STROTHER MARTIN
INFORMATION FROM IMDb
Date of birth
26 March 1919
Kokomo, Indiana, USA
Date of death
1 August 1980
Thousand Oaks, California, USA. (heart attack)
Sometimes Credited As:
Strather Martin
Birth name
Strother Martin Jr.
Trade mark
Often played grimy, unlikeable villains
Spouse
Helen (1967 - 1980)
Trivia
Bitten by a snake during filming of SSSSSSS (1973)
Interred at Forest Lawn (Hollywood Hills), Los Angeles, California, USA, in the Court of Remembrance, #G62420.
Did an episode of the "The Dick Van Dyke Show" (1961) called "Baby Fat" in which he portrayed a playwright based on Tennessee Williams in 1965. Fifteen years later while hosting "Saturday Night Live" (1975), he admitted during the monologue that because of that part, many times he was actually mistaken for the famous playwright.
Frequently cast alongside Paul Newman, in Cool Hand Luke (1967), Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969), Slap Shot (1977) and several others.
Frequently co-starred with L.Q. Jones, who in real life was one of his closest friends.
Personal quotes
"The Andy Devine for the Age of Anxiety." (Unknown critic)
"A Gabby Hayes without honor." (Unknown critic)
"He just happens to be one of the finest actors in the world." (Sam Peckinpah)
Once described the characters he portrayed in western films as "prairie scum."
"Age is as much an asset for character players as it is for good wine. Human experiences, both good and bad, leave their marks on one's face and bearing. A few lines on the face and a few gray hairs coupled with the idiosyncrasies an actor adopts throughout life help out round out the actor's personality. So far as I'm concerned, the older a character actor gets, the firmer his position is."
Mini Biography
Grew up in Indianapolis IN. Excelled at swimming and diving. At 17 won the National Junior Springboard Diving Championship. Attended University of Michigan as diving team member. Navy service as swimming instructor in World War II. Nicknamed "T-Bone" Martin, his 3rd place finish in the adult National Springboard Diving Championships cost him a place on the 1948 Olympic team. Moved to California to become an actor, but worked in odd jobs and as a swimming instructor to Marion Davies and the children of Charles Chaplin. Worked as a swimming extra in several films and as a leprechaun on a local children's TV show, Mabel's Fables. Bit parts came his way, leading to television work with Sam Peckinpah, which led to a lifelong relationship. He also found memorable roles for John Ford and by the 1960s was a familiar face in American movies. With Cool Hand Luke (1967) in 1967 came new acclaim and a place among the busiest character actors in Hollywood.
Jim Beaver
Mini Biography-2
from Leonard Maltin's Movie Encyclopedia:
White-haired, moon-faced supporting player whose uniquely whiny, nasal voice kept him busy for three decades playing "prairie scum" in numerous Westerns, especially those of Ford and Peckinpah during the 1950s and 1960s. He'll always be remembered as the actor who immortalized the now-familiar line, "What we have here is failure to commu nicate," playing an ice-hearted chain-gang boss in Cool Hand Luke (1967).
Copyright © 1994 Leonard Maltin, used by arrangement with Signet, a division of Penguin Putnam, Inc.
