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Olive Sturgess, whose many acting credits through the 1950s and ’60s included numerous TV Westerns and the Roger Corman horror spoof The Raven starring Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, Boris Karloff and Jack Nicholson, died February 19 in Los Angeles. She was 91.

Her death was announced by her family.

Although her TV career included guest roles in such comedies as The Donna Reed Show and Petticoat Junction, her forte was the television Western, a genre that was wildly popular in the ’50s and ’60s. During those years, Sturgess made guest appearances on Cheyenne, U.S. Marshal, Sugarfoot, The Texan, Rawhide, Have Gun Will Travel, Lawman, Buckskin, Rebel, Laramie, Wagon Train, Maverick, The Rebel, Tall Man, Outlaws, Bonanza, Wide Country, Destry, and The Virginian. In 1965 she appeared in the Western feature film Requiem for a Gunfighter.

In an undated interview on the Western Clippings website, Sturgess reflected on the early days of her career.

Jan Shepard, the actress who graced both the big screen and TV during Hollywood’s Golden Age, has passed away at 96. Born Josephine Angela Sorbello on March 19, 1928, in Quakertown, Pennsylvania, Shepard wasn’t just a name in the credits—she was a dynamo of talent.

Her career spanned decades, from classic films to the era of cowboy-filled TV shows. Shepard passed away on January 17, 2025, due to pneumonia and respiratory failure.

Jan Shepard

Though she’s no longer with us, her legacy blazes bright through her iconic roles, especially her indelible collaborations with Elvis Presley. Let’s take a look at her most iconic junctures, her remarkable career on TV, and the love story that endured longer than most Hollywood stars could ever dream of.

Jan Shepard’s iconic roles alongside Elvis Presley Elvis Presley and Jan Shepard in a scene from King Creole (Credits: Paramount Pictures)

Jan Shepard had her share of unforgettable roles,...

Jan Shepard, who acted opposite Elvis Presley in 1958’s King Creole and 1966’s Paradise, Hawaiian Style, and appeared in more than 30 TV Westerns, died Jan. 17 at a hospital in Burbank, Calif. of pneumonia brought on by respiratory failure. She was 96.

In King Creole, noted as Presley’s favorite of his films, she portrayed his on-screen sister Mimi. Eight years later, Shepard played Presley’s business partner’s wife in the ’60s buddy musical comedy. In an interview from last year, Shepard said she wasn’t a fan of Presley’s ahead of working with him, but “once I met him, I just adored him.”

Per an official obituary, Presley and Shepard got on well and went to off-set lunches (where Marlon Brando once made a chance appearance). Describing him as a “big teddy bear,” Shepard once recalled that he gave her a pair of 10-cent earrings as a joke before...

Jan Shepard, who guest-starred on Rawhide, The Virginian, Gunsmoke and two dozen other TV Westerns and played opposite Elvis Presley in movies eight years apart, has died. She was 96.

Shepard died Jan. 17 at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank of pneumonia brought on by respiratory failure, her son, Hollywood prop master, Brandon Boyle, told The Hollywood Reporter. “She was a good one and will be dearly missed,” he said.

Shepard portrayed Mimi, the sister of Presley’s Danny Fisher, in the Michael Curtiz-directed King Creole (1958) and the wife of Danny Kohana (James Shigeta), who partners with Presley’s Rick Richards in a helicopter business, in Paradise, Hawaiian Style (1966).

“The first time, I found him to be just the cutest kid around, a big teddy bear, a lot of fun,” she said in an interview for Boyd Magers and Michael G. Fitzgerald’s 1999 book, Westerns Women. But on their next movie,...

Fans of Paramount's hit neo-western series Yellowstone have recently been treated to a surprise announcement that the show won't be ending with its fifth season after all. While it was initially confirmed that the season's upcoming chunk of remaining episodes, currently set to air later in the year around November, would end up being its last, the show will be returning for Season 6. For the time being, however, the fans now have a chance to either catch up or look back on some of their favorite episodes and even recall some of their favorite moments.

