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Cliff Lyons

Cliff Lyons was an American actor, stuntman and second-unit director, primarily of Westerns, particularly the films of John Ford and John Wayne. Lyons, the son of Garrett Thomas Lyons and Wilhamena Johnson Lyons, was raised on a South Dakota farm, though his family lived for a time in Memphis, TN, where he attended business school. An expert horseman, he gave up the notion of a business career and opted for the rodeo arena instead, touring the country;y and eventually reaching Los Angeles at the age of 21. With accomplished cowboys in great demand, Lyons quickly became involved in movies, working both as a stuntman and an actor. After only a couple of bit parts, he was signed by producer Bud Barsky to do seven inexpensive Westerns directed by Paul Hurst, with Lyons and Al Hoxie alternating as the hero and the heavy. Lyons and Hoxie alternated in another Western series produced by Morris R. Schlank, and, as Cliff 'Tex' Lyons, he seemed headed for minor stardom as a B-Western lead. However, Lyons' voice was not well-suited for sound and the talkie revolution confined him to small roles. As his small shot at stardom faded, however, his career as a stunt double for stars big and small was on the rise. He doubled such cowboy stars as Tom Mix, Ken Maynard, Buck Jones and Johnny Mack Brown. In 1936 he worked with John Wayne for the first and struck up a personal and business relationship that would remain strong for three decades. Wayne was influential in getting Lyons his first work as a second-unit director and in introducing Lyons to John Ford, for whom Lyons would do some of his finest work. Lyons' reputation as a stunt coordinator is comparable to that of acknowledged master Yakima Canutt, with whom Lyons partnered on numerous occasions. Perhaps Lyons' most impressive work was the massive and dynamic battle sequences of Wayne's The Alamo (1960). He was married from 1938 to 1955 to actress Beth Marion, with whom he had two sons. Cliff Lyons died in 1974 at 72, not long after coordinating stunts for Wayne's The Train Robbers (1973). Date of Birth 4 July 1901, near Clarno Township, Lake County, South Dakota Date of Death 6 January 1974, Los Angeles, California

  • Known ForActing
  • Born5 July 1901 (age 124)
  • Place of BirthClarno Township, Lake County, South Dakota, USA

Cliff Lyons

Photos
Cliff Lyons was an American actor, stuntman and second-unit director, primarily of Westerns, particularly the films of John Ford and John Wayne. Lyons, the son of Garrett Thomas Lyons and Wilhamena Johnson Lyons, was raised on a South Dakota farm, though his family lived for a time in Memphis, TN, where he attended business school. An expert horseman, he gave up the notion of a business career and opted for the rodeo arena instead, touring the country;y and eventually reaching Los Angeles at the age of 21. With accomplished cowboys in great demand, Lyons quickly became involved in movies, working both as a stuntman and an actor. After only a couple of bit parts, he was signed by producer Bud Barsky to do seven inexpensive Westerns directed by Paul Hurst, with Lyons and Al Hoxie alternating as the hero and the heavy. Lyons and Hoxie alternated in another Western series produced by Morris R. Schlank, and, as Cliff 'Tex' Lyons, he seemed headed for minor stardom as a B-Western lead. However, Lyons' voice was not well-suited for sound and the talkie revolution confined him to small roles. As his small shot at stardom faded, however, his career as a stunt double for stars big and small was on the rise. He doubled such cowboy stars as Tom Mix, Ken Maynard, Buck Jones and Johnny Mack Brown. In 1936 he worked with John Wayne for the first and struck up a personal and business relationship that would remain strong for three decades. Wayne was influential in getting Lyons his first work as a second-unit director and in introducing Lyons to John Ford, for whom Lyons would do some of his finest work. Lyons' reputation as a stunt coordinator is comparable to that of acknowledged master Yakima Canutt, with whom Lyons partnered on numerous occasions. Perhaps Lyons' most impressive work was the massive and dynamic battle sequences of Wayne's The Alamo (1960). He was married from 1938 to 1955 to actress Beth Marion, with whom he had two sons. Cliff Lyons died in 1974 at 72, not long after coordinating stunts for Wayne's The Train Robbers (1973). Date of Birth 4 July 1901, near Clarno Township, Lake County, South Dakota Date of Death 6 January 1974, Los Angeles, California

