Kent Taylor

Born Louis William Weiss on May 11, 1907, 'Kent Taylor' (qv) was a modestly popular "B" actor of the 1930's and 1940's. The tall, dark and handsome leading man who sported rugged looks, a slick, pencil-thin mustache and solid physique, was star material with the potential and durability of 'Clark Gable' (qv) and 'Errol Flynn' (qv), but lacked their consistent leading man quality and charisma. An avid outdoorsman, Taylor churned out over 110 films during his lengthy career, appearing in a number of quality "A" pictures as a second lead.Born just southeast of Nashua, Iowa, he was a son of farmers. As a teenager, he performed in several high school plays. The family then moved to Waterloo, Iowa, where he worked as a window trimmer in a ladies' clothing shop. After a brief move to Chicago, the family relocated to Los Angeles, where he and his father started an awning company. Taylor pursued acting as a profession after being introduced to director 'Henry King' (qv). After an unbilled debut in _The Magnificent Lie (1931)_ (qv), he apprenticed for a couple of years in bit parts. He peaked in the 1930's with prominent support roles in _Merrily We Go to Hell (1932)_ (qv) with 'Fredric March' (qv) and 'Sylvia Sidney' (qv), _I'm No Angel (1933)_ (qv), as one of 'Mae West' (qv)'s earnest pursuers, the classic _Death Takes a Holiday (1934)_ (qv), (again with 'Fredric March' (qv)), the 'Will Rogers' (qv) vehicles _David Harum (1934)_ (qv) and _The County Chairman (1935)_ (qv), and _Ramona (1936)_ (qv), (directed by his old friend, 'Henry King' (qv)), top-lining 'Loretta Young' (qv) and 'Don Ameche' (qv).Taylor then starred in a modest succession of "B" programs with _Love in a Bungalow (1937)_ (qv), _Pirates of the Skies (1939)_ (qv), _Repent at Leisure (1941)_ (qv), _Mississippi Gambler (1942)_ (qv), _Alaska (1944)_ (qv), _The Crimson Key (1947)_ (qv) and _The Sickle or the Cross (1949)_ (qv) which, at the very least, kept him busy and in the public eye. More noticeable during this period was his portrayal of Doc Holiday in _Tombstone: The Town Too Tough to Die (1942)_ (qv), opposite 'Richard Dix' (qv)'s Wyatt Earp.With his film career on the decline, Taylor turned more and more to TV, becoming the medium's _Boston Blackie (1951)_ (qv) for a couple of seasons, a role that followed in the popular footsteps of 'Chester Morris' (qv), (who starred in an earlier series of Boston Blackie films as the urbane master thief-cum-detective), followed with a lead in the series _The Rough Riders (1958)_ (qv). Taylor was a frequent visitor on the sets of popular western series, including _Zorro (1957)_ (qv), _Laramie (1959)_ (qv), _The Rifleman (1958)_ (qv) and _Rango (1967)_ (qv). Toward the end of his career, however, the elderly actor took a bizarre 'John Carradine' (qv)-like turn into Grade "Z" projects. Some of them--including horror movies like _The Crawling Hand (1963)_ (qv), _Brides of Blood (1968)_ (qv), _Satan's Sadists (1969)_ (qv), _Hell's Bloody Devils (1970)_ (qv), _Blood of Ghastly Horror (1967)_ (qv) and _Girls for Rent (1974)_ (qv)--achieved cult infamy as some of Hollywood's most notorious "turkeys." Following a series of heart operations, Taylor died at the age of 79.::Gary Brumburgh / [email protected]