Kent Taylor
Kent Taylor was an American actor of film and television. Taylor appeared in more than 110 films, the bulk of them B-movies in the 1930s and 1940s, although he also had roles in more prestigious studio releases, including Merrily We Go to Hell, I'm No Angel, Cradle Song, Death Takes a Holiday, Payment on Demand, and Track the Man Down. He had the lead role in Half Past Midnight in 1948, among a few others.
Early years
Kent Taylor was born Louis William Weiss on May 11, 1906, to a Jewish family in Nashua, Iowa, Taylor moved with his family to Waterloo, Iowa, when he was 7. He worked at a variety of jobs after high school, and for two years he studied engineering at the Darrah Institute of Technology in Chicago. He and his family moved to California in 1931.
Career
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 as Kick In, he was called in "to try out a new camera idea;" a silent sequence was shot using Taylor and Claire Dodd, who was by then an established player at Paramount. The test led to Taylor being offered a contract with Paramount, which he signed on July 11, 1931.
In his early career at Paramount Taylor was often paired with Evelyn Venable. By 1934, they had made six films together for Paramount, including Death Takes a Holiday and The Country Chairman. In 1936, Taylor left Paramount and was signed under contract by Universal. In the 1940s, Taylor was noted for his performance as a dare-devil stunt-man in the Hollywood tale I'm Still Alive. Later, Taylor portrayed Doc Holliday in Tombstone, the Town Too Tough to Die starring Richard Dix as Wyatt Earp. During the production of Arm Surgeon, Taylor suffered an on set injury when he fractured multiple ribs during a fight scene.
In 1951–1952, with his movie career on the decline and television production on the upswing, he played the title role in 58 episodes of the detective series Boston Blackie and the lead, as Captain Jim Flagg, in ABC's The Rough Riders, an adventure series about three soldiers, two Union and one Confederate, traveling together through the American West after the Civil War. The Rough Riders aired thirty-nine episodes from 1958 to 1959.
Other minor screen credits include My 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, and Rango.
He starred in the 1962 film The Broken Land with Jack Nicholson and Diana 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, Satan's Sadists, The Mighty Gorga, Brain of Blood, Blood of Ghastly Horror, Angels' Wild Women, and Girls for Rent.
Clark Kent
Along with Clark Gable, Kent Taylor served as the inspiration behind the name of Superman's alter-ego Clark Kent.
Personal life
Taylor died on April 9, 1987, at age 80, at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California, of complications during heart surgery. He was survived by his wife and three children.
Selected filmography
Born to Love as Dancing Doughboy Ladies' Man as Night Club Patron Kick In as Counter Man in Shop The Magnificent Lie as Cafe Customer The Road to Reno as One of Jackie's Admirers The False Madonna as Footman Husband's Holiday as Miguel Balboa Two Kinds of Women as Milt Fleisser Dancers in the Dark as Saxophonist One Hour with You as Party Guest Greeted by Colette Sinners in the Sun as Dancing Gigolo Forgotten Commandments as GregorMerrily We Go to Hell as Gregory 'Greg' BoleslavskyThe Man from Yesterday as Military Policeman Make Me a Star as Theatre Doorman Ticket Taker Devil and the Deep as A Friend at Party Blonde Venus as Hiker The Night of June 13 as Reporter If I Had a Million as Bank Teller The Sign of the Cross as Romantic Spectator Under-Cover Man as Russ The Mysterious Rider as Wade BentonTonight Is Ours as Minor Role A Lady's Profession as Dick GarfieldThe Story of Temple Drake as First Jellybean Sunset Pass as Clink PeeplesI'm No Angel as Kirk LawrenceWhite Woman as David von ElstCradle Song as Antonio PerezDavid Harum as John LennoxDeath Takes a Holiday as CorradoDouble Door as Rip Van BrettThe Scarlet Empress as Paul Many Happy Returns as Movie Actor Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch as Bob ReddingLimehouse Blues as Eric BentonThe County Chairman as Ben HarveyCollege Scandal as Seth DunlapSmart Girl as Nick GrahamWithout Regret as Steven ParadinTwo-Fisted as Clint BlackburnMy Marriage as John DeWitt Tyler IIIThe Sky Parade as Tommy WadeFlorida Special as Wally TuckerRamona as Felipe MorenoThe Accusing Finger as Jerry WelchWhen Love Is Young as Andy RussellWings Over Honolulu as Gregory ChandlerLove in a Bungalow as Jeff LanganThe Lady Fights Back as Owen MerrillA Girl with Ideas as Frank BarnesPrescription for Romance as Steve MacyThe Jury's Secret as Walter RussellThe Last Express as Duncan MacLainPirates of the Skies as Robert MaitlandFour Girls in White as Nick ConlonThe Gracie Allen Murder Case as Bill BrownFive Came Back as Joe BrooksThree Sons as Gene PardwaySued for Libel as Steve LoneganEscape to Paradise as Richard FlemingI Take This Woman as Phil MayberryTwo Girls on Broadway as 'Chat' ChatsworthGirl in 313 as Gregg DunnGirl from Avenue A as MacMillan ForresterMen Against the Sky as Martin AmesI'm Still Alive as Steve BennettRepent at Leisure as Richard HughesWashington Melodrama as Hal ThorneFrisco Lil as Peter BrewsterGang Busters as Det. Lt. Bill BannisterMississippi Gambler as John J. 'Johnny' ForbesTombstone, the Town Too Tough to Die as Doc HolidayHalfway to Shanghai as Frederick BartonArmy Surgeon as Lt. Philip 'Phil' HarveyBomber's Moon as Capt. Paul von BlockRoger Touhy, Gangster as Police Capt. Steven WarrenAlaska as Gary CorbettThe Daltons Ride Again as Bob DaltonYoung Widow as Peter WaringSmooth as Silk as Mark FentonTangier as RamonDeadline for Murder as Steve MillardDangerous Millions as Jack ClarkThe Crimson Key as Lawrence 'Larry' MorganSecond Chance as Kendal WolfHalf Past Midnight as Wade HamiltonThe Sickle or the Cross as Rev. John BurnsideFederal Agent at Large as Mark Reed, aka Nick RavelWestern Pacific Agent as Rod KendallTrial Without Jury as Jed KilgorePayment on Demand as Robert TownsendPlaygirl as Ted AndrewsTrack the Man Down as John FordSecret Venture as Ted O'HaraThe Phantom from 10,000 Leagues as Dr. Ted StevensSlightly Scarlet as Frank JansenGhost Town as Anse ConroyFrontier Gambler as Roger 'The Duke' ChadwickThe Iron Sheriff as Phil QuincyThe Restless Gun Episode "Imposter for a Day"Fort Bowie as Col. James GarrettGang War as Bryce Barker, Meadows' AttorneyWalk Tall as Frank CarterThe Purple Hills as Johnny BarnesThe Broken Land as Marshal Jim CoganThe Firebrand as Maj. Tim BancroftThe Day Mars Invaded Earth as Dr. David FieldingHarbor Lights as Dan CrownThe Crawling Hand as Dr. Max WeitzbergLaw of the Lawless as Attorney Rand McDonaldBlood of Ghastly Horror as Dr. Elton CoreyBrides of Blood as Dr. Paul HendersonSatan's Sadists as LewThe Mighty Gorga as Tonga Jack AdamsHell's Bloody Devils as Count Otto Von DelbergBrain of Blood as Dr. TrentonAngels' Wild Women as ParkerI Spit on Your Corpse as Moreno