Richard Boone

Biography: A craggy-faced supporting actor, Boone worked as a writer, prizefighter, and Navy man; he also tried his hand at painting and working in the oil fields. After putting in four years as a gunner in World War Two, he began studying with the Actors Studio in New York (on the GI Bill). In 1947 he made his Broadway debut in Judith Anderson's Medea; first appeared on film four years later in Milestone's The Halls of Montezuma (1951). An articulate, intelligent man, he avoided typecasting by playing both menacing bad guys and tough-but-good guys; Boone never gained major stardom, however, perhaps due to the same elusive screen quality. He is perhaps best known for his TV work, including stints on Medic (1954-56), Have Gun, Will Travel (1957-61), and The Richard Boone Show (1964).