Lee Van Cleef

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Lee Van Cleef
Lee Van Cleef in Kansas City Confidential.jpg
Van Cleef in Kansas City Confidential (1952)
Born Clarence LeRoy Van Cleef, Jr.
(1925-01-09)January 9, 1925
Somerville, New Jersey, United States
Died Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist.
Oxnard, California, United States
Cause of death Heart attack
Resting place Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery
Hollywood Hills, California, United States
Occupation Actor
Years active 1952–1989
Spouse(s) Patsy Ruth (m. 1943; div. 1960)
Joan Drane (m. 1960; div. 1974)
Barbara Havelone (m. 1976; his death 1989)
Children 4
Military career
Allegiance  United States
Service/branch  United States Navy
Years of service 1942–1946[1]
Rank Sonarman First Class (S01)
Battles/wars World War II

Clarence Leroy "Lee" Van Cleef, Jr. (January 9, 1925 – December 16, 1989), was an American actor who appeared mostly in Westerns and action films. His sharp features and piercing eyes led to him being cast as a villain in scores of films, such as Kansas City Confidential, High Noon, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, prior to becoming a leading man.

Youth

Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Van Cleef was born on January 9, 1925 in Somerville, New Jersey, the son of Marion Levinia (née Van Fleet) and Clarence LeRoy Van Cleef. At the age of 17, he obtained his high school diploma early in his senior year in order to enlist in the United States Navy in September, 1942. After basic training and further training at the Naval Fleet Sound School, he was assigned to a submarine chaser and then to a minesweeper, USS Incredible, on which he worked as sonarman.

The ship initially patrolled the Caribbean, then moved to the Mediterranean, participating in the landings in southern France. In January 1945 Incredible moved to the Black Sea, and performed sweeping duties out of the Soviet Navy base at Sevastopol, Crimea. Afterwards the ship performed air-sea rescue patrols in the Black Sea, before returning to Palermo, Sicily. By the time of his discharge in March 1946, he had achieved the rank of Sonarman First Class (SO1), and earned his Mine Sweeper Patch. He had been awarded the Bronze Star and the Good Conduct Medal. By virtue of his deployments Van Cleef also qualified for the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal and American Campaign Medal and the World War II Victory Medal.[citation needed]

Van Cleef was a rare case of a person known to genuinely have heterochromatic eyes (that is to say, eyes of two different colors).

Career

After leaving the Navy, Van Cleef read for a part in Our Town at the Little Theater Group in Clinton, New Jersey. He got the part.[which?] 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. The play was Mister Roberts.[citation needed]

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 High Noon. 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,[citation needed] from the part of Tony Romano in Kansas City Confidential (1952), and culminating 14 years later in Sergio Leone's The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966).[2]

Aside from westerns and the science fiction films, three of his early major roles were in noir films, Kansas City Confidential (1952), Vice Squad (1953) and The Big Combo (1955). Van Cleef appeared six times between 1951 and 1955 on the children's syndicated western series, The Adventures of Kit Carson, starring Bill Williams.[2] He was cast three times, including the role of Rocky Hatch in the episode "Greed Rides the Range" (1952), of another syndicated western series, The Range Rider. In 1952, he was cast in the episode "Formula for Fear" of the western aviation series Sky King. He appeared in episode 82 of the TV series The Lone Ranger in 1952. In 1954, Van Cleef appeared as Jesse James in the syndicated series, Stories of the Century.[2]

In 1955, he was cast twice on another syndicated western series, Annie Oakley. That same year, he guest-starred on the CBS western series, Brave Eagle. In 1955, he played one of the two villains in an episode of The Adventures of Champion the Wonder Horse. In 1958, he was cast as Ed Murdock, a rodeo performer trying to reclaim the title in the event at Madison Square Garden in New York City, on Richard Diamond, Private Detective.[3]

Van Cleef played different minor characters on four episodes of ABC's The Rifleman, with Chuck Connors, between 1959 and 1962, and twice on ABC's Tombstone Territory. In 1958, he was cast as Deputy Sid Carver in the episode "The Great Stagecoach Robbery" of another syndicated western series, Frontier Doctor, starring Rex Allen. Van Cleef appeared in 1959 as Luke Clagg in the episode "Strange Request" of the NBC western series Riverboat.

