Steve Forrest

Teen actor

A ruggedly handsome action man of the 1960's and 70's, Steve Forrest began his screen career as a small part contract player with MGM. A brother of star Dana Andrews, he was born William Forrest Andrews, the youngest of thirteen children. His father was a Baptist minister in Huntsville, Texas. In 1942, Steve enlisted in the U.S. Army, rose to the rank of sergeant and saw action at the Battle of the Bulge. Following his demobilisation, he visited his brother in Hollywood and came to the conclusion that acting wasn't a bad way to make a living (having already done some work as a movie extra). He went on to study in college at UCLA, eventually graduating in 1950 with a B.A. Honours Degree in theatre arts. He then served a brief apprenticeship as a carpenter, prop boy and set builder at San Diego's La Jolla Playhouse, where he was discovered by resident actor Gregory Peck and given a small part as a bellboy in the cast of the summer stock production of "Goddbye Again". A subsequent screen test led to a contract with MGM and resulting employment as second leads, brothers of the titular star, toughs and outlaws. His first proper recognition was being awarded 'New Star of the Year' by Golden Globe for his role in So Big (1953), a drama based on a Pulitzer prize-winning novel by Edna Ferber.

From the mid-1950's, the rangy, 6-foot-3 actor became much in-demand on TV, beginning with classic early anthology and western series, interspersed with occasional appearances on the big screen (notably, in The Longest Day (1962) and as Joan Crawford's lover/attorney Greg Savitt in Mommie Dearest (1981)). In addition to numerous guest roles, he was regularly featured in series like Gunsmoke (1955), Dallas (1978) (as Wes Parmalee, who believes himself to be lost Ewing patriarch Jock) and Murder, She Wrote (1984). Already from the mid-60's, he decided to pick his assignments more carefully. In order to shed his image as the perpetual bad guy, he had relocated his family to England to star as antique-dealer-cum-undercover intelligence agent John Mannering in BBC's The Baron (1966). He followed this by another starring role as the stoic, tough Lieutenant Dan 'Hondo' Harrelson in the short-lived ABC police drama series S.W.A.T. (1975), possibly his best-remembered role. Steve later lampooned his screen personae in the satirical Amazon Women on the Moon (1987).

In private life, Steve Forrest was known as a skilled golfer, lover of football and (according to 1970's newspaper articles) as a dedicated amateur beekeeper.

See more on

IMDb

Miracle at St. Anna

2008

as Capt. Harding in The Longest Day (archive footage) (uncredited)

S.W.A.T.

2003

as S.W.A.T. Truck Driver

Killer: A Journal of Murder

1996

as Warden Charles Casey

Storyville

1992

as Judge Quentin Murdoch

Dream On

1990

as Eden Pilott

Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge

1987

as Will Mannon

Amazon Women on the Moon

1987

as Captain Nelson (segment "Amazon Women on the Moon")

Spies Like Us

1985

as General Sline

Hollywood Wives

1985

as Ross Conti

Murder, She Wrote

1984

as Rev. Willie John Fargo

Murder, She Wrote

1984

as Sheriff Hank Masters

Murder, She Wrote

1984

as Lt. Paul Stratton

Murder, She Wrote

Dallas

1972

The Sixth Sense

1972

Nichols

1971

1970

as Grant Wilson (segment "Hatred Unto Death") (as Stephen Forrest)

Love, American Style

1969

as Don Finletter

Medical Center

1969

Medical Center

1969

as Dr. Eric Canford

Rascal

1969

as Willard North

The Owl That Didn't Give a Hoot

1968

as Jr. Narrator

The Name of the Game

1968

as A.J. Ward

The Name of the Game

1968

as Walter Royce

The High Chaparral

1967

as Johnny Rondo

Cimarron Strip

1967

Ironside

1967

The Baron

1966

as John Mannering

Mission: Impossible

1966

The F.B.I.

1965

as Lee Barrington

Kraft Suspense Theatre

1963

as David Buchanan

Kraft Suspense Theatre

1963

1961

Target: The Corruptors!

1961

Kraft Mystery Theatre

1961

Flaming Star

1960

as Clint Burton

1959

as Larry Hall

Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse

1958

The Living Idol

1957

as Terry Matthews

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre

1956

as Mike Bagley

Meet Me in Las Vegas

1956

as Steve Forrest (uncredited)

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

1955

as Steve Archer

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

1955

as Joe Rogers

Gunsmoke

1955

as Mannon

Gunsmoke

1955

as Morgan

Gunsmoke

1955

as Cord Wrecken

Gunsmoke

1955

as Scott Coltrane

Bedevilled

1955

as Gregory Fitzgerald

Climax!

1954

as Ben

Climax!

as Eddie Martin

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

1951

as Sam Rayford

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

1951

as Harpenning Brothers

Sealed Cargo

1951

as Holtz

Lux Video Theatre

1950

as Matt Barker

dbinia use cookies for statistics, which we keep to ourselves and use to make improvements. (Cookie info here)

Steve Forrest

Acted in

Miracle at St. Anna

S.W.A.T.

Killer: A Journal of Murder

Storyville

Dream On

Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge

Amazon Women on the Moon

Spies Like Us

Hollywood Wives

Murder, She Wrote

Murder, She Wrote

Murder, She Wrote

Murder, She Wrote

Murder, She Wrote

Finder of Lost Loves

Sahara

Malibu

Hotline

Hotel

The Manions of America

Mommie Dearest

A Rumor of War

Roughnecks

Condominium

North Dallas Forty

Captain America

The Deerslayer

Maneaters Are Loose!

Dallas

Dallas

Last of the Mohicans

Wanted: The Sundance Woman

S.W.A.T.

The Hatfields and the McCoys

Dinah!

Kodiak

The Hanged Man

The Six Million Dollar Man

The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts

A Chant of Silence

The Magic of Walt Disney World

The Man in a Looking Glass

The Baron: Mystery Island

The Streets of San Francisco

Ghost Story

The Rookies

The Sixth Sense

Nichols

Columbo

Cannon

The Late Liz

Alias Smith and Jones

The Wild Country

Night Gallery

Love, American Style

Medical Center

Medical Center

Rascal

The Owl That Didn't Give a Hoot

The Name of the Game

The Name of the Game

The High Chaparral

Cimarron Strip

Ironside

The Baron

Mission: Impossible

The F.B.I.

Kraft Suspense Theatre

Kraft Suspense Theatre

Burke's Law

The Fugitive

Arrest and Trial

The Yellow Canary

The Longest Day

The Virginian

The Virginian

The Second Time Around

Bus Stop