Hugh O'Brian
Hugh O'Brian (* 19th April 1925 as Hugh Charles Krampe in Rochester , New York ; † 5. September 2016 in Beverly Hills , California ) was an American actor and philanthropist .
Life
Hugh O'Brian was born in 1925 under the name Hugh Charles Krampe into a family of German descent in Rochester, New York. During high school he had great athletic successes in football, basketball, short distance and wrestling. He dropped out of the University of Cincinnati to serve four years in the Navy during World War II . On his return in 1947 he enrolled at UCLA and by chance ended up in a small theater company where he played first roles. It was discovered at a performance by the director and actress Ida Lupino , who used it in her film Never Fear (1949). His strong presence in the role of a hospital patient and good performance resulted in a contract with Universal . The following year he played a navigator in the classic science fiction genre Rocket Moon Launches . In the 1950s, O'Brian played supporting roles in larger productions such as Rhythm in Blood at the side of Marilyn Monroe or as the son of Spencer Tracy in the western The Broken Lance . In smaller films he also took on the leading role himself. For his performance in the western The Man from the Alamo , he received a Golden Globe Award for Best Newcomer in 1954 .
On television he played the lead role of Wyatt Earp in the popular western series Wyatt Earp Intervenes between 1955 and 1961 ( The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp ). This show, of which a total of 227 episodes were produced, made him a star in America. He had another leading television role in 1972 and 1973 in the action series Search . On television, he also took on guest roles in television series such as The People of Shiloh Ranch , Charlie's Angels , Murder Is Her Hobby and Fantasy Island . The actor was also seen several times in comedies on Broadway . In 1976 he played a supporting role as a gambler in John Wayne's last film The Last Sniper (1976), with O'Brian having the honor of becoming the last person John Wayne killed in a film. He retired from acting in 2000 with a role in the television miniseries Call of the Wild . His work includes more than 100 productions.
In 1958 O'Brian was invited by Nobel Prize winner Albert Schweitzer to his African clinic, where he spent nine days. He then founded the Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership Foundation (HOBY), a nonprofit that brings young people of high potential together with leaders in society so they can learn from them. In total, hundreds of thousands of American youths have attended HOBY seminars since the late 1950s; today the organization is represented in all 50 states of the USA and even in other countries. For his work, Hugh O'Brian was honored eight times with the title of honorary doctor . He also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame .
Hugh O'Brian was a long bachelor before marrying his longtime partner Virginia in 2006, when he was over 80 years old. He died at his Beverly Hills home in September 2016, aged 91.
Filmography (selection)
- 1949: Lying Lips (Never Fear)
- 1950: Rocket Moon launches (Rocketship XM)
- 1951: Vengeance Valley (Vengeance Valley)
- 1951: The Cave of Outlaws
- 1952: The Battle of Apachenpaß (The Battle at Apache Pass)
- 1953: The Man from the Alamo
- 1954: Rhythm in the Blood (There's No Business Like Show Business)
- 1954: The Broken Lance
- 1954: Saskatchewan (Saskatchewan)
- 1955: The White Feather
- 1955–1961: Wyatt Earp intervenes (The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp , TV series, 227 episodes)
- 1956: Duel in the saddle (The Brass Legend)
- 1963: Come Fly with Me
- 1965: Hot Beach Acapulco (Love Has Many Faces)
- 1965: Secret in the Blue Castle (Ten Little Indians)
- 1966: Treason in the Bay (Ambush Bay)
- 1967: Dangerous Adventure (Africa, Texas style)
- 1972–1973: Search (TV series, 23 episodes)
- 1976: The Mercenaries (Killer Force)
- 1976: The Shootist (The Shootist)
- 1977–1982: Fantasy Island (TV series, 5 episodes)
- 1978: Bruce Lee - My Last Fight (Game of Death)
- 1988: Twins - Twins (Twins)
- 1988: Help, I'm an Alien (Doin 'Time on Planet Earth)
- 1990: Murder is Her Hobby (Murder, She Wrote) - guest star in the episode A Body to Die For
- 1990: The Last Apache (Gunsmoke: The Last Apache)
- 1991: The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw - the best players far and wide
- 1993: LA Law - Star Lawyers, Tricks, Trials (LA Law) - Episode guest in the episode Odor in the Court
- 1994: Wyatt Earp: Return to Tombstone
- 2000: Call of the Wild (TV miniseries, 2 episodes)
Web links
- Hugh O'Brian in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- HOBY Foundation (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Biography on Hugh O'Brian's website ( memento of the original from September 2, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | O'Brian, Hugh |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Krampe, Hugh Charles (maiden name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | US-American actor |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 19, 1925 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Rochester , New York , United States |
| DATE OF DEATH | 5th September 2016 |
| Place of death | Beverly Hills , California , United States |