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Lyle Bettger
Actor

Lyle Bettger

13 Feb 1915Born
24 Sep 2003Died
88Age at death
54Credits

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.

Read the full biography

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.

Known for

Filmography

  1. 1993La Classe américaineFilm: Famous Man (archive footage) (uncredited)
  2. 1980M Station: HawaiiFilm: Adm. Lincoln
  3. 1973Police StorySeries (2 episodes)
  4. 1970The HawaiiansFilm: Janders
  5. 1969Hawaii Five-OSeries: Otis Klepper, Dr. Sartain, Jonathan Kaye, Malcolm Rhodes, Dr. Fleming, General Dexter, Karl Norton, Joe Fletcher (1 episode)
  6. 1969ImpasseFilm: Hansen
  7. 1967MannixSeries (1 episode)
  8. 1967Cimarron StripSeries (1 episode)
  9. 1967The Fastest Guitar AliveFilm: Charlie
  10. 1967Return of the GunfighterFilm: Clay Sutton
  11. 1966The Time TunnelSeries: Maj. Hoffman (1 episode)
  12. 1966Nevada SmithFilm: Jack Rudabough
  13. 1966Johnny RenoFilm: Jess Yates
  14. 1966Blue LightSeries (1 episode)
  15. 1965Town TamerFilm: Lee Ring
  16. 1964Daniel BooneSeries: Lehman Henderson, Joseph Montgomery (1 episode)
  17. 1963Kraft Suspense TheatreSeries: Ted Johnson (1 episode)
  18. 1963Mr. NovakSeries: Brigham (1 episode)
  19. 1963Burke's LawSeries: Captain Donahue (1 episode)
  20. 1963GrindlSeries (1 episode)
  21. 1962Combat!Series: Capt. Brauer (1 episode)
  22. 1960The Tall ManSeries (1 episode)
  23. 1960Guns of the TimberlandFilm: Clay Bell
  24. 1959Law of the PlainsmanSeries: Sheriff Max Chaffee (1 episode)
  25. 1959The DuPont Show with June AllysonSeries: Phil Ross (1 episode)
  26. 1959LaramieSeries: Calvin Hawks (2 episodes)
  27. 1959The DeputySeries: Aces Thompson (1 episode)
  28. 1959RawhideSeries: Major Victor Darius, Dan Madox, Richard Whiting (1 episode)
  29. 1959Gundown at SandovalFilm: Al Barko
  30. 1958The RiflemanSeries (2 episodes)
  31. 1957The Court of Last ResortSeries: Sam Larsen (26 episodes)
  32. 1957Gunfight at the O.K. CorralFilm: Ike Clanton
  33. 1956Dick Powell's Zane Grey TheatreSeries: Griff Evans, U.S. Marshal John Welker (1 episode)
  34. 1956Showdown at AbileneFilm: Dave Mosely
  35. 1956The Lone RangerFilm: Reece Kilgore
  36. 1955The 20th Century Fox HourSeries (1 episode)
  37. 1955GunsmokeSeries: Polk (1 episode)
  38. 1955The Sea ChaseFilm: Chief Officer Kirchner
  39. 1954DestryFilm: Phil Decker
  40. 1954Drums Across the RiverFilm: Frank Walker
  41. 1954Carnival StoryFilm: Frank Colloni
  42. 1953ForbiddenFilm: Justin Keit
  43. 1953The Great Sioux UprisingFilm: Stephen Cook
  44. 1953All I DesireFilm: Dutch Heineman
  45. 1953The VanquishedFilm: Roger Hale
  46. 1952Hurricane SmithFilm: Clobb
  47. 1952Denver and Rio GrandeFilm: Johnny Buff
  48. 1952The Greatest Show on EarthFilm: Klaus
  49. 1951Schlitz Playhouse of StarsSeries: Sheriff Matt Saver (1 episode)
  50. 1951Dear BratFilm: Baxter
  51. 1951The First LegionFilm: Dr. Peter Morrell
  52. 1950Union StationFilm: Joe Beacom
  53. 1950Lux Video TheatreSeries: Joe (1 episode)
  54. 1950No Man of Her OwnFilm: Stephen Morley

Biography and credits from TMDB. This website uses TMDB and the TMDB APIs but is not endorsed, certified, or otherwise approved by TMDB.