Clint Walker: A Good Guy (Jerry Skinner Documentary)

[Music] you're looking at actor clint walker that some people say help to save warner brothers studios by portraying cheyenne bode on abc's weekly hour long western tv series cheyenne clint walker was born norman eugene walker on may the 30th 1927 in hartford illinois located just across a river from saint louis clint had a twin sister naomi lucille now this is clint and lucy at three months of age their parents was paul arnold and gladys shawano walker paul worked as a pipefitter a boxer athletic director and musician he once even formed a band with his brothers but he didn't like playing in bars because he was like his son he didn't smoke or drink now paul had a daughter from a previous marriage so clint and lucy had a sister named marjorie walker pugh she was called marky and marky passed away on april 23 2019 at the age of 94 in california among family and friends although the twins were born in hartford the family moved around a lot but finally settled in this house on 8th street in alton illinois not far from harford this is the twins at age 4. clint's mother gladys was born in the czech republic and immigrated to the united states at an early age clint's parents divorced when the twins were small and raised by their mother with help from her parents gladys loved to garden and worked as a seamstress to make money now this is the twins at age eight clint attended roosevelt junior high now this is a picture of clint and lucy as teenagers with their dad clint attended alton high school and worked odd jobs after school to help the family now during this time clint or norman as he was still being called became interested in bodybuilding and would often lift weights here at the alton ymca now this is clint returning to the alton ymca in 1956 after becoming famous he always drew a crowd in his second year of high school he quit in order to go to work at a local factory that he didn't like he soon got a job as a deckhand on the river barge he liked working on the river so as soon as he was 17 he enlisted in the merchant marines it was the closing months of world war ii and he said he enjoyed his tour of duty and spent the next three years at sea and visited in foreign countries after returning to alton he worked several odd jobs including one as a plank around director and in 1947 clint met a pretty young girl by the name of werner lucille garver working in an alton ice cream parlor now this is verna in the middle with her two sisters vera on the left and virginia on the right clint and werner will marry on september the 5th 1948 almost a year after they first met and within a year and a half after their marriage the couple will have a daughter valerie jean walker on january the 31st 1950 valerie will grow up to become one of the first female commercial airline pilots shortly after valarie's born the walkers bought a model a ford for 65 dollars and headed for texas with 72 dollars in their pockets clint tried several jobs after arriving in texas and while living in brownwood and working in the oil fields he decided it was time to try something else burner had a sister living in california so the family headed west where clint went to work for newton detective agency in long beach he was assigned undercover on the waterfront he heard that security paid a lot better in las vegas than it did anywhere else so he moved his family to vegas where he went to work with security at the newly built sands hotel during the next year and a half clint met several performers such as van johnson who insisted and suggested that he try acting he knew that successful actors made a lot of money and it's better to be shot at by fake bullets than by real ones but it meant moving valerie and verner back to los angeles in lele he found work as a bouncer at a local nightclub and werner worked as a waitress so clint could pursue his acting career talent agent henry wilson found clint an unaccredited part in a ballerina boys film named jungle gents and clint played a tarzan-like character his only line was you know take jane and when the boys seen how big he was they said we know take jane wilson also suggested that clint take acting lessons and change his name to jett norman on the second day of acting class as he was leaving he met an old actor that he recognized from early pictures named camp summers cap asked him if he was under contract to universal and clint said no he told him that cecil b demilles was filming a movie called the ten commandments and that they were looking for big men to play palace guards and he promised to have demille's right-hand man henry wilcoxson call clint if clint would let him have his phone number clint said he didn't think anything would come of it because people in hollywood made a lot of promises now to clint's surprise after a week he received a call from mr wilcoxon saying that he had clint an appointment scheduled with mr the meals a few days later while traveling from san fernando valley to paramount studios to keep his appointment with mr the mills he spotted an older woman on the side of the highway with a flat tire seeing that she needed help and would not be able to change it herself he stopped knowing it would make him late and after changing her tire she told him she hoped she hadn't made him late for his appointment when he walked into mr demille's office he was told by the mills you are late glenn thought my career is over and i never got started he said he tried to explain that he had stopped to help change a tire when the mail says i know all about it that lady you helped is my secretary in an interview years later when asked about the ten commandments clint said i'm the captain of the pharaoh's guard the big guy with a helmet when charles and heston walks in the ten commandments took five years to make and was released in 1956 from his appearance in the commandments he was asked to try out for a new western tv series that warner brothers was planning called cheyenne clint said that when he went to the interview there was a lot of well-known actors