Gordon Mitchell
Gordon Mitchell (born July 29, 1923 in Denver , Colorado , † September 20, 2003 in Marina del Rey , California ; actually Charles Allan "Chucky" Pendleton ) was an American body builder and actor .
Life
After a rather unhappy childhood (parents divorced in 1926), during which Mitchell often had to care for his chronically ill mother, Mitchell began weight training in 1939, after his mother remarried and the family moved to Inglewood , California. He graduated from high school in 1942 and served in the Army Air Corps during World War II . He fought in the repulse of the Ardennes ( Battle of the Bulge ) and participated in the liberation of the concentration camps Buchenwald part. After the failure of a first marriage and training as a teacher, Mitchell took part in the Korean War .
From 1954 (Mitchell had returned to California) he first appeared in public after Mae West discovered him on Muscle Beach . West hired him (and other famous bodybuilders like Mickey Hargitay , Joe Gold, Paul Novak, Richard DuBois, Irwin “Zabo” Koszewski, Armand Tanny, and Dominic Juliano) for the eight half-naked men choir on their nightclub show, paving the way Way for first appearances as an extra in Hollywood films.
In 1960, when Italian producers were on the lookout for bodybuilders who could act in sandal films as part of the Hercules success , Mitchell responded to a newspaper ad and was cast for the film Maciste, Son of Hercules . From then on, Mitchell played almost non-stop in almost 120 films in Europe, mostly in Italy. His impressive size and remarkable physiognomy made him appear often as a villain, but sometimes also as a hero.
After the wave of sandal films had subsided, he initially shot mainly spaghetti westerns, to which he remained loyal as the owner of Cave Studios (just outside Rome) until he had to sell them in 1975. About 50 films were made in these studios. However, Mitchell also made agent films, crime novels, war films, and comedies. Also, Federico Fellini , Gérard Oury and John Huston turned to him.
In 1989 Mitchell returned to the United States, where he became the manager of the World Gym in Santa Monica . However, he accepted occasional film offers until his death.
Filmography (selection)
- 1954: Prisoner of War
- 1955: The Man with the Golden Arm (The Man with the Golden Arm)
- 1956: In 80 days around the world (Around the World in Eighty Days)
- 1956: The Ten Commandments (The Ten Commandments)
- 1957: Duel in the Atlantic (The Enemy Below)
- 1957: Lindbergh - My flight over the ocean (The Spirit of St. Louis)
- 1958: The Young Lions (The Young Lions)
- 1958: King of the Buccaneer
- 1959: Rio Bravo (Rio Bravo)
- 1960: Spartacus
- 1961: Maciste, the son of Hercules (Maciste nella terra dei ciclopi)
- 1961: The Conqueror of Corint (Il conquistatore di Corinto)
- 1961: Vulcanus, the Titan (Vulcano figlio di Giove)
- 1962: Achilles (L'ira di Achille)
- 1962: Ride to freedom (Col ferro e col fuoco)
- 1963: Brenno - The Lord of Terror (Brenno il nemico di Roma)
- 1964: Revenge for Spartacus (La vendetta di Spartacus)
- 1964: The seven jaws of the eagle (Sinbad contro i sette Saraceni)
- 1964: Tribune and conspirator (Gli schiavi più forti del mondo)
- 1965: The Torture House of Lady Morgan (La vendetta di Lady Morgan)
- 1965: Hercules and the Princess of Troy (Hercules and the Princess of Troy)
- 1965: The Return of the Feared (Erik il Vichingo)
- 1965: The stone forest (Il tesoro della foresta pietrificata)
- 1966: 3 balls for Ringo (3 colpi di Winchester per Ringo)
- 1966: For a handful of lead (Uccidi o muori)
- 1966: Space cruiser Hydra - duel in space (2 + 5: missione Hydra)
- 1966: Faster than 1000 Colts (Thompson 1880)
- 1966: A summer for three (L'estate)
- 1966: Tennis rackets and cannons : The Daddy from America (I Spy: Sophia) (TV series, 1 episode)
- 1967: Blue beans for a hallelujah (Rita nel West)
- 1967: Vanishing point Aktopolis (Bersaglio mobile)
- 1967: John il Bastardo
- 1967: Reflections in a Golden Eye (Reflections in a Golden Eye)
- 1967: NATO per uccidere
- 1968: The coup of the 7 aces (Sette volte sette)
- 1968: Django, where is your coffin? (T'ammazzo! ... Raccomandati a Dio)
- 1968: You pay the last bill yourself (Al di là della legge)
- 1968: My life for revenge (Sapevano solo uccidere)
- 1968: Radhapura - the end of the line for the damned
- 1968: The hour of the vultures (Carogne si nasce)
- 1968: Sugar for the killer (Un killer per Sua Meastà)
- 1969: Fellinis Satyricon (Fellini - Satyricon)
- 1969: Fenomenal and the treasure of Tutankhamun (Fenomenal e il tesoro di Tutankamen)
- 1970: Django and Sartana arrive (Arrivano Django e Sartana ... è la fine!)
