
Bill Elliott
Born
October 16, 1904
Died
November 26, 1965 (61 years old)
Known For
Acting
Place of Birth
Pattonsburg, Missouri, USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wild Bill Elliott (October 16, 1904 – November 26, 1965) was an American film actor. He specialized in playing the rugged heroes of B Westerns, particularly the Red Ryder series of films. By 1925, he was getting occasional extra work in films. He took classes at the Pasadena Playhouse and appeared in a few stage roles there. By 1927, he had made his first Western, The Arizona Wildcat, playing his first featured role. Several co-starring roles followed, and he renamed himself Gordon Elliott. But as the studios made the transition to sound films, he slipped back into roles as an extra and bit parts, as in Broadway Scandals, in 1929. For the next eight years, he appeared in over a hundred films for various studios, but almost always in unbilled parts as an extra.
Elliott began to be noticed in some minor B Westerns, enough so that Columbia Pictures offered him the title role in a serial, The Great Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok (1938). The serial was so successful, and Elliott so personable, that Columbia promoted him to starring in his own series of Western features, replacing Columbia's number-two cowboy star Robert "Tex" Allen. Henceforth Gordon Elliott would be known as Bill Elliott. Within two years, he was among the Motion Picture Herald's Top Ten Western Stars, where he would remain for the next 15 years.
In 1943, Elliott signed with Republic Pictures, which cast him in a series of Westerns alongside George "Gabby" Hayes. The first of these, Calling Wild Bill Elliott, gave Elliott the name by which he would be best known and by which he would be billed almost exclusively for the rest of his career.
Following several films in which both actor and character shared the name Wild Bill Elliott, he took the role for which he would be best remembered, that of Red Ryder in a series of sixteen movies about the famous comic strip cowboy and his young Indian companion, Little Beaver (played in Elliott's films by Bobby Blake). Elliott played the role for only two years but would forever be associated with it. Elliott's trademark was a pair of six guns worn butt-forward in their holsters.
Elliott's career thrived during and after the Red Ryder films, and he continued making B Westerns into the early 1950s. He also had his own radio show during the late 1940s. His final contract as a Western star was with Monogram Pictures, where budgets declined as the B Western lost its audience to television. When Monogram became Allied Artists Pictures Corporation in 1953, it phased out its Western productions, and Elliott finished out his contract playing a homicide detective in a series of five modern police dramas, his first non-Westerns since 1938.
Elliott retired from films (except for a couple of TV Western pilots which were not picked up). He worked for a time as a spokesman for Viceroy cigarettes and hosted a local TV program in Las Vegas, Nevada, which featured many of his Western films.
Known For

Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch
(archive footage)
1976

It's Showtime
Self (archive footage)
1976

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
Self (archive footage)
1975

Adam-12
Officer Grant · (4 episodes)
1968

Footsteps in the Night
Andy Doyle
1957

Chain of Evidence
Andy Doyle
1957

Calling Homicide
Andy Doyle
1956

Sudden Danger
Andy Doyle
1955

Dial Red O
Andy Flynn / Andy Doyle
1955

The Forty-Niners
Sam Nelson
1954

Bitter Creek
Clay Tyndall (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1954

Vigilante Terror
Tack Hamlin
1953

Topeka
Jim Levering
1953

Rebel City
Frank Graham
1953

The Homesteaders
Mace Corbin
1953

The Maverick
Pete Devlin
1952

Fargo
Bill Martin
1952

Kansas Territory
Joe Daniels (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1952

Waco
Matt Boone (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1952

The Longhorn
Jim Kirk
1951

The Showdown
Shadrach Jones
1950

The Savage Horde
Ringo
1950
The Marshall of Trail City
Wild Bill Elliott
1950

Hellfire
Zeb Smith
1949

The Last Bandit
Frank Norris / Frank Plummer (as William Elliott)
1949

The Gallant Legion
Gary Conway
1948

Old Los Angeles
Bill Stockton (as William Elliott)
1948

The Fabulous Texan
Josie Allen
1947

Wyoming
Charles Alderson
1947

The Plainsman and the Lady
Sam Colton
1946

Conquest of Cheyenne
Red Ryder
1946

In Old Sacramento
Johnny Barrett / Spanish Jack
1946

Sun Valley Cyclone
Red Ryder
1946

Sheriff of Redwood Valley
Red Ryder (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1946

California Gold Rush
Red Ryder
1946

Wagon Wheels Westward
Red Ryder (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1945

Colorado Pioneers
Red Ryder (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1945

Marshal of Laredo
Red Ryder
1945

Phantom of the Plains
Red Ryder (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1945