Van Cleef played a sentry on an episode of the ABC sitcom The Real McCoys, with Walter Brennan. Van Cleef was cast with Pippa Scott and again with Chuck Connors in the 1960 episode "Trial by Fear" of the CBS anthology series The DuPont Show with June Allyson. A young Van Cleef also made an appearance as Frank Diamond in The Untouchables, in an episode entitled "The Unhired Assassin." He also appeared in an episode of the ABC/Warner Brothers western series The Alaskans.[2]

Van Cleef guest-starred on the CBS western series Have Gun - Will Travel, on the ABC/WB series Colt .45, on the NBC western series Cimarron City and Laramie, and on Rod Cameron's syndicated crime dramas City Detective and State Trooper. He guest-starred in an episode of John Bromfield's syndicated crime drama, Sheriff of Cochise. Van Cleef starred as minor villains and henchmen in various westerns, including The Tin Star and Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.[2]

In 1958, a severe car crash nearly cost Van Cleef his life and career. A resulting knee injury made his physicians think that he would never ride a horse again. This injury plagued Van Cleef for the rest of his life and caused him great pain. His recovery was long and arduous and halted his acting for a time. He then began a business in interior decoration with second wife Joan, as well as pursuing his talent for painting, primarily of sea and landscapes.[citation needed]

In 1960, he appeared as a villainous swindler in the Bonanza episode, "The Bloodline" (December 31, 1960) and also made an appearance on Gunsmoke. In 1961, he played a role on episode 7 ("The Grave") of the third season of The Twilight Zone. He played a villainous henchman of Lee Marvin's title character in the 1962 John Ford movie The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. In 1963, he appeared on Perry Mason (episode: "The Case of the Golden Oranges"). That same year he appeared in "The Day of the Misfits" on The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters.

In 1965, the actor's career underwent a dramatic change when Sergio Leone cast Van Cleef, whose career was still in the doldrums, as one of the two protagonists, alongside Clint Eastwood, in For a Few Dollars More.[2] Leone then chose Van Cleef to appear again with Eastwood, this time as the primary villain Angel Eyes, in the now seminal western The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966). With his roles in Leone's films, Van Cleef became a major star of Spaghetti Westerns, playing central, and often surprisingly heroic, roles in films such as Death Rides a Horse, Day of Anger, The Big Gundown, The Sabata Trilogy, and The Grand Duel. He co-starred with Jim Brown in an Italian-American co-production, 1975's Take a Hard Ride.

Van Cleef would later have a supporting role in John Carpenter's cult film Escape from New York. In 1984, Van Cleef was cast as a ninja master in the NBC adventure series The Master, but it was canceled after thirteen episodes. All in all, he is credited with 90 movie roles and 109 other television appearances over a 38-year span.[2]

Personal life

Van Cleef was married three times. He and his first wife, Patsy Ruth, were married from 1943 until their divorce in 1960. Later that year, he married his second wife, Joan Drane. He and Drane divorced in 1974. Two years later, he married his third wife, Barbara Havelone, to whom he remained married until his death in 1989. He had four children.[2]

Death

Grave of Lee Van Cleef, at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills

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 the age of 64. He collapsed in his home in Oxnard, California, from a heart attack. Throat cancer was listed as a secondary cause of death.[4] Van Cleef is interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Hollywood Hills, California.

