Thell Reed
- Additional Crew
- Art Department
- Actor
Thell Reed was born and raised in Downey, California. His father worked
hard at maintaining a small chain of BB-Q restaurants to afford him the
luxury of spoiling his only son. Being a gun enthusiast, he bestowed on
him a pair of match Colt .45s and told him to "Make a living with
them!" Thell did just that. He began winning fast draw tournaments
before he was legally allowed to enter them. But, Thell was always more
than just an exhibition shooter. When he was just 13, his Father took
him on a hunting trip to Alaska. An attacking Kodiak took the young
gunman by surprise, but Thell's dexterity with a bolt action was too
much for the bear and he dropped him at his feet.
Gene Autry became aware of the
reputation Thell was building and took the young lad under his wing on
his Wild West tour. Soon, he was performing for not only Hollywood
royalty, but the British crown as well. Before long, Hollywood came
looking for Thell to share his skills and coach the biggest names in
the business. It began with
Gunsmoke (1955), continued into
movies the caliber of
L.A. Confidential (1997) and
now for over 30 years he has been at the very top of his profession.
From his specialty of the Wild West with films like
Tombstone (1993) and
The Quick and the Dead (1995)
to the high powered weapons of today in films like
Proof of Life (2000) and
Flags of Our Fathers (2006),
Thell brings something special to every film he's involved in. He
hasn't slowed down a bit and continues to help the best actors in the
business from Russell Crowe to
Brad Pitt achieve the kind of realistic gun
handling that today's film goers require.
hard at maintaining a small chain of BB-Q restaurants to afford him the
luxury of spoiling his only son. Being a gun enthusiast, he bestowed on
him a pair of match Colt .45s and told him to "Make a living with
them!" Thell did just that. He began winning fast draw tournaments
before he was legally allowed to enter them. But, Thell was always more
than just an exhibition shooter. When he was just 13, his Father took
him on a hunting trip to Alaska. An attacking Kodiak took the young
gunman by surprise, but Thell's dexterity with a bolt action was too
much for the bear and he dropped him at his feet.
Gene Autry became aware of the
reputation Thell was building and took the young lad under his wing on
his Wild West tour. Soon, he was performing for not only Hollywood
royalty, but the British crown as well. Before long, Hollywood came
looking for Thell to share his skills and coach the biggest names in
the business. It began with
Gunsmoke (1955), continued into
movies the caliber of
L.A. Confidential (1997) and
now for over 30 years he has been at the very top of his profession.
From his specialty of the Wild West with films like
Tombstone (1993) and
The Quick and the Dead (1995)
to the high powered weapons of today in films like
Proof of Life (2000) and
Flags of Our Fathers (2006),
Thell brings something special to every film he's involved in. He
hasn't slowed down a bit and continues to help the best actors in the
business from Russell Crowe to
Brad Pitt achieve the kind of realistic gun
handling that today's film goers require.