For the past 6 years, Yellowstone has been one of the most talked about television shows. Filled with numerous shocking twists and turns in its story, heartbreaking betrayals, and even shocking character deaths, it keeps giving more and more reasons for fans to keep coming back. There's no doubt that the upcoming sixth season will...

Gena Rowlands, a Hollywood legend, starred in unforgettable films like A Woman Under the Influence. Rowlands and John Cassavetes' disastrous first date led to a legendary 35-year marriage. Rowlands' Hollywood legacy includes accolades like the Silver Bear for Best Actress.

The decorated and endlessly talented Gena Rowlands was one of the silver screen's most unique performers, having dazzled audiences all across the world with her unforgettable roles in films like A Woman Under the Influence, Opening Night, Another Woman, and The Notebook. The recipient of numerous accolades, including two Golden Globe Awards, four Emmys, and the prestigious Silver Bear for Best Actress, Rowlands dominated Hollywood for nearly 70 years.

Her enduring personal and professional relationship with innovative actor and director John Cassavetes also helped elevate the gifted duo, who would go on to collaborate on 10 films together over the course of more than 20 sensational years. The Tinseltown power couple left an...

Gena Rowlands, the award-winning actress known for her roles in films such as A Woman Under the Influence, Gloria, and The Notebook, has died at the age of 94.

Rowlands died Wednesday, August 14th, at her home in Indian Wells, California, according to TMZ. She had been battling Alzheimer’s disease.

Hailing from Cambria, Wisconsin, Rowlands originally got her start in theater, studying drama at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City. Upon graduating, she starred in several repertory productions before making her Broadway debut in The Seven Year Itch. She later starred in the Broadway play Middle of the Night.

Beginning in the mid-1950s, Rowlands transitioned to a career in television. She starred in the syndicated television series Top Secret and made guest appearances on shows including Laramie, Riverboat, 77 Sunset Strip, and Dr. Kildare. She also appeared on several episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

However,...

Gena Rowlands, a multiple Emmy winner whose captivating work in A Woman Under the Influence and as the elder and dementia-ridden Allie in The Notebook also moved moviegoers, died Wednesday surrounded by family at her home in Indian Wells, CA. She was 94.

No cause of death was given, but the retired actress had been battling Alzheimer’s disease, ironic in light of her famous film role.

She retired from Hollywood in 2015 after earning four Emmy Awards, two Golden Globes and two Oscar nominations. Her Oscar noms included A Woman Under the Influence and Gloria, both borne of collaborations with her late husband, John Cassavetes. The duo made an indelible mark on American independent film, not just for the often revelatory end product, but also for the DIY way they made their movies.

A Woman Under the Influence was prompted by Rowlands, who wanted to delve into the difficulties faced by...

Willa Hayes is a formidable CEO of Market Equities, offering $500 million for the Yellowstone Ranch in season 3. Karen Pittman plays Willa with authority and manipulative charm, becoming a memorable antagonist in the show. Despite her strong presence, Willa ultimately loses her job due to misconduct allegations in the season 3 finale.

Willa Hayes (Karen Pittman) is a recurring character in Yellowstone and eagle-eyed viewers may remember the actor from some of her other performances. Yellowstone and its many spinoffs may center on the generations of the Dutton family and their friends, but the guest stars and recurring characters who pop up in the shows for short but memorable arcs are who keep the franchise fresh. Numerous characters have come through the Dutton Ranch, often to lend a hand, but more often, to see if they have a chance at taking over the lucrative land.

The villains in Taylor Sheridan shows are...

Joan Evans, an actress who was the goddaughter of Joan Crawford, died Oct. 21 in Henderson, Nevada, according to her son, John Weatherly. No cause was given.

During her career, she worked with the likes of Farley Granger, Audie Murphy, Irene Dunne, and Esther Williams, among many others.

