Buck Taylor

Last updated
Buck Taylor
BuckTaylorApr2011.jpg
Taylor at the 2011 Dallas International Film Festival
Born
Walter Clarence Taylor III

(1938-05-13) May 13, 1938 (age 86)
Occupation(s)Actor, artist
Years active1961–present
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1961;div. 1983)​
Goldie Ann Taylor
​
​
(m. 1995)​
Parent Dub Taylor (father)
Website www.bucktaylor.com

Buck Taylor (born Walter Clarence Taylor III, [1] [2] May 13, 1938) [3] is an American actor and artist, best known for his role as gunsmith-turned-deputy Newly O'Brien in the CBS television series Gunsmoke .

Contents

Early life and career

Taylor is the son of character actor Dub Taylor, [4] from whom Buck reportedly acquired his nickname simply because, having clocked in at a hefty nine pounds at birth, he "looked like a big buck." [1] Taylor graduated from North Hollywood High School, where he became a talented gymnast. Actor Guinn "Big Boy" Williams sponsored him to go to the U.S. Olympic Trials as a gymnast, but he failed to qualify for the 1960 Summer Olympics. [5] He served two years in the United States Navy. [6]

His first important acting role was as Trooper Shattuck in the 1961 Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre episode "Image of a Drawn Sword". His other early roles were in a 1964 episode of The Outer Limits entitled "Don't Open Till Doomsday", and as John Bradford (Brad) in four episodes of the 1966 ABC Western series The Monroes . [7]

Gunsmoke

From 1967 to 1975, Taylor played Newly O'Brien in the television series Gunsmoke. [8] : 413–414  He replaced deputy marshal Clayton Thaddeus Greenwood, played by Roger Ewing, after Ewing left the show. [8] The character came to Dodge City as a gunsmith, and later became a deputy marshal. He reprised his role in the 1987 television movie Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge , [9] where he played the city's marshal.

In 1981, the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum inducted Taylor into the Cowboy Hall of Fame, and awarded him the Trustee Award for his performance on Gunsmoke. [10]

Artwork

Taylor attended the Chouinard Art Institute, and has been selling his watercolor and acrylic paintings of cowboys, Native Americans, and horses since 1993. [10] Many of his paintings are of characters and scenes from movies and television series in which he has appeared. These images are made into prints, which are sold in various sizes. [11] He is the official artist for many rodeos and state fairs, and creates their promotional posters. [12]

Filmography

Film

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1962 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Officer FrazierSeason 1 Episode 10: "Day of Reckoning"
1963 Going My Way MickeyEpisode 15: "My Son The Social Worker"
1963 Johnny Shiloh JoshTV movie
1963 The Fugitive Jamieepisode "Terror At High Point"
1964 The Outer Limits Gard Haydeepisode "Do Not Open 'Til Doomsday"
1964 My Favorite Martian Bruce BakerSeason 1 episode 34 "The DisastroUjjain-Nauts"
1964 My Three Sons Howard SearsSeason 5 episode 16 "Divorce, Bryant Park Style"
1964 My Favorite Martian Bruce BakerSeason 1 episode 34 "The Disastro-Nauts"
1965 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Dancer SmithSeason 3 Episode 20: "Death Scene"
1965Wagon TrainSkeeter AmesEpisode 15: "The Chottsie Gubenheimer Story"
1965 The Big Valley Turkepisode "The Young Marauders"
1966 The Virginian Lem Bliss[ men with guns]
1966 The Monroes John "Brad" Bradford4 episodes
1967–1975 Gunsmoke Newly O'Brien103 episodes [13]
1977 Barnaby Jones Fosterepisode "Shadow of Fear"
1979 The Sacketts Reed CarneyTV movie
1985 General Hospital Ralph Russell
1985 Crazy Like a Fox Blake
1987 The Alamo: 13 Days to Glory "Colorado" Smithminiseries
1987 Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge Newly O'BrienTV movie
1997 Rough Riders George Nevilleminiseries
1999 The Soul Collector CharlieTV movie
2018–2022 Yellowstone Emmett Walsh

References

  1. 1 2 Yoggy, Gary A. (1995). Riding the Video Range: The Rise and Fall of the Western on Television . Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 123. ISBN   9780786400218.
  2. ↑ Aaker, Everett (2017). Television Western Players, 1960-1975: A Biographical Dictionary . Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 408. ISBN   978-1-4766-6250-3.
  3. ↑ Duffin, Allan; Matheis, Paul (2005). The 12 O'Clock High Logbook: The Unofficial History of the Novel, Motion Picture, and TV Series. BearManor Media. p. 185. ISBN   9781593930332 – via Google Books.
  4. ↑ Dub Taylor, 87, Actor in Westerns, The New York Times, October 5, 1994, Section B, Page 12
  5. ↑ Artist and Actor Finds Inspiration for Art from Work on Western Films, American Cowboy, September - October, 1995, Pages 23 and 30
  6. ↑ At Home with Walter Clarence "Buck" Taylor III at americancowboy.com. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
  7. ↑ Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earle, The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946 - Present, pages 679 to 680, Ballantine Books, 1999
  8. 1 2 Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (1999). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present. Ballantine Books. p. 570. ISBN   9780345429230 – via Google Books.
  9. ↑ Maltin, Leonard, Leonard Maltin's TV Movies and Video Guide, 1991 Edition, Plume, 1990
  10. 1 2 Meetings, The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Vol. 100, No. 1, July, 1996, Page 94
  11. ↑ Artist and Actor Finds Inspiration for Art from Work on Western Films, American Cowboy, September - October 1995, Pages 23 and 30
  12. ↑ Bell, Kathy, The Life of Buck Taylor, Daily Globe, December 2, 2019
  13. ↑ Greenland, David R., The Gunsmoke Chronicles (Ebook), BearManor Media, 2015
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