Gordon Mitchell (born Charles Allen Pendleton; July 29, 1923 – September 20, 2003) was an American actor and

bodybuilder Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuses ...

who made about 200 B movies.

Biography

Charles Allen Pendleton was born in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

, and began working out in his Denver neighbourhood to deal with his tough companions. During World War II he served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

in the

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted from 16 December 1944 to 28 January 1945, towards the end of the war in ...

where he was taken

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

. He later obtained a degree at the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

under the

G.I. Bill The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...

. He became a high school teacher and guidance counselor in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, where due to his physique he was given classes containing many delinquent students. Following a return enlistment for the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

, he found film extra work in movies such as ''

Prisoner of War A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

'', ''

The Man with the Golden Arm ''The Man with the Golden Arm'' is a 1955 American drama film with elements of film noir directed by Otto Preminger, based on the novel of the same name by Nelson Algren. Starring Frank Sinatra, Eleanor Parker, Kim Novak, Arnold Stang and ...

'' and

Cecil B. DeMille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American film director, producer and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cine ...

's '' The Ten Commandments'', where he and his friend

Joe Gold Joe Gold (born Sidney Gold; March 10, 1922 – July 11, 2004) was an American bodybuilder and businessman. He was the founder of Gold's Gym and World Gym. He has been credited with being the father of the bodybuilding and the fitness craze. ...

dragged Charlton Heston's Moses to Pharaoh

Yul Brynner Yuliy Borisovich Briner (russian: link=no, Юлий Борисович Бринер; July 11, 1920 – October 10, 1985), known professionally as Yul Brynner, was a Russian-born actor. He was best known for his portrayal of King Mongkut in th ...

Mae West Mae West (born Mary Jane West; August 17, 1893 – November 22, 1980) was an American stage and film actress, playwright, screenwriter, singer, and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned over seven decades. She was known for her breezy ...

chose him to appear in her nightclub act as part of her "buffed all-male chorus line". He was one of the American bodybuilder-actors who migrated to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

in the wake of Steve Reeves' success in the 1958 film ''

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...

'' after he sent a photo to an Italian producer who signed him on a contract. Prior to going to Italy, he saw a

clairvoyant Clairvoyance (; ) is the magical ability to gain information about an object, person, location, or physical event through extrasensory perception. Any person who is claimed to have such ability is said to be a clairvoyant () ("one who sees cl ...

who asked him if he had ever been known by the name of Gordon Mitchell. He replied no, but on arrival in Rome, Mitchell was given his new name. He found work first in

sword and sandal Sword-and-sandal, also known as peplum (pepla plural), is a subgenre of largely Italian-made historical, mythological, or Biblical epics mostly set in the Greco-Roman antiquity or the Middle Ages. These films attempted to emulate the big-budge ...

films such as ''Sinbad'', '' Seven Slaves Against the World'', ''

Treasure of the Petrified Forest ''Treasure of the Petrified Forest'' (original title: ''Il tesoro della foresta pietrificata'') is a 1965 Italian adventure film directed by . It mixes elements of the Nibelungen saga and of Richard Wagner's opera Ring of the Nibelung, which is ...

'' (1965), then in Spaghetti Westerns such as '' Beyond the Law'' and '' Savage Guns''. Mitchell also appeared in ''

Fellini Satyricon ''Fellini Satyricon'', or simply ''Satyricon'', is a 1969 Italian fantasy drama film written and directed by Federico Fellini and loosely based on Petronius's work '' Satyricon'', written during the reign of Emperor Nero and set in Imperial R ...

'' (1969), directed by Federico Fellini. From the early 1970s onwards, he started to diversify into everything from horror ('' Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks'' - 1974),

Nazi exploitation Nazi exploitation (also Nazisploitation) is a subgenre of exploitation film and sexploitation film that involves Nazis committing sex crimes, often as camp or prison overseers during World War II. Most follow the women in prison formula, only re ...

