Cliff Lyons

Birthday:

07/05/1901

Place of birth:

Clarno Township, Lake County, South Dakota, USA:

Biography:

Cliff Lyons was an American actor, stuntman and second-unit director, primarily of Westerns, particularly the films of John Ford and John Wayne. Lyons, the son of Garrett Thomas Lyons and Wilhamena Johnson Lyons, was raised on a South Dakota farm, though his family lived for a time in Memphis, TN, where he attended business school. An expert horseman, he gave up the notion of a business career and opted for the rodeo arena instead, touring the country;y and eventually reaching Los Angeles at the age of 21. With accomplished cowboys in great demand, Lyons quickly became involved in movies, working both as a stuntman and an actor. After only a couple of bit parts, he was signed by producer Bud Barsky to do seven inexpensive Westerns directed by Paul Hurst, with Lyons and Al Hoxie alternating as the hero and the heavy. Lyons and Hoxie alternated in another Western series produced by Morris R. Schlank, and, as Cliff 'Tex' Lyons, he seemed headed for minor stardom as a B-Western lead. However, Lyons' voice was not well-suited for sound and the talkie revolution confined him to small roles. As his small shot at stardom faded, however, his career as a stunt double for stars big and small was on the rise. He doubled such cowboy stars as Tom Mix, Ken Maynard, Buck Jones and Johnny Mack Brown. In 1936 he worked with John Wayne for the first and struck up a personal and business relationship that would remain strong for three decades. Wayne was influential in getting Lyons his first work as a second-unit director and in introducing Lyons to John Ford, for whom Lyons would do some of his finest work. Lyons' reputation as a stunt coordinator is comparable to that of acknowledged master Yakima Canutt, with whom Lyons partnered on numerous occasions. Perhaps Lyons' most impressive work was the massive and dynamic battle sequences of Wayne's The Alamo (1960). He was married from 1938 to 1955 to actress Beth Marion, with whom he had two sons. Cliff Lyons died in 1974 at 72, not long after coordinating stunts for Wayne's The Train Robbers (1973). Date of Birth 4 July 1901, near Clarno Township, Lake County, South Dakota Date of Death 6 January 1974, Los Angeles, California



