Norman Jay Rambo (November 13, 1941 – March 21, 1994), professionally known as Dack Rambo, was an American actor, widely known for his role as

Walter Brennan Walter Andrew Brennan (July 25, 1894 – September 21, 1974) was an American actor and singer. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performances in '' Come and Get It'' (1936), ''Kentucky'' (1938), and '' The Westerner ...

's grandson Jeff in the series ''

The Guns of Will Sonnett ''The Guns of Will Sonnett'' is a Western television series set in the 1870s that was broadcast in color on the ABC television network from 1967 to 1969. The series, which began with the working title, "Two Rode West", was the first production c ...

'', as Steve Jacobi in the soap opera '' All My Children'', as cousin

Jack Ewing Jack Jay Ewing is a character that appeared in the popular American television series ''Dallas'', played by Dack Rambo from 1985 to 1987. Background Jack was born in Alaska in 1951, to Jason and Nancy Ewing. He had a younger sister named Jamie Ew ...

on ''

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

'', and as Grant Harrison on the soap opera '' Another World''.

Early life

Norman Jay Rambo was born in

Earlimart, California Earlimart is an unincorporated community in Tulare County, California, United States. At the 2010 census, the CDP population was 8,537, up from 6,583 at the 2000 census. For statistical purposes, the Census Bureau defines Earlimart as a census-de ...

to William Lester and Beatrice A. Rambo (née Rossi). He was a middle child in a family of four children. His siblings were William Donald Rambo; identical twin Orman Ray "Dirk" Rambo and sister Beverly Jean Rambo. Beatrice Rambo outlived two of her three sons.According to ''California Birth Index, 1905-1995'' at ancestry.com

Career

After moving to Los Angeles in the 1960s, the 20-year-old twins were discovered by actress

Loretta Young Loretta Young (born Gretchen Young; January 6, 1913 – August 12, 2000) was an American actress. Starting as a child, she had a long and varied career in film from 1917 to 1953. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the fil ...

in 1962 and cast in her CBS series ''

The New Loretta Young Show ''The Loretta Young Show'' (originally known as ''Letter to Loretta'') is an American anthology drama television series broadcast on Sunday nights from September 2, 1953, to June 4, 1961, on NBC for a total of 165 episodes. The series was hosted ...

''. On February 5, 1967, Dirk Rambo was killed in a road accident at the age of 25. Later that same year, Dack Rambo landed the role of Jeff Sonnett on ''The Guns of Will Sonnett'' and co-starred in the short-lived '' Gunsmoke'' spin-off '' Dirty Sally'', with

Jeanette Nolan Jeanette Nolan (December 30, 1911 – June 5, 1998) was an American actress. Nominated for four Emmy Awards, she had roles in the television series '' The Virginian'' (1962–1971) and ''Dirty Sally'' (1974), and in films such as ''Macbeth'' ...

. During the 1970s and 1980s, he made guest appearances on ''

Marcus Welby, M.D. Marcus, Markus, Márkus or Mărcuș may refer to: * Marcus (name), a masculine given name * Marcus (praenomen), a Roman personal name Places * Marcus, a main belt asteroid, also known as (369088) Marcus 2008 GG44 * Mărcuş, a village in Dobârl ...

'', ''

House Calls A house call is medical consultation performed by a doctor or other healthcare professionals visiting the home of a patient or client, instead of the patient visiting the doctor's clinic or hospital. In some locations, families used to pay due ...

'', ''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

'', '' Charlie's Angels'', ''

Fantasy Island ''Fantasy Island'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Gene Levitt. It aired on ABC from 1977 to 1984. The series starred Ricardo Montalbán as the mysterious Mr. Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as his assistant, Tattoo. ...

'', ''

The Love Boat ''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy/drama television series that aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986; in addition, four three-hour specials aired in 1986, 1987, and 1990. The series was set on the luxury passenger cruise ship MS ''Pa ...

'', ''

Hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

'' and '' Murder, She Wrote''. He played Steve Jacobi on '' All My Children'' in the early 1980s. He also acted the lead role in ''

Sword of Justice A sword of justice is a ceremonial sword that is used to signify a monarch's supreme judicial power. In some cases, this may have been an executioner's sword that was no longer used for executions, becoming instead a ceremonial one. The Crown ...

,'' which lasted for 10 installments in 1978–79. Rambo may be best remembered on television for playing

in 51 episodes of the soap opera ''

'' from 1985 to 1987. Rambo also played Wesley Harper on the 1984 short-lived TV series soap opera ''

Paper Dolls ''Paper Dolls'' is an American primetime television soap opera that aired for 14 episodes on ABC from September 23 to December 25, 1984. Set in New York's fashion industry, the show centered on top modeling agency owner Racine (Morgan Fairchild) ...

''. Rambo promoted a line of men's underwear trademarked in 1987 as "Under Ware by dack rambo" ic While working on '' Another World'', Rambo learned that he was infected with

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...

in August 1991. He quit the series shortly thereafter and retired from acting. Rambo then made his HIV infection and his bisexuality public, revealing that he had been in relationships with both men and women since his 20s.

Personal life

For most of his career, Dack Rambo was closeted about his bisexuality, only coming out when he mentioned that he was

positive. Also he never married and chose to remain a

confirmed bachelor "He never married" was a phrase used by British obituary writers as a euphemism for the deceased having been homosexual. Its use has been dated to the second half of the 20th century, and it may be found in coded and non-coded forms, such as when ...

Death

Dack Rambo died on March 21, 1994 at the age of 52 of complications from AIDS.

Filmography

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rambo, Dack 1941 births 1994 deaths 20th-century American male actors Male actors from California AIDS-related deaths in California American male film actors American male soap opera actors American male television actors Bisexual male actors People from Tulare County, California American twins People from Delano, California LGBT people from California Western (genre) television actors 20th-century LGBT people American bisexual actors