegel was able to convince him that Gordon was no threat to the prison.Contrary to his image, though, Gordon was not just a one-note villain. Here is where she met Gordon, an ex-con who was trying to turn his life around as an actor. - IMDb Mini Biography By: lists, In 1964, Gordon won an Emmy in The Defenders for "Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role". He was soon discovered by a Hollywood agent in a Los Angeles production of Darkness at Noon. In 1958 he appeared as Joe Brock in the episode "Desert Fury" of CBS's Tales of the Texas Rangers. [6], In 1997 Gordon received the Golden Boot Award for his many years working in Westerns. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Review: Michael B. Jordan is the one to fly now with Creed III, Hunger Games star Jena Malone says someone I had worked with sexually assaulted her, Review: The gorgeous new movie Pacifiction will hypnotize you. The couple married in February of 1950 and began married life touring together on the Borscht Belt stages. Leo Vincent Gordon (December 2, 1922 December 26, 2000) was an American character actor and screenwriter. In a career that included about 70 films and dozens of TV shows, Gordoncreated a gallery of mobsters, killers and creeps. He had radiant light blue eyes. His wife and daughter, both of Shadow Hills, Calif., survive him. His first successful film script, The Cry Baby Killer, featured a young and unknown Jack Nicholson. New York-born Leo Gordon's combination of a powerful physique, deep, menacing voice and icy, withering glare was guaranteed to strike fear into the heart of even the bravest screen hero. Cartwright's health began to decline in December after. [1] During more than 40 years in film and television he was most frequently cast as a supporting actor playing brutish bad guys but occasionally played more sympathetic roles just as effectively. Gordon appeared in multiple roles on Robert Stack's 1959 ABC crime drama The Untouchables. Leo Gordon. This planet represents abundance, prosperity and the principle of expansion. Ryan, You do not have permission to delete messages in this group, need to see facei was thinking of bruce gordon who played frank nitti on. Leo Gordon died in Los Angeles, CA, in 2000 at age 78 of heart failure. I won't! Leo Gordon was born in New York. Leo Gordon was born on the 2nd of December, 2022. | GORDON, Tara Tara Denise (Tebby) Gordon passed July 21, 2008. The chance of a lifetime: Five friends ski the tallest mountain in Los Angeles, Shocking, impossible gas bills push restaurants to the brink of closures, Best coffee city in the world? In Rochester, NY in 1975 . . Will the luck of the Irish affect the Oscars? the morality play. (1963), during which John Wayne knocks him down a long mudslide after uttering the famous line "Somebody oughta belt you in the mouth. New York-born Leo Gordon's combination of a powerful physique, deep, menacing voice and icy, withering glare was guaranteed to strike fear into the heart of even the bravest screen hero. He wasn't just limited to writing low-budget sci-fi films, either; he penned the screenplay for the WWII epic Tobruk (1967), writing in a meaty part for himself as Kruger, a tough sergeant in a platoon of German Jews masquerading as Nazi soldiers to help blow up a German oil storage facility.Leo Gordon died in Los Angeles, CA, in 2000 at age 78 of heart failure. 2, 1922, he was raised by a single father whostruggled to make ends meet as actor..., 200-pound, broad-shouldered actor with steely blue eyes was one of the sisters, Dottie Hinson, Cartwright! 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