there and he thought he didn't stand to change however he was surprised a couple of weeks later when they called him and told him you are cheyenne bodie he couldn't understand why they picked him over all those major stars until he later learned that they was paying him 175 dollars a week far less than the others were asking he said that might have had a little bit to do with it now lq jones served as clint's sidekick for the first few episodes now here is clint werner and valerie as clint becomes more famous warner brothers had purchased his contract from hal wallace and it was jack warner who suggested that he change his name to clint walker and to everyone's surprise even warner brothers cheyenne became one of abc's most popular tv shows clint said he told the horse trainers that he knew very little about riding horses and they said well that's okay you'll either learn or you'll die he said a lot of times i thought it was going to be the ladder glenn said he had one scene where he was supposed to ride through a narrow canyon and they told him to watch out for that horse he was riding the horse had a habit of scraping the side of the wall on purpose clint was told to raise his legs and he did just in time but said that the water canteen was smashed flat after his first few episodes he was given a horse named brandy now brandy stood 16 hands high and had a distinguishing white spot on his right rump randy was a perfect match for clint big beautiful and even tempered clint evans used brandy in some of his movies here he is on brandy while feminine flagstaff behind the scenes with andrea martin in yellowstone kelly clint was under contract to do films that warner brothers assigned him to he wanted free from his contract to make films and record record albums on his own and in 1958 for one year clint left cheyenne to strike for better wages and more artistic freedom outside of the company's label the company retaliated by russian the western bronco starring ty harden into production next they produce sugarfoot that starred will hutchins trying to take up the slack that cheyenne had left now during his break from cheyenne this magazine cover of clint holding his wife and eight-year-old daughter come out unable to make a deal with warner brothers clint sells his california home with plans to move back to illinois close to his sister now this is clint with two belleville illinois chamber of commerce members and lucy she wanted him to go into the health food business with her and her husband paul westbrook after nine months away from cheyenne clint called executives at warner brothers and stated that he was moving to illinois and wouldn't be back it was their last chance to compromise clint went back to cheyenne at fifteen hundred dollars per week instead of 175. he was also given more freedom to make albums and movies this is danny crane standing on a stool during filming of cheyenne they had to find a way for clint's six foot six frame to be able to kiss five foot forward danny crane so the camera only filmed from the waist up danny said that she had kissed lots of men in the movies that's part of being an actress but this is the first time i ever felt really silly about it danny will become the future wife of actor david jensen in 1961 clint will partner with roger moore as two unfortunate gold prospectors in gold of the seven saints in the early 60s clint and werner lived at 5902 penn field avenue woodland hills it was later added on to and renovated by frank sinatra and roger miller who lived there after clint during their marriage clint and werner moved 10 10-12 times werner loved to move and didn't like staying in one place very long in 1963 after 108 episodes and eight seasons of cheyenne it will close the next year 1964 clint will have a supporting role in send me know flowers with rock hudson and dars day in 1965 frank sinatra cass clint had a lead role in a japanese war film none but the brave it is the only film that frank sinatra ever directed on april 20th 1966 pyramid fixtures released the night of the grizzly starring clinton walker with martha howard and jack elam clint had requested his friend jack keelum for the part in the film he said that jack kept everyone on the set entertained and loved to gamble and would bet on anything the next year in 1967 clint was starring the dirty dozen along with charles bronson lee marvin telly savalas and nine other stars in a world war ii film where a u.s major lee marvin is assigned death row convicted murders to carry out an assassination mission of high-ranking german officers in order to be granted their freedom once the mission was successfully completed in 1968 after 19 years of marriage werner garver and clint walker divorce over the years she will spend her time becoming a loving grandmother and friend to many werner lucille walker passed away on the 27th of november 2014 she rests at the mountain view memorial estate cemetery cottonwood heights salt lake city utah she was 87 years old the next year in 1969 after his divorce clint throwed himself into his work by appearing in three western starting with sam whiskey where a widow played by angie dickerson hires burt reynolds clint and ozzie davis to return gold that her late husband stole and return it before it was missed next will be more dead than alive where clint plays an old gunfighter after spending several years in prison couldn't adapt to the modern west it also starred anne francis and vincent price in his next movie the great bank robbery clint played a supporting role with kim novak and zero mostel on october the 4th 1970 he went back home to hartford for its 50th anniversary clint still has family in the hartford area the next year in may of 1971 clint was skinned at california's premier ski resort mammoth mountain he was a proficient skier but by no means an expert he had been issued ski poles that was too short for his six foot six frame which forced him to bend over to use on his way down the steep mountain he began to tumble forward landing with his full weight on his upright ski pole bending the pole and