(''Achtung! The Desert Tigers!'' -1977), sexploitation (''Porno-Erotic Western'' - 1979), French criminal comedy ('' The Umbrella Coup'' - 1980), and

post-apocalyptic Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which the Earth's (or another planet's) civilization is collapsing or has collapsed. The apocalypse event may be climatic, such as runaway climate change; ast ...

films (''

Endgame Endgame, Endgames, End Game, End Games, or similar variations may refer to: Film * ''The End of the Game'' (1919 film) * ''The End of the Game'' (1975 film), short documentary U.S. film * ''Endgame'' (1983 film), 1983 Italian post-apocalyptic f ...

'' - 1983). He also appeared in the bizarre 1982 Israeli adaptation of H. Rider Haggard's '' She'' as "Hector." The film was directed by

Avi Nesher Avi Nesher ( Hebrew: אבי נשר; born 13 December 1952) is an Israeli film producer, film director, screenwriter and actor. Biography Avi Nesher was born and raised in Ramat Gan, Israel. The child of a Romanian-born diplomat, and a mother w ...

and co-starred

Sandahl Bergman Sandahl Bergman is an American actress and dancer. She is best known for her role as Valeria in the film ''Conan the Barbarian'' (1982), for which she won a Golden Globe and a Saturn Award. Early life Bergman was born in Kansas City, Mis ...

. Mitchell was close friends with fellow American expatriate actors Richard Harrison,

Mike Monty Mike Monty (October 23, 1936 – August 4, 2006) was an American character actor, born in 1936 in Chattanooga, Tennessee as Michael O'Donoghue but he changed his name to Mike Monty late in life. Career He left the United States for Italy i ...

(he appeared in a number of films with both and shared an apartment with Monty in Italy during the 1960s), and John P. Dulaney. Like Monty, Harrison and Dulaney, Mitchell acted in low-budget action films in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

during the 1980s, having roles in ''Commando Invasion'' and ''SFX Retaliator'' for director John Gale. He returned to the United States in the late 1980s and retired from acting, but kept making occasional film appearances until his death in 2003 from an apparent heart attack in Marina Del Rey,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, at age 80.

Selected filmography

* ''

'' (1954) - Bit Role (uncredited) * ''

'' (1955) - Police Officer (uncredited) * '' The Ten Commandments'' (1956) - Egyptian Guard (uncredited) * ''

Around the World in 80 Days ''Around the World in Eighty Days'' (french: link=no, Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours) is an adventure novel by the French writer Jules Verne, first published in French in 1872. In the story, Phileas Fogg of London and his newly employe ...

'' (1956) - Extra (uncredited) * ''The Spirit of St. Louis'' (1957) - (uncredited) * '' The Enemy Below'' (1957) - German Sailor (uncredited) * ''

The Young Lions ''The Young Lions'' (1948) is a novel by Irwin Shaw about three soldiers in World War II. Plot Christian Diestl is at first a sympathetic Austrian drawn to Nazism by despair for his future but willing to sacrifice Jews if necessary. Noah Acke ...

'' (1958) - Minor Role (uncredited) * '' The Buccaneer'' (1958) - Pirate (uncredited) * '' Rio Bravo'' (1959) - Bar Cowboy Watching Fistfight (uncredited) * '' Li'l Abner'' (1959) - Muscleman Rufe (uncredited) * ''

Spartacus Spartacus ( el, Σπάρτακος '; la, Spartacus; c. 103–71 BC) was a Thracian gladiator who, along with Crixus, Gannicus, Castus, and Oenomaus, was one of the escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major slave uprisin ...

'' (1960) - Gladiator (uncredited) * '' Atlas Against the Cyclops'' (1961) - Maciste (as Mitchell Gordon) * '' The Centurion'' (1961) - Gen. Metellus * '' The Giant of Metropolis'' (1961) - Obro * ''

Vulcan, Son of Jupiter ''Vulcan, Son of Giove'' (''Vulcano, figlio di Giove'') is a 1962 Italian fantasy-adventure film directed and co-written by Emimmo Salvi in his directorial debut. At the time of his death in 1989 he was preparing a film on ''Zeus''. The film is a ...

