Lee Van Cleef
Clarence LeRoy "Lee" Van Cleef Jr. was an American actor best known for his roles in Spaghetti Westerns such as For A Few Dollars More and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Hatchet-faced with piercing eyes, he had declined to have his nose altered to play a sympathetic character in his film debut, High Noon, and was relegated to a non-speaking outlaw as a result. For a decade he was typecast as a minor villain, his sinister features overshadowing his acting skills. After suffering serious injuries in a car crash, Van Cleef began to lose interest in his apparently waning career by the time Sergio Leone gave him a major role in For a Few Dollars More. The film made him a box-office draw, especially in Europe.
Military service:
After basic training and further training at the Naval Fleet Sound School, Van Cleef was assigned to a submarine chaser and then to a minesweeper, USS Incredible, on which he worked as a sonarman.
After leaving the Navy, Van Cleef read for a part in Our Town at the Little Theater Group in Clinton, New Jersey and received his first stage role. From there, he continued to meet with the group and audition for parts. The next biggest part was that of the boxer, Joe Pendleton, in the play Heaven Can Wait. During this time, he was observed by visiting talent scouts, who were impressed by Van Cleef's stage presence and delivery. One of these scouts later took him to New York City talent agent Maynard Morris of the MCA agency, who then sent him to the Alvin Theater for an audition.
Van Cleef's screen debut came in High Noon. During a performance of Mister Roberts in Los Angeles, he was noticed by film director Stanley Kramer, who offered Van Cleef a role in his upcoming film. Kramer originally wanted Van Cleef for the role of the deputy Harvey Pell, but as he wanted Van Cleef to have his "distinctive nose" fixed, Van Cleef declined the role in favor of the part of the silent gunslinger Jack Colby. He was then cast mostly in villainous roles, due to his sharp cheeks and chin, piercing eyes, and hawk-like nose, from the part of Tony Romano in Kansas City Confidential (1952), culminating 14 years later in Sergio Leone's The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
Despite suffering from heart disease from the late 1970s and having a pacemaker installed in the early 1980s, Van Cleef continued to work in films until his death on December 16, 1989, at age 64. He was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Hollywood Hills, California, with an inscription on his grave marker referring to his many acting performances as a villain: "BEST OF THE BAD". Description above from the Wikipedia article Lee Van Cleef, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Acted in
Peter Baumgartner, Filmkameramann
2014
as (archive footage)
Octagon : le combat des maîtres
2003
Klaus Kinski: I'm not an actor
2000
as Col. Douglas Mortimer (archive footage)
Thieves of Fortune
1990
as Sergio Danielo Christophero
The Best of the Martial Arts Films
1990
as Self (archive footage)
Speed Zone
1989
as Grandfather
The Commander
1988
as Col. Mazzarini
Armed Response
1986
as Burt Roth
Jungle Raiders
1985
as Warren
The Master Ninja 5
1985
as John Peter McAllister
Code Name: Wild Geese
1984
as Archie 'China' Travers
Killing Machine
1984
as Julot
Master Ninja
1984
as John Peter McAllister
Master Ninja II
1984
as John Peter McAllister
The Master
1984
as John Peter McAllister
Escape from New York
1981
as Police Commissioner Bob Hauk
The Octagon
1980
as McCarn
The Hard Way
1980
as McNeal
When the West Was Fun: A Western Reunion
1979
as Self
The Squeeze
1978
as Chris Gretchko / Ray Sloan
The Perfect Killer
1977
as Harry Chapman
Nowhere to Hide
1977
as Ike Scanlon
Kid Vengeance
1976
as McClain
God's Gun
1976
as Father John / Lewis
Take a Hard Ride
1975
as Kiefer
The Stranger and the Gunfighter
1974
as Dakota
Mean Frank and Crazy Tony
1973
as Frankie
The Grand Duel
1972
as Sheriff Clayton
The Magnificent Seven Ride!
