- Forrest Tucker
Infobox actor
name = Forrest Tucker
birthname =
birthdate = birth date|1919|2|12|mf=y
birthplace =Plainfield, Indiana , USA
deathdate = death date and age|1986|10|25|1919|2|12|mf=n
deathplace =Los Angeles, California
restingplace =
spouse =Forrest Tucker (
February 12 ,1919 -October 25 ,1986 ) was an Americanactor in both movies andtelevision from the 1940s to the 1980s. Tucker, who stood 6'4" and weighed 200 lbs. (91 kg), appeared in nearly 100 action films in the 1940s and 1950s.Early life
Forrest Meredith Tucker was born in
Plainfield, Indiana , a son of Forrest A. Tucker and his wife Doris Heringlake. He began his performing career at age 14 at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, pushing the big wicker tourist chairs by day and singing "Throw Money" at night. After his family moved toWashington, D.C. , Tucker attracted the attention of Jimmy Lake, the owner of the Old Gayety Burlesque Theater, by winning its Saturday night amateur contest on consecutive weeks. After his second win, Tucker was hired full time asmaster of ceremonies at the theatre. However, his initial employment there was short-lived; it was soon discovered that Tucker was underage.Lying about his age, Tucker then joined the
United States Army cavalry . He was stationed atFort Myer in Virginia, but was discharged when his age became known. He returned to work at the Old Gayety after his 18th birthday.Hollywood career
When Lake's theatre closed for the summer in 1939, Tucker travelled to
California and began auditioning for movie roles. He was cast as Wade Harper in "The Westerner " (1940), which starredGary Cooper . He stood out in a fight scene with Cooper and was signed toColumbia Pictures .In 1941, he played his first lead in "
Emergency Landing ", and the following year he co-starred in the classic "Keeper of the Flame".Tucker served again with the Army in
World War II , reaching the rank ofSecond Lieutenant . He resumed his acting career at the war's end, appearing in the classic 1946 film "The Yearling" and stealing a few scenes fromErrol Flynn in "Never Say Goodbye " the same year.In 1948, Tucker left Columbia and signed with
Republic Pictures . At Republic, he made his breakthrough in "Sands of Iwo Jima " (1949), as Corporal Thomas, a Marine with a score to settle withJohn Wayne 's Sergeant Stryker. Graduating to top billing, Tucker starred in numerous action films during the 1950s, including "Rock Island Trail " (1950), "California Passage " (1950), "Rage at Dawn " (1955, where he playedFrank Reno ),"The Abominable Snowman" (1957), "The Quiet Gun " (1957), and "The Crawling Eye " (1958).The year 1958 brought another turning point in Tucker's career, when he won the role of Beauregard Burnside, Mame's first husband in "
Auntie Mame ," which was the highest grossing U.S. film of the year. Tucker showed a flair for light comedy under the direction ofMorton Da Costa that had largely been unexplored in his previous roles in westerns and science fiction films.tage and television star
Tucker was cast as "Professor"
Harold Hill by director Da Costa in the national production of "The Music Man " and played the role 2,008 times over the next five years, including a 56 week run at the legendaryShubert Theatre in Chicago. Following his "Music Man" run, Tucker starred in the Broadway production of "Fair Game for Lovers " (1964) and then turned to television for his most famous role, starring as frontier capitalist Sgt. Morgan O'Rourke in "F Troop " (1965 - 1967). Though "F Troop" lasted only two seasons on ABC, the series has been in constant syndication since, reaching three generations of viewers. (Ironically, two of his "Gunsmoke " episodes feature Tucker in his cavalry uniform again, as another comic sergeant who in one scene "marries"Miss Kitty .)Following "F Troop", Tucker returned to films in character parts ("
Barquero " and "Chisum ", both 1970) and occasional leads (1975's "The Wild McCullochs"). On television, Tucker was a frequent guest star, including a total of six appearances on "Gunsmoke " and the recurring role of Jarvis Castleberry, Flo's estranged father on the 1976-1985 TV series, "Alice" and its spinoff, "Flo ". Tucker was a regular on three series after "F Troop ": "Dusty's Trail" (1973) with Bob Denver; "The Ghost Busters " (1975-76) which reunited him with "F Troop" co-starLarry Storch ; and "Filthy Rich" playing the secondBig Guy Beck . (1982-83). He continued to be active on stage as well, starring in the national productions of "Plaza Suite ", "Show Boat ", and "That Championship Season ".Tucker returned to the big screen after an absence of several years, in the
Cannon Films action film "Thunder Run" (1986), playing the hero, trucker Charlie Morrison.His feature film comeback unfortunately was short-lived. He died from
lung cancer onOctober 25 ,1986 , five months after the film's theatrical release.Tucker married three times, to Sandra Jolley (divorced) [ [http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117895208.html?categoryid=25&cs=1 Emily Mae Jolley - Entertainment News, Obituary, Media - Variety ] ] , to Marilyn Johnson on
March 28 ,1950 , and after her death in 1960 to Marilyn Fisk onOctober 23 ,1961 . He had a daughter (Pamela Tucker) by his second marriage, and a son (Forrest Sean Tucker) by his third.Forrest Tucker is interred in Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles.
Partial filmography
*"The Westerner" (1940)
*"Keeper of the Flame" (1942)
*"Never Say Goodbye " (1946)
*"The Yearling" (1946)
*"Hellfire" (1949)
*"Sands of Iwo Jima " (1950)
*"Break in the Circle " (1955)
*"Rage at Dawn " (1955)
*"Three Violent People " (1957)
*"The Abominable Snowman" (1957)
*"The Strange World of Planet X" (1957)
*"The Trollenberg Terror ", also known as "The Crawling Eye" (1958)
*"Auntie Mame" (1958)
*"The Night They Raided Minsky's " (1968)
*"Chisum " (1970)
*"" (1977)References
External links
*
* [http://www.filmreference.com/film/83/Forrest-Meredith-Tucker.html Biography and list of appearances]
* [http://www.f-troop.net/forrests_page.htm F-Troop tribute]
* [http://www.seeing-stars.com/ImagePages/ForrestTuckerGravePhoto.shtml Grave]
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