George Montgomery
Acting
Born: August 29, 1916 · Brady, Montana, USA
Died: December 12, 2000 (aged 84)
Highest Rated
Biography
George Montgomery was boxing champion at the University of Montana, where he majored in architecture and interior design. Dropping out a year later, he decided to take up boxing more seriously, and moved to California, where he was coached by ex-heavyweight world champion James J. Jeffries. While in Hollywood, he came to the attention of the studios (not least, because he was an expert rider) and was hired as a stuntman in 1935. After doing this for four years, George was offered a contract at 20th Century Fox in 1939, but found himself largely confined to leads in B-westerns. He did not secure a part in anything even remotely like a prestige picture, until his co-starring role in Roxie Hart (1942), opposite Ginger Rogers. Next, in Orchestra Wives (1942), he played the perfunctory love interest for Ann Rutherford -- though both, inevitably, ended up playing second trombone to Glenn Miller and His Orchestra. In 1947, George got his first serious break, being cast as Raymond Chandler's private eye Philip Marlowe, in The Brasher Doubloon (1947). Reviewers, however, compared his performance unfavourably with that of Humphrey Bogart and found the film 'pallid' overall. So it was back to the saddle for George. Unable to shake his image as a cowboy actor, he starred in scores of films with titles like Belle Starr's Daughter (1948), Dakota Lil (1950), Jack McCall Desperado (1953) and Masterson of Kansas (1954) at Columbia, and for producer Edward Small at United Artists. When not cleaning up the Wild West with his six-shooter, he branched out into adventure films set in exotic locales (notably as Harry Quartermain in Watusi (1959)). During the 60's, he also wrote, directed and starred in several long-forgotten, low-budget wartime potboilers made in the Philippines. At the height of his popularity, George attracted as much publicity for his acting, as for his liaisons with glamorous stars, like Ginger Rogers, Hedy Lamarr (to whom he was briefly engaged) and singer Dinah Shore (whom he married in 1943). After his retirement from the film business, he devoted himself to his love of painting, furniture-making and sculpting bronze busts, including one of his close friend Ronald Reagan.
Known for
Photos (3)
Movies (83)
Battle of the Bulge
Sgt. Duquesne
China Girl
Johnny Williams
The Texas Rangers
Johnny Carver
Roxie Hart
Homer Howard
Samar
Dr. John David Saunders
Fort Ti
Capt. Jed Horn
Young People
Mike Shea
Huk!
Greg Dickson
Cripple Creek
Bret Ivers / Iverson
The Lone Gun
Cruze
Army Girl
Soldier
Claire
Dr. Stanley Wayne
The Night Riders
Mob Member
Lulu Belle
George Davis
Gun Duel in Durango
Will Sabre
Black Patch
Clay Morgan
Jennie
Franz Schermer
Gun Belt
Billy Ringo
Robbers' Roost
Jim 'Tex' Wall
Belle Starr's Daughter
Marshal Tom Jackson
King of the Wild Stallions
Randy Burke
The Brasher Doubloon
Philip Marlowe
Man from God's Country
Dan Beattie
Seminole Uprising
Cam Elliott
Wild Wind
Major Nestorovic
Coney Island
Eddie Johnson
Badman's Country
Pat Garrett
Street of Sinners
John Dean
Watusi
Harry Quartermain
The Cowboy and the Blonde
Lank Garrett
Ten Gentlemen from West Point
Joe Dawson
Battle of Rogue River
Maj. Frank Archer
The Lone Ranger
Jim Clark
Ride the Tiger
1970
Orchestra Wives
Bill Abbot
The Mysterious Miss X
Policeman
Davy Crockett, Indian Scout
Davy Crockett
Pawnee
Paul 'Pale Arrow' Fletcher
The Arizona Kid
Soldier
Charter Pilot
Charlie Crane
Wall Street Cowboy
Cowhand
Southward Ho!
1939
In Old Caliente
Henchman
Take It or Leave It
(archive footage) (uncredited)
The Toughest Gun in Tombstone
Capt. Matt Sloane
Masterson of Kansas
Bat Masterson
The Pathfinder
Pathfinder
Dakota Lil
Tom Horn / Steve Garrett
South of the Border
Bandit
Canyon River
Steve Patrick
The Iroquois Trail
Nat Cutler / Hawkeye
Bomb at 10:10
Steve Corbett / Stiv Korbet
Last of the Badmen
Dan Barton
Jack McCall, Desperado
Jack McCall
In Old Monterey
Soldier
Hostile Guns
Gid McCool
Indian Uprising
Capt. Chase McCloud
Warkill
Col. John Hannegan
Frontier Pony Express
Lieutenant Harris
Accent on Love
John Worth Hyndman
Saga of Death Valley
Henchman
The Daredevil
Paul Tunney
Django the Condemned
Pat O'Brien
Cadet Girl
Tex Mallory
The Cisco Kid and the Lady
Tommy Bates
Last of the Duanes
Buck Duane
Three Little Girls in Blue
Van Damm Smith
Guerillas in Pink Lace
Murphy
The Steel Claw
Capt. John Larsen
Hell of Borneo
John Dirkson
The Sword of Monte Cristo
Captain Renault
Rough Riders' Round-up
Patrolman Joe
Bomber's Moon
Capt. Jeffrey Dakin
S.O.S Tidal Wave
1939
Riders of the Purple Sage
Lassiter
Hi-Yo Silver
Jim Clark
The Girl from Manhattan
Rev. Tom Walker
Strangers at Sunrise
Grant Merrick
Springtime in the Rockies
Cowhand at Dance (uncredited)
Star Dust
Ronnie
Hallucination Generation
Eric
Ransom
Inspector Marks
Satan's Harvest
Cutter Murdock
TV Shows (8)
The Six Million Dollar Man
Christopher Bell / Garth · 1 eps
Studio One
Bakeland · 1 eps
The Odd Couple
Griff · 1 eps
Alias Smith and Jones
1 eps
General Electric Theater
Jim Corbett · 1 eps
General Electric Theater
Buchanan Smith · 1 eps
Cimarron City
Mayor Matt Rockford · 26 eps
Children's Island
The President · 1 eps
Self / Appearances (8)
The Mike Douglas Show
Self · 2 eps
What's My Line?
Self - Mystery Guest · 1 eps
Dinah!
Self · 1 eps
The Steve Allen Show
Self - Cimarron City · 1 eps
This Is Your Life
Self · 1 eps
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
Self · 5 eps
When the West Was Fun: A Western Reunion
Self
Screen Snapshots Series 21 No. 1
Self