Filmography
Actor
1. Hotwire (1980) .... The Weasel
2. Tajna Nikole Tesle (1980) .... George Westinghouse
... aka Tesla
... aka The Secret Life of Nikola Tesla
... aka The Secret of Nikola Tesla
3. "Saturday Night Live"
... aka NBC's Saturday Night (USA: original title)
... aka SNL
... aka SNL 25 (USA: new title)
... aka Saturday Night Live '80 (USA: new title)
- Episode #5.17 (1980) TV Episode .... Host
4. Better Late Than Never (1979) (TV) .... J.D. Ashcroft
5. Love and Bullets (1979) .... Louis Monk
6. The Villain (1979) .... Parody Jones
... aka Cactus Jack (UK)
7. Nightwing (1979) .... Selwyn
8. The Champ (1979) .... Riley
9. Stubby Pringle's Christmas (1978) (TV) .... Old Hollander
10. Steel Cowboy (1978) (TV) .... Pinky Pincus
11. Steve Martin: A Wild and Crazy Guy (1978) (TV) .... Turtle Ranch Boss
12. "Vega$"
- Yes, My Darling Daughter (1978) TV Episode .... Hank Jenner
13. Up in Smoke (1978) .... Arnold Stoner
... aka Cheech and Chong's Up in Smoke
... aka Cheech and Chong: Up in Smoke
14. The End (1978) .... Dr. Waldo Kling
15. "Disneyland"
... aka Disney's Wonderful World (USA: new title)
... aka The Disney Sunday Movie (USA: new title)
... aka The Magical World of Disney (USA: new title)
... aka The Wonderful World of Disney (USA: new title)
... aka Walt Disney (USA: new title)
... aka Walt Disney Presents (USA: new title)
... aka Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (USA: new title)
- The Shaggy Dog (1978) TV Episode .... Thurm
16. "Baretta"
- Lyman P. Dokker, Fed (1977) TV Episode .... Harris Stump/Lyman P. Dokker
- Open Season (1977) TV Episode .... Doc Stockwell
- On the Road (1975) TV Episode .... Duke
17. Slap Shot (1977) .... Joe McGrath
18. "The Rockford Files"
... aka Jim Rockford, Private Investigator (USA: syndication title)
- The Trees, the Bees and T.T. Flowers: Part 2 (1977) TV Episode .... Thomas Tyler 'T.T.' Flowers
- The Trees, the Bees and T.T. Flowers: Part 1 (1977) TV Episode .... Thomas Tyler 'T.T.' Flowers
19. Great Scout and Cathouse Thursday (1976) .... Billy
... aka Wildcat
20. Rooster Cogburn (1975) .... Shanghai McCoy
... aka Rooster Cogburn... and the Lady
21. Hard Times (1975) .... Poe
... aka The Streetfighter (UK)
22. One of Our Own (1975) (TV) .... LeRoy Atkins
23. "Petrocelli"
- Four the Hard Way (1975) TV Episode .... Clate Dobie
24. The Ransom of Red Chief (1975) (TV) .... Bill Driscoll
25. "Gunsmoke"
... aka Gun Law (UK)
... aka Marshal Dillon (USA: rerun title)
- Island in the Desert: Part 2 (1974) TV Episode .... Ben Snow
- Island in the Desert: Part 1 (1974) TV Episode .... Ben Snow
- No Hands (1964) TV Episode .... Will Timble
- The Trappers (1962) TV Episode .... Billy Logan
- The Do-Badder (1962) TV Episode .... Gene Bunch
(6 more)
26. "The Rookies"
- The Teacher (1974) TV Episode .... Teacher
27. "Hawkins" (1973) TV Series .... R.J. Hawkins (1973-1974)
28. SSSSSSS (1973) .... Dr. Carl Stoner
... aka SSSSnake (UK)
29. Hawkins on Murder (1973) (TV) .... R.J. Hawkins
... aka Death and the Maiden
30. "Bonanza"
... aka Ponderosa (USA: rerun title)
- The Younger Brothers' Younger Brother (1972) TV Episode .... Cole Younger
- The Impostors (1970) TV Episode .... Joad Bruder
- The Silence at Stillwater (1969) TV Episode .... Lonnie Stern
- The Meredith Smith (1965) TV Episode .... Little Meredith Smith
- The Saga of Muley Jones (1964) TV Episode .... Yuri
31. Pocket Money (1972) .... Bill Garrett
32. "Nichols"
... aka James Garner (Canada: English title)
... aka James Garner as Nichols
- Zachariah (1972) TV Episode
33. Hannie Caulder (1971) .... Rufus Clemens
34. Fools' Parade (1971) .... Lee Cottrill
... aka Dynamite Man from Glory Jail (UK)
35. The Brotherhood of Satan (1971) .... Doc Duncan
36. Red Sky at Morning (1971) .... John Cloyd
37. "Love, American Style"
- Love and the Nurse/Love and the Old Boyfriend (1970) TV Episode .... (segment "Love and the Old Boyfriend")
38. The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970) .... Bowen
39. "Marcus Welby, M.D."
