Guy Madison (born Robert Ozell Moseley; January 19, 1922 – February 6, 1996) was an American film, television, and radio actor. He is best known for having played

Wild Bill Hickok James Butler Hickok (May 27, 1837August 2, 1876), better known as "Wild Bill" Hickok, was a folk hero of the American Old West known for his life on the frontier as a soldier, reconnaissance, scout, lawman, cattle rustler, gunslinger, gambler, s ...

in the Western television series ''

The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok ''The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok'' is an American Western television series that ran for eight seasons from April 15, 1951, through September 24, 1958. The Screen Gems series began in syndication, but ran on CBS from June 5, 1955, throug ...

'' from 1951 to 1958. During his career, Madison was given a special

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Janua ...

in 1954 and two stars (radio, television) on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...

in 1960.

Early life

Madison was born January 19, 1922, in Pumpkin Center, California. He attended

Bakersfield College Bakersfield College (BC) is a Public college, public Community colleges in the United States, community college in Bakersfield, California. BC serves about 31,000 students each semester or 46,500 annually, and offers associate degrees, certifica ...

, a

junior college A junior college is a type of post-secondary institution that offers vocational and academic training that is designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations or support roles in professions such as engineering, a ...

, for two years and then worked briefly as a telephone lineman before joining the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

in 1942 during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He had three brothers, Wayne, Harold, and David, and a sister, Rosemary. Wayne Moseley was an actor, using the stage name Wayne Mallory.

Career

David O. Selznick

In 1944, Madison was visiting Hollywood on leave when his boyish good looks and physique caught the eye of Henry Willson, the head of talent at

David O. Selznick David O. Selznick (born David Selznick; May 10, 1902June 22, 1965) was an American film producer, screenwriter and film studio executive who produced ''Gone with the Wind (film), Gone with the Wind'' (1939) and ''Rebecca (1940 film), Rebecca'' (1 ...

's newly formed Vanguard Pictures. Willson was widely known for his stable of good-looking young actors with unusual names that he had bestowed upon them, and he immediately rechristened Moseley as Madison and cast him in a bit part as a sailor in Selznick's '' Since You Went Away'' (1944). Although Madison was on the screen for only three minutes, the studio received thousands of letters from fans wanting to know more about him. He received extensive coverage in the influential fan magazines of the time, including

Photoplay ''Photoplay'' was one of the first American film fan magazines, its title another word for screenplay. It was founded in Chicago in 1911. Under early editors Julian Johnson and James R. Quirk, in style and reach it became a pacesetter for fan m ...

where his agent Henry Willson had once worked.

RKO

Madison returned to military service. When he got out, Selznick assigned his contract to

RKO Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the major film studios, "Big Five" film studios of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood's Clas ...

. RKO gave him a starring role in '' Till the End of Time'', a drama about veterans returning after World War II (1946). The film was a big hit, although it was overshadowed by ''

The Best Years of Our Lives ''The Best Years of Our Lives'' (also known as ''Glory for Me'' and ''Home Again'') is a 1946 American drama film directed by William Wyler and starring Myrna Loy, Fredric March, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright, Virginia Mayo and Harold Ru ...

'', a film on a similar theme. However, Madison's acting was criticized as wooden. Madison's second starring role paired him with fellow Selznick contract player

Shirley Temple Shirley Temple Black (born Shirley Jane Temple; April 23, 1928 – February 10, 2014) was an American actress, singer, dancer, and diplomat, who was Hollywood's number-one box-office draw as a child actress from 1934 to 1938. Later, she was na ...

in ''

Honeymoon A honeymoon is a vacation taken by newlyweds after their wedding to celebrate their marriage. Today, honeymoons are often celebrated in destinations considered exotic or romantic. In a similar context, it may also refer to the phase in a couple ...

'' (1947), which was a huge flop. His career began to suffer, in part because of his limited acting ability. Madison was borrowed by

William Castle William Castle (born William Schloss Jr.; April 24, 1914 – May 31, 1977) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He is known for the horror film, horror and thriller film, thriller B movie, B-movies he directed durin ...

for '' Texas, Brooklyn & Heaven'' (1948). He also appeared in '' Massacre River'' (1949) and '' Drums in the Deep South'' (1951).

