Cliff Lyons
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- Jul 5, 1901
- Died
- Jan 6, 1974 (aged 72)
- Place of birth
- Clarno Township, Lake County, South Dakota, USA
- Credits
- 88
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
Known for
Ben-Hur
1959Movie
The Lubian (uncredited)
Spartacus
1960Movie
Soldier (uncredited)
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
1949Movie
Trooper Cliff (uncredited)
The Alamo
1960Movie
Bowie's Man (uncredited)
Rio Grande
1950Movie
Soldier (uncredited)
The Horse Soldiers
1959Movie
Union Sergeant (uncredited)
Filmography
Chisum
1970Movie
Wrangler (uncredited)
The Green Berets
1968Movie
Hugh Parkinson (uncredited)
The War Wagon
1967Movie
Outrider (uncredited)
Marco the Magnificent
1965Movie
(uncredited)
Genghis Khan
1965Movie
(uncredited)
Major Dundee
1965Movie
Trooper (uncredited)
Two Rode Together
1961Movie
William McCandless (uncredited)
The Alamo
1960Movie
Bowie's Man (uncredited)
Spartacus
1960Movie
Soldier (uncredited)
Sergeant Rutledge
1960Movie
Sam Beecher (uncredited)
Ben-Hur
1959Movie
The Lubian (uncredited)
The Horse Soldiers
1959Movie
Union Sergeant (uncredited)
The Young Land
1959Movie
Reynolds - Jury Foreman (uncredited), Jury Foreman
Wagon Train
1957TV
Creel Weatherby
Apache Warrior
1957Movie
Trooper (uncredited)
The Abductors
1957Movie
Secret Service Agent
The Wings of Eagles
1957Movie
Officer in Brawl (uncredited)
7 Men from Now
1956Movie
Henchman
The Prodigal
1955Movie
Harun (uncredited)
The Sun Shines Bright
1953Movie
Bend of the River
1952Movie
Willie
The Red Badge of Courage
1951Movie
Soldier (uncredited)
Rio Grande
1950Movie
Soldier (uncredited)
Wagon Master
1950Movie
Marshal of Crystal City
When Willie Comes Marching Home
1950Movie
Churchgoer (uncredited)
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
1949Movie
Trooper Cliff (uncredited)
3 Godfathers
1948Movie
Guard at Mojave Tanks (uncredited)
Wagon Tracks West
1943Movie
Henchman Matt
Colt Comrades
1943Movie
Rancher
The Silver Bullet
1942Movie
Stage Driver, Barfly
Winners of the West
1940Movie
Indian / Henchman
Renegade Trail
1939Movie
Henchman
Hollywood Round-Up
1937Movie
Saloon Set Brawler
Black Aces
1937Movie
Rider
North of the Rio Grande
1937Movie
Barfly
Trailin' West
1936Movie
Gambler (uncredited)
The Lawless Nineties
1936Movie
Henchman Davis
The Eagle's Brood
1935Movie
Cowhand
Stormy
1935Movie
Cowhand (uncredited)
The Last Days of Pompeii
1935Movie
Ostorius - a Gladiator (uncredited)
The Crimson Trail
1935Movie
Barroom Cowhand
In Old Santa Fe
1934Movie
Cowhand (uncredited)
Gordon of Ghost City
1933Movie
Rider
The Devil Horse
1932Movie
Cowhand (uncredited)
The Night Rider
1932Movie
Bert Logan
The Rainbow Trail
1932Movie
Horseman
Riders of the Purple Sage
1931Movie
Jed
Three Rogues
1931Movie
Deputy (uncredited)
The Painted Desert
1931Movie
Rider
Red Fork Range
1931Movie
'Skeeter' Beldon
Under Texas Skies
1930Movie
Mustang - Henchman (uncredited)
The Last of the Duanes
1930Movie
Henchman
Canyon Hawks
1930Movie
Tom Hardy
The Oklahoma Cyclone
1930Movie
Henchman
The Lone Rider
1930Movie
Henchman
The Oklahoma Sheriff
1930Movie
Near the Rainbow's End
1930Movie
Lefty - Henchman
The Canyon of Missing Men
1930Movie
Brill Lonegran
Western Honor
1930Movie
The Cheyenne Kid
1930Movie
Cowhand (uncredited)
The Man from Nowhere
1930Movie
The Hunted Men
1930Movie
Henchman Red (uncredited)
The Call of the Desert
1930Movie
Nate Thomas
Covered Wagon Trails
1930Movie
Firebrand Jordan
1930Movie
Pete
Breezy Bill
1930Movie
Bandit
O'Malley Rides Alone
1930Movie
Henchman
The Voice from the Sky
1929Movie
Henchman 'Humpy'
Code of the West
1929Movie
Leary Henchman
The Cowboy and the Outlaw
1929Movie
Slim Saxon
The Law of the Plains
1929Movie
Henchman
The Fighting Terror
1929Movie
The Last Roundup
1929Movie
Jimmy Blyth
The Arizona Kid
1929Movie
Red Hank
Bullets and Justice
1929Movie
Red Barton
Headin' Westward
1929Movie
Pat Carle
The Old Code
1928Movie
Jacques de Long
Manhattan Cowboy
1928Movie
Tex Spaulding
Across the Plains
1928Movie
Chuck Lang
Hell Hounds of the Plains
1927Movie
Henchman (uncredited)
Western Courage
1927Movie
Henchman Cliff
Outlaw's Paradise
1927Movie
Sheriff
Blue Streak O'Neil
1926Movie
Desert Greed
1926Movie
Gillis - Henchman (uncredited)
The Fighting Ranger
1926Movie
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
1925Movie
Charioteer (uncredited)
The Road Agent
1925Movie
Wild Horse Canyon
1925Movie
Ranch Hand