Roy Barcroft
(1902 - 1969)He was a fixture in many a western film or TV series most often as the bad guy. Tall, stocky and handsome with a neat mustache, squinty eyes and solid, strong voice and demeanor he had a long career in films and television. He was born Howard Clifford Ravenscroft on September 7, 1902 in Crab Orchard, Nebraska of a pioneer Nebraska family. Little is known of his youth but he served in the military during World War I and later tried a series of different jobs including one as a clarinetist. After he and his wife, the former Vera Thompson whom he married in 1932, moved to California he tried amateur acting in some theatre groups and found "his calling." He was cast as an extra in "Mata Hari" (1930) in his film debut but it wasn't until the mid 1930s that he got the juicier parts. His other over 290 films included: "Dick Tracy" (1937) as Air Crewman; "The Stranger from Arizona" (1938) as Thane; "The Frontiersman" (1938) as Sutton; "Riders of the Frontier" (1939) as Carter; the serial "The Phantom Creeps" (1939) uncredited as Parker; "Mexicali Rose" (1939) as McElroy; "West of Carson City" (1940) as Bill Tompkins; the serial "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe" (1940) with Buster Crabbe, uncredited in various roles Ming Adjutant/Arborian Sentry; "Showdown" (1940) as Bowman; "The Masked Rider" (1941) as Luke; the serial "King of the Texas Rangers" (1941) as Ross; "Tennessee Johnson" (1942) as Officer on crutches; "Sunset Serenade" (1942) as Bart Reynolds; "Nazi Agent" (1942) as Chief Petty Officer; "Riders of the Rio Grande" (1943) as Sarsaparilla; "Chatterbox" (1943) as Laborer; the serial "The Masked Marvel" (1943) as Kerr, the Diner Manager; "The Laramie Trail" (1944) as Blackie; "The Fighting Seabees" (1944) uncredited; "The Bells of Rosarita" (1945) as Maxwell; "My Pal Trigger" (1946) as Hunter; "Wyoming" (1947) as Sheriff Niles; "Blackmail" (1947) as Spice Kellaway; "Old Los Angeles" (1948) as Clyborne; "The Savage Horde" (1950) as Fergus; "The Dakota Kid" (1951) as Turk; "Desert of Lost Men" (1951) as Link Rinter; "Montana Belle" (1952) as Jim Clark; "Rogue Cop" (1954) as Lt. Vince Bardeman; "Oklahoma" (1955) as the Marshal, probably his biggest film appearance; "The Kettles on Old MacDonald's Farm" (1957) as J.P. Flemming; "Band of Angels" (1957) with Clark Gable, as Gillespie, the Overseer; "Ghost of Zorro" (1959) as Hank Kilgore; "Freckles" (1960) as McLean; "Destination Inner Space" (1966) as Skipper; "Texas Across the River" (1966) as Morton; "The Way West" (1967) as Masters; "Gaily, Gaily" (1969) as Doctor; "The Reivers" (1969) as Ed, The Judge and "Monte Walsh" (1970) as Proprietor, his last film. On TV he was a regular on "Spin and Marty" (1955) as Col. Logan and "The New Adventures of Spin and Marty" (1958) again as Col. Logan and "Gunsmoke" (1965-69) as Roy, a townsman. He also guest starred on many TV series including: "The Legend of Wyatt Earp"; "Annie Oakley"; "Circus Boy"; "Have Gun, Will Travel"; "26 Men"; "Maverick"; "Wanted: Dead or Alive"; "Rawhide"; "The Virginian"; "Perry Mason"; "The Wild, Wild West" and "Laredo." He died of cancer on November 28, 1969 in Woodland Hills, California at age 67.
From Great Character Actors, Page 7.
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