''The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok''

Madison was eventually dropped by Selznick, along with most of Selznick's contract-players. In 1951 he was cast as the title character in the television series ''

'' (1951–58), co-starring

Andy Devine Andrew Vabre Devine (October 7, 1905 – February 18, 1977) was an American character actor known for his distinctive raspy, crackly voice and roles in American frontier, Western films, including his role as Cookie, the sidekick of Roy Rogers ...

as his pal, Pete "Jingles" Jones. During the run of the show, between 1952 and 1955, sixteen feature films were released by

Monogram Pictures Monogram Pictures Corporation was an American film studio that produced mostly low-budget films between 1931 and 1953, when the firm completed a transition to the name Allied Artists Pictures Corporation. Monogram was among the smaller studios i ...

consisting of episodes combined into a continuous story. During its run, Madison also continued to make features: '' Red Snow'' (1952), a war movie for Columbia; ''

The Charge at Feather River ''The Charge at Feather River'' is a 1953 American Western film directed by Gordon Douglas. It was originally released in 3D with many arrows, lances, and other weapons flying directly at the audience in several scenes. The movie is most nota ...

'' (1953), a

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

Western for Fox in 3-D and a huge hit; '' The Command'' (1954), another popular Western for Warner; ''

5 Against the House ''5 Against the House'' is a 1955 American heist film directed by Phil Karlson and starring Guy Madison, Kim Novak, Brian Keith and William Conrad. The screenplay is based on Jack Finney's 1954 novel of the same name, later serialized by '' ...

'' (1955), for Columbia; '' The Last Frontier'' (1955), supporting

Victor Mature Victor John Mature (January 29, 1913 – August 4, 1999) was an American stage, film, and television actor who was a leading man in Hollywood during the 1940s and 1950s. His best known film roles include '' One Million B.C.'' (1940), '' My Darli ...

; ''

On the Threshold of Space ''On the Threshold of Space'' (aka ''Threshold of Space'') is a 1956 drama directed by Robert D. Webb, starring Guy Madison, Virginia Leith and John Hodiak. It was Hodiak's final film; he died six months before it was released. ''On the Thresho ...

'' (1955), a science fiction film for Fox; '' Hilda Crane'' (1956), a melodrama for Fox; ''

The Beast of Hollow Mountain ''The Beast of Hollow Mountain'' is a 1956 weird west horror film about an American rancher living in Mexico who discovers that his missing cattle are being preyed upon by a dinosaur. Plot In southern Mexico at the turn of the 20th century, t ...

'' (1957), shot in Mexico; '' The Hard Man'' (1957), a Western; and ''

Bullwhip A bullwhip is a single-tailed whip, usually made of braided leather or nylon, designed as a tool for working with livestock or for competition cracking. Bullwhips are pastoral tools, traditionally used to control livestock in open country. A ...

'' (1958), another Western.

Europe

Madison went to Britain for ''

Jet Over the Atlantic ''Jet Over the Atlantic'' (also known as ''High Over the Atlantic'') is a 1959 drama film, drama film directed by Byron Haskin and stars Guy Madison, Virginia Mayo, George Raft and Ilona Massey. The film's title was misleading as the airliner was ...

'' (1959) then went to Europe, where he found greater success in

sword-and-sandal Sword-and-sandal, also known as peplum (: pepla), is a subgenre of largely Italy, 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-budget ...

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 filmmaking style and international box-office success. The term was used by foreign critics because most o ...

and

macaroni combat Euro War, also known as Macaroni Combat, Macaroni War, Spaghetti Combat, or Spaghetti War, is a broad subgenre of war film that emerged in the mid-1960s. The films were named ''Euro War'' because most were European co-productions, most notably a ...

films. He went to Italy for '' Slave of Rome'' (1961), '' Sword of the Conqueror'' (1961), ''

Women of Devil's Island ''Women of Devil's Island'' (, ) is a 1962 Italian-French adventure-drama film written and directed by Domenico Paolella and starring Guy Madison and Michèle Mercier. Plot In the late 18th century, a group of French female convicts - among them ...

