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Wright King

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Wright King
Born
Wright Thornburgh King

(1923-01-11)January 11, 1923
DiedNovember 25, 2018(2018-11-25) (aged 95)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationActor
Years active1946–1987
Spouse
June Ellen Roth King
​
​
(m. 1948; died 2008)​
Children3

Wright Thornburgh King (January 11, 1923 – November 25, 2018) was an American stage, film and television actor whose career lasted for over forty years.[1][2][3][4] He is best known for playing Jason Nichols in the television series Wanted Dead or Alive (1958–1961).

Early life and career

King studied acting at the St Louis School of Theater, from which he graduated in 1941, before enlisting in the United States Navy during World War II, in which he served in the South Pacific campaign from 1943 to 1945.[5]

With Vivien Leigh in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

King made his small screen debut in 1949 as Midshipman Bascomb in the television series Captain Video and His Video Rangers.

Throughout his career, he worked in both the United States and in the United Kingdom.[6]

King was cast in numerous Westerns and is particularly known for his role in the 1951 film adaptation of Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire, starring Vivien Leigh (whom his character kisses). Prior to that, he had appeared in the original stage production, a performance which was lauded by drama critic Harold Hobson.[7] In 1958 King appeared as the Kiowa Kid/Nevada Jones on the TV Western Cheyenne in the episode "Ghost of the Cimarron."[8]: 83  In 1957 King starred as Joe Digger, a falsely accused horse thief who was hanged but saved, then hanged again after he killed one of his original executioners in the Gunsmoke episode "Born to Hang". King also appeared in eleven episodes of the television series Wanted Dead or Alive starring Steve McQueen, often playing a young sidekick named Jason Nichols. He also appeared in S2 E13 "No Trail Back" as Joe Hooker, the brother of a wanted man, who was bitten by a rabid dog. It aired 11/26/1959.

Other noteworthy film credits included roles in Cast a Long Shadow (1959), King Rat (1965), Planet of the Apes (1968), Finian's Rainbow (1968) and Invasion of the Bee Girls (1973).

In 1974, he played U.S. Senator Richard B. Russell Jr. of Georgia in the TV movie The Missiles of October, a dramatization of the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962.[9]

He appeared in the television series Johnny Jupiter, was in two episodes of the TV series The Silent Service (S01 E10 "The Pampanito" and S01 E20 "The Squailfish"). He appeared with Richard Boone in Have Gun – Will Travel in the episodes "Helen of Abajinan" and "A Knight to Remember". He also appeared with James Arness in Gunsmoke in the 1959 episode “False Witness” (S5Ep14), the 1961 episode "Colorado Sheriff" (S6E38), the 1964 episode “No Hands” (S9E19) and the 1965 episode "The Bounty Hunter" (S11E7).

Personal life

King married June Ellen Roth in 1948. The couple had three sons, Wright Jr., Michael, and actor Meegan King.[10]

He died in Motion Picture Home in Woodland Hill, California on November 25, 2018, at the age of 95.[11][12]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1951 A Streetcar Named Desire Newspaper Collector
1956 The Bold and the Brave Technician Fifth Grade
1956 The Young Guns Jonesy
1956 Friendly Persuasion Forager Uncredited
1956 Stagecoach to Fury Ralph Slader
1957 Hot Rod Rumble Ray Johnson - Arnie's sidekick
1959 The Gunfight at Dodge City Billy Townsend
1959 Cast a Long Shadow Noah Pringle
1962 Dangerous Charter Joe Shot in 1958
1965 King Rat Brough
1968 Planet of the Apes Dr. Galen
1968 Finian's Rainbow District Attorney
1972 Journey Through Rosebud Indian Agent
1973 Invasion of the Bee Girls Dr. Murger
1987 House Made of Dawn Father Olguin (final film role)

Selected television

Year Title Role Notes
1949 Captain Video and His Video Rangers Midshipman Bascomb
1956 Cheyenne (TV series) Frank Endicott Season 1/Episode 11 - "Quicksand"
1957 Cheyenne (TV series) Blaney Wilcox / Pocatello Kid Season 2/Episode 15 - "Born Bad"
1957 Have Gun – Will Travel Jimmy O'Riley Season 1/Episode 16 - "Helen of Abajinian"
1958 Cheyenne (TV series) The Kiowa Kid / Nevada Jones Season 3/Episode 14 - "Ghost of the Cimarron"
1959 Gunsmoke Crep Season 5/Episode 14 - "False Witness"
1959 Wanted Dead or Alive Seth Blake Season 1/Episode 36 - "Amos Carter"
1959-1960 Wanted Dead or Alive Jason Nichols Season 2 - 10 episodes
1962 Gunsmoke Gant S8:E11 “Abe Blocker”
1963 The Twilight Zone Mr. Hecate Episode: Of Late I Think of Cliffordville

References

  1. ^ 1930 US Federal Census for Wright T. King, retrieved from Ancestry.com
  2. ^ 1940 US Federal Census for Wright T. King, retrieved from Ancestry.com
  3. ^ U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947 for Wright Thornburgh King, retrieved from Ancestry.com
  4. ^ "Wright King, Actor in 'A Streetcar Named Desire' and 'The Twilight Zone,' Dies at 95". The Hollywood Reporter. 3 December 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
  5. ^ "Ex-Mt. Vernonite Wright King in "Streetcar" Cast". Mt. Vernon Register News. March 27, 1952. p. 6. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  6. ^ "Wright King In Grenada Movie". Mt. Vernon Register News. December 7, 1956. p. 8. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  7. ^ "Mt. Vernon Actor Is Praised by London Critic". Mt. Vernon Register News. December 15, 1949. p. 2. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  8. ^ Lentz, Harris M. (1997). Television Westerns Episode Guide: All United States Series, 1949-1996. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0-7864-7386-1.
  9. ^ "King of the 'Streetcar'". The Times-Picayune. March 22, 2008. Retrieved August 3, 2014.
  10. ^ "Births". Mt. Vernon Register News. November 22, 1949. p. 2. Retrieved June 4, 2016.
  11. ^ "Find Local Obituaries Online". Dignity Memorial. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
  12. ^ "Wright King, Actor in 'A Streetcar Named Desire' and 'The Twilight Zone,' Dies at 95". The Hollywood Reporter. 3 December 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
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