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
Acted in
Chisum
1970
as Wrangler (uncredited)
The Green Berets
1968
as Hugh Parkinson (uncredited)
The War Wagon
1967
as Outrider (uncredited)
Genghis Khan
1965
as (uncredited)
Major Dundee
1965
as Trooper (uncredited)
Two Rode Together
1961
as William McCandless (uncredited)
Spartacus
1960
as Soldier (uncredited)
Sergeant Rutledge
1960
as Sam Beecher (uncredited)
Ben-Hur
1959
as The Lubian (uncredited)
The Horse Soldiers
1959
as Union Sergeant (uncredited)
The Young Land
1959
as Reynolds - Jury Foreman (uncredited)
The Young Land
1959
as Jury Foreman
Wagon Train
1957
as Creel Weatherby
Apache Warrior
1957
as Trooper (uncredited)
The Abductors
1957
as Secret Service Agent
7 Men from Now
1956
as Henchman
Bend of the River
1952
as Willie
The Red Badge of Courage
1951
as Soldier (uncredited)
Rio Grande
1950
as Soldier (uncredited)
Wagon Master
1950
as Marshal of Crystal City
When Willie Comes Marching Home
1950
as Churchgoer (uncredited)
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
1949
as Trooper Cliff (uncredited)
3 Godfathers
1948
as Guard at Mojave Tanks (uncredited)
Wagon Tracks West
1943
as Henchman Matt
Colt Comrades
1943
as Rancher
The Silver Bullet
1942
as Barfly
The Silver Bullet
1942
as Stage Driver
Winners of the West
1940
as Indian / Henchman
Renegade Trail
1939
as Henchman
Hollywood Round-Up
1937
as Saloon Set Brawler
Black Aces
1937
as Rider
North of the Rio Grande
1937
as Barfly
Trailin' West
1936
as Gambler (uncredited)
The Lawless Nineties
1936
as Henchman Davis
The Eagle's Brood
1935
as Cowhand
Stormy
1935
as Cowhand (uncredited)
The Last Days of Pompeii
1935
as Ostorius - a Gladiator (uncredited)
The Crimson Trail
1935
as Barroom Cowhand
Gordon of Ghost City
1933
as Rider
The Devil Horse
1932
as Cowhand (uncredited)
The Night Rider
1932
as Bert Logan
The Rainbow Trail
1932
as Horseman
Riders of the Purple Sage
1931
as Jed
The Painted Desert
1931
as Rider
Red Fork Range
1931
as 'Skeeter' Beldon
Under Texas Skies
1930
as Mustang - Henchman (uncredited)
The Last of the Duanes
1930
as Henchman
Canyon Hawks
1930
as Tom Hardy
The Oklahoma Cyclone
1930
as Henchman
The Oklahoma Sheriff
1930
Near the Rainbow's End
1930
as Lefty - Henchman
The Canyon of Missing Men
1930
as Brill Lonegran
Western Honor
1930
The Cheyenne Kid
1930
as Cowhand (uncredited)
The Man from Nowhere
1930
The Hunted Men
1930
as Henchman Red (uncredited)
Call of the Desert
1930
as Nate Thomas
Covered Wagon Trails
1930
Firebrand Jordan
1930
as Pete
Breezy Bill
1930
as Bandit
O'Malley Rides Alone
1930
as Henchman
The Voice from the Sky
1929
as Henchman 'Humpy'
Code of the West
1929
as Leary Henchman
The Cowboy and the Outlaw
1929
as Slim Saxon
Law of the Plains
1929
as Henchman
The Fighting Terror
1929
The Last Roundup
1929
as Jimmy Blyth
The Arizona Kid
1929
as Red Hank
Bullets and Justice
1929
as Red Barton
Headin' Westward
1929
as Pat Carle
Manhattan Cowboy
1928
as Tex Spaulding
Across the Plains
1928
as Chuck Lang
Hell Hounds of the Plains
1927
as Henchman (uncredited)
Outlaw's Paradise
1927
as Sheriff
Blue Streak O'Neil
1926
Desert Greed
1926
as Gillis - Henchman (uncredited)
The Fighting Ranger
1926
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
1925
as Charioteer (uncredited)
The Road Agent
1925
Wild Horse Canyon
1925
as Ranch Hand