Among her film roles were parts in On the Loose (1951), It Grows on Trees (1952); and Skirts Ahoy! (1952).

She signed her first film contract in 1948 at age 14 to work with producer Samuel Goldwyn.

While doing reshoots, she was accidentally shot in the arm by Farley Granger. His gun discharged and she need emergency surgery and hospitalilzation.

Evans later appeared in such films as The Outcast (1954), A Strange Adventure (1956), The Flying Fontaines (1959) and The Walking Target (1960), and on TV shows including Climax!, The Millionaire, Cheyenne, 77 Sunset Strip, Wagon Train, Zorro, Tales of Wells Fargo, The Tall Man and Laramie.

She stopped acting in the...

Joan Evans, the daughter of screenwriters and goddaughter of Joan Crawford, who starred opposite Farley Granger in her first three films and with Audie Murphy in a pair of Westerns, has died. She was 89.

Evans died Oct. 21 in Henderson, Nevada, her son, John Weatherly, told The Hollywood Reporter.

She also toplined the Charles Lederer-directed On the Loose (1951), playing a suicidal teenager in the drama written by her parents, Dale Eunson and Katherine Albert; portrayed Irene Dunne’s daughter in the fantasy It Grows on Trees (1952); and enlisted in the U.S. Navy with Esther Williams in the musical comedy Skirts Ahoy! (1952).

Evans played the love interest of Granger’s character in the title role of Roseanna McCoy (1949), a drama loosely based on the family feud between the Hatfields and the McCoys. The two worked together again in the 1950 releases Our Very Own and Edge of Doom, a bleak film noir directed by Mark Robson.

John's code and moral boundaries differentiate him from classic "protagonist villains" like Walter White, but he still has his fair share of problems. For example, John Dutton's relationships with his children reveal the kind of person he is - inconsistent as a parent since his wife's death. John's refusal of a $500 million buyout for the ranch shows his determination, but also his unwillingness to consider the consequences for his family.

John Dutton is the main character of Yellowstone, but that doesn't prevent him from being the show's villain. Exploring morally complex antagonists has become a trend in television following The Sopranos and Breaking Bad, and while John Dutton does have some convincing justifications that can make viewers root for him and the Yellowstone Ranch, there are scenes that should serve as important reminders for the type of person he is. John Dutton has a code and moral boundaries that...

It was announced today that controversial actor Robert Blake has died at the age of 89. His niece, Noreen Austin, confirmed that he died at his Los Angeles home after a longtime battle with heart disease. Blake was best known for his roles in Richard Brooks’ adaptation of Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood, David Lynch’s Lost Highway, and for starring in the 1970s detective series Baretta.

Robert Blake got his start as a child actor, appearing as Mickey in forty installments of MGM’s Our Gang short films. He also played Little Beaver in twenty-three installments of the Red Ryder film series. He also appeared in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre as a young Mexican boy who sells a lottery ticket to Humphrey Bogart. Although many child actors can’t transition to adult roles, Blake managed to pull it off. His biggest break came with In Cold Blood,...

L.Q. Jones, the colorful character actor who worked on dozens of Westerns, including the Sam Peckinpah classics The Wild Bunch and Ride the High Country as a member of the famed filmmaker’s regular posse, has died. He was 94.

Jones died Saturday of natural causes at his home in the Hollywood Hills, his grandson Erté deGarces told The Hollywood Reporter.

Jones portrayed ranch hand Andy Belden on 25 episodes of NBC’s The Virginian over an eight-year span, was one of the bad guys who slipped a noose over Clint Eastwood’s neck in Hang ‘Em High (1968) and played a sheriff on the 1983-84 NBC primetime soap The Yellow Rose, starring Sam Elliott, Cybill Shepherd and Chuck Connors.

The Texas native also portrayed Clark County Commissioner Pat Webb, Robert De Niro’s nemesis, in Martin Scorsese’s Casino (1995) and country singer Chuck Akers in...