'' (1962) - Pluto * '' Julius Caesar Against the Pirates'' (1962) - Hamar, the Pirate * '' Kerim, Son of the Sheik'' (1962) - Yussuf * '' Invasion 1700'' (1962) - Ulrich * '' The Fury of Achilles'' (1962) -

Achilles In Greek mythology, Achilles ( ) or Achilleus ( grc-gre, Ἀχιλλεύς) was a hero of the Trojan War, the greatest of all the Greek warriors, and the central character of Homer's '' Iliad''. He was the son of the Nereid Thetis and Pele ...

* '' Brennus, Enemy of Rome'' (1963) -

Brennus Brennus or Brennos is the name of two Gaulish chieftains, famous in ancient history: * Brennus, chieftain of the Senones, a Gallic tribe originating from the modern areas of France known as Seine-et-Marne, Loiret, and Yonne; in 387 BC, in t ...

* '' Seven Slaves Against the World'' (1964) - Balisten * '' The Revenge of Spartacus'' (1964) - Arminio * ''

Ali Baba and the Seven Saracens ''Ali Baba and the Seven Saracens'' ( it, Sindbad contro i sette saraceni, also known as ''Sinbad Against the 7 Saracens'') is a 1964 Italian adventure film written and directed by Emimmo Salvi and starring Gordon Mitchell. The film was released ...

'' (1964) - Omar * '' Erik, il vichingo'' (1965) - Sven / Bjarni * ''

'' (1965) - Hunding * ''

La vendetta di Lady Morgan ''La vendetta di Lady Morgan'' () is a 1965 Italian horror film directed by Massimo Pupillo and written by Gianni Grimaldi. Cast *Gordon Mitchell as Roger *Erika Blanc as Lillian * Barbara Nelli as Lady Susan Morgan * Paul Muller as Sir Harold M ...

'' (1965) - Roger * '' 3 Bullets for Ringo'' (1966) - Frank Sanders * '' Star Pilot'' (1966) - Murdu * ''Thompson 1880'' (1966) - Glenn Sheppard * '' Kill or Be Killed'' (1966) - Baltimore Joe * ''È mezzanotte... butta giù il cadavere'' (1966) - Van Himst * ''L'estate'' (1966) - Himself * '' Born to Kill'' (1967) - Roose * ''

Death on the Run ''Death on the Run'' (Italian: ''Bersaglio mobile''), also known as ''Moving Target'', is a 1967 Italian Eurospy film directed by Sergio Corbucci. Filmed in Athens,''Films and Filming'', Volume 14, Hansom Books, 1968. it was referred as a film ...

'' (1967) - The Albanian * '' Reflections in a Golden Eye'' (1967) - Stable Sergeant * '' John the Bastard'' (1967) - Danite * ''

Phenomenal and the Treasure of Tutankhamen ''Phenomenal and the Treasure of Tutankhamen'' ( it, Fenomenal e il tesoro di Tutankamen) is a 1968 Italian film directed by Ruggero Deodato. The film was produced by and starred Nicola Mauro Parenti as Fenomenal, a masked superhero who attempts t ...

'' (1968) - Gregory Falco * ''Sapevano solo uccidere'' (1968) - Clayton * ''Cin cin... cianuro'' (1968) - Al Rubino * '' Beyond the Law'' (1968) - Burton * '' The Killer Likes Candy'' (1968) - Toni * '' All on the Red'' (1968) - Erikson * ''Radhapura - Endstation der Verdammten'' (1968) - Alfredo * '' Rita of the West'' (1968) - Silly Bull * '' Trusting Is Good... Shooting Is Better'' (1968) - Roy Fulton * ''Cry of Death'' (1968) - Donkey / Morgan Pitt * '' Seven Times Seven'' (1968) - Big Ben * ''Hour X Suicide Patrol'' (1969) - Sgt. Orwell Smith * ''

'' (1969) - Robber * ''

Sartana the Gravedigger ''I am Sartana, Your Angel of Death'' ( it, Sono Sartana, il vostro becchino) is a 1969 Italian Western (genre), Western film directed by Giuliano Carnimeo and starring Gianni Garko as Sartana. The film is presented on some DVD reissues under i ...