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1952 High Noon Jack Colby Collaboration with Gary Cooper
1952 Untamed Frontier Dave Chitun
1952 Kansas City Confidential Tony Romano
1953 The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms Corp. Stone
1953 The Lawless Breed Dirk Hanley
1953 The Bandits of Corsica Nerva
1953 White Lightning Brutus Allen
1953 Arena Smitty
1953 Vice Squad Pete Monte
1953 From Here To Eternity
1953 Jack Slade Bolt Mackay
1953 The Nebraskan Private Reno Benton
1953 Private Eyes
1953 Tumbleweed Marv
1954 Gypsy Colt Hank
1954 Arrow in The Dust Tilotson Henchman
1954 Rails Into Laramie Ace Winton
1954 The Yellow Tomahawk Fire Knife
1954 Princess of the Nile Hakar Uncredited bit part
1954 The Desperado The Crayton twins, Paul/Buck
1954 Dawn at Socorro Earl Ferris
1955 Treasure of Ruby Hills Frank Emmett
1955 Ten Wanted Men Al Drucker
1955 The Naked Street Harry Goldish uncredited
1955 Man Without A Star Uncredited bit part
1955 I Cover the Underworld Flash Logan
1955 The Road to Denver Pecos Larry
1955 A Man Alone Clanton
1955 The Vanishing American Jay Lord
1955 The Conqueror Chepei Collaboration with John Wayne
1955 The Big Combo Fante
1956 It Conquered the World Dr. Tom Anderson
1956 Tribute to a Bad Man Fat Jones
1956 Pardners Gus
1956 Accused of Murder Police Sgt. Emmett Lackey
1957 The Lonely Man Faro
1957 The Tin Star Ed McGaffey
1957 The Quiet Gun Doug Sadler
1957 Gunfight at the O.K. Corral Ed Bailey Collaboration with Kirk Douglas
1957 China Gate Maj. Cham
1957 The Badge of Marshal Brennan Shad Donaphin
1957 The Last Stagecoach West Steve Margolies
1957 Joe Dakota Adam Grant
1957 Gun Battle of Monterey Kirby
1957 Raiders of Old California Sgt. Damon Pardee
1958 Day of the Bad Man Jake Hayes
1958 The Bravados Alfonso Parral
1958 The Young Lions 1st Sgt. Rickett
1958 Machete Miguel
1959 Guns, Girls, and Gangsters Mike Benett
1960 Ride Lonesome Frank
1961 Posse from Hell Leo
1962 The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance Reese Collaboration with John Wayne
1962 How the West Was Won River Pirate Collaboration with Eli Wallach and John Wayne; Uncredited
1965 For a Few Dollars More Col. Douglas Mortimer Collaboration with Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood
1966 The Good, the Bad and the Ugly "Angel Eyes"/Sentenza; "The Bad" Collaboration with Sergio Leone, Clint Eastwood, and Eli Wallach
1967 The Big Gundown Jonathan Corbett
1967 Death Rides a Horse Ryan Collaboration with John Phillip Law
1967 Day of Anger Frank Talby
1968 Beyond the Law Billy Joe Cudlip
1968 Commandos MSgt. Sullivan
1970 Sabata Sabata
1970 Barquero Travis
1970 El Condor Jaroo
1971 Captain Apache Capt. Apache
1971 Return of Sabata Sabata
1972 The Grand Duel Sheriff Clayton Aka The Big Showdown and Storm Rider
1972 Bad Man's River Roy King
1972 The Magnificent Seven Ride Chris Adams
1973 Mean Frank and Crazy Tony Frankie Diomede
1974 The Stranger and the Gunfighter Dakota Aka Blood Money
1975 Take a Hard Ride Kiefer
1976 God's Gun Father John/Lewis
1977 L'uomo di Santa Cruz McClain Filmed in Gran Canaria
1977 Quel pomeriggio maledetto Harry Chapman
1978 The Rip-Off Chris Aka The Squeeze
1980 The Octagon McCarn
1981 Escape from New York Bob Hauk
1983 Macchina per uccidere 2 Julot
1984 Code Name: Wild Geese China
1985 Jungle Raiders Warren
1986 Armed Response Burt Roth
1988 Der Commander Col. Mazzarini
1989 Speed Zone aka Cannonball Fever Rock-Skipping Grandfather
1989 Thieves of Fortune Sergio Daniel Christophero