Alex Cord immortalized by Norman Rockwell for the marketing campaign for the 1966 version of "Stagecoach".

By Lee Pfeiffer

Actor Alex Cord has died at age 88 in Texas. Cord overcame a childhood battle with polio to become an active horseman who could perform impressive stunts. Those abilities, along with his rugged good looks and lanky build, helped him land jobs as an actor. He appeared in popular television series beginning in the early 1960s including "Ben Casey", "Laramie", "Naked City" and "Route 66" before transitioning to the big screen. He made his feature film debut in with an uncredited role in "The Chapman Report" in 1962 but it was in the all-star 1966 remake of John Ford's classic 1939 Western "Stagecoach" that Cord was cast in the star-making role of the Ringo Kid, a sympathetic outlaw on a trail of vengeance. The role had launched John Wayne's career to a new level...

Alex Cord, best known for his role on the military drama series Airwolf, has passed away. According to his publicist and friend of 20 years, Linda McAlister, the actor died on Monday at his home in Valley View, Texas. No additional details have been given such as a specific cause of death. He was 88 years old.

Alex Cord was born Alexander Viespi Jr. on May 3, 1933, in Floral Park, New York. He pursued his acting career in the early 1960s and made his small screen debut in an episode of Laramie in 1961. He'd follow this up with roles in the shows Frontier Circus and Cain's Hundred along with movies like The Chapman Report and Synanon. He would also appear in lead roles in various movies and shows during the 1960s and 1970s.

Often appearing in actions and westerns, Cord's other credits no the small screen include Route 66, Police Story, The Six Million Dollar Man,...

Alex Cord, an actor who portrayed the character codenamed Archangel in the military TV drama “Airwolf,” has died. He was 88.

Cord’s passing was confirmed to TheWrap by his publicist Linda McAlister, who said he died surrounded by friends in his home in Valley View, Texas, on Monday around 6:30 p.m. Ct.

Alex Cord, born Alexander Viespi Jr., was best known for his work on “Airwolf” alongside Jan-Michael Vincent and Ernest Borgnine. The show ran between 1984-86 for 55 episodes and was the story of a renegade pilot who goes on missions in an advanced battle helicopter. The show spawned a TV movie in 1984.

After being confined to a hospital and an iron lung in much of his youth, Cord eventually pursued a dream of becoming a professional horseman and joined a rodeo circuit at age 16. But after suffering an injury while performing at Madison Square Garden, he pivoted his...

Alex Cord, the actor best known for playing Michael Coldsmith Briggs III, a.k.a Archangel, in the ’80s military drama “Airwolf,” died on Monday at his home in Valley View, Texas, his rep Linda McAlister confirmed to Variety. He was 88.

Cord starred in 55 episodes of the action series, which ran for four seasons from 1984-1987, alongside Jan-Michael Vincent, Ernest Borgnine, Deborah Pratt and Jean Bruce Scott in the first three seasons on CBS. The show followed the military crew of a high-tech helicopter called Airwolf as they undertook various high-stakes espionage missions. The show was canceled on CBS after three seasons, but USA Network picked it up for a fourth with a brand new cast and smaller budget.

Born in Floral Park, New York, in 1933, Cord attended New York University and the American Shakespeare Theater in Connecticut. He became known for appearing in Westerns, action and crime projects across TV and film.

William Blinn, the screenwriter for Prince’s Purple Rain and creator of Starsky & Hutch, has died at age 83. He passed Thursday of natural causes at an assisted living community in Burbank, according to his daughter, Anneliese Johnson.

“If you were an aspiring writer in the 70’s & 80’s, like I was, Bill’s work defined what it was to write powerful, impactful, game-changing drama,” said friend and fellow screenwriter Robbie Fox.

During a four-decade career as a writer, producer and drama specialist, Blinn wrote for Bonanza, developed Eight Is Enough, and created The Interns, The Rookies and Pensacola: Wings of Gold.

