Robert Kellard(1915-1981)
- Actor
Tall, dark and very handsome-looking Robert Kellard remains a little known lead and support player of late 30s and 40s "B" action and multi-chapter cliffhangers. Born the younger of two boys in Los Angeles on April 23, 1915, initial interest was triggered by his actor father,Ralph Kellard.An aunt, Virginia Harned Courtenay, was also an actress and helped steer him for a short time. Attending Hollywood High School, Robert made his minor movie debut as a teenager in the filmA Connecticut Yankee (1931),which was directed by a family friend. Following graduation, he supported himself in various menial jobs -- from cashier to carpenter and from lifeguard to seaman -- while waiting for his break, which wound up being a 1934 Broadway stage role in "Mother Lode" handed to him by another friend of the family, star actressBeulah Bondi.
Kellard remained in New York following this acting stint and became a member of the Stagecraft Theater while continuing to look for other employment. He finally returned to Broadway with a role in "Hitch Your Wagon" in 1937, which earned him a 5-year contract with 20th Century-Fox. Older brotherThomas Kellardalso found some unbilled bit roles earlier at Fox in such films asThe Little Colonel (1935).Robert himself started out just as uneventfully with uncredited bits inSecond Honeymoon (1937)andAnnapolis Salute (1937).From there he progressed to more interesting parts inIsland in the Sky (1938)andTime Out for Murder (1938)starringMichael WhalenandGloria Stuartin which he played murder suspects. He rose in rank toJean Rogers' love interest in the filmsAlways in Trouble (1938),While New York Sleeps (1938)andStop, Look and Love (1939),but his career soon stalled with more bit parts mixed in.
Kellard freelanced in 1940, working for Republic in the serialsDrums of Fu Manchu (1940)in which he played adventure hero Allan Parker, and inKing of the Royal Mounted (1940)in support toAllan Laneas ill-fated aide-de-camp Corporal Tom Merritt. He then went on to serviceable secondary supports inPhantom of Chinatown (1940),_Prairie Pioneers (1941) andGentleman from Dixie (1941),in addition to a square-jawed lead inEscort Girl (1941).He appeared for a time on the stage until signing with Columbia in 1942. The studio changed his name to Robert Stevens but it didn't help things. Primarily in second-string parts, his sole lead was in another stalwart serial,Perils of the Royal Mounted (1942),as Sgt. Mack MacLane.
Robert joined the Navy during WWII and stayed for nearly four years. He returned to Columbia in late 1945 but, again, found little except for unbilled parts in such "B" fare asThe Return of Rusty (1946)andThe Millerson Case (1947)and a few Three Stooges shorts. Although he managed to earn one more rugged lead with the serialTex Granger: Midnight Rider of the Plains (1948),the writing was on the wall. He turned to TV in the 1950s and served as an actor/writer and dialogue director onThe Lone Ranger (1949)series, before leaving acting permanently and joining the Merchant Marines. He later moved into sales work as a rep for Showcase Films and also did some writing. He suffered from prostate cancer in later years and died at age 65 of complications from pneumonia on January 13, 1981.
Kellard remained in New York following this acting stint and became a member of the Stagecraft Theater while continuing to look for other employment. He finally returned to Broadway with a role in "Hitch Your Wagon" in 1937, which earned him a 5-year contract with 20th Century-Fox. Older brotherThomas Kellardalso found some unbilled bit roles earlier at Fox in such films asThe Little Colonel (1935).Robert himself started out just as uneventfully with uncredited bits inSecond Honeymoon (1937)andAnnapolis Salute (1937).From there he progressed to more interesting parts inIsland in the Sky (1938)andTime Out for Murder (1938)starringMichael WhalenandGloria Stuartin which he played murder suspects. He rose in rank toJean Rogers' love interest in the filmsAlways in Trouble (1938),While New York Sleeps (1938)andStop, Look and Love (1939),but his career soon stalled with more bit parts mixed in.
Kellard freelanced in 1940, working for Republic in the serialsDrums of Fu Manchu (1940)in which he played adventure hero Allan Parker, and inKing of the Royal Mounted (1940)in support toAllan Laneas ill-fated aide-de-camp Corporal Tom Merritt. He then went on to serviceable secondary supports inPhantom of Chinatown (1940),_Prairie Pioneers (1941) andGentleman from Dixie (1941),in addition to a square-jawed lead inEscort Girl (1941).He appeared for a time on the stage until signing with Columbia in 1942. The studio changed his name to Robert Stevens but it didn't help things. Primarily in second-string parts, his sole lead was in another stalwart serial,Perils of the Royal Mounted (1942),as Sgt. Mack MacLane.
Robert joined the Navy during WWII and stayed for nearly four years. He returned to Columbia in late 1945 but, again, found little except for unbilled parts in such "B" fare asThe Return of Rusty (1946)andThe Millerson Case (1947)and a few Three Stooges shorts. Although he managed to earn one more rugged lead with the serialTex Granger: Midnight Rider of the Plains (1948),the writing was on the wall. He turned to TV in the 1950s and served as an actor/writer and dialogue director onThe Lone Ranger (1949)series, before leaving acting permanently and joining the Merchant Marines. He later moved into sales work as a rep for Showcase Films and also did some writing. He suffered from prostate cancer in later years and died at age 65 of complications from pneumonia on January 13, 1981.
