Wikipedia

Kent Taylor

Kent Taylor(bornLouis William Weiss;May 11, 1907 – April 11, 1987) was an American actor of film and television. Taylor appeared in more than 110 films, the bulk of themB-moviesin the 1930s and 1940s, although he also had roles in more prestigious studio releases, includingMerrily We Go to Hell(1932),I'm No Angel(1933),Cradle Song(1933),Death Takes a Holiday(1934),Payment on Demand(1951), andTrack the Man Down(1955). He had the lead role inHalf Past Midnightin 1948, among a few others.

Kent Taylor
Taylor inWashington Melodrama(1941)
Born
Louis William Weiss

(1907-05-11)May 11, 1907
Nashua, Iowa,U.S.
DiedApril 11, 1987(1987-04-11)(aged 79)
Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California,U.S.
Burial placeWestwood Village Memorial Park Cemeteryin Los Angeles
Years active1931–1974
Spouse
Augusta Kulek Taylor
​
​
(m.1930)​
Children3

Early years

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Kent Taylor was born Louis William Weiss[1]on May 11, 1907, to aJewishfamily[2]inNashua, Iowa,Taylor moved with his family toWaterloo, Iowa,when he was 7. He worked at a variety of jobs after high school,[3]and for two years he studied engineering at the Darrah Institute of Technology in Chicago. He and his family moved to California in 1931.[4]

Career

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With no prior professional acting experience, Kent began working as a film extra in 1931 on the advice of a friend who said he had the right looks for "a good screen type." Prior to background work, he was co-operator of an awning service shop with his father. After a few very minor extra roles in films such asKick In(1931), he was called in "to try out a new camera idea;" a silent sequence was shot using Taylor andClaire Dodd,who was by then an established player atParamount.The test led to Taylor being offered a contract with Paramount, which he signed on July 11, 1931.[5]

Taylor portrayedDoc HollidayinTombstone, the Town Too Tough to Die(1942) starringRichard DixasWyatt Earp.

In 1951–1952, with his movie career on the decline andtelevisionproduction on the upswing, he played the title role in 58 episodes of thedetectiveseriesBoston Blackie[6]and the lead, as Captain Jim Flagg, inABC'sThe Rough Riders,[7]an adventure series about three soldiers, twoUnionand oneConfederate,traveling together through theAmerican Westafter theCivil War.The Rough Ridersaired thirty-nine episodes from 1958 to 1959.

Other minor screen credits includeMy Little Margie,Tales of Wells Fargo,Zorro,Riverboat,The Rifleman,Tombstone Territory,Sugarfoot,Bat Masterson,Laramie,Mr. Lucky,Tightrope,Peter Gunn,Hawaiian Eye,The Brothers Brannagan,The Ann Sothern Show,Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea,andRango.

He starred in the 1962 filmThe Broken LandwithJack NicholsonandDiana Darrin.The last years of his career were spent in low budget Biker, SciFi, and Horror films such as, “The Day Mars Invaded Earth” released in 1962,Brides of Blood(1968),Satan's Sadists(1969),The Mighty Gorga(1969),Brain of Blood(1971),Blood of Ghastly Horror(1972),Angels' Wild Women(1972), andGirls for Rent(1974).

Clark Kent

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Along withClark Gable,Kent Taylor served as the inspiration behind the name ofSuperman's alter-egoClark Kent.[8]

Personal life

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Taylor died on April 9, 1987, at age 79, at theMotion Picture & Television Country House and HospitalinWoodland Hills, California,of complications during heart surgery.[9][4]

Selected filmography

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References

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  1. ^Brode, Douglas (2010).Shooting Stars of the Small Screen: Encyclopedia of TV Western Actors, 1946–Present.University of Texas Press. p. 312.ISBN9780292783317.Retrieved9 January2017.
  2. ^Cones, John (April 2015).Motion Picture Biographies: The Hollywood Spin on Historical Figures.Algora. p. 37.ISBN9781628941166.
  3. ^Slott, Jon (December 8, 1935)."Screen Test---the Ordeal of Filmland".Oakland Tribune.California, Oakland. p. 80.RetrievedJanuary 9,2017– viaNewspapers.
  4. ^abAaker, Everett (2006).Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters.McFarland & Company, Inc.ISBN978-0-7864-6409-8.Pp. 545-547.
  5. ^Kent Taylor, Extra, Boy, Wins Paramount Contract for Favor.Pittsburgh Post-Gazette,July 11, 1931; accessed November 29, 2014.
  6. ^Erickson, Hal (1989).Syndicated Television: The First Forty Years, 1947-1987.McFarland & Company, Inc.ISBN0-7864-1198-8.P. 21.
  7. ^Terrace, Vincent (2011).Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010.McFarland & Company, Inc.ISBN978-0-7864-6477-7.P. 912.
  8. ^Gross, John (December 15, 1987)."Books of the Times".The New York Times.Retrieved2007-01-29.
  9. ^"Kent Taylor Dies; TV's 'Boston Blackie' Also Starred in Many Movies".13 April 1987 – via LA Times.
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