'' (1969) - Deguejo * ''Lisa dagli occhi blu'' (1969) - Football player * '' The Arizona Kid'' (1970) - Coyote * '' Django and Sartana Are Coming... It's the End'' (1970) - Black Burt Keller / Burt Kelly * '' Dead Men Don't Make Shadows'' (1970) - Roger Murdock * '' Io non spezzo... rompo'' (1971) - Joe il Rosso * ''Tre nel mille'' (1971) * ''Se t'incontro t'ammazzo'' (1971) - Chris Forest * '' A Barrel Full of Dollars'' (1971) - John * ''Giù le mani... carogna! (Django Story)'' (1971) - Buck Bradley * ''Let's Go and Kill Sartana'' (1971) - Greg "The Crazy Person" * '' Drummer of Vengeance'' (1971) - Deputy Norton * ''Le Saut de l'ange'' (1971) - Henry Di Fusco * ''Il suo nome era Pot'' (1971) - Ray Potter * '' A Fistful of Death'' (1971) - Ironhead Donovan / Testa di Ferro * '' Savage Guns'' (1971) - Gordon Mitchell (uncredited) * ''Un uomo chiamato Dakota'' (1972) - Dakota * '' The Big Bust Out'' (1972) - El Kadir * ''Magnificent West'' (1972) - Martin * '' Casa d'appuntamento'' (1972) - Man in Nightclub (uncredited) * '' Go Away! Trinity Has Arrived in Eldorado'' (1972) - Jonathan Duke * '' Frankenstein 80'' (1972) - Dr. Otto Frankenstein * ''Situation'' (1972) - Gordon * ''Allegri becchini… arriva Trinità'' (1972) - Marvin * ''Anything for a Friend'' (1973) - Miller * ''Quando i califfi avevano le corna...'' (1973) - Caliph married to the Queen * '' My Darling Slave'' (1973) - Von Thirac * ''Once Upon a Time in the Wild, Wild West'' (1973) - Mike * '' Pan'' (1973) * ''Dagli archivi della polizia criminale'' (1973) - Peter Wilcox * ''

My Name Is Shanghai Joe ''The Fighting Fist of Shanghai Joe'' (Italian: ''Il mio nome è Shanghai Joe'', lit. "My name is Shanghai Joe") is a 1973 Spaghetti Western kung fu film directed by Mario Caiano and starring Chen Lee as Shanghai Joe. The film was released in a ...

'' (1973) - Burying Sam * '' Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks'' (1974) - Igor * ''Una donna per 7 bastardi'' (1974) - Gordon * ''The Godfather Squad'' (1974) - Son of Carrol * '' Il domestico'' (1974) - General Von Werner * ''Dört hergele'' (1974) - Margherito * ''Anasinin Gozu'' (1974) * ''Yankesici'' (1975) * ''Seven Devils on Horseback'' (1975) - Cooper * ''La pelle sotto gli artigli'' (1975) - Professor Helmut * ''Due Magnum .38 per una città di carogne'' (1975) - Renato Proietti * ''Tiger from River Kwai'' (1975) - Jack Mason * ''Le Ricain'' (1975) - Mike * ''La polizia ordina: sparate a vista'' (1976) - David * ''L'unica legge in cui credo'' (1976) - Geo (uncredited) * ''Kaput Lager - Gli ultimi giorni delle SS'' (1977) - Kommandant von Stolzen * ''

Oil! ''Oil!'' is a novel by Upton Sinclair, first published in 1926–27 and told as a third-person narrative, with only the opening pages written in the first person. The book was written in the context of the Harding administration's Teapot Dome Sc ...