'' (1962), and '' The Executioner of Venice'' (1963). Madison went to Germany for ''

Old Shatterhand Old Shatterhand is a fictional character in Western fiction, Western novels by Germany, German writer Karl May (1842–1912). He is the German friend and blood brother of Winnetou, the fictional chief of the Mescalero tribe of the Apache. He i ...

'' (1964) then made a spaghetti Western, '' Desafío en Río Bravo'' (1964). He did '' Kidnapped to Mystery Island'' (1964), '' Gentlemen of the Night'' (1964), '' The Adventurer of Tortuga'' (1964), '' Legacy of the Incas'' (1965), '' Renegade Riders'' (1967), and '' Son of Django'' (1967). He made '' Bang Bang Kid'' (1967), '' The Devil's Man'' (1967), '' Superargo and the Faceless Giants'' (1968), ''

Long Days of Hate ''Long Days of Hate'' (, also known as ''This Man Can't Die'') is a 1968 Italian Spaghetti Western film co-written and directed by Gianfranco Baldanello. Plot summary Martin Benson is a Civil War veteran and former outlaw earning money and cl ...

'' (1968), '' Hell in Normandy'' (1968), '' Battle of the Last Panzer'' (1969), and '' Reverend's Colt'' (1970).

Personal life

Madison married the actress

Gail Russell Gail Russell (born Betty Gale Russell; September 21, 1924 – August 26, 1961) was an American film and television actress. Early years Gail Russell was born to George and Gladys (Barnet) Russell in Chicago and then moved to the Los Angeles ...

in 1949. They separated in 1953 and divorced in October 1954. Later that month, Madison married actress Sheila Connolly in Juarez, Mexico. They had three daughters: Bridget, Erin, and Dolly. They separated in November 1960 and divorced in April 1963. He had an affair with

Gia Scala Gia Scala (born Josephine Grace Johanna Scoglio; March 3, 1934 – April 30, 1972) was a British and American actress. Early life Scala was born March 3, 1934, in Liverpool, England, to Sicilian father Pietro Scoglio, and Irish mother Eileen ...

and, before her death, she made him the beneficiary to her portion of the Screen Actors Pension Fund. He had a son, Robert Madison, who also became an actor. He was a Republican who supported

Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

in the 1952 presidential election.

Death

Following his retirement, Madison built a large ranch home in Morongo Valley, California. He died of

emphysema Emphysema is any air-filled enlargement in the body's tissues. Most commonly emphysema refers to the permanent enlargement of air spaces (alveoli) in the lungs, and is also known as pulmonary emphysema. Emphysema is a lower respiratory tract di ...

at the Desert Hospital Hospice in

Palm Springs, California Palm Springs (Cahuilla language, Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Rivers ...

, on February 6, 1996, at the age of 74. He is buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery in

Cathedral City, California Cathedral City, colloquially known as "Cat City", is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. Situated between Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage, the city has the second la ...

. His friend, actor turned stockbroker Don Burnett, spoke at his funeral.

Recognition

For his contribution to the radio and television industries, Madison has two stars on the

. The star for his contributions to radio is located at 6933 Hollywood Boulevard; the star for his television contributions is located at 6333 Hollywood Boulevard In 1996, a Golden Palm Star was dedicated to Madison on the

Palm Springs Walk of Stars The Palm Springs Walk of Stars is a walk of fame in downtown Palm Springs, California, where "Golden Palm Stars", honoring various people who have lived in the greater Palm Springs area, are embedded in the sidewalk pavement. The walk includes p ...

Filmography

Awards

References

External links

* *
Guy Madison at Brian's Drive-in Theater
{{DEFAULTSORT:Madison, Guy 1922 births 1996 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American male actors American male film actors American male radio actors American male television actors Bakersfield College alumni Burials at Forest Lawn Cemetery (Cathedral City) California Republicans Deaths from emphysema Film producers from California Male actors from Bakersfield, California Male Spaghetti Western actors Military personnel from California RKO Pictures contract players United States Navy personnel of World War II Western (genre) television actors