... aka Robert Young, Family Doctor
- Nobody Wants a Fat Jockey (1970) TV Episode
40. "The Virginian"
... aka The Men from Shiloh (new title)
- You Can Lead a Horse to Water (1970) TV Episode .... Luther Watson
- The Claim (1965) TV Episode .... Finley
41. "Daniel Boone"
- The Terrible Tarbots (1969) TV Episode .... Tarbot
42. "The Name of the Game"
- Good-bye Harry (1969) TV Episode .... Nanyface
43. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) .... Percy Garris
44. The Wild Bunch (1969) .... Coffer
45. True Grit (1969) .... Col. G. Stonehill
46. "The Doris Day Show"
- Love a Duck (1969) TV Episode .... Tyrone Lovey
47. "The Guns of Will Sonnett"
- Joby (1968) TV Episode .... Joby
- Message at Noon (1967) TV Episode .... Harvey Bains
48. "It Takes a Thief"
- Birds of a Feather (1968) TV Episode .... Willard Knox
49. "The Danny Thomas Hour"
- One for My Baby (1968) TV Episode .... Paul Rooney
50. "Run for Your Life"
- One Bad Turn (1968) TV Episode .... Holly Amberton
51. "Gentle Ben"
- The Opportunist (1968) TV Episode .... Reed Olmstock
52. "Tarzan"
- Mountains of the Moon: Part 2 (1967) TV Episode .... O'Keefe
- Mountains of the Moon: Part 1 (1967) TV Episode .... O'Keefe
- To Steal the Rising Sun (1967) TV Episode .... Captain Boggs
53. Cool Hand Luke (1967) .... Captain
54. "The Iron Horse"
- Diablo (1967) TV Episode .... Applegate
- Broken Gun (1966) TV Episode .... Johnny Burke
55. The Flim-Flam Man (1967) .... Storekeeper Lovick
... aka One Born Every Minute (UK)
56. "The Invaders"
- Moonshot (1967) TV Episode .... Charlie Coogan
57. "Death Valley Days"
... aka Call of the West (USA: syndication title)
... aka The Pioneers (USA: syndication title)
... aka Trails West (USA: syndication title)
... aka Western Star Theater (USA: syndication title)
- Silver Tombstone (1967) TV Episode .... Ed Schieffelin
- The Four Dollar Law Suit (1966) TV Episode
- There Was Another Dalton Brother (1964) TV Episode .... Barfly
- The Bigger They Are (1964) TV Episode .... Arkie Monson
58. "The Big Valley"
- Brother Love (1967) TV Episode .... Flood
- Target (1966) TV Episode .... Dan'l Hawkes
59. "The Road West"
- A Mighty Hunter Before the Lord (1967) TV Episode .... Grady Couts
60. "Gilligan's Island"
- Take a Dare (1967) TV Episode .... George Barkley
61. "The Rounders"
- Low Moon at Hi Lo (1966) TV Episode .... Cousin Fletch
- Horse of a Different Cutter (1966) TV Episode .... Cousin Fletch
62. "Lost in Space"
- Blast Off Into Space (1966) TV Episode .... Nerim
63. An Eye for an Eye (1966) .... Trumbull the Fink
... aka Talion
64. Nevada Smith (1966) (uncredited) .... Strother
65. "A Man Called Shenandoah"
- Aces and Kings (1966) TV Episode .... Cowboy
66. Harper (1966) .... Claude, Cult Leader
... aka The Moving Target (UK)
67. "The Legend of Jesse James"
- Return to Lawrence (1966) TV Episode .... Meeker