Blinn co-wrote Purple Rain with director Albert Magnoli. He was offered the 1984 film thanks to his work as a writer and executive producer on Fame, which extensively integrated music into the show.

Blinn was working as a staff writer for Screen Gems when he was tabbed to adapt a chapter...

The star of Batwoman will have a new face when Season 2 rolls around. But will Kate Kane herself? Is there any way — or any reason — for the Arrowverse series to write in the change of appearance?

Let me state up front, before we blow past the 280-character attention span, that I am Not an advocate for writing it into a show when a role gets recast. Ignore it, I say, or make a wink-wink nod to it via some second banana’s throwaway line. (“You seem… different … today, Laramie.”) I spent a whole day last week compiling/researching dozens of past TV recasts,...

Best known for playing Andy in the 1959 western TV show Laramie, Robert Crawford Jr. also had a distinguished movie career, playing a wide range of characters in many critically and commercially successful films. The veteran actor had always been a part of the filmmaking business, with a father who was a respected film editor and actor.

Related: 10 Great Western Movies To Watch If You Love Deadwood

Aside from working as an actor, Robert Crawford Jr. was also interested in other aspects of filmmaking. He acted as a production assistant and producer on a number of cult hits. Here are the actor's best films, according to IMDb.

Former Another World writer Jan Merlin died on September 20 in Los Angeles. He was 94.

Born on April 3, 1925, Merlin was a torpedo man aboard U.S. Navy destroyers during World War II. He studied acting at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York and appeared in the ensemble in the original 1948 Broadway production of "Mister Roberts," starring Henry Fonda.

From 1950-54, Merlin starred as Roger Manning on the kids TV program Tom Corbett, Space Cadet, based on a comic strip.

He moved to Hollywood for a role in Six Bridges to Cross (1955), starring Curtis, then appeared with Mamie Van Doren in Running Wild (1955), with Dale Robertson in A Day of Fury (1956), with Tom Tryon in Screaming Eagles (1956) and with Ann Sheridan in Woman and the Hunter (1957).

In 1958-59, Merlin portrayed Lt. Colin Kirby on The Rough Riders, an ABC series set in the aftermath of the Civil War.

His credits also included the...

Harry Dean Stanton | Boris Johnson | Dancing about architecture | Fatberg | Ornithology of meetings | Ambridge antidote

Your obituary for Harry Dean Stanton (18 September) mispunctuates the title of the TV series Have Gun – Will Travel by substituting a comma for the dash. This had a curious effect on the list of TV horse operas Stanton acted in: “Laramie, The Gun, Have Gun, Will Travel, Bonanza and Rawhide.” Even the Oxford comma, which coincidentally played a part in Sunday’s episode of Strike, can’t come to our rescue with that one, though it could have helped with Bonanza and Rawhide.

Hugh Darwen

Warwick

• Boris Johnson must know that birds do not sing in the nest (Report, 20 September). It is a place of secrecy and security. It is the immature that call out, eager to be fed. This is especially true if an over-sized cuckoo is among them, ensuring that they are ejected and crash to the ground below.

Los Angeles – He was often categorized as the ultimate male character actor, but Harry Dean Stanton stood out on his own, with a persona that added immediate recognition in any supporting performance, and was unforgettable when he stepped into a lead role. Stanton died on September 15, 2017, at age 91.

With his hang dog demeanor and distinctive voice, Stanton made his mark over a 60 year career, and appeared in character roles in notable films such as “Cool Hand Luke” (1967), “Kelly’s Heroes” (1970), “The Godfather Part II” (1974), “Escape From New York” (1981), “Pretty in Pink” (1986) and “Last Temptation of Christ” (1988). He had bigger and more up front roles in “Repo Man” (1984), “Paris, Texas” (1984), “Wild at Heart” (1990), “The Straight Story” (1999), “The Green Mile” (1999) and the upcoming “Lucky” (2017).

Harry Dean Stanton in a Recent Photo

Photo credit: File Photo

Harry Dean Stanton was born in Kentucky, and was a World War II veteran in the Navy,...

