Gary Conway (born February 4, 1936) is an American actor and screenwriter. His notable credits include a co-starring role with

Gene Barry Gene Barry (born Eugene Klass, June 14, 1919 – December 9, 2009) was an American stage, screen, and television actor and singer. Barry is best remembered for his leading roles in the films '' The Atomic City'' (1952) and ''The War of The Worl ...

in the detective series '' Burke's Law'' from 1963 to 1965. In addition, he starred in the

Irwin Allen Irwin Allen (born Irwin O. Cohen, June 12, 1916 – November 2, 1991) was an American film and television producer and director, known for his work in science fiction, then later as the "Master of Disaster" for his work in the disaster film genr ...

sci-fi series ''

Land of the Giants ''Land of the Giants'' is a one-hour American science fiction television series that aired on ABC for two seasons, beginning on September 22, 1968 and ending on March 22, 1970. The show was created and produced by Irwin Allen. ''Land of the Gi ...

'' from 1968 to 1970.

Life

Conway was born in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

. He has been married for many years to

Marian McKnight Marian McKnight (born December 19, 1936) is an American actress, model and former beauty pageant winner. She was crowned Miss America in 1957. Pageantry She earned the 1957 Miss America title with a Marilyn Monroe act in the talent portion. Sh ...

, who was Miss America, 1957. They first met while students at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California S ...

, where Conway studied art. The couple have two children, Gareth and Kathleen. Conway and McKnight have worked together in film production and writing. They owned a winery calle
Carmody McKnight
ref name=KR/> that they started in 1985. They sold it to the Wonderful Company (Justin Vineyards & Winery) in 2019. Conway and his ''Burke's Law'' co-star

remained close friends until Barry's death in late 2009.

Career

Conway's early film credits include the cult horror films ''

I Was a Teenage Frankenstein ''I Was a Teenage Frankenstein'' (U.K. title: ''Teenage Frankenstein'') is a film starring Whit Bissell, Phyllis Coates and Gary Conway, released by American International Pictures (AIP) in November 1957 as a double feature with '' Blood of Dra ...

'' (1957) as the monster, '' How to Make a Monster'' (1958), and ''

The Saga of the Viking Women and Their Voyage to the Waters of the Great Sea Serpent ''The Saga of the Viking Women and Their Voyage to the Waters of the Great Sea Serpent'' (also known as ''The Viking Women and the Sea Serpent'') is a 1958 American action-adventure horror film directed by Roger Corman. It stars Abby Dalton, Sus ...

'' (1958). In 1958, he was cast in the ''Man Hunt'' episode of the

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

aviation

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

Sky King ''Sky King'' was an American radio and television series. Its lead character was Arizona rancher and aircraft pilot Schuyler "Sky" King. The series had strong Western elements. King usually captured criminals and spies and found lost hikers, ...

'' with

Kirby Grant Kirby Grant (November 24, 1911 – October 30, 1985), born Kirby Grant Hoon Jr., was a long-time B movie and television actor, mostly remembered for having played the title role in the Western-themed adventure television series ''Sky King''. B ...

Richard Beymer George Richard Beymer Jr. (born February 20, 1938) is an American actor, filmmaker and artist who played the roles of Tony in the film version of ''West Side Story'' (1961), Peter in ''The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959), and Ben Horne on the telev ...

, and

Gloria Winters Gloria Winters (November 28, 1931 – August 14, 2010) was an actress most remembered for having portrayed the well-mannered niece, Penny King, in the 1950s – 1960s American television series ''Sky King''.Maverick Maverick, Maveric or Maverik may refer to: History * Maverick (animal), an unbranded range animal, derived from U.S. cattleman Samuel Maverick Aviation * AEA Maverick, an Australian single-seat sportsplane design * General Aviation Design Burea ...

'' in the episode titled ''Thunder from the North''. In 1960, Conway appeared as Lt. Charles Williams in the episode ''Absent Without Leave'' of the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

western series '' Colt .45'', starring

Wayde Preston Wayde Preston (born William Erksine Strange; September 10, 1929 – February 6, 1992) was an American actor cast from 1957 to 1960 in the lead role in 67 episodes of the ABC/ Warner Bros. Western television series, '' Colt .45''. Background ...

; in the guest cast were

Tyler McVey William Tyler McVey (February 14, 1912 – July 4, 2003) was an American character actor of film and television. Early years McVey was born Bay City, Michigan, to William David McVey and his wife, the former Jessie Arvilla Tyler. His moth ...

as Col. Ben Williams and Steve Brodie. In 1960 Conway also appeared in three episodes (as three different characters of the ABC/WB crime drama '' Bourbon Street Beat'', starring

Andrew Duggan Andrew Duggan (December 28, 1923 – May 15, 1988) was an American character actor. His work includes 185 screen credits between 1949 and 1987 for roles in both film and television, as well a number more on stage. Background Duggan was born in ...

. In 1966 Conway made an unsuccessful

television pilot A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distr ...

''Assault!'', made by the producers of ''

Combat! ''Combat!'' is an American television drama series that originally aired on ABC from 1962 until 1967. The exclamation point in ''Combat!'' was depicted on-screen as a stylized bayonet. The show covered the grim lives of a squad of American so ...

'' about the US Marine Corps in the Pacific in 1942. From 1968 to 1970 Gary starred in the TV series ''

'' as Captain Steve Burton. Conway starred with

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her pe ...

in the 1972

television movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

The Judge and Jake Wyler ''The Judge and Jake Wyler'' is a 1972 American TV movie directed by David Lowell Rich. The teleplay was written by Richard Levinson, William Link, and David Shaw. It was produced by Universal Television and broadcast by NBC on December 2, 1972. T ...

''. He also guest-starred as the murder victim in the 1973 '' Columbo'' episode "Any Old Port in a Storm". In 1973, Conway was featured in ''

Playgirl ''Playgirl'' was an American magazine that featured general interest articles, lifestyle and celebrity news, in addition to nude or semi-nude men. In the 1970s and 1980s, the magazine printed monthly and was marketed mainly to women, although ...

'' magazine's August issue. His other film credits include '' Young Guns of Texas'' (1962), '' Black Gunn'' (1972), '' The Farmer'' (1977), '' Once Is Not Enough'' (1975), '' American Ninja 2: The Confrontation'' (1987), and '' Liberty & Bash'' (1989). Conway also starred in ''Woman's Story'' (2000), which he also wrote and directed. In 1987, Conway had teamed up with Dean Zanetos to form a new production-distribution company, Ambush Entertainment Corporation, which started with a three-feature program, in order to contemplate icvideo and TV projects as well.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Conway, Gary 1936 births Living people American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Boston UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture alumni Wine merchants Playgirl Men of the Month