Biography

One of the great stars of American Westerns, and a very popular leading man in non-Westerns as well. He was born and raised in the surroundings of Hollywood and as a boy became interested in the movies that were being made all around. He studied acting at Pomona College and got some stage experience at the Pasadena Community Playhouse, where other future stars such as Randolph Scott, Robert Young, and Victor Mature would also get their first experience. He worked as an extra after graduation from the University of Southern California in 1928 and did some stunt work. In a rare case of an extra being chosen from the crowd to play a major role, McCrea was given a part in The Jazz Age. A contract at MGM followed, and then a better contract at RKO. Will Rogers took a liking to the young man (they shared a love of ranching and roping) and did much to elevate McCrea's career. His wholesome good looks and quiet manner were soon in demand, primarily in romantic dramas and comedies, and he became an increasingly popular leading man. He hoped to concentrate on Westerns, but several years passed before he could convince the studio heads to cast him in one. When he proved successful in that genre, more and more Westerns came his way. But he continued to make a mark in other kinds of pictures, and proved himself particularly adept at the light comedy of Preston Sturges, for whom he made several films. By the late Forties, his concentration focused on Westerns, and he made few non-Westerns thereafter. He was immensely popular in them, and most of them still hold up well today. He and Randolph Scott, whose career strongly resembles McCrea's, came out of retirement to make a classic of the genre, Sam Peckinpah's Ride the High Country (1962). Scott stayed retired thereafter; McCrea made a couple of appearances in small films afterwards, but was primarily content to maintain his life as a gentleman rancher. He was married for fifty-seven years to actress Frances Dee, who survived him.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Jim Beaver <jumblejim@prodigy.net>

Father, with Frances Dee, of David, Peter, and Jody McCrea. Grandfather of Wyatt McCrea.

A big sight gag in Sullivan's Travels (1941) was the juxtaposition of the big McCrea with his leading lady, Veronica Lake, who apparently was 16 inches shorter. For some shots, however, Lake had to stand on a box so their heads could be seen in the same shot.

Attended high school with future director Jacques Tourneur who would later direct him in Stars in My Crown (1950) (one of McCrea's personal favorites) and a pair of 1955 releases, Wichita (1955) and Stranger on Horseback (1955).

Well-respected as a horseman, he was regarded as one of the two best riders in Western films along with Ben Johnson, who had been a real cowboy.

Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives". Volume Two, 1986-1990, pages 574-575. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1999.

Awarded two Stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame--for Motion Pictures at 1719 Vine St. and for Radio at 6241 Hollywood Blvd.

Katherine DeMille and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. were his classmates in school.

He soon realized after losing the lead in The Real Glory (1939) to Gary Cooper that as long as Samuel Goldwyn had both he and Cooper under contract, he would always come out second in the studio's choice roles. When he refused to re-sign with Goldwyn, the producer warned him that he'd "never work in this town again!" After that, Goldwyn always referred to the actor as "Joel McCreal." McCrea signed with Cecil B. DeMille for Union Pacific (1939) at Paramount.

Among movies that he turned down: Spitfire (1934) with Katharine Hepburn, The Impatient Years (1944), The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946), Intruder in the Dust (1949), The Story of Will Rogers (1952).

Bette Davis liked McCrea very much and pressed him to co-star with her in an adaptation of Edith Wharton's "Ethan Frome." McCrea thought it too downbeat to be successful. A disappointed Davis called him "a cowboy psychiatrist" and referred to him as that from then on.

Admitted late in life that he made much more money in real estate investments than he ever did in movies.

Many believe that starting with The Virginian (1946) he appeared exclusively in Westerns until the end of his career, but there is actually one exception. Rough Shoot (1953) is a spy thriller set in modern-day England, although its title makes it easy to mistake for a Western upon cursory examination of his filmography..

I have no regrets, except perhaps one: I should have tried harder to be a better actor.

[in 1978] I liked doing comedies, but as I got older I was better suited to do Westerns. Because I think it becomes unattractive for an older fellow trying to look young, falling in love with attractive girls in those kinds of situations . . . Anyway, I always felt so much more comfortable in the Western. The minute I got a horse and a hat and a pair of boots on, I felt easier. I didn't feel like I was an actor anymore. I felt like I was the guy out there doing it.

After 87 pictures in 47 years, I knew when to quit.

I don't believe in anti-heroes. John Wayne played a mean guy but never an anti-hero.