Ken Maynard
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- Jul 21, 1895
- Died
- Mar 23, 1973 (aged 77)
- Place of birth
- Vevay, Indiana, USA
- Credits
- 96
From Wikipedia
Kenneth Olin "Ken" Maynard (July 21, 1895 – March 23, 1973) was an American motion picture stuntman and actor.
Maynard served in the United States Army during World War I. After the war, Maynard returned to show business as a circus rider with Ringling Brothers. When the circus was playing in Los Angeles, California, actor Buck Jones encouraged Maynard to try working in the movies. Maynard soon had a contract with Fox Studios.
He first appeared in silent motion pictures in 1923. Maynard's work included stunt performance. His horsemanship and rugged good looks made Maynard a cowboy star. He and his white stallion, "Tarzan," became famous. His two recorded songs with Columbia Records, "The Lone Star Trail" and "The Cowboy's Lament," made him one of the first of the singing cowboys. Maynard moved to Universal Studios, where he made his first films with a musical soundtrack. He sang two songs in Sons of the Saddle in 1930.
In 1931 and 1932, Maynard worked for Tiffany Productions and Sono Art-World Wide Pictures before moving back to Universal in 1933. Maynard played several musical instruments, and was featured that year on the violin in The Fiddlin' Buckaroo, and on the banjo in The Trail Drive. Maynard moved to Mascot Pictures in 1934.
Maynard appeared in more than ninety films in twenty years with his white cowboy hat, fancy shirt, and a pair of six-shooters, but alcoholism so severely affected his life that his acting career ended in 1944. He made appearances at state fairs and rodeos. He owned a small circus operation featuring rodeo riders but eventually lost it to creditors. His substantial wealth had vanished, and he lived a desolate life in a rundown trailer. During these years, Maynard was supported by an unknown benefactor, long thought to be Gene Autry. More than twenty five years after his last starring role, Maynard returned to the screen two small roles, in 1970 and 1972, the more notably in The Marshal of Windy Hollow.
Maynard died of stomach cancer in 1973 at the Motion Picture Home in Woodland Hills, California. He was interred at Forest Lawn Cypress Cemetery in Cypress, California.
For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Ken Maynard has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6751 Hollywood Blvd.
Known for
Haunted Gold
1932Movie
Tim Kelly (archive footage) (uncredited)
Bigfoot
1970Movie
Mr. Bennett
Cameo Kirby
1923Movie
(uncredited)
Six Shootin' Sheriff
1938Movie
Jim 'Trigger' Morton
Phantom Thunderbolt
1933Movie
Thunderbolt Kid
Tombstone Canyon
1932Movie
Ken
Filmography
Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch
1976Movie
(archive footage)
The Marshal of Windy Hollow
1972Movie
Texas Ranger
Bigfoot
1970Movie
Mr. Bennett
Harmony Trail
1944Movie
Marshal Ken Maynard
Arizona Whirlwind
1944Movie
Ken Maynard
Westward Bound
1944Movie
Ken Maynard
Death Valley Rangers
1943Movie
Ken Maynard
Blazing Guns
1943Movie
Marshal Ken Maynard
The Law Rides Again
1943Movie
U.S. Marshal Ken Maynard
Wild Horse Stampede
1943Movie
Marshal Ken Maynard
Lightning Strikes West
1940Movie
Lightning Ken Morgan
Phantom Rancher
1940Movie
Ken Mitchell
Death Rides the Range
1939Movie
Ken Baxter
Flaming Lead
