Jay Kirby (born William Bennett George, January 28, 1920 – July 30, 1964) was an American actor in films and television. He was best known for playing Johnny Travers, the youthful sidekick of

Hopalong Cassidy Hopalong Cassidy is a fictional cowboy hero created in 1904 by the author Clarence E. Mulford, who wrote a series of short stories and novels based on the character. Mulford portrayed the character as rude, dangerous, and rough-talking. He wa ...

in six films in the 1940s. In 1948, he and his wife Carmelle George were divorced and the custody of their one-year-old son, Jeffrey, was given to his wife."Hubby's Chord Off Key for Actress' Harmony," ''Los Angeles Times'', Wednesday, December 1, 1948, page 16

Career

Kirby was born n Kansas City,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

. He began acting in films in 1942, when he was cast to replace

Russell Hayden Russell "Lucky" Hayden (born Hayden Michael "Pate" Lucid; June 12, 1912 – June 9, 1981) was an American film and television actor. He is best known for his portrayal as Lucky Jenkins in Paramount's popular Hopalong Cassidy film series. Early ...

as the boyish partner to cowboy hero Hopalong Cassidy. He was an aviation cadet in the

U.S. Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

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 ...

but does not appear to have served long, as his screen appearances are continuous throughout the war and afterward for several years. In 1949 he reverted to his real name, Bill George, for his last feature film and his subsequent television roles. He died at 44 and was buried in the

Los Angeles National Cemetery The Los Angeles National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery in the Sawtelle, Los Angeles, Sawtelle unincorporated community of the West Los Angeles neighborhood in Los Angeles County, California. Geography The entrance to the cemeter ...

Filmography

He starred in an episode of ''The Cisco Kid''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirby, Jay 1920 births 1964 deaths People from Missouri 20th-century American male actors Burials at Los Angeles National Cemetery Place of death missing