Bells of Rosarita
Wild Bill Elliott
1945

Lone Texas Ranger
Red Ryder
1945

Great Stagecoach Robbery
Red Ryder
1945

Sheriff of Las Vegas
Red Ryder (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1944

Vigilantes of Dodge City
Red Ryder
1944

Cheyenne Wildcat
Red Ryder (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1944

San Antonio Kid
Red Ryder (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1944

Marshal of Reno
Red Ryder
1944

Tucson Raiders
Red Ryder
1944

Hidden Valley Outlaws
Bill Elliott
1944

Mojave Firebrand
Wild Bill Elliott (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1944

Death Valley Manhunt
Marshal Wild Bill Elliott (as Wild Bill Elliott)
1943

Overland Mail Robbery
Wild Bill Elliott
1943

Wagon Tracks West
Wild Bill Elliott
1943

Bordertown Gun Fighters
Wild Bill Elliott
1943

The Man from Thunder River
Wild Bill Elliott
1943

Calling Wild Bill Elliott
Wild Bill Elliott
1943

The Valley of Vanishing Men
Wild Bill Tolliver
1942

Vengeance of the West
Joaquin Murietta aka The Black Shadow
1942

Prairie Gunsmoke
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1942

The Devil's Trail
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1942

North of the Rockies
Sergeant Bill Cameron
1942

Bullets for Bandits
'Wild' Bill Hickok / Prince Katey
1942

The Lone Star Vigilantes
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1942

Roaring Frontiers
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1941

King of Dodge City
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1941

The Son of Davy Crockett
Dave Crockett
1941

Hands Across the Rockies
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1941
Tank Patrol
Bluey
1941

The Return of Daniel Boone
Wild Bill Boone
1941

North from the Lone Star
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1941

Across the Sierras
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1941

The Wildcat of Tucson
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1940

Beyond the Sacramento
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1940

Prairie Schooners
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1940

The Return of Wild Bill
Wild Bill Saunders
1940

The Man from Tumbleweeds
Wild Bill Saunders
1940

Pioneers of the Frontier
Wild Bill Saunders
1940

The Taming of the West
Wild Bill Saunders
1939

The Roaring Twenties
Bootlegger (uncredited)
1939

Overland with Kit Carson
Kit Carson
1939
The Law Comes to Texas
John Haynes
1939

Frontiers of '49
John Freeman
1939
In Early Arizona
Whit Gordon
1938

Letter of Introduction
Backgammon Man (uncredited)
1938

The Great Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok
'Wild' Bill Hickok
1938

