Lyle Bettger
Age: 88 | From: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Person Details
Birthday: 1915-02-13 12:43:38
Death: 2003-09-24 12:43:38
Aliases: No known aliases
Gender: Male
Place of birth: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Homepage:
Movie Involvements: 25
TV Involvements: 24
Most Famous Work
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Lyle S. Bettger (February 13, 1915 – September 24, 2003) was a character actor known most for his Hollywood roles from the 1950s, typically portraying villains. He is perhaps most recognisable as the wrathfully jealous elephant handler Klaus from the Oscar winning film The Greatest Show on Earth (1952). Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Lyle was the son of Frank Bettger, who was an infielder for the St Louis Cardinals. An enthusiastic fan of cinema, Lyle left school in his late teens with the ambition of becoming an actor. Bettger graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. His theatrical debut was in Brother Rat at the Biltmore Theatre in New York City in 1936. After a period languishing in small-time theatre he landed the lead role in the Broadway production of The Flying Gerardos in 1940. When Paramount sent a talent scout to see the show, Bettger was signed on a three-year contract. Bettger's movie career began when he was cast as the lead in the film noir No Man of Her Own (1950). He soon became a regular on the set of Westerns such as Denver and Rio Grande (1952), The Great Sioux Uprising (1953), Drums Across the River (1954), The Lone Ranger (1956) and Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957). Lyle developed a reputation for playing the bad guy and excelled in villainous roles such as the menacing Joe Beacom in Union Station (1950) and the cold-blooded Nazi Chief Officer Kirchner in The Sea Chase (1955). Bettger also made many appearances in dramatic roles on television, starring in the 1957 series The Court of Last Resort as well as guesting on Hawaii Five-O, Rawhide, The Rifleman, Bonanza and The Time Tunnel. Lyle was married to Mary Rolfe (1940–1996) until her death. They had three children: Lyle Jr., Frank and Paula. He was also survived by a sister, Lee Morgan. Lyle Bettger died on September 24, 2003 in San Luis Obispo County, California. Description above from the Wikipedia article Lyle Bettger, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Most Famous Work
The DuPont Show with June Allyson
(1959) Phil Ross
Hawaii Five-O
(1968) Dr. Fleming
The Deputy
(1959) Aces Thompson
Combat!
(1962) Capt. Brauer
The Court of Last Resort
(1957) Sam Larsen
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
(1956) U.S. Marshal John Welker
Rawhide
(1959) Richard Whiting
Gunsmoke
(1955) PolkActing
| Year | Character | Movie/Tv |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Famous Man (archive footage) (uncredited) | |
| 1980 | Adm. Lincoln | |
| 1973 | N/A | |
| 1970 | Janders | |
| 1969 | Hansen | |
| 1968 | Karl Norton | |
| Dr. Fleming | ||
| Malcolm Rhodes | ||
| Dr. Sartain | ||
| Otis Klepper | ||
| Jonathan Kaye | ||
| 1967 | N/A | |
| N/A | ||
| Charlie | ||
| Clay Sutton | ||
| 1966 | Maj. Hoffman | |
| Jack Rudabough | ||
| Jess Yates | ||
| N/A | ||
| 1965 | Lee Ring | |
| 1964 | Lehman Henderson | |
| Joseph Montgomery | ||
| 1963 | Ted Johnson | |
| Brigham | ||
| Captain Donahue | ||
| N/A | ||
| 1962 | Capt. Brauer | |
| 1960 | N/A | |
| Clay Bell | ||
| 1959 | Sheriff Max Chaffee | |
| Phil Ross | ||
| N/A | ||
| Aces Thompson | ||
| Dan Madox | ||
| Major Victor Darius | ||
| Richard Whiting | ||
| N/A | ||
| 1958 | N/A | |
| 1957 | Sam Larsen | |
| Ike Clanton | ||
| 1956 | Sheriff Griff Evans | |
| U.S. Marshal John Welker | ||
| Dave Mosely | ||
| Reece Kilgore | ||
| 1955 | N/A | |
| Polk | ||
| Chief Officer Kirchner | ||
| 1954 | Phil Decker | |
| Frank Walker | ||
| Frank Colloni | ||
| 1953 | Justin Keit | |
| Stephen Cook | ||
| Dutch Heinemann | ||
| Roger Hale | ||
| 1952 | Clobb | |
| Johnny Buff | ||
| Klaus | ||
| 1951 | Sheriff Matt Saver | |
| Self - Host | ||
| Baxter | ||
| Dr. Peter Morrell | ||
| 1950 | Joe Beacom | |
| Joe | ||
| Stephen Morley | ||
| Year | Character | Movie/Tv |