Credits

Chisum (1970)
Wrangler (uncredited)
The Green Berets (1968)
Hugh Parkinson (uncredited)
The War Wagon (1967)
Outrider (uncredited)
Major Dundee (1965)
Trooper (uncredited)
Spartacus (1960)
Soldier (uncredited)
Sergeant Rutledge (1960)
Sam Beecher (uncredited)
Ben-Hur (1959)
The Lubian (uncredited)
The Young Land (1959)
Jury Foreman
The Young Land (1959)
Reynolds - Jury Foreman (uncredited)
The Abductors (1957)
Secret Service Agent
Apache Warrior (1957)
Trooper (uncredited)
7 Men from Now (1956)
Henchman
Bend of the River (1952)
Willie
Wagon Master (1950)
Marshal of Crystal City
When Willie Comes Marching Home (1950)
Churchgoer (uncredited)
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949)
Trooper Cliff (uncredited)
3 Godfathers (1948)
Guard at Mojave Tanks (uncredited)
Wagon Tracks West (1943)
Henchman Matt
Colt Comrades (1943)
Rancher
The Silver Bullet (1942)
Barfly
The Silver Bullet (1942)
Stage Driver
Winners of the West (1940)
Indian / Henchman
Renegade Trail (1939)
Henchman
Hollywood Round-Up (1937)
Saloon Set Brawler
Black Aces (1937)
Rider
North of the Rio Grande (1937)
Barfly
Trailin' West (1936)
Gambler (uncredited)
The Lawless Nineties (1936)
Henchman Davis
The Eagle's Brood (1935)
Cowhand
Stormy (1935)
Cowhand (uncredited)
The Last Days of Pompeii (1935)
Ostorius - a Gladiator (uncredited)
The Crimson Trail (1935)
Barroom Cowhand
Gordon of Ghost City (1933)
Rider
The Devil Horse (1932)
Cowhand (uncredited)
The Night Rider (1932)
Bert Logan
The Rainbow Trail (1932)
Horseman
Riders of the Purple Sage (1931)
Jed
The Painted Desert (1931)
Rider
Red Fork Range (1931)
'Skeeter' Beldon
Under Texas Skies (1930)
Mustang - Henchman (uncredited)
The Last of the Duanes (1930)
Henchman
Canyon Hawks (1930)
Tom Hardy
The Oklahoma Cyclone (1930)
Henchman
The Oklahoma Sheriff (1930)
Near the Rainbow's End (1930)
Lefty - Henchman
The Canyon of Missing Men (1930)
Western Honor (1930)
The Cheyenne Kid (1930)
Cowhand (uncredited)
The Man from Nowhere (1930)
The Hunted Men (1930)
Henchman Red (uncredited)
Call of the Desert (1930)
Covered Wagon Trails (1930)
Firebrand Jordan (1930)
Pete
Breezy Bill (1930)
Bandit
O'Malley Rides Alone (1930)
Henchman
The Voice from the Sky (1929)
Henchman 'Humpy'
Code of the West (1929)
Leary Henchman
The Cowboy and the Outlaw (1929)
Slim Saxon
Law of the Plains (1929)
Henchman
The Fighting Terror (1929)
The Last Roundup (1929)
Jimmy Blyth
The Arizona Kid (1929)
Red Hank
Bullets and Justice (1929)
Red Barton
Headin' Westward (1929)
Pat Carle
Manhattan Cowboy (1928)
Tex Spaulding
Across the Plains (1928)
Chuck Lang
Hell Hounds of the Plains (1927)
Henchman (uncredited)
Outlaw's Paradise (1927)
Sheriff
Blue Streak O'Neil (1926)
Desert Greed (1926)
Gillis - Henchman (uncredited)
The Fighting Ranger (1926)
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1925)
Charioteer (uncredited)
The Road Agent (1925)
Wild Horse Canyon (1925)
Ranch Hand
The Train Robbers (1973)
Second Unit Director
The Train Robbers (1973)
Stunt Coordinator
The War Wagon (1967)
Stunts
Genghis Khan (1965)
Second Unit Director
Major Dundee (1965)
Second Unit Director
Major Dundee (1965)
Stunts
Cheyenne Autumn (1964)
Stunts
McLintock! (1963)
Technical Advisor
McLintock! (1963)
Stunt Coordinator
Taras Bulba (1962)
Second Unit Director
How the West Was Won (1962)
Stunts
Sergeant Rutledge (1960)
Stunts
The Missouri Traveler (1958)
Stunts
The Searchers (1956)
Stunts
The Conqueror (1956)
Second Unit Director
Bend of the River (1952)
Stunts
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949)
Second Unit Director
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949)
Stunts
3 Godfathers (1948)
Stunts
Red River (1948)
Stunts
The Phantom Rider (1946)
Stunts
The Purple Monster Strikes (1945)
Stunts
Death Valley Manhunt (1943)
Stunts
The Old Chisholm Trail (1942)
Stand In
They Died with Their Boots On (1941)
Stunt Double
Riders of Death Valley (1941)
Stunts
Winners of the West (1940)
Stunts
The Man from Tumbleweeds (1940)
Stunts
The Light That Failed (1939)
Stunts
Destry Rides Again (1939)
Stunts
Renegade Trail (1939)
Stunts
Three Texas Steers (1939)
Stunts
Dodge City (1939)
Stunts
Cassidy of Bar 20 (1938)
Stunts
North of the Rio Grande (1937)
Stunts
The Phantom Rider (1936)
Stunts
Three on the Trail (1936)
Stunts
Three Godfathers (1936)
Stunts
The Singing Vagabond (1935)
Stunts
Bar 20 Rides Again (1935)
Stunts
The Miracle Rider (1935)
Stunts
Love Time (1934)
Stunts
The Red Rider (1934)
Stunts
Robbers' Roost (1932)
Stunt Double
The Devil Horse (1932)
Stunts
Mystery Ranch (1932)
Stunts
The Vanishing Legion (1931)
Stunts
Fighting Thru (1930)
Stunts
The Border Sheriff (1926)
Stunts