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Lyle Bettger‌

Gender

Male

Birthday

calendar1915-02-13

Popularity

star3.0

Lyle Bettger

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Lyle Bettger

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Gender

Male

Birthday

calendar1915-02-13

Popularity

star3.0

Biography

​From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Lyle S. Bettger (February 13, 1915 – September 24, 2003) was a character actor known most for his Hollywood roles from the 1950s, typically portraying villains. He is perhaps most recognisable as the wrathfully jealous elephant handler Klaus from the Oscar winning film The Greatest Show on Earth (1952). Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Lyle was the son of Frank Bettger, who was an infielder for the St Louis Cardinals. An enthusiastic fan of cinema, Lyle left school in his late teens with the ambition of becoming an actor. Bettger graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. His theatrical debut was in Brother Rat at the Biltmore Theatre in New York City in 1936. After a period languishing in small-time theatre he landed the lead role in the Broadway production of The Flying Gerardos in 1940. When Paramount sent a talent scout to see the show, Bettger was signed on a three-year contract. Bettger's movie career began when he was cast as the lead in the film noir No Man of Her Own (1950). He soon became a regular on the set of Westerns such as Denver and Rio Grande (1952), The Great Sioux Uprising (1953), Drums Across the River (1954), The Lone Ranger (1956) and Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957). Lyle developed a reputation for playing the bad guy and excelled in villainous roles such as the menacing Joe Beacom in Union Station (1950) and the cold-blooded Nazi Chief Officer Kirchner in The Sea Chase (1955). Bettger also made many appearances in dramatic roles on television, starring in the 1957 series The Court of Last Resort as well as guesting on Hawaii Five-O, Rawhide, The Rifleman, Bonanza and The Time Tunnel. Lyle was married to Mary Rolfe (1940–1996) until her death. They had three children: Lyle Jr., Frank and Paula. He was also survived by a sister, Lee Morgan. Lyle Bettger died on September 24, 2003 in San Luis Obispo County, California. Description above from the Wikipedia article Lyle Bettger, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Movie Credits

Nevada Smith

Nevada Smith‌
star6.8
calendar 1966

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral‌
star7.0
calendar 1957

The Greatest Show on Earth

The Greatest Show on Earth‌
star6.3
calendar 1952

Forbidden

Forbidden‌
star6.0
calendar 1953

No Man of Her Own

No Man of Her Own‌
star6.9
calendar 1950

The Sea Chase

The Sea Chase‌
star6.1
calendar 1955

The Vanquished

The Vanquished‌
star4.5
calendar 1953

Union Station

Union Station‌
star6.3
calendar 1950

Carnival Story

Carnival Story‌
star4.6
calendar 1954

All I Desire

All I Desire‌
star7.0
calendar 1953

Destry

Destry‌
star6.0
calendar 1954

The Hawaiians

The Hawaiians‌
star5.4
calendar 1970

The Fastest Guitar Alive

The Fastest Guitar Alive‌
star4.3
calendar 1967

Johnny Reno

Johnny Reno‌
star6.4
calendar 1966

Impasse

Impasse‌
star4.7
calendar 1969

The Lone Ranger

The Lone Ranger‌
star6.1
calendar 1956

Drums Across the River

Drums Across the River‌
star5.4
calendar 1954

The Great Sioux Uprising

The Great Sioux Uprising‌
star5.7
calendar 1953

Showdown at Abilene

Showdown at Abilene‌
star5.2
calendar 1956

Denver and Rio Grande

Denver and Rio Grande‌
star5.4
calendar 1952

Dear Brat

Dear Brat‌
star4.0
calendar 1951

Return of the Gunfighter

Return of the Gunfighter‌
star6.1
calendar 1967

Guns of the Timberland

Guns of the Timberland‌
star6.1
calendar 1960

The First Legion

The First Legion‌
star6.7
calendar 1951

Town Tamer

Town Tamer‌
star6.4
calendar 1965

Hurricane Smith

Hurricane Smith‌
star6.0
calendar 1952

M Station: Hawaii

M Station: Hawaii‌
star6.0
calendar 1980

Gundown at Sandoval

Gundown at Sandoval‌
star0.0
calendar 1959

La Classe américaine

La Classe américaine‌
star7.7
calendar 1993

Tv Credits

The Time Tunnel

The Time Tunnel‌
star7.6
calendar 1966

Burke's Law

Burke's Law‌
star6.0
calendar 1963

Kraft Suspense Theatre

Kraft Suspense Theatre‌
star5.3
calendar 1963

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O‌
star7.1
calendar 1968

Mannix

Mannix‌
star6.7
calendar 1967

Gunsmoke

Gunsmoke‌
star6.5
calendar 1955

Combat!

Combat!‌
star7.6
calendar 1962

The Tall Man

The Tall Man‌
star6.3
calendar 1960

Rawhide

Rawhide‌
star7.0
calendar 1959

Cimarron Strip

Cimarron Strip‌
star5.0
calendar 1967

Police Story

Police Story‌
star7.1
calendar 1973

Daniel Boone

Daniel Boone‌
star6.9
calendar 1964

Lux Video Theatre

Lux Video Theatre‌
star5.5
calendar 1950

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars‌
star6.5
calendar 1951

The 20th Century Fox Hour

The 20th Century Fox Hour‌
star4.2
calendar 1955

Grindl

Grindl‌
star5.5
calendar 1963

The Rifleman

The Rifleman‌
star7.0
calendar 1958

Laramie

Laramie‌
star6.4
calendar 1959

Mr. Novak

Mr. Novak‌
star6.5
calendar 1963

Law of the Plainsman

Law of the Plainsman‌
star6.0
calendar 1959

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre‌
star5.5
calendar 1956

The Court of Last Resort

The Court of Last Resort‌
star0.0
calendar 1957

The DuPont Show with June Allyson

The DuPont Show with June Allyson‌
star6.3
calendar 1959

Blue Light

Blue Light‌
star5.0
calendar 1966

The Deputy

The Deputy‌
star6.2
calendar 1959

Rawhide

Rawhide‌
star7.0
calendar 1959

Rawhide

Rawhide‌
star7.0
calendar 1959

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars‌
star6.5
calendar 1951

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O‌
star7.1
calendar 1968

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O‌
star7.1
calendar 1968

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O‌
star7.1
calendar 1968

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O‌
star7.1
calendar 1968

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre‌
star5.5
calendar 1956

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O‌
star7.1
calendar 1968

Daniel Boone

Daniel Boone‌
star6.9
calendar 1964

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O‌
star7.1
calendar 1968