Jack Elam
Known for Acting · 186 credits
- Born
- 1920-11-13
- Died
- 2003-10-20
- Place of birth
- Miami, Gila, Arizona, USA
- Also known as
- William Scott Elam · William Scott "Jack" Elam · جک ایلام
Biography
Colorful American character actor equally adept at vicious killers or grizzled sidekicks. As a child he worked in the cotton fields. He attended Santa Monica Junior College in California and subsequently became an accountant and, at one time, manager of the Bel Air Hotel. Elam got his first movie job by trading his accounting services for a role. In short time he became one of the most memorable supporting players in Hollywood, thanks not only to his near-demented screen persona but also to an out-of-kilter left eye, sightless from a childhood fight. He appeared with great aplomb in Westerns and gangster films alike, and in later years played to wonderful effect in comedic roles.
Known For
TV Shows (70)
Bonanza
1959
as Dodie Hoad / Honest John / Buford Buckalew
The Rifleman
1958
as Sim Groder / Russell
The Wild Wild West
1965
as Zack Slade
Have Gun, Will Travel
1957
as Arnold Shaffner
The Twilight Zone
1959
as Avery
The Virginian
1962
as Harve Yost
Cheyenne
1955
as Calhoun Durango / Count Nicholas Potosi
Simon & Simon
1981
Home Improvement
1991
as Hick Peterson
Rawhide
1959
as Turkey Creek Jack Johnson
The Lone Ranger
1949
as Reno Lawrence
Daniel Boone
1964
as Petch
Four Star Playhouse
1952
as Vic
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
1956
as Hock Ellis / Little Jimmy Lehigh / Stage Driver Cass
The Untouchables
1959
as Jug Alverson / Nick Bravo
Gunsmoke
1955
as Dolph Quince / Steed / Clint Dodie / Ben / Hector / Specter / Del Ordman / Sam Band / Jim Barrett / William Prange / Lucas Murdoch / Titus Spangler / Pierre Audubon
The Rebel
1959
as Uncle Luce
Zorro
1957
as Gomez (uncredited)
Lawman
1958
as Herm Forrest / Paul Henry
Tales of Wells Fargo
1957
as Chris
Ben Casey
1961
Laramie
1959
as Parson Hawks
The Texan
1958
as Luke Watson
The High Chaparral
1967
as Macklin
Sugarfoot
1957
as Toothy Thompson
Bronco
1958
Eight Is Enough
1977
Richard Diamond, Private Detective
1957
as Danny Boy / Perk Butler
M Squad
1957
as Luke Morgan
Lancer
1968
Studio 57
1954
Tarzan
1966
Alias Smith and Jones
1971
Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse
1958
Nichols
1971
as Marcus A.F. Baxter
How the West Was Won
1977
as Cully Madigan
F Troop
1965
Outlaws
1960
Grizzly Adams
1977
as Gus
The Guns of Will Sonnett
1967
as Sam - Sheriff
National Velvet
1960
as Black Barr
Cimarron Strip
1967
Mr. & Mrs. North
1952
Tightrope
1959
The Outcasts
1968
Screen Director's Playhouse
1955
as Shanks
Mr. Lucky
1959
as Phil Bricker
Stagecoach West
1960
as Clell
The Wonderful World of Disney
1954
as Sheriff
The Dakotas
1963
as Deputy J.D. Smith
Target: The Corruptors!
1961
Gunslinger
1961
as Clint Gannet
The Restless Gun
1957
as Tony Molinor / Link Jerrod
Hondo
1967
Temple Houston
1963
as George Taggart
Paradise
1988
as Skragg
The Legend of Jesse James
1965
as Deacon Smith
Frontier
1955
as Ness Fowler
The Sacketts
1979
as Ira Bigelow
J.J. Starbuck
1987
Movies (116)
Once Upon a Time in the West
1968
as Frank's Gunman
High Noon
1952
as Charlie - Drunk in Jail (uncredited)
The Cannonball Run
1981
as Doctor
Dragoon Wells Massacre
1957
as Tioga
Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid
1973
as Alamosa Bill Kermit
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
1957
as Tom McLowery
Hannie Caulder
1971
as Frank Clemens
Princess of the Nile
1954
as Basra
Cannonball Run II
1984
as Doc
The Villain
1979
as Avery Simpson
Rio Lobo
1970
as Phillips
The Way West
1967
as Preacher Weatherby
Ride Clear of Diablo
1954
as Tim Lowerie
Jubal
1956
as McCoy
Support Your Local Sheriff!
1969
as Jake
Bird of Paradise
1951
as The Trader
Tarzan's Hidden Jungle
1955
as Burger
Pocketful of Miracles
1961
as Cheesecake
The Last Challenge
1967
as Ernest Scarnes
Once Upon a Texas Train
1988
as Jason Fitch
The Red Pony
1973
as Granddad
Kiss Me Deadly
1955
as Charlie Max
The Wild Country
1970
as Thompson
Suburban Commando
1991
as Col. Dustin 'Dusty' McHowell
A Ticket to Tomahawk
1950
as Fargo
The Man from Laramie
1955
as Chris Boldt
Baby Face Nelson
1957
as Fatso Nagel
The Gun Runners
1958
as Arnold
Huckleberry Finn
1978
as King
Wichita
1955
as Al
The Comancheros
1961
as Horseface (Comanchero)
My Man and I
1952
as Celestino Garcia
The Over the Hill Gang
1969
as Sheriff Clyde Barnes
Night Passage
1957
as Shotgun
Cattle Queen of Montana
1954
as Yost
The Rare Breed
1966
as Deke Simons
Pony Express Rider
1976
as Crazy Charlie
Edge of Eternity
1959
as Bill Ward
Vera Cruz
1954
as Tex
The Far Country
1954
as Frank Newberry
Scrooge's Rock 'N' Roll Christmas
1984
as Scrooge
Man Without a Star
1955
as Knife Murderer (uncredited)
The Winds of Autumn
1976
as J. Pete Hankins
Sidekicks
1974
as Boss
American Guerrilla in the Philippines
1950
as The Speaker
Kansas City Confidential
1952
as Pete Harris
Hawken's Breed
1987
as Tackett
Rancho Notorious
1952
as Mort Geary
Soggy Bottom, U.S.A.
