William Boyd

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

144

Gender

Male

Birthday

1895-06-04

Day of death

1972-09-12 (77 years old)

Place of Birth

Hendrysburg, Ohio, USA

William Boyd

Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia William Lawrence Boyd (June 5, 1895 – September 12, 1972) was an American film actor who is best known for portraying the cowboy hero Hopalong Cassidy. Boyd was born in Hendrysburg, Ohio, and reared in Cambridge, Ohio and Tulsa, Oklahoma. He was the son of a day laborer, Charles William Boyd, and his wife, the former Lida Wilkens (aka Lyda). Following his father's death, he moved to California and worked as an orange picker, surveyor, tool dresser and auto salesman. In Hollywood, he found work as an extra in Why Change Your Wife? and other films. During World War I, he enlisted in the army but was exempt from military service because of a "weak heart". More prominent film roles followed, including his breakout role as Jack Moreland in Cecil B. DeMille's The Road to Yesterday (1925) which starred also Joseph Schildkraut, Jetta Goudal, and Vera Reynolds. Boyd's performance in the film was praised by critics, while movie-goers were equally impressed by his easy charm, charisma, and intense good-looks. Due to Boyd's growing popularity, DeMille soon cast him as the leading man in the highly acclaimed silent drama film, The Volga Boatman. Boyd's role as Feodor blew critics away, and with Boyd now firmly established as a matinee idol and romantic leading man, he began earning an annual salary of $100,000. He acted in DeMille's extravaganza The King of Kings (in which he played Simon of Cyrene, helping Jesus carry the cross) and DeMille's Skyscraper (1928). He then appeared in D.W. Griffith's Lady of the Pavements (1929). Radio Pictures ended Boyd's contract in 1931 when his picture was mistakenly run in a newspaper story about the arrest of another actor, William "Stage" Boyd, on gambling and liquor charges. Although the newspaper apologized, explaining the mistake in the following day's newspaper, Boyd said, "The damage was already done." William "Stage" Boyd died in 1935, the same year William L. Boyd became Hopalong Cassidy, the role that led to his enduring fame. But at the time in 1931, Boyd was virtually broke and without a job, and for a few years he was credited in films as "Bill Boyd" to prevent being mistaken for the other William Boyd.

