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Lyle Bettger

Lyle Bettger

Known For Acting
Birthday Feb 13, 1915
Died Sep 24, 2003 (88)
Birthplace Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Popularity 0.3 (history)
Updated Dec 19, 2024
Entry Date Apr 13, 2024
Links TMDb IMDb
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 win ... ning 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.

Known For

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Profile
Profile
Filmography

La Classe américaine

La Classe américaine

1993

as Famous Man (archive footage) (uncredited)

M Station: Hawaii

M Station: Hawaii

1980

as Adm. Lincoln

The Hawaiians

The Hawaiians

1970

as Janders

Impasse

Impasse

1969

as Hansen

The Fastest Guitar Alive

The Fastest Guitar Alive

1967

as Charlie

Return of the Gunfighter

Return of the Gunfighter

1967

as Clay Sutton

Johnny Reno

Johnny Reno

1966

as Jess Yates

Nevada Smith

Nevada Smith

1966

as Jack Rudabough

Town Tamer

Town Tamer

1965

as Lee Ring

Guns of the Timberland

Guns of the Timberland

1960

as Clay Bell

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

1957

as Ike Clanton

Showdown at Abilene

Showdown at Abilene

1956

as Dave Mosely

The Lone Ranger

The Lone Ranger

1956

as Reece Kilgore

The Sea Chase

The Sea Chase

1955

as Chief Officer Kirchner

Destry

Destry

1954

as Phil Decker

Drums Across the River

Drums Across the River

1954

as Frank Walker

Carnival Story

Carnival Story

1954

as Frank Colloni

All I Desire

All I Desire

1953

as Dutch Heinemann

The Great Sioux Uprising

The Great Sioux Uprising

1953

as Stephen Cook

Forbidden

Forbidden

1953

as Justin Keit

The Vanquished

The Vanquished

1953

as Roger Hale

Denver and Rio Grande

Denver and Rio Grande

1952

as Johnny Buff

Hurricane Smith

Hurricane Smith

1952

as Clobb

The First Legion

The First Legion

1951

as Dr. Peter Morrell

Dear Brat

Dear Brat

1951

as Baxter

Union Station

Union Station

1950

as Joe Beacom

No Man of Her Own

No Man of Her Own

1950

as Stephen Morley

No data available

No data available

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Organization Category Movie
Television Credits

The Court of Last Resort

as Sam Larsen

Episodes: 26

First Aired: Oct 04, 1957

Hawaii Five-O

as Jonathan Kaye

Episodes: 3

First Aired: Sep 20, 1968

The Time Tunnel

as Maj. Hoffman

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 09, 1966

Burke's Law

as Captain Donahue

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 20, 1963

Kraft Suspense Theatre

as Ted Johnson

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 10, 1963

Hawaii Five-O

as Otis Klepper

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 20, 1968

Gunsmoke

as Polk

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 10, 1955

Combat!

as Capt. Brauer

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 02, 1962

Rawhide

as Major Victor Darius

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Jan 09, 1959

Daniel Boone

as Lehman Henderson

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 24, 1964

Lux Video Theatre

as Joe

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 02, 1950

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

as Sheriff Matt Saver

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 05, 1951

Mr. Novak

as Brigham

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 24, 1963

Law of the Plainsman

as Sheriff Max Chaffee

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 01, 1959

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre

as Sheriff Griff Evans

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 05, 1956

The DuPont Show with June Allyson

as Phil Ross

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 21, 1959

The Deputy

as Aces Thompson

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 12, 1959

Rawhide

as Dan Madox

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Jan 09, 1959

Rawhide

as Richard Whiting

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Jan 09, 1959

Hawaii Five-O

as Dr. Sartain

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 20, 1968

Hawaii Five-O

as Malcolm Rhodes

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 20, 1968

Hawaii Five-O

as Dr. Fleming

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 20, 1968

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre

as U.S. Marshal John Welker

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 05, 1956

Hawaii Five-O

as General Dexter

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 20, 1968

Daniel Boone

as Joseph Montgomery

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 24, 1964

Hawaii Five-O

as Karl Norton

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 20, 1968

Police Story

Episodes: 2

First Aired: Mar 20, 1973

The Rifleman

Episodes: 2

First Aired: Sep 30, 1958

Laramie

Episodes: 2

First Aired: Sep 15, 1959

Mannix

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 16, 1967

The Tall Man

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 10, 1960

Cimarron Strip

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 07, 1967

The 20th Century Fox Hour

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 05, 1955

Grindl

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Sep 15, 1963

Blue Light

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Jan 12, 1966

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

as Self - Host

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 05, 1951

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