James Mitchum (born May 8, 1941) is an American

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lit ...

. Mitchum was born in

Los Angeles, California 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 ...

, the elder son of actor

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Joe'' (1945), followed by his starring in ...

(whom he closely resembles) and his wife, Dorothy Spence. His brother is actor

Christopher Mitchum Christopher Mitchum (born October 16, 1943) is an American film actor, screenwriter, and businessman. He was born in Los Angeles, California, the second son of film star Robert Mitchum and Dorothy Mitchum. He is the younger brother of actor Jam ...

, and he is the uncle of actor

Bentley Mitchum Bentley Mitchum (born February 22, 1967) is an American actor who has appeared in about 40 films and TV series, including Sundance grand jury prize winner ''Ruby in Paradise'', ''The Man in the Moon'', ''The Wonder Years'', ''Conviction'', '' Su ...

. His only child was born during his marriage to actress Wende Wagner (1941-1997).

Film career

James Mitchum had his first role, which was small and unbilled, at the age of eight in the Western ''

Colorado Territory The Territory of Colorado was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 28, 1861, until August 1, 1876, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Colorado. The territory was organized in the ...

'' (1949) with

Joel McCrea Joel Albert McCrea (November 5, 1905 – October 20, 1990) was an American actor whose career spanned a wide variety of genres over almost five decades, including comedy, drama, romance, thrillers, adventures, and Westerns, for which he bec ...

Virginia Mayo Virginia Mayo (born Virginia Clara Jones; November 30, 1920 – January 17, 2005) was an American actress and dancer. She was in a series of comedy films with Danny Kaye and was Warner Brothers' biggest box-office money-maker in the late 1940s. ...

, and Dorothy Malone. His credited debut was in '' Thunder Road'' (1958), in which he played his father's much younger brother, a role written for

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

, who was eager to do it until his manager demanded too much money. This film became a drive-in cult favorite, revived in the 1970s and ’80s. Curiously, he was again credited as being "introduced" in the '' Have Gun Will Travel'' flashback episode "Genesis" (season 6, episode 1, 1962). He has appeared in more than 30 films including ''

The Beat Generation ''The Beat Generation'' is a 1959 American crime film from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer starring Steve Cochran and Mamie Van Doren, with Ray Danton, Fay Spain, Maggie Hayes, Jackie Coogan, Louis Armstrong, James Mitchum, Vampira, and Ray Anthony. It ...

'' in 1959; '' The Victors'' in 1963; as a surfer named Eskimo in '' Ride the Wild Surf'' in 1964; ''

In Harm's Way ''In Harm's Way'' is a 1965 American epic war film produced and directed by Otto Preminger and starring John Wayne, Kirk Douglas and Patricia Neal, with a supporting cast featuring Henry Fonda in a lengthy cameo, Tom Tryon, Paula Prentiss, Stanle ...

'' (1965) with

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Go ...

Kirk Douglas Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor and filmmaker. After an impoverished childhood, he made his film debut in '' The Strange Love of Martha Ivers'' (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. D ...

, and

Henry Fonda Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor. He had a career that spanned five decades on Broadway and in Hollywood. He cultivated an everyman screen image in several films considered to be classics. Born and ra ...

. In 1965 Mitchum had the lead in a

spaghetti western The Spaghetti Western is a broad subgenre of Western films produced in Europe. It emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's film-making style and international box-office success. The term was used by foreign critics because most o ...

Grand Canyon Massacre ''Grand Canyon Massacre'' (Italian: ''Massacro al Grande Canyon'', lit. "Massacre at Grand Canyon") is a 1964 Italian Spaghetti Western filmed in Croatia starring James Mitchum, Milla Sannoner, and George Ardisson. It was directed by Sergio Cor ...

'', the following year was ''

Ambush Bay ''Ambush Bay'' is a 1966 American war film directed by Ron Winston and starring Hugh O'Brian, Mickey Rooney and James Mitchum. It was filmed on location in the Philippines. Plot Prior to the 1944 American invasion of the Philippines a hand-pic ...

'' (1966) with

Hugh O'Brien Hugh O'Brien (July 13, 1827 – August 1, 1895) was the 31st mayor of Boston, from 1884 to 1888. O'Brien is notable as Boston's first Irish and Catholic mayor, having emigrated from Ireland to America in the early 1830s. O'Brien was the editor ...

and

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the ...

, in which he received third billing of three names above the title. He played the villain in ''

The Invincible Six ''The Invincible Six'' is a 1970 American-Iranian adventure film directed by Jean Negulesco and starring Stuart Whitman, Elke Sommer, Curd Jürgens, and Ian Ogilvy. Six international criminals attempt to steal the crown jewels of Iran, but in t ...

'' (1970), then appeared in ''

Two-Lane Blacktop ''Two-Lane Blacktop'' is a 1971 American road movie directed by Monte Hellman, written by Rudy Wurlitzer and starring songwriter James Taylor, the Beach Boys drummer Dennis Wilson, Warren Oates, and Laurie Bird. Plot Two street racers, t ...

'' (1971); and '' The Last Movie'' (1971). In 1975, he returned to lead roles when he starred in the movie '' Moonrunners,'' where he played the character Grady Hagg in the influence for the television series '' The Dukes of Hazzard''. He was also in '' Zebra Force'' and '' Trackdown'' co-starring Karen Lamm and Erik Estrada in 1976; '' The Ransom'' (a k a ''Assault on Paradise'') (1977); ''Blackout'' (1978); '' Monstroid'' (1980); ' (1982); ''Code Name Zebra'' (1987); ''Hollywood Cop'' (1987); '' Jake Spanner, Private Eye'' (1989); and '' Fatal Mission'' (1990).

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchum, James American male film actors 1941 births Living people Male actors from Los Angeles Mitchum family