68. "Perry Mason"
- The Case of the Hasty Honeymooner (1965) TV Episode .... Roy Hutchinson
- The Case of the Drowsy Mosquito (1963) TV Episode .... Gerald Sommers
- The Case of the Fickle Filly (1962) TV Episode .... Joe Mead
- The Case of the Brazen Bequest (1961) TV Episode .... Pete Gibson
69. The Sons of Katie Elder (1965) .... Jeb Ross
70. Shenandoah (1965) .... Train Engineer
71. "Rawhide"
- The Gray Rock Hotel (1965) TV Episode .... Bates
- Incident of the Haunted Hills (1959) TV Episode .... Meeker
72. Brainstorm (1965) .... Mr. Clyde
73. "The Dick Van Dyke Show"
... aka Head of the Family (USA: pilot title)
... aka The Dick Van Dyke Daytime Show (USA: rerun title)
- Baby Fat (1965) TV Episode .... H.W. Yates
74. "Profiles in Courage"
- Charles Evans Hughes (1965) TV Episode
75. "The Fugitive"
- Devil's Carnival (1964) TV Episode .... Shirky Saulter
76. Invitation to a Gunfighter (1964) .... Fiddler
77. Showdown (1963) .... Charlie Reeder
78. "The Dakotas"
- Walk Through the Badlands (1963) TV Episode .... Private Anton Copang
79. McLintock! (1963) .... Agard
80. "77 Sunset Strip"
- Terror in Silence (1963) TV Episode .... Charles Sloane
81. "Ben Casey"
- The Fireman Who Raised Rabbits (1962) TV Episode .... Rabbits
- Imagine a Long Bright Corridor (1962) TV Episode .... Adam Raemecker
82. "Stoney Burke"
- Sidewinder (1962) TV Episode .... Buckley
83. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) .... Floyd
84. "Pete and Gladys"
- The Chocolate Cake Caper (1962) TV Episode .... Harold Horton
85. "Have Gun - Will Travel"
- Justice in Hell (1962) TV Episode .... Boise Peabody
- One Came Back (1959) TV Episode .... Carew
- High Wire (1957) TV Episode .... Dooley Delaware
- A Matter of Ethics (1957) TV Episode .... Fred Coombs
86. "The Twilight Zone"
- The Grave (1961) TV Episode .... Mothershed
87. The Deadly Companions (1961) .... Parson
... aka Trigger Happy (USA: reissue title)
88. Sanctuary (1961) .... Dog Boy
89. "Lawman"
... aka The Lawman (USA: alternative title)
- The Hunch (1959) TV Episode .... Jack Foley
90. "The Rebel"
- Johnny Yuma (1959) TV Episode .... Jess
91. The Horse Soldiers (1959) .... Virgil (rebel deserter)
92. The Wild and the Innocent (1959) .... Ben Stocker
93. "The Texan"
- No Place to Stop (1959) TV Episode .... Polk
94. "Black Saddle"
... aka The Westerners (USA: syndication title)
- Client: Mowery (1959) TV Episode .... Pit Thatcher
95. The Shaggy Dog (1959) .... Thurm
96. "Hotel de Paree" (1959) TV Series .... Aaron Donager
97. "Jefferson Drum"
- Pete Henke (1958) TV Episode .... Pete Henke
98. "Trackdown"
- A Stone for Benny French (1958) TV Episode .... Benny French
99. "Frontier Justice"
- The Necessary Breed (1958) TV Episode .... Toby
100. "Playhouse 90"
- Bitter Heritage (1958) TV Episode .... Earle Wheeler
101. Bitter Heritage (1958) (TV) .... Earle Eheeler
102. "Panic!"