  • Known ForActing
  • Born5 July 1901 (age 124)
  • Place of BirthClarno Township, Lake County, South Dakota, USA
KNOWN FOR
PHOTOS
CREDITS
Poster
Chisum
star
6.7
1970
Poster
The Green Berets
star
5.7
1968
Poster
The War Wagon
star
6.83
1967
Poster
Major Dundee
star
6.648
1965
Poster
Genghis Khan
star
5.849
1965
Poster
Two Rode Together
star
6.354
1961
Poster
Sergeant Rutledge
star
7.085
1960
Poster
Spartacus
star
7.541
1960
Poster
The Young Land
star
6.4
1959
Poster
Ben-Hur
star
7.888
1959
Poster
The Horse Soldiers
star
6.934
1959
Poster
Apache Warrior
star
4.6
1957
Poster
The Abductors
star
-
1957
Poster
Seven Men from Now
star
6.8
1956
Poster
Bend of the River
star
6.931
1952
Poster
The Red Badge of Courage
star
6.387
1951
Poster
Wagon Master
star
6.664
1950
Poster
When Willie Comes Marching Home
star
6.8
1950
Poster
Rio Grande
star
6.812
1950
Poster
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
star
6.874
1949
Poster
3 Godfathers
star
6.746
1948
Poster
Wagon Tracks West
star
-
1943
Poster
Colt Comrades
star
5.6
1943
Poster
The Silver Bullet
star
4.0
1942
Poster
Winners of the West
star
-
1940
Poster
Renegade Trail
star
5.0
1939
Poster
Hollywood Round-Up
star
4.4
1937
Poster
Black Aces
star
5.2
1937
Poster
North of the Rio Grande
star
6.0
1937
Poster
The Lawless Nineties
star
5.227
1936
Poster
Trailin' West
star
-
1936
Poster
Stormy
star
-
1935
Poster
The Last Days of Pompeii
star
5.6
1935
Poster
The Eagle's Brood
star
5.0
1935
Poster
The Crimson Trail
star
-
1935
Poster
Gordon of Ghost City
star
4.0
1933
Poster
The Night Rider
star
-
1932
Poster
The Rainbow Trail
star
-
1932
Poster
The Devil Horse
star
4.0
1932
Poster
Red Fork Range
star
-
1931
Poster
The Painted Desert
star
4.8
1931
Poster
Riders of the Purple Sage
star
-
1931
Poster
Covered Wagon Trails
star
-
1930
Poster
Firebrand Jordan
star
-
1930
Poster
The Canyon of Missing Men
star
-
1930
Poster
The Cheyenne Kid
star
-
1930
Poster
Under Texas Skies
star
4.0
1930
Poster
The Oklahoma Sheriff
star
-
1930
Poster
The Hunted Men
star
-
1930
Poster
Breezy Bill
star
-
1930
Poster
Western Honor
star
-
1930
Poster
The Man from Nowhere
star
-
1930
Poster
The Last of the Duanes
star
3.0
1930
Poster
Canyon Hawks
star
1.0
1930
Poster
Call of the Desert
star
-
1930
Poster
Near the Rainbow's End
star
1.0
1930
Poster
The Oklahoma Cyclone
star
4.2
1930
Poster
O'Malley Rides Alone
star
-
1930
Poster
The Arizona Kid
star
-
1929
Poster
Law of the Plains
star
-
1929
Poster
Bullets and Justice
star
-
1929
Poster
The Last Roundup
star
-
1929
Poster
Code of the West
star
-
1929
Poster
The Voice from the Sky
star
-
1929
Poster
Headin' Westward
star
-
1929
Poster
The Cowboy and the Outlaw
star
-
1929
Poster
The Fighting Terror
star
-
1929
Poster
Manhattan Cowboy
star
-
1928
Poster
Across the Plains
star
-
1928
Poster
Hell Hounds of the Plains
star
-
1927
Poster
Outlaw's Paradise
star
-
1927
Poster
Western Courage
star
-
1927
Poster
Desert Greed
star
-
1926
Poster
Blue Streak O'Neil
star
-
1926
Poster
The Fighting Ranger
star
-
1926
Poster
Wild Horse Canyon
star
-
1925
Poster
The Road Agent
star
-
1925
Poster
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
star
7.33
1925