1981
as Troscliar Boudreaux
I Am Not a Freak
1987
as Self
Artists and Models
1955
as Ivan
The Bushwhackers
1951
as Cree
Gun Belt
1953
as Rusty Kolloway
A Knife for the Ladies
1974
as Jarrod (Sheriff)
Key to the City
1950
as Councilman (uncredited)
Thunder Over Arizona
1956
as Slats Callahan
High Lonesome
1950
as Smiling Man
Hot Lead & Cold Feet
1978
as Rattlesnake
Support Your Local Gunfighter
1971
as Jug May
Where the Hell's That Gold?!!?
1988
as Boone
Firecreek
1968
as Norman
Rawhide
1951
as Tevis
The Night of the Grizzly
1966
as Hank
Sacred Ground
1983
as Lum Witcher
Jubilee Trail
1954
as Whitey
The Last Sunset
1961
as Ed Hobbs
Lure of the Wilderness
1952
as Dave Longden
Bonanza: The Return
1993
as Buckshot
The Giant of Thunder Mountain
1990
as Hezekiah Crow
The Aurora Encounter
1986
as Charlie
Count the Hours!
1953
as Max Verne
The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County
1970
as Kittrick
Appointment in Honduras
1953
as Castro
Ride a Northbound Horse
1969
as Sheriff
Grayeagle
1977
as Trapper Willis
Wild Weed
1949
as Raymond - Henchman
The Girl in Lovers Lane
1960
as Jesse
4 for Texas
1963
as Dobie
The Slowest Gun in the West
1960
as Ike Dalton
The Daughters of Joshua Cabe
1972
as Bitterroot
The Battle at Apache Pass
1952
as Mescal Jack
The New Daughters of Joshua Cabe
1976
as Bitterroot
Bonanza: Under Attack
1995
as Buckshot
Moonfleet
1955
as Damen
One Way Street
1950
as Arnie (uncredited)
Jinxed!
1982
as Otto
Ride, Vaquero!
1953
as Barton
Shootout in a One-Dog Town
1974
as Handy
Big Bad John
1990
as Jake Calhoun
The Norseman
1978
as Death Dreamer
Sartana Does Not Forgive
1968
as Slim Kovacs
The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again
1979
as Big Mac
Cat Ballou
1971
as Kid Sheleen
The Moonlighter
1953
as Slim
Dirty Dingus Magee
1970
as John Wesley Hardin
Creature from Black Lake
1976
as Joe Canton
Lost
1983
as Mr. Newsom
The Girl, the Gold Watch & Dynamite
1981
as Seth Beaumont
Pardners
1956
as Pete
The Last Rebel
1971
as Matt
Skyward Christmas
1981
as Clay Haller
Big Guns Talk: The Story of the Western
1997
as Self
Never a Dull Moment
1968
as Ace Williams
Lacy and the Mississippi Queen
1978
as Willie Red Fire
Shadow Force
1992
as Tommy
Kismet
1955
as Hasan-Ben
The Sundowners
1950
as Earl Boyce
Hawmps!
1976
as Bad Jack Cutter
Louis L'Amour's Down the Long Hills
1986
as Squires
The Ring
1952
as Harry Jackson
Lure of the Swamp
1957
as Henry Bliss
Finders Keepers
1952
as Eddie
Montana Territory
1952
as Gimp
Uninvited
1993
as Grady
Plimpton! Shoot-Out at Rio Lobo
1970
as Self
The Last Escape of Billy the Kid
1972
as Pat Garrett
About Jack Elam
Colorful American character actor equally adept at vicious killers or grizzled sidekicks. As a child he worked in the cotton fields. He attended Santa Monica Junior College in California and subsequently became an accountant and, at one time, manager of the Bel Air Hotel. Elam got his first movie job by trading his accounting services for a role. In short time he became one of the most memorable supporting players in Hollywood, thanks not only to his near-demented screen persona but also to an out-of-kilter left eye, sightless from a childhood… With 186 credits spanning from 1949 to 1997, Jack Elam has appeared in 116 films and 70 TV shows.
Fans searching for Jack Elam movies, Jack Elam filmography, or the latest projects starring Jack Elam can stream many of these titles on Bowood.TV, free and in HD, with no subscription required.
Most Popular Jack Elam Movies
- Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) — as Frank's Gunman
- High Noon (1952) — as Charlie - Drunk in Jail (uncredited)
- The Cannonball Run (1981) — as Doctor
- Dragoon Wells Massacre (1957) — as Tioga
- Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (1973) — as Alamosa Bill Kermit
Where to Watch Jack Elam Films
Most Jack Elam movies and series are available to stream on Bowood.TV in full HD, completely free and without signup. Browse the complete filmography above to jump directly to any title. For more films and the latest web series featuring Jack Elam, check our movies catalogue and browse page.