Jack Elam

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

William Scott "Jack" Elam (born November 13, 1920 in Miami , Arizona , † October 20, 2003 in Ashland , Oregon ) was an American actor who appeared mostly as a villain or outsider.

life and work

Elam grew up in poor conditions in Arizona. He lost his mother when he was two years old. The condition of his eye was due to a pencil injury when he was 12 years old and given to him in a boy scout camp. As a young man he went to California and worked as an accountant. After the United States entered World War II, Elam served in the US Navy. After the war ended, he began to play roles in films. In the 1950s he was still subscribed to the role of the villain, but in the late 1960s he increasingly played outsiders or comedic roles. Elam was one of the most sought-after western supporting actors and appeared in numerous classics of this genre, including Twelve Noon , Vera Cruz , Two Account and Play Me the Song of Death . From the mid-1970s, he was increasingly seen in television series and comedies . He is remembered for his unusual appearance - the immovable squinting eye and his thick eyebrows. In 1983 he won the Golden Boot Award. Jack Elam died of heart failure at the age of 82.

Filmography (selection)

Movies

TV Shows

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Other sources give 1916 or 1918 as Elam's year of birth. The figure 1920 comes from Elam's entry for a citizen census. Compare findagrave.com , accessed Dec. 26, 2009
  2. ↑ Uwe Killing: Dirty Spaghetti. The glorious story of the Spaghetti Western, Höfen 2013, p. 169.
personal data
SURNAME Elam, Jack
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Elam, William Scott (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION US-American actor
DATE OF BIRTH November 13, 1920
PLACE OF BIRTH Miami , Arizona , United States
DATE OF DEATH October 20, 2003
Place of death Ashland , Oregon , United States