'' (1977) - Burt * ''Natascha - Todesgrüße aus Moskau'' (1977) - Gooming * ''Gli uccisori'' (1977) - Pablo * '' Zanna Bianca e il grande Kid'' (1977) - Morgan * ''Pugni, dollari e spinaci'' (1978) - Frank Stilo * ''Ishyri dosi... sex'' (1978) * ''A Very Special Woman'' (1979) - Gordon * ''Strategia per una missione di morte'' (1979) - Paul * '' Dr. Jekyll Likes Them Hot'' (1979) - Pretorius * ''Porno erotico western'' (1979) * ''I mavri Emmanouella'' (1980) - Robert / Factory manager * ''Holocaust parte seconda: i ricordi, i deliri, la vendetta'' (1980) - Felix Oppenheimer * '' The Umbrella Coup'' (1980) - Moskovitz, le tueur * ''

The Iron Hand of the Mafia ''The Iron Hand of the Mafia'' ( it, Mafia, una legge che non perdona) is a 1980 Italian film directed by Roberto Girometti. Plot The heirs of the old mafia give rise to a bloody struggle to secure the monopoly on organized crime. Style Despite ...

'' (1980) - Don Nicola * ''Febbre a 40!'' (1980) - Sandy's Husband * ''Trois filles dans le vent'' (1981) - Gordon Mitchell * ''

Inchon Incheon (; ; or Inch'ŏn; literally "kind river"), formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City (인천광역시, 仁川廣域市), is a city located in northwestern South Kore ...

'' (1981) - GHQ Officer (uncredited) * '' Nightfall'' (1981) - Maserati * '' La dottoressa preferisce i marinai'' (1981) - The killer * '' Vai avanti tu che mi vien da ridere'' (1981) - Il killer * ''Kirmizi kelebek'' (1982) - Brado * '' Rush'' (1983) - Yor * ''

'' (1983) - Col. Morgan * ''Se tutto va bene siamo rovinati'' (1983) - Jack Volpetti * '' She'' (1984) - Hector * ''Treasure of the Lost Desert'' (1984) - Dealer * ''Diamond Connection'' (1984) - Harry / Abdul Pasha * ''Ricordi'' (1984) * '' White Fire'' (1985) - Olaf * '' Operation Nam'' (1986) - Col. Mortimer * ''Le miniere del Kilimangiaro'' (1986) - Rolf * ''Three Men on Fire'' (1986) * ''Commando Invasion'' (1986) - General MacMoreland * ''Evil Spawn'' (1987) - Dan Thorn * ''SFX Retaliator'' (1987) - Morgan * ''Overdose'' (1987) - Costa * '' Cross of the Seven Jewels'' (1987) - Black Mass Leader * ''Faida'' (1988) - Prete * ''La tempesta'' (1988) * '' Blood Delirium'' (N/A) - Hermann * '' Bikini Drive-In'' (1995) - Goliath * ''An Enraged New World'' (2002) - Gen. Murchison * '' Malevolence'' (2004) - Capo Fabrizio De Martino * ''Die to Live - Das Musikill'' (2004) - Himself (final film role)

References

External links

* * * *Interview http://www.cinema-nocturna.com/gordon_mitchell_interview_prt_1.htm
A transcription
of a Gordon Mitchell guest chat a
Cinema Nocturna siteA Nanarland.com interview (in French)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Gordon 1923 births 2003 deaths 20th-century American educators 20th-century American male actors American bodybuilders American expatriates in Italy American male film actors United States Army personnel of the Korean War United States Army personnel of World War II Male actors from Denver Male Spaghetti Western actors People associated with physical culture People from Marina del Rey, California Schoolteachers from California University of Southern California alumni World War II prisoners of war held by Germany