Ken Curtis
Biyografi
Ken Curtis (born Curtis Wain Gates; July 2, 1916 – April 28, 1991) was an American actor and singer best known for his role as Festus Haggen on the Western television series Gunsmoke. Early years Born on July 2, 1916 as the youngest of three boys in Lamar in Prowers County in southeastern Colorado, Curtis lived his first 10 years on a ranch on Muddy Creek in eastern Bent County. In 1926, the family moved to Las Animas, the county seat of Bent County, so that his father, Dan Sullivan Gates, could run for sheriff. The campaign was successful, and Gates served from 1926 to 1931 as Bent County sheriff. Curtis was the quarterback of his Bent County High School football team and played clarinet in the school band. He graduated in 1935. During World War II, Curtis served in the U.S. Army from 1943 to 1945. He attended Colorado College to study medicine, but left after a short time to pursue his musical career. Film Columbia Pictures signed Curtis to a contract in 1945. He starred in a series of musical Westerns with the Hoosier Hot Shots, playing singing cowboy romantic leads. By virtue of his second marriage, Curtis was a son-in-law of film director John Ford. Curtis teamed with Ford and John Wayne in Rio Grande. He was a singer in the movie's fictional band, The Regimental Singers, who actually consisted of the Sons of the Pioneers; Curtis is not listed as a member of the principal cast. Possibly, he played a bit part, but Curtis is best remembered as Charlie McCorry in The Searchers, and for his appearances in The Quiet Man, The Wings of Eagles, The Horse Soldiers, The Alamo, and How the West Was Won. Curtis also joined Ford, along with Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell, and Jack Lemmon, in the comedy Navy classic Mister Roberts. He was featured in all three of the only films produced by Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney's C. V. Whitney Pictures: The Searchers (1956); The Missouri Traveler (1958) with Brandon deWilde and Lee Marvin; and The Young Land (1959) with Patrick Wayne and Dennis Hopper. In 5 Steps to Danger (1957 film), he is uncredited as FBI Agent Jim Anderson. Curtis remains best known for his role as Festus Haggen, the scruffy, cantankerous, and illiterate deputy in Gunsmoke. He first appeared in 1962 and joined the regular Gunsmoke cast in 1964, replacing Chester Goode, played by Dennis Weaver. While Marshal Matt Dillon had a total of five deputies over two decades, Festus held the role the longest (11 years), in 304 episodes. Festus was patterned after "Cedar Jack" (Frederick Munden), a man from Curtis' Las Animas childhood. Cedar Jack, who lived 15 miles south of town, made a living cutting cedar fence posts. Curtis observed many times that Jack came to Las Animas, where he would often end up drunk and in Curtis' father's jail. Festus' character was known, in part, for the nasally, twangy, rural accent which Curtis developed for the role, but which did not reflect Curtis' actual voice. Curtis married Torrie Connelly in 1966. They were married until his death in 1991 and he had two step-children. Death Curtis died on April 28, 1991, in his sleep in Fresno, California, after suffering a heart attack. He was 74. He was cremated, and his ashes were scattered in the Colorado flatlands. CLR From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Filmografi (Rol Aldığı Yapımlar)
Once Upon a Starry Night
Lone Star Moonlight
Cowboy Blues
Battleground
My Dog, Buddy
John Wayne's 'The Alamo'
That Texas Jamboree
Rhythm Round-Up
Don Daredevil Rides Again
Stallion Canyon
Perry Mason
Çöl Aslanı
Airwolf
The Yellow Rose
Riders of the Pony Express
Sessiz Adam
Robin Hood
Rawhide
Have Gun, Will Travel
Have Gun, Will Travel
Have Gun, Will Travel
Have Gun, Will Travel
Have Gun, Will Travel
The Last Hurrah
Petrocelli
Alamo Kalesi
Mister Roberts
The Long Gray Line
Song of the Prairie
Singing on the Trail
Throw a Saddle on a Star
Out of the Depths
California Gold Rush
How the West Was Won
Vega$
How the West Was Won
Black Beauty
Grizzly Adams
Batının Zaferi
Kahraman Süvariler
The Young Land
The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour
Aslanlar Diyarı: Rio Grande
Baharda Hücum
Conagher
Fighting Coast Guard
Gunsmoke
Sea Hunt
Ripcord
5 Steps to Danger
Wagon Train
Wagon Train
The Missouri Traveler
Kanlı Mücadele
Kader Böyle İstiyordu
Spring Reunion
Kanlı Kervan
Legend of the Wild
Call of the Forest
The Growler Story
Pony Express Rider
Woman on the Run
Musik ist Trumpf
Freckles
Bir Zamanlar Bir Teksas Treni
Lost
The Killer Shrews
When the West Was Fun: A Western Reunion