Known For

  • Skyscraper

    Skyscraper

  • The Jucklins

    The Jucklins

  • High Voltage

    High Voltage

  • Western von gestern

    Western von gestern

  • Trail Dust

    Trail Dust

  • Manslaughter

    Manslaughter

  • Doomed Caravan

    Doomed Caravan

  • Cheaters

    Cheaters

  • Hollywood

    Hollywood

  • Emergency Call

    Emergency Call

  • Racing Luck

    Racing Luck

  • Texas Masquerade

    Texas Masquerade

  • Renegade Trail

    Renegade Trail

  • Changing Husbands

    Changing Husbands

  • Rustlers' Valley

    Rustlers' Valley

  • Leather Burners

    Leather Burners

  • Sinister Journey

    Sinister Journey

  • The Marauders

    The Marauders

  • The Midshipman

    The Midshipman

  • Lumberjack

    Lumberjack

  • Burning Gold

    Burning Gold

  • Hidden Gold

    Hidden Gold

  • Mystery Man

    Mystery Man

  • Stagecoach War

    Stagecoach War

  • Federal Agent

    Federal Agent

  • Hopalong Cassidy

    Hopalong Cassidy

  • Range War

    Range War

  • Borderland

    Borderland

  • Unexpected Guest

    Unexpected Guest

  • Border Patrol

    Border Patrol

  • Colt Comrades

    Colt Comrades

  • Strange Gamble

    Strange Gamble

  • Bar 20

    Bar 20

  • Border Vigilantes

    Border Vigilantes

  • Power

    Power

  • The Frontiersmen

    The Frontiersmen

  • Lost Canyon

    Lost Canyon

  • Lucky Devils

    Lucky Devils

  • The Greatest Show on Earth

    The Greatest Show on Earth

  • Texas Trail

    Texas Trail

  • The Cop

    The Cop

  • Tarnish

    Tarnish

  • Sunset Trail

    Sunset Trail

  • False Colors

    False Colors

  • A Wise Fool

    A Wise Fool

  • The Six Best Cellars

    The Six Best Cellars

  • The King of Kings

    The King of Kings

  • Carnival Boat

    Carnival Boat

  • Brewster's Millions

    Brewster's Millions

  • Silent Conflict

    Silent Conflict

  • Dangerous Venture

    Dangerous Venture

  • Outlaws of the Desert

    Outlaws of the Desert

  • Borrowed Trouble

    Borrowed Trouble

  • Saturday Night

    Saturday Night

  • The Temple of Venus

    The Temple of Venus

  • Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch

    Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch

  • Robert Mitchum: The Reluctant Star

    Robert Mitchum: The Reluctant Star

  • Go-Get-'Em, Haines

    Go-Get-'Em, Haines

  • Eve's Leaves

    Eve's Leaves

  • Old Wives for New

    Old Wives for New

  • The Road to Yesterday

    The Road to Yesterday

  • Three Men from Texas

    Three Men from Texas

  • Hopalong Cassidy Returns

    Hopalong Cassidy Returns

  • Law of the Pampas

    Law of the Pampas

  • Forbidden Fruit

    Forbidden Fruit

  • On the High Seas

    On the High Seas

  • Two Arabian Knights

    Two Arabian Knights

  • In Old Colorado

    In Old Colorado

  • Feet of Clay

    Feet of Clay

  • Undercover Man

    Undercover Man

  • In Old Mexico

    In Old Mexico

  • Hoppy's Holiday

    Hoppy's Holiday

  • Screen Snapshots Series 10, No. 5

    Screen Snapshots Series 10, No. 5

  • Hills of Old Wyoming

    Hills of Old Wyoming

  • Hoppy Serves a Writ

    Hoppy Serves a Writ

  • Silver on the Sage

    Silver on the Sage

  • It's Showtime

    It's Showtime

  • Bobbed Hair

    Bobbed Hair

  • Santa Fe Marshal

    Santa Fe Marshal

  • Wide Open Town

    Wide Open Town

  • Flaming Gold

    Flaming Gold

  • Riders of the Timberline

    Riders of the Timberline

  • Pride of the West

    Pride of the West

  • New Lives for Old

    New Lives for Old

  • The Young Rajah

    The Young Rajah

  • Bar 20 Justice

    Bar 20 Justice

  • The Big Gamble

    The Big Gamble

  • The Devil's Playground

    The Devil's Playground

  • After the Show

    After the Show

  • Land of Liberty

    Land of Liberty

  • North of the Rio Grande

    North of the Rio Grande

  • Her Man o' War

    Her Man o' War

  • Secret of the Wastelands

    Secret of the Wastelands

  • Bar 20 Rides Again

    Bar 20 Rides Again

  • Riders of the Deadline

    Riders of the Deadline

  • Twilight on the Trail

    Twilight on the Trail

  • Going Hollywood: The '30s

    Going Hollywood: The '30s

  • Stick to Your Guns

    Stick to Your Guns

  • The Last Frontier

    The Last Frontier

  • Golden Saddles, Silver Spurs

    Golden Saddles, Silver Spurs

  • The Leatherneck

    The Leatherneck

  • Call of the Prairie

    Call of the Prairie

  • Something to Think About

    Something to Think About

  • The Showdown

    The Showdown

  • Hopalong Rides Again

    Hopalong Rides Again

  • Beyond Victory

    Beyond Victory

  • The Movie Orgy

    The Movie Orgy

  • The Volga Boatman

    The Volga Boatman

  • Moran of the Lady Letty

    Moran of the Lady Letty

  • Michael O'Halloran

    Michael O'Halloran

  • His First Command

    His First Command

  • The Dead Don't Dream

    The Dead Don't Dream

  • Partners of the Plains

    Partners of the Plains

  • Jim the Conqueror

    Jim the Conqueror

  • Men Of America

    Men Of America

  • Fool's Gold

    Fool's Gold

  • Television: The First Fifty Years

    Television: The First Fifty Years

  • Hop-a-long Cassidy

    Hop-a-long Cassidy

  • Heart of the West

    Heart of the West

  • The Painted Desert

    The Painted Desert

  • The Night Flyer

    The Night Flyer

  • Dress Parade

    Dress Parade

  • The Eagle's Brood

    The Eagle's Brood

  • Moonlight and Honeysuckle

    Moonlight and Honeysuckle

  • A City Sparrow

    A City Sparrow

  • Lady of the Pavements

    Lady of the Pavements

  • Heart of Arizona

    Heart of Arizona

  • Exit the Vamp

    Exit the Vamp

  • Forty Winks

    Forty Winks

  • Was He Guilty?

    Was He Guilty?

  • Port of Lost Dreams

    Port of Lost Dreams

  • Suicide Fleet

    Suicide Fleet

  • The Affairs of Anatol

    The Affairs of Anatol

  • The Yankee Clipper

    The Yankee Clipper

  • Forty Thieves

    Forty Thieves

  • Nice People

    Nice People

  • Officer O'Brien

    Officer O'Brien

  • False Paradise

    False Paradise

  • Cassidy of Bar 20

    Cassidy of Bar 20

  • Pirates on Horseback

    Pirates on Horseback

  • Three on the Trail

    Three on the Trail

  • Enemies of Children

    Enemies of Children

  • The Flying Fool

    The Flying Fool

  • Little Smokey

    Little Smokey