1972
as Marshal Chris Adams
Bad Man's River
1971
as Roy King
Captain Apache
1971
as Capt. Apache
Return of Sabata
1971
as Sabata / Major
Barquero
1970
as Travis
El Condor
1970
as Jaroo
Sabata
1969
as Sabata
Commandos
1968
as MSgt. Sullivan
Beyond the Law
1968
as Billy Joe Cudlip
Day of Anger
1967
as Frank Talby
Death Rides a Horse
1967
as Ryan
The Big Gundown
1967
as Jonathan Corbett
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
1966
as Sentenza / Angel Eyes
For a Few Dollars More
1965
as Col. Douglas Mortimer
Laredo
1965
My Mother the Car
1965
Branded
1965
The Dakotas
1963
How the West Was Won
1962
as River Pirate (uncredited)
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
1962
as Reese
Posse from Hell
1961
as Leo
Stagecoach West
1960
as Lin Hyatt
The Andy Griffith Show
1960
as Skip
The Slowest Gun in the West
1960
as Sam Bass
Mr. Lucky
1959
The Untouchables
1959
as Frank Diamond
Hawaiian Eye
1959
The Alaskans
1959
The Twilight Zone
1959
Law of the Plainsman
1959
as Tracey
The DuPont Show with June Allyson
1959
as Peak
Riverboat
1959
as Luke Cragg
The Deputy
1959
as Cherokee Kid
Bonanza
1959
as Appling
Ride Lonesome
1959
as Frank
Black Saddle
1959
as Frank Sandoe
Rawhide
1959
as Fred Grant
Rawhide
1959
as Deck Sommers
Guns, Girls and Gangsters
1959
as Mike Bennett
Machete
1958
as Miguel
77 Sunset Strip
1958
77 Sunset Strip
1958
as Majeski
Lawman
1958
Lawman
1958
as Deputy Clyde Wilson
Yancy Derringer
1958
as Ike Milton
The Rifleman
1958
Bronco
1958
Wanted: Dead or Alive
1958
as Jumbo Kane
The Bravados
1958
as Alfonso Parral
The Young Lions
1958
as 1st Sgt. Rickett
Day of the Badman
1958
as Jake Hayes
Raiders of Old California
1957
as Damon Pardee
Joe Dakota
1957
as Adam Grant
Gun Battle at Monterey
1957
as Kirby
The Tin Star
1957
as Ed McGaffey
Tombstone Territory
1957
as Sam Carver
Zorro
1957
Casey Jones
1957
as Mort Clio
Trackdown
1957
as Ben Fraser
Maverick
1957
Perry Mason
1957
as Edward Doyle
Wagon Train
1957
as Rufe Beal
Have Gun, Will Travel
1957
as Golias
Have Gun, Will Travel
1957
as Corbin
The Quiet Gun
1957
as Doug Sadler
Last Stagecoach West
1957
as Steve Margolies
Richard Diamond, Private Detective
1957
as Ed Murdock
The Lonely Man
1957
as Faro
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
1957
as Ed Bailey
China Gate
1957
as Maj. Cham
The Badge of Marshal Brennan
1957
as Shad Donaphin
Accused of Murder
1956
as Police Sgt. Emmett Lackey
Wire Service
1956
as Al Sanders
State Trooper
1956
as Frank Parnessa
Pardners
1956
as Gus
It Conquered the World
1956
as Dr. Tom Anderson
Tribute to a Bad Man
1956
as Fat Jones
The Conqueror
1956
as Chepei
The Vanishing American
1955
as Jay Lord
A Man Alone
1955
as Clanton
The Adventures of Champion
1955
as Frank
Cheyenne
1955
as Braden
Cheyenne
1955
as Harry Bittercreek Bartender
Gunsmoke
1955
as Rad
Gunsmoke
1955
as John Hooker
Gunsmoke
1955
as Ike Jeffords
The Naked Street
1955
as Harry Goldish (uncredited)
The Road to Denver
1955
as Pecos Larry
I Cover the Underworld
1955
as Flash Logan
Buffalo Bill Jr.
1955
The Big Combo
1955
as Fante
Ten Wanted Men
1955
as Al Drucker
Treasure of Ruby Hills
1955
as Frank Emmett
Studio 57
1954
Studio 57
1954
as Tommy
Dawn at Socorro
1954
as Earl Ferris
Princess of the Nile
1954
as Hakar (uncredited)
The Desperado
1954
as Paul Clayton/Buck Clayton
The Yellow Tomahawk
1954
as Fire Knife
Arrow In The Dust
1954
as Tillotson Henchman
Rails Into Laramie
1954
as Ace Winton
Gypsy Colt
1954
as Hank
Stories of the Century
1954
as Jesse James
Annie Oakley
1954
as Amos Belcher
Annie Oakley
1954
as Tim Brennan
The Nebraskan
1953
as Pvt. Reno Benton
Tumbleweed
1953
as Marv
Jack Slade
1953
as Bolt Mackay
City Detective
1953
Vice Squad
1953
as Pete Monty
Arena
1953
as Smitty
The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms
1953
as Corp. Stone
White Lightning
1953
as Brutus Allen
The Bandits of Corsica
1953
as Nerva
General Electric Theater
1953
as Dave Rudabaugh
The Lawless Breed
1952
as Dirk Hanley
Kansas City Confidential
1952
as Tony Romano
The Ford Television Theatre
1952
The Ford Television Theatre
1952
as Stanley Perrin
Cavalcade of America
1952
Cavalcade of America
1952
as 1st Mate Hawl Finch
Four Star Playhouse
1952
as Bob Wheeler aka Sonora Kid
Untamed Frontier
1952
as Dave Chittun
High Noon
1952
as Jack Colby
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1951
as Dallas Clancy
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1951
as Sheriff
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1951
as Larkin
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1951
as Wink
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1951
as Cowboy
The Adventures of Boston Blackie
1951
as Captain Jansen
The Adventures of Boston Blackie
1951
as Lou
The Adventures of Kit Carson
1951
The Gene Autry Show
1950
as Hod - Henchman
The Gene Autry Show
1950
as Henchman Ray
The Lone Ranger
1949
as Bull Harper
The Lone Ranger
1949
as Jango