Veteran actor Harry Dean Stanton, whose TV roles included HBO’s Big Love and Showtime’s Twin Peaks revival, has died at the age of 91.

Stanton passed away of natural causes in Los Angeles on Friday, according to our sister site Variety. A familiar face to movie fans, Stanton crafted a Hollywood career that spanned six decades with memorable roles in films like the Molly Ringwald teen drama Pretty in Pink (as Andie’s dad Jack), Repo Man, Cool Hand Luke, Escape From New York, Alien and The Godfather Part II. But he made his presence felt on the small screen as well.

Michael Gleason, the co-creator of Remington Steele and producer of such popular series as Diagnosis Murder and Rich Man Poor Man Book 2, died Friday at the age of 78. His death was confirmed on his Facebook page; no cause was listed. Gleason, a novelist as well as veteran producer, started as a writer for such 1960s series as Rawhide, Laramie, My Favorite Martian, The Big Valley and Peyton Place, continuing through the ’70s with Marcus Welby, M.D., Cannon, McCloud and Ric…...

Robert Crawford Sr., a film editor on several TV series who received an Emmy nomination the same year his sons, Johnny Crawford of The Rifleman and Bobby Crawford of Laramie, also were honored, has died. He was 95. Crawford died July 28 from complications of pneumonia in Woodland Hills after a five-year stay at the Motion Picture & Television Fund retirement home, his daughter, Nance Crawford, told The Hollywood Reporter. Johnny Crawford, an original Mouseketeer, portrayed Chuck Connors' young son Mark McCain on The Rifleman, which aired on ABC from 1958-63. Bobby Crawford played the younger brother Andy

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Batgirl Yvonne Craig. Batgirl Yvonne Craig dead at 78: Also featured in 'Star Trek' episode, Elvis Presley movies Yvonne Craig, best known as Batgirl in the 1960s television series Batman, died of complications from breast cancer on Monday, Aug. 17, '15, at her home in Pacific Palisades, in the Los Angeles Westside. Craig (born May 16, 1937, in Taylorville, Illinois), who had been undergoing chemotherapy for two years, was 78. Beginning (and ending) in the final season of Batman (1967-1968), Yvonne Craig played both Commissioner Gordon's librarian daughter Barbara Gordon and her alter ego, the spunky Batgirl – armed with a laser-beaming electric make-up kit “which will destroy anything.” Unlike semi-villainess Catwoman (Julie Newmar), Batgirl was wholly on the side of Righteousness, infusing new blood into the series' increasingly anemic Dynamic Duo: Batman aka Bruce Wayne (Adam West) and Boy Wonder Robin aka Bruce Wayne's beloved pal Dick Grayson (Burt Ward). “They chose...

Teresa Wright-Samuel Goldwyn association comes to a nasty end (See preceding post: "Teresa Wright in 'Shadow of a Doubt': Alfred Hitchcock Heroine in His Favorite Film.") Whether or not because she was aware that Enchantment wasn't going to be the hit she needed – or perhaps some other disagreement with Samuel Goldwyn or personal issue with husband Niven Busch – Teresa Wright, claiming illness, refused to go to New York City to promote the film. (Top image: Teresa Wright in a publicity shot for The Men.) Goldwyn had previously announced that Wright, whose contract still had another four and half years to run, was to star in a film version of J.D. Salinger's 1948 short story "Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut." Instead, he unceremoniously – and quite publicly – fired her.[1] The Goldwyn organization issued a statement, explaining that besides refusing the assignment to travel to New York to help generate pre-opening publicity for Enchantment,...

Los Angeles – He was 7 foot 2 inches tall, an imposing figure that made for one of the most memorable James Bond villains. Richard Kiel portrayed “Jaws” in two Bond films – “The Spy Who Loved Me” and “Moonraker” – and left an unforgettable mark as a character actor with a distinctive look and persona. Richard Kiel died at age 74 on September 10th, 2014.