allowing the temp to pierce four inches into his heart stopping only at the four inch ring on the pole as he continued to tumble the pole came out of his chest he said he realized he was seriously hurt and tried to stand but collapsed unconscious he was spotted by the ski patrol that rushed him to the first aid station and then by ambulance to northern inyo hospital in bishop california approximately 40 miles south after arriving at the hospital he was examined by two doctors after finding no heartbeat and no pulse he was classified as dead and left on a gurney in the hall waiting to be transferred to the morgue fortunately another doctor who happened to be a heart surgeon from ucla was in the hospital visiting a friend as he left his friend and on his way through the hospital to his automobile he passed clint and asked who he was and what had happened to him after learning a ski pole pierced his heart and knowing who clint walker was he asked if he could take a look and in a little bit the doctor said i'm not sure this man is dead i need some instruments and i need to cut his chest to check his heart now clint described it like this he said i could hear what he was saying but it sounded far off i couldn't open my eyes but i mustered enough energy to say do you have to do that he said there was silence for a few seconds until he said yes we do get this man to surgery clint woke up around three the next morning hooked up to all kinds of tubes and wires he said he was told that he was a medical miracle even living he should have been a vegetable doing without oxygen so long he was able believe it or not to leave the hospital in ten days and two months later clint walker was back working he will star with telly savalas and anne francis in pancho villa although the movie is set in mexico during the revolution it was filmed in spain soon after filming clint learned that his mother gladys shawanda walker had passed away on august the 30th 1972 in san clara county illinois mrs walker was 68 years old two years after losing his mother clint will star in a short-lived abc 30-minute television show for warner brothers called kodiak he played as an alaskan state trooper it was aired during the 1974-75 season five years after his divorce from his first wife verna clint met gisele hennessy nicknamed gigi it'll be a year later on the 26th of may 1974 when the two will marry in santa monica clint and gigi were both 46 years old and this was their second marriage gisele's first marriage was to thomas daniel hennessy an actor and stunt man in 1977 clint would star in white buffalo with charles bronson will sampson kim novak slim pickens and a cast of others in a strange western where while bill hickok haunts a white buffalo that he has a dream about now two years later in 1979 it'll be mystery island of beautiful women where clint peter lawford gordon devaughn and some other men crashed their plane in a south pacific island full of beautiful women in 1983 clint will play the sheriff in a comedy call hysterical with bill hudson now by now clint was 57 years old and his movie roles had slowed down around this time it's believed that gigi and clint had moved to auburn california around 30 miles north of sacramento and in 1985 clint would star with eartha kitt in the serpent warriors where a zoologist had to fight off snakes brought by a snake worshiping cult in 1991 clint will play a supporting role in the gambler returns the luck of the draw with kenny rogers and rebel mcintyre the law was shutting down all gambling but agreed to allow one final high-stakes game it's believed that sometime around finishing the luck of the draw clint and gigi will move 30 miles north of auburn to grass valley california and not long after that they will receive devastating news that gigi has terminal cancer after almost 20 years of marriage gisele hennessey walker will pass away on january the 1st 1994 at the age of 65. she will rest at the holy cross cemetery in culver city california two years after giselle's dead clint's dead paul arnold walker passed away on may the 3rd 1996 at the age of 90. mr walker is buried at the mabel park cemetery in aurora missouri three years after losing his wife gigi to cancer in one year after losing his dead clint walker will find love again at the age of 69. on march the 7th 1997 clint will marry susan cavallaro in a private ceremony at his home in grass valley despite being a well-known movie star clint walker was always a very gentle private person and will go to extremes to protect his privacy of his family various seldom would he ever speak with reporters about his family's private lives in 1998 clint's final role was a voice part as nick natural and small soldiers in 2000 clint and susan attended the 18th annual golden boot award clint had been inducted back in 1997. the golden boot award was started by western sidekiq comedian pat buttram to honor actors and stuntmen that performed in westerns also in 2000 on november 11th clint's twin sister naomi lucille walker westbrook passed away at her residence in hartford illinois at the age of 73. she's buried at the valhalla memorial park cemetery in godfrey illinois in 2004 clint was inducted into the hall of great western performers at the national cowboy and western heritage museum in oklahoma city when he was asked by a reporter how he wanted to be remembered when he passed clint thought for a moment and said good guy i want to be remembered as a good guy his star is on the hollywood walk of fame located at 1505 fine street and sunset boulevard norman eugene clint walker was taken to the local hospital in grass valley and on the 21st of may 2018 passed away with congestive heart failure nine days before his 91st birthday his remains were cremated and given to his wife susan susan and his daughter valerie were at his side this is cheyenne bodhi clint walker a good guy [Music] you

Channel: Jerry Skinner

Views: 170,768

Rating: 4.9200711 out of 5

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Id: mxN1aq2-Dwc

Length: 26min 4sec (1564 seconds)

Published: Sat Aug 08 2020