... aka No Warning (USA: second season title)
- Fire Lookout Post (1958) TV Episode .... Judson
103. "Navy Log"
- The Draft Dodger (1958) TV Episode .... D'Amico
104. Cowboy (1958) (uncredited) .... Trailhand-Wagon Driver, died from snakebite
105. "Broken Arrow"
- Shadow of Cochise (1958) TV Episode .... Joe Roman
- Apache Dowry (1957) TV Episode .... Renton
106. "General Electric Theater"
... aka G.E. Theatre (USA)
- Silent Ambush (1958) TV Episode .... Obie
- H.M.S. Marlborough Will Enter Port (1956) TV Episode .... Gunnery Officer Daly
107. "The Adventures of Jim Bowie"
- The Close Shave (1958) TV Episode .... Leopold Vaupel
108. Copper Sky (1957) .... Pokey
... aka The Far West (USA)
109. Black Patch (1957) .... Deputy Petey Walker
110. "The Web"
- The Man Below (1957) TV Episode
111. "Telephone Time"
- Elfego Baca (1957) TV Episode
112. "Zane Grey Theater"
... aka Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater (USA: complete title)
... aka The Westerners (USA: rerun title)
- The Necessary Breed (1957) TV Episode .... Joby
113. "The New Adventures of Charlie Chan"
... aka Charlie Chan
- Blind Man's Buff (1957) TV Episode .... Tomar
114. The Black Whip (1956) .... Thorny
... aka The Man with a Whip (USA)
115. "I Love Lucy"
... aka Lucy in Connecticut (USA: rerun title)
... aka The Lucy Show (USA: rerun title)
... aka The Sunday Lucy Show (USA: rerun title)
... aka The Top Ten Lucy Show (USA: rerun title)
- Off to Florida (1956) TV Episode .... Cafe Waiter
116. Attack (1956) .... Sgt. Ingersol
117. Johnny Concho (1956) (uncredited) .... Townsman
118. "Frontier"
- Patrol (1956) TV Episode .... Lee
- The Well (1956) TV Episode .... Mayes
119. World Without End (1956) (uncredited) .... Nihka
120. "Lassie" (1954) TV Series .... Lem Boots (1955-1957)
... aka Jeff's Collie (USA)
... aka Timmy and Lassie (USA: syndication title)
121. "Cavalcade of America"
... aka DuPont Presents the Cavalcade Theatre (USA: fourth season title)
... aka DuPont Theater (USA: fifth season title)
- Barbed Wire Christmas (1955) TV Episode .... Wilkins
122. Target Zero (1955) .... Dan O'Hirons
123. The Big Knife (1955) (uncredited) .... Stillman
124. "Crossroads"
- Shadow of God (1955) TV Episode
125. "Stage 7"
- The Fox Hunt (1955) TV Episode .... Pete
- Armed (1955) TV Episode .... Lieutenant Bob Handley
126. Kiss Me Deadly (1955) .... Harvey Wallace
... aka Mickey Spillane's Kiss Me Deadly (USA)
127. Strategic Air Command (1955) (uncredited) .... Airman
128. "The Lone Wolf"
... aka Streets of Danger
- Boy Story (????) TV Episode .... Nick Davis
129. The Silver Chalice (1954) .... Father of Lame Girl
130. Drum Beat (1954/I) .... Scotty
... aka Delmer Daves' Drum Beat (USA: complete title)
131. "Studio 57"
... aka Heinz Studio 57 (USA: alternative title)
- The Traveling Room (1954) TV Episode .... Pete Dutton
132. A Star Is Born (1954) (uncredited) .... Delivery boy
133. World for Ransom (1954) (uncredited) .... Corporal
134. "Treasury Men in Action"
... aka Your Treasury Men in Action
- The Case of the Careless Murder (1954) TV Episode
135. "Four Star Playhouse"
... aka Star Performance (USA: rerun title)
- The Witness (1953) TV Episode (as Strather Martin) .... Tom Blair
136. South Sea Woman (1953) .... Marine in audience at court-martial
137. The Magnetic Monster (1953) .... Co-Pilot
138. Storm Over Tibet (1952) .... Co-pilot
... aka Mask of the Himalayas (USA: alternative title)
... aka Sturm über Tibet (West Germany)
139. "Dragnet"
... aka Badge 714 (USA: syndication title)
- The Big Blast (1952) TV Episode
140. "Dangerous Assignment"
- The Venetian Story (1952) TV Episode .... Riri
141. The People Against O'Hara (1951) (uncredited) .... Bit Part
142. Rhubarb (1951) (uncredited) .... Shortly McGirk
143. The Asphalt Jungle (1950) (uncredited) .... William Doldy, second man in lineup
144. The Damned Don't Cry (1950) (uncredited) .... Springboard diver
Himself
1. "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson"
... aka The Best of Carson (USA: rerun title)
- Episode dated 24 July 1973 (1973) TV Episode .... Himself
Archive Footage
1. Sam Peckinpah's West: Legacy of a Hollywood Renegade (2004) (TV) .... Himself