Richard Kiel in 2010

Photo credit: Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.com

Richard Kiel was born in Detroit, Michigan, and made his first appearance in the TV show “Laramie” in 1960. Throughout the 1960s, he made appearances in low budget horror movies and television, most notably in a famous episode of “The Twilight Zone,” entitled “To Serve Man,” and in the TV series “The Wild, Wild West.” It was a western series in the 1970s, “The Barbary Coast,” that caught the attention of the Bond producers, and the villain Jaws was born.

Richard Kiel, the 7'2" actor best known for portraying steel-toothed villain Jaws in a pair of James Bond films, has died. He was 74. A spokesperson at Saint Agnes Medical Center in Fresno, California, confirmed Wednesday that Kiel was a patient at the hospital and died. Kiel's agent, Steven Stevens, also confirmed his death. Both declined to provide further details. Kiel famously played the cable-chomping henchman who tussled with Roger Moore's Bond in 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me and 1979's Moonraker. Bond quipped of the silent baddie: "His name's Jaws. He kills people." Despite his appearance in several other films and TV shows,...

Richard Kiel, the 7'2" actor best known for portraying steel-toothed villain Jaws in a pair of James Bond films, has died. He was 74. A spokesperson at Saint Agnes Medical Center in Fresno, California, confirmed Wednesday that Kiel was a patient at the hospital and died. Kiel's agent, Steven Stevens, also confirmed his death. Both declined to provide further details. Kiel famously played the cable-chomping henchman who tussled with Roger Moore's Bond in 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me and 1979's Moonraker. Bond quipped of the silent baddie: "His name's Jaws. He kills people." Despite appearing in several other films and TV shows,...

The towering actor who played the mercenary assassin Jaws in a pair of Roger Moore-era 007 movies and the enigmatic alien in one of the most famous episodes of The Twilight Zone died today. Richard Kiel would have turned 75 on Saturday. His agent of 35 years, Steven Stevens Sr, told Deadline that Kiel died this afternoon at St. Agnes Medical Center in Fresno, CA. The 7-foot-2 actor with the crooked smile got his start in early-1060s TV, appearing in such series as Laramie, Thriller and The Rifleman. He appeared in the 1962 sci-fi feature The Phantom Planet before landing the chilling Twilight Zone role. In “To Serve Man,” he played a representative of an advanced, giant alien race called the Kanamits, who alight on Earth amid what seems to be peace and good will. Kiel delivers a mysterious encrypted book to a meeting of the United Nations, and the episode soars from there.

Richard Kiel, whose towering height and distinctive baritone voice defined his nearly 50-year career in television and films, most notably as the steely toothed James Bond villain Jaws, died Wednesday afternoon in Fresno, Calif. at the age of 74, TMZ reports. The actor had been hospitalized after breaking his leg earlier in the week, but it is still unclear if that was related to his death.

Kiel’s rep did not immediately respond to EW’s request for comment.

The Detroit-born Kiel, who grew to be 7 feet 1.5 inches, worked various odd jobs, including cemetery plot salesman and nightclub bouncer, before making...

Actor Richard Kiel has died at the age of 74.

The 7ft 2in star, who played James Bond villain Jaws in 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me alongside Roger Moore and in 1979's Moonraker, passed away on Wednesday (September 10).

TMZ reports that he recently broke his leg and received treatment at a hospital in Fresno, California.

No cause of death has been reported at this stage.

Kiel also appeared alongside Adam Sandler in the 1996 comedy Happy Gilmore.

The actor was born in Detroit, Michigan and made his acting debut in the TV series Laramie.

Sir Roger Moore, who played James Bond opposite Kiel in The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker, said that he was "distraught" over his co-star's passing on social media.

I am totally distraught to learn of my dear friend Richard Kiel's passing. We were on a radio programme together just a week ago. Distraught

— Sir Roger Moore...

Actor Richard Kiel has died at the age of 74.