Television

Year Title Role(s) Episode(s) Network(s)
1952 Sky King Mark "Formula for Fear" NBC-TV, ABC-TC
1952 Boston Blackie Lou; Captain Jansen Inside Crime; Deep Six
1952-1953 The Range Rider El Latigo; Utah Joe; Rocky Hatch "Treasure of Santa Dolores"; "Outlaw's Double"; "Greed Rides the Range"
1952-1953 The Lone Ranger Joe Singer/Bull Harper/Henchman Jango "Desperado at Large"; "The Brown Pony"; "Stage to Estacado"
1954-1962 Death Valley Days unknown; Brogger "Snowshoe Thompson"; "The Hat That Won the West"
1955 The Man Behind the Badge Floyd "The Case of the Desperate Moment" CBS
1958 Wagon Train(TV series) Rufe Beal "The Jesse Cowan Story"[Wagon Train(TV series)]
1958 Zorro Antonio Castillo "Welcome to Monterey"
1958 Richard Diamond, Private Detective Ed Murdock "Rodeo"
1959 Mr. Lucky "Dangerous Lady"
1959 Yancy Derringer Ike Milton/Frank James "Outlaw at Liberty"
1959 Wanted: Dead or Alive, Jumbo Kane "The Hostage"
1959 The Real McCoys 1st Sentry "Grandpa Fights the Air Force"
1959-1962 The Rifleman, Dan Maury; Stinger; Wicks; Johnny Drako "The Deadly Wait"; "The Prodigal"; "The Clarence Bibs Story"; "Death Never Rides Alone" ABC-TV
1960 The Slowest Gun in the West Sam Bass TV movie
1960-1966 Gunsmoke Rad Meadows; Johnny Hooker; Ike Jeffords "Old Flame"/"The Pariah"/"My Father, My Son"
1960-1963 Laramie Wes Torrey; Dawson; Mac Morgan; Caleb ".45 Calibre"; "Killer Odds"; "Vengeance"; "The Stranger"
1960 Bonanza Appling "The Blood Line"
1961 Maverick Wolf McManus "Red Dog"
1961-1962 Cheyenne Braden; Larry Jackson; Harry "Trouble Street"; "A Man Called Ragen"; "Man Alone"
1961 The Twilight Zone Steinhart "The Grave" CBS-TV
1961 Stagecoach West Lin Hyatt "Never Walk Alone"
1963 The Dakotas Larry Jackson; Slade Tucker "A Man Called Ragan";"Thunder in Pleasant Valley" ABC-TV
1963 Perry Mason Edward Doyle "The Case of the Golden Oranges"
1962-1963 Have Gun - Will Travel Corbin; Golias "The Treasure"; "Face of a Shadow"
1964 Rawhide Fred Grant; Deck Sommers "The Enormous Fist" & "Piney" CBS-TV
1965 The Andy Griffith Show Skip "Banjo-Playing Deputy" CBS-TV
1965 My Mother the Car Nick Fitch "Burned at the Steak"
1965;1966 Branded "The Richest Man in Boot Hill","Call to Glory" NBC-TV
1966 Laredo Big Mike Kelly "Quarter Past Eleven"
1977 Nowhere to Hide
1979 The Hard Way
1984 The Master John Peter McAllister All episodes; starring role NBC-TV

In popular culture

File:LuckyLukeChasseur.jpg
The character Elliot Belt in the Lucky Luke album The Bounty Hunter

Lee van Cleef's characters in the Sergio Leone movies were inspiration for the character Elliot Belt in the Lucky Luke comic album, The Bounty Hunter.

The band Primus has a song about Lee Van Cleef on their album Green Naugahyde.[5]

The Warcraft universe sports the villain Edwin Van Cleef, who is inspired by Lee Van Cleef.

Phillip Pullman, author of the bestselling His Dark Materials trilogy stated that the first name of his fictional American explorer, airman and crack marksman, Lee Scoresby was a reference to Van Cleef, with the character's surname being an homage to famous Arctic explorer William Scoresby.

Van Cleef was also parodied in GLC: The Carnage Continues..., a short British comedy film of the late 1980s that humorously joined British politics with Hollywood action stars. Here Cleef is played by the film's director Peter Richardson, though it rather suggests Cleef the personage is unrealistically playing Tony Benn, a British MP.

References

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  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Lee Van Cleef at the Internet Movie Database
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  5. [1]

External links