The Lady in the Morgue
Chauncey Courtland
1938

Boy of the Streets
Dr. Allan
1938

Love Takes Flight
Bill Parker
1937

Roll Along, Cowboy
Odie Fenton
1937

Boots and Saddles
Jim Neale
1937

Wife, Doctor and Nurse
Bruce Thomas
1937

You Can't Have Everything
Lulu's Bathing Companion (uncredited)
1937

Michael O'Halloran
Little Lord Fauntleroy (uncredited)
1937

Melody for Two
Walter Wilson
1937
Swing It Professor
Randall
1937

Midnight Court
City Attorney Seabrook
1937

Guns of the Pecos
Wellman, a Dude
1936

King of Hockey
2nd Radio Announcer
1936

Fugitive in the Sky
Ramon Duval
1936

Polo Joe
Don Trumbeau
1936

The Case of the Black Cat
Sam Laxter
1936

Down the Stretch
Robert Bates
1936

Trailin' West
Jefferson Duane
1936

China Clipper
Pilot (uncredited)
1936

Two Against the World
News Commentator (uncredited)
1936

The Case of the Velvet Claws
Carl Griffin
1936

The Big Noise
Sharp, Board of Directors Member (uncredited)
1936

Murder by an Aristocrat
Dave Thatcher (as Gordon Elliott)
1936

Bullets or Ballots
Hunter - Bank Worker (uncredited)
1936

Romance in the Air
Announcer
1936

The Murder of Dr. Harrigan
Kenneth Martin
1936

Dangerous
1935

Man of Iron
Charlie Fagan
1935

Broadway Hostess
Playboy in 'Playboy of Paree' Number (uncredited)
1935

Stars Over Broadway
Minor Role
1935

Moonlight on the Prairie
Jeff Holt
1935

Personal Maid's Secret
Warren Sherrill
1935

Dr. Socrates
Tom Collins - Greer's Associate
1935

The Goose and the Gander
Teddy
1935

Page Miss Glory
Reporter (uncredited)
1935

Broadway Gondolier
Reporter
1935

Bright Lights
Backstage Actor
1935

The Girl from 10th Avenue
James, Clerk at College Club
1935

'G' Men
Bootlegger Who Gives Eddie the Bottle Outside the Club (uncredited)
1935

Go Into Your Dance
Jackson's Secretary / Dorothy's Dance Partner
1935

Traveling Saleslady
Freddie
1935

A Night at the Ritz
Vincent's Assistant (uncredited)
1935

While the Patient Slept
Bank Teller (uncredited)
1935

The Woman in Red
Stuart Wyatt
1935

The Right to Live
Wedding Guest
1935

The Payoff
Maxine's Casino Escort (uncredited)
1935

The Secret Bride
Governor's Secretary (uncredited)
1934

Murder in the Clouds
Lt. Saunders
1934

A Lost Lady
Polo Match Spectator (uncredited)
1934

The Case of the Howling Dog
Reporter in Courtroom (uncredited)
1934

Desirable
Party Guest
1934

The Merry Frinks
Dancer (uncredited)
1934

Smarty
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
1934

Registered Nurse
Male Nurse
1934

Wonder Bar
Norman (uncredited)
1934

Only Yesterday
New Year's Eve Reveler (Uncredited)
1933

Stage Mother
Audience Member / Dexter's Party Guest (uncredited)
1933

Handlebars
Bicyclist (uncredited)
1933

Midnight Mary
Party Guest (uncredited)
1933

Private Detective 62
Man at Roulette Table (Uncredited)
1933

Cocktail Hour
Party Guest (uncredited)
1933

Gold Diggers of 1933
Night Club Patron (uncredited)
1933

The Little Giant
Guest at Polly's Party (uncredited)
1933

Made on Broadway
Night Club Patron
1933

The Keyhole
Partygoer (uncredited)
1933

The Mummy
Party Guest (uncredited)
1932

Night After Night
Escort (uncredited)
1932

A Successful Calamity
Polo Player (uncredited)
1932

Jewel Robbery
Policeman Following Blonde (uncredited)
1932

Bachelor's Affairs
Ship's Passenger / Dance Extra (uncredited)
1932

Merrily We Go to Hell
Party Guest (uncredited)
1932

The Rich Are Always with Us
Gambler (uncredited)
1932

Scarface
Man Outside Theatre (uncredited)
1932

One Hour with You
Party Guest (uncredited)
1932

Vanity Fair
Bit Role
1932

Lady with a Past
Alex Brown (Uncredited)
1932

The Greeks Had a Word for Them
Wedding Guest (uncredited)
1932

Delicious
Larry's Friend
1931

Working Girls
Dance Extra / Lobby Extra (uncredited)
1931

West of Broadway
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
1931

Platinum Blonde
Ann's Beau (uncredited)
1931

Left Over Ladies
Escort (uncredited)
1931

The Road to Reno
Party Boy
1931

Blonde Crazy
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
1931

Traveling Husbands
Hotel Dining Room Guest
1931

Broadminded
Hotel Guest on Veranda
1931

The Public Defender
Country Club Guest
1931

Sweepstakes
Night Club Patron
1931

Five and Ten
Wedding Guest (uncredited)
1931

Let's Do Things
Music Store Customer (uncredited)
1931

Party Husband
Wedding Party Guest
1931

Born to Love
Hotel Dancer (uncredited)
1931

God's Gift to Women
Minor Role (uncredited)
1931

Going Wild
Physical Exam Onlooker
1930

Part Time Wife
Golfer (uncredited)
1930

Sunny
One of Tom's War Buddies
1930

The Truth About Youth
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
1930

What Men Want
Party Boy
1930

She Who Gets Slapped
Poker Player
1930

Born Reckless
Customer at Beretti's
1930

The Return of Dr. Fu Manchu
1930

Double Cross Roads
Party Guest
1930

The Girl Said No
Wedding Guest
1930

Lord Byron of Broadway
Party-Goer
1930

She Couldn't Say No
Gangster
1930

Broadway Scandals
George Halloway
1929

Night Parade
Party Guest
1929

The Great Divide
Ruth's Friend (uncredited)
1929

Restless Youth
George Baxter
1928

The Boy Friend
Gordon Elliot
1928

The Private Life of Helen of Troy
Telemachus
1927

The Arizona Wildcat
Roy Schyler (as Gordon Elliott)
1927

The Drop Kick
Aggressive Student at Dance
1927

Children of Divorce
Party Guest (uncredited)
1927
Napoleon, Jr.
Flora's Father
1926

The Shamrock Handicap
Well-Wishing Villager
1926

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
Chariot Race Spectator (uncredited)
1925

The Plastic Age
Athlete (uncredited)
1925