The 7ft 2in star, who played James Bond villain Jaws in 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me alongside Roger Moore and in 1979's Moonraker, passed away on Wednesday (September 10).

TMZ reports that he recently broke his leg and received treatment at a hospital in Fresno, California.

No cause of death has been reported at this stage.

Kiel also appeared alongside Adam Sandler in the 1996 comedy Happy Gilmore.

The actor was born in Detroit, Michigan and made his acting debut in the TV series Laramie.

Before finding fame as a Bond villain, Kiel got his career breakthrough in The Wild, Wild West in 1965, starring as an assistant to supervilllain Miguelito Loveless.

Kiel also lent his voice to a Bond video game in 2003. His most recent role was voicing Vlad for the animated movie Tangled in 2010.

Watch Richard Kiel, among other Bond stars,...

The first man to play Captain Video — the Guardian of the Safety of the World! — in the early days of television died today in Los Angeles. Richard Coogan was 99. He starred on the first two seasons of Captain Video And His Video Rangers, the popular low-budget space opera that premiered in 1949 on the DuMont Network. The future-set series aired for a half-hour Monday through Friday, also on Saturdays in 1950, with a reported prop budget of 25 bucks a week. The jut-jawed Coogan played a scientific genius who invented radical weapons and led a vast network of defenders of good. The program was a favorite of The Honeymooners‘ Ralph Cramden and Ed Norton, who were card-carrying members of the Captain Video Space Rangers fan club. After leaving Captain Video, the New Jersey native starred on the CBS soap Love Of Life and toplined late-’50s Gold Rush drama The Californians. He also...

American character actor who appeared in seven westerns directed by John Ford, including The Searchers and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon

The actor Harry Carey Jr, who has died aged 91, was the last surviving member of the director John Ford's stock company, which included John Wayne, Victor McLaglen, Ben Johnson, Anna Lee, Ward Bond, Andy Devine and Harry's own parents, Olive and Harry Carey Sr. They formed a cohesive group and contributed to the distinctive world of the Fordian western.

Carey Jr, nicknamed "Dobe" by his father because his red hair was the same colour as the adobe bricks of his ranch house, made seven westerns with Ford, typically in the role of a greenhorn soldier. The most characteristic of these was Lieutenant Ross Pennell in She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), the callow rival of John Agar for the hand of Joanne Dru. After she opts for the more handsome Agar,...

Hollywood actor who shot to fame as Marlon Brando's girlfriend in The Wild One

Co-starring with Marlon Brando in his prime is a bonus for any actor's filmography. The fame of Mary Murphy, who has died aged 80, was boosted considerably when she played his love interest in The Wild One (1953). Tame by today's standards, it was the film in which the brooding, rebellious, black-leather-clad Brando, as the leader of a motorcycle gang, emerged fully as a sex symbol.

The pretty, clean-cut Murphy, never considered a sex symbol herself, served as an excellent foil to Brando who, when asked what he is rebelling against, replies: "What've you got?" As the sheriff's daughter, she immediately attracts the attention of Brando when he comes in for a beer at the diner where she works. Gradually, the attraction becomes mutual as he rides his large, phallic motorcycle with her clutching his waist, her...

The Drive-In? Whoop-doo!Boos! & Whoop-doos!: A Decade of Glossy Schlock! The Aughts ushered in a new era of glossy schlock that rose quietly from the ashes of the once burgeoning Drive-In scene. The Drive-In Theater has always stood as a temple for exploitive, low-grade cinema. But by 1999, even the most popular of these late night playgrounds had crumbled to dust. They rose to prominence in the late forties and early fifties, and then experienced a quaint resurgence in the late 70s and early 80s. By the time this decade kicked off to shouts of "Y2K", they had all been wiped clean off the face of the Cineplex landscape. But their aura and mystic still lingered around many a DVD shelf like a ploom of stink bomb smoke. If there's one lasting remnant the Drive-In era gave us, it's the Z-grade flick. The second run feature whose only purpose...