- 1970: The dead cast no shadows (Inginocchiati straniero… i cadaveri non fanno ombra!)
- 1971: Adios Companeros (Giù la testa hombre)
- 1971: Allegri becchini… arriva Trinità
- 1971: The Arizona Kid
- 1971: Era Sam Wallash… lo chiamavano “Così Sia”
- 1971: For a coffin full of dollars (Per una bara piena di dollari)
- 1971: Cobra Command (Le Saut de l'ange)
- 1971: His name was Pot - but they called him Hallelujah (Il suo nome er a Pot… ma… lo chiamavano Allegria)
- 1971: situation
- 1971: Vamos a matar Sartana
- 1971: Show me the toy of death (Il giorno del giudizio)
- 1971: Relentless to the grave (Se t'incontro t'ammazzo)
- 1971: Un uomo chiamato Dakota
- 1972: Arriva Eldorado (Scansati… a Trinità arriva Eldorado)
- 1972: The Eye of Evil (Casa d'appuntamento)
- 1972: Hallelujah whistles the song of dying (Giù le mani… carogna!)
- 1972: I, the nun and the swine dogs (Io monaca… per tre carogne e sette peccatrici)
- 1972: Il magnifico West
- 1972: The ride to hell (I sette del gruppo selvaggio)
- 1973: C'era una volta questo pazzo pazzo west
- 1973: Colorado - Two scoundrels in a gold rush (Amico mio, frega tu… che frego io!)
- 1973: A lucky pig doesn't have to be a piglet (La schiava io ce l'ho e tu no)
- 1973: The man with the bullet whip (Il mio nome è Shanghai Joe)
- 1974: The rat's nest (Una donna per sette bastardi)
- 1975: Fighting Killer (Quei paracul… pi di Jolando e Margherito)
- 1975: The Man from Chicago (Le Ricain)
- 1975: The Naked by Sados (I mavri Emmanouella)
- 1975: Natascha - death greetings from Moscow
- 1975: The Tiger from the Kwai (La tigre venuta dal fiume Kwai) ´
- 1976: The nest of salamanders (Cuibul salamandrelor)
- 1977: Desert foxes have no mercy (Kaput Lager - Gli ultimi giorni delle SS)
- 1978: Operatio Orient (Ishyri dosi… sex)
- 1978: Zanna Bianca e il grande Kid
- 1979: Dr. Jekyll's scary horror trip (Dottor Jekyll e gentile signora)
- 1979: The Naked by Sados (I Mavri Emmanouella)
- 1979: Santa Lucia
- 1979: Assault troop into the desert (Strategia per una missione di morte)
- 1980: The Umbrella Killer (Le coup du parapluie)
- 1981: The last howlers of the Navy (La dottoressa preferisce i marinai)
- 1982: Diamond Connection (Diamond Connection)
- 1982: Marco Polo (TV miniseries)
- 1982: She
- 1982: The Red Butterfly's Dance of Death (Kırmızı kelebek)
- 1983: Endgame - The last game with death (Endgame - Bronx lotta finale)
- 1983: Rush
- 1983: White Fire - The Death Diamond (Vivre pour survivre)
- 1986: The return of the wild geese (Cobra mission)
- 1986: Terror Force Commando
- 1987: La croce dalle sette pietre
- 1987: Overdose
- 1989: The betrothed (I promessi sposi) (TV miniseries)
- 2004: Malevolence
Awards
- 2002: Los Angeles Italian Film Award for Lifetime Achievement
Web links
- Gordon Mitchell at Brian's Drive-Inn Theater
- Gordon Mitchell at the Internet Movie Database (English)
swell
- Westerns all'Italiana Memorial Issue November 2003
- ↑ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1466933/Joe-Gold.html
- ↑ http://www.bbszene.de/board/showthread.php?t=49909
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Mitchell, Gordon |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Pendleton, Charles Allan |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American actor |
DATE OF BIRTH | July 29, 1923 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Denver |
DATE OF DEATH | September 20, 2003 |
Place of death | Marina del Rey |