1939Movie
Ken Clark
Six Shootin' Sheriff
1938Movie
Jim 'Trigger' Morton
Whirlwind Horseman
1938Movie
Ken Morton
Trailing Trouble
1937Movie
John 'Friendly' Fields
Boots of Destiny
1937Movie
Ken Crawford
The Fugitive Sheriff
1936Movie
Ken Marshall
The Cattle Thief
1936Movie
Ken
Avenging Waters
1936Movie
Ken Morley
Heroes of the Range
1936Movie
Ken Smith
Heir to Trouble
1935Movie
Ken Armstrong
Lawless Riders
1935Movie
Ken Manley
Western Courage
1935Movie
Ken Baxter
Western Frontier
1935Movie
Ken Masters
Mystery Mountain
1934Movie
Ken Williams
In Old Santa Fe
1934Movie
Ken aka 'Kentucky'
Smoking Guns
1934Movie
Ken Masters
Honor of the Range
1934Movie
Sheriff Ken / Brother Clem
Wheels of Destiny
1934Movie
Ken Manning
Gun Justice
1933Movie
Ken Lance
Fargo Express
1933Movie
Ken Benton
Strawberry Roan
1933Movie
Ken Masters
The Trail Drive
1933Movie
Ken Benton
The Fiddlin' Buckaroo
1933Movie
'Fiddlin'
King of the Arena
1933Movie
Captain Ken Kenton
The Lone Avenger
1933Movie
Cal Weston
Phantom Thunderbolt
1933Movie
Thunderbolt Kid
Drum Taps
1933Movie
Ken Cartwright
Tombstone Canyon
1932Movie
Ken
Haunted Gold
1932Movie
Tim Kelly (archive footage) (uncredited)
Hollywood on Parade No. A-5
1932Movie
Self
Between Fighting Men
1932Movie
Ken
Come On, Tarzan
1932Movie
Ken Benson
Dynamite Ranch
1932Movie
Blaze Howell
Whistlin' Dan
1932Movie
'Whistlin' Dan Savage Posing as Ed Black
Hell-Fire Austin
1932Movie
Ken 'Hell-Fire' Austin
Texas Gun Fighter
1932Movie
Bill Dane
The Sunset Trail
1932Movie
Jim Brandon
The Pocatello Kid
1931Movie
The Pocatello Kid / Sheriff Jim Bledsoe
Branded Men
1931Movie
Rod Whitaker
Range Law
1931Movie
Hap Conners
The Arizona Terror
1931Movie
The Arizonian
Alias: The Bad Man
1931Movie
Ranger Ken Neville
The Two Gun Man
1931Movie
'Blackie' Weed
Fighting Thru
1930Movie
Dan Barton
Sons of the Saddle
1930Movie
Jim Brandon
Song of the Caballero
1930Movie
Juan Posing as El Lobo
Mountain Justice
1930Movie
Ken McTavish
The Voice of Hollywood No. 9
1930Movie
The Fighting Legion
1930Movie
Dave Hayes
Lucky Larkin
1930Movie
'Lucky' Larkin
Parade of the West
1930Movie
Bud Rand
Señor Americano
1929Movie
Lieutenant Michael Banning
The Wagon Master
1929Movie
The Rambler
The California Mail
1929Movie
Bob Scott
The Royal Rider
1929Movie
Dick Scott
The Lawless Legion
1929Movie
Cal Stanley
Cheyenne
1929Movie
Cal Roberts
The Phantom City
1928Movie
Tim Kelly
The Glorious Trail
1928Movie
Pat O'Leary
The Code of the Scarlet
1928Movie
Bruce Kenton
The Upland Rider
1928Movie
Dan Dailey
The Canyon of Adventure
1928Movie
Steven Bancroft
The Wagon Show
1928Movie
Bob Mason
Gun Gospel
1927Movie
Granger Hume
The Red Raiders
1927Movie
Lieutenant John Scott
The Devil's Saddle
1927Movie
Harry Morrel
The Land Beyond the Law
1927Movie
Jerry Steele
Somewhere in Sonora
1927Movie
Bob Bishop
The Overland Stage
1927Movie
Jack Jessup
The Unknown Cavalier
1926Movie
Tom Drury
Senor Daredevil
1926Movie
Don Luis O'Flaherty
Haunted Range
1926Movie
Terry Bladwin
The Grey Vulture
1926Movie
Bart Miller
North Star
1925Movie
Noel Blake
Fighting Courage
1925Movie
Richard Kingsley
The Demon Rider
1925Movie
Billy Dennis
Janice Meredith
1924Movie
Paul Revere
$50,000 Reward
1924Movie
Tex Sherwood
Somebody Lied
1923Movie
Cameo Kirby
1923Movie
(uncredited)
The Gunfighter
1923Movie
(uncredited)
The Man Who Won
1923Movie
Conroy
Brass Commandments
1923Movie
(uncredited)