Robert Fuller (actor) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Robert Fuller
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Fuller in 1968
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| Born |
Leonard Leroy Lee
July 29, 1933 Troy, New York, U.S.
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| Other names | Robert Simpson Jr. |
| Education | Key West High School |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1952–2003 |
| Known for |
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| Spouse(s) |
Patricia Lee Lyon
(m. 1962; div. 1984)Jennifer Savidge
(m. 2001) |
Robert Fuller (born Leonard Leroy Lee; July 29, 1933) is a retired American actor. He is famous for his deep voice and his roles in popular TV Western shows like Laramie (where he played Jess Harper) and Wagon Train (as Cooper Smith). He also starred as Dr. Kelly Brackett in the medical drama Emergency! from 1972 to 1977.
Robert Fuller appeared in several movies too. These include The Brain from Planet Arous (1957), Teenage Thunder (1957), Return of the Seven (1966), and The Hard Ride (1971).
Contents
Early Life and First Steps in Acting
Robert Fuller was born Leonard Leroy Lee on July 29, 1933, in Troy, New York. He was the only child of Elizabeth Lee, a dance teacher. Later, his mom married Robert Simpson Sr., a Navy officer. In 1939, his family moved to Key West, Florida. There, he started using the name Robert Simpson Jr. His parents owned a dance school in Florida. His family also lived in Chicago for a year before moving back to Florida.
Robert attended Miami Military School and Key West High School. He left school at age 14 because he didn't enjoy it and wasn't doing well. In 1950, when he was 16, he and his parents moved to Hollywood, California. His first job was as a stunt man, which means he performed dangerous scenes in movies instead of the main actors. He also worked at Grauman's Chinese Theatre, first as a doorman, then as an assistant manager. Friends encouraged him to join the Screen Actors Guild, a union for actors. He changed his name to Robert Fuller and started his acting career.
Robert Fuller's Acting Career
Starting Out in Show Business
Robert Fuller began his career as a teenager. He worked as a dancer, a stuntman, and an extra in movies. An extra is someone who appears in the background of a scene without speaking lines.
His first small role was as an extra in the 1952 film Above and Beyond. He also appeared in I Love Melvin as a cheerleader and football player. In 1953, he had uncredited parts in famous movies like Gentlemen Prefer Blondes with Marilyn Monroe and Calamity Jane with Doris Day. His acting career paused when he served in the United States Army in Korea. He returned to the U.S. in 1955.
Even though he thought about quitting acting, his friend Chuck Courtney suggested he take acting classes. Robert Fuller then studied acting in New York City. His first speaking role was in the 1956 film Friendly Persuasion. He worked with future co-star John Smith and friend Doug McClure. Although his speaking part was cut, you can still see him in two different roles in the film.
In 1957, Fuller got his first main movie role in Teenage Thunder. He said that this movie was a big chance for him. It helped him get many other roles, including his part in the Laramie TV series.
TV Roles in the 1950s and 1960s
Robert Fuller became a very popular actor who often played different kinds of characters in TV shows. He appeared in many programs, such as Buckskin, The Big Valley, The Californians, and The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin.
In 1959, he played a character accused of setting fires in the TV show Highway Patrol. He also appeared in The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp and Mike Hammer.
He played Alex in an episode of Death Valley Days in 1958. Then, in 1959, he played a clever cattle thief named Johnny Santos in another episode. On February 24, 1959, Fuller was a guest star in the "Blind is the Killer" episode of Cimarron City. He played a young gunfighter who wanted to make a name for himself. This role helped him get a lead part seven months later in Laramie.
In the summer of 1959, Fuller played a young outlaw named Buck Harmon in the show Lawman. In the story, Buck helps his old friend, Deputy Johnny McKay, and is shot while doing so. Fuller also appeared in another Lawman episode in 1959.
Robert Fuller was almost cast as Joseph "Little Joe" Cartwright in the famous Western show Bonanza. However, the role went to Michael Landon. Instead, Fuller got the part of Jess Harper on Laramie, which ran from 1959 to 1963. He starred alongside his good friend John Smith. Laramie became very popular and was shown in over 70 countries.
When Laramie ended in 1963, Fuller moved to another Western show called Wagon Train. He joined actors like John McIntire and Frank McGrath. He was not brought in to replace Robert Horton, who had already left the show a year before. Fuller completed the final two seasons of Wagon Train.
Even though Western movies were becoming less popular in the late 1960s, Fuller still appeared in a few more. He starred in Incident at Phantom Hill in 1966. He also played Captain William Judd Fetterman in "Massacre at Fort Phil Kearney" on TV. He was Vin in Return of the Seven (1966), which was a follow-up to The Magnificent Seven.
He also appeared in the 1969 thriller What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice?. He worked with Joel McCrea in the 1976 Western Mustang Country, which was McCrea's last movie. Fuller also appeared in the 1979 TV action movie Disaster on the Coastliner.
Starring in Emergency!
After producer Jack Webb saw Robert Fuller in the 1971 movie The Hard Ride, he wanted Fuller to star in his new medical drama, Emergency!. Webb had already cast singer and actress Julie London, who was a good friend of Fuller's, as Dixie McCall, the Chief Nurse.
Fuller wasn't sure about playing a doctor, especially in a show set in a modern city. But Jack Webb convinced him to take the role of Dr. Kelly Brackett, the Chief of Emergency Medicine at the fictional Rampart General Hospital. Fuller later said that he had politely turned down the role twice. Webb then reminded him that Western shows were being canceled and were not as popular anymore.
In the last season of Emergency!, Fuller appeared less often. This was because the show changed its focus, and he also wanted to find more work in Westerns and go fishing with his friends. The show then focused more on the characters played by Randolph Mantooth and Kevin Tighe.
Later TV Appearances
In 1980, Robert Fuller starred in the first episode of a CBS Western series called Jake's Way. However, the series was not picked up to be a full show.
In the 1990s, he was a guest star in over 20 TV shows. These included The Love Boat, Murder, She Wrote, Tour of Duty, and JAG. He had a recurring role (meaning he appeared in several episodes) as Wade Harper, a retired Texas Ranger and a descendant of his Laramie character, Jess Harper, on Walker, Texas Ranger. He also played Ranger Cabe Wallace in another episode.
His last movie roles included playing Dr. Hackett (based on his Emergency! character) in the comedy movie Repossessed (1990). He also had a small appearance as a poker player with other old Western stars in Maverick (1994).
Robert Fuller's Personal Life
Robert Fuller also tried singing. He performed with a rock group at holiday events in California. In 1967, he recorded an album in Germany. Most of the songs were in German, like "Ein einsamer Cowboy" ("Lonesome Cowboy").
Fuller married Patricia Lee Lyon on December 20, 1962. They had three children. They divorced in 1984, and Patricia passed away from cancer in 1994.
By the 1990s, Fuller had mostly retired from acting. His last acting credit was in 2001. He married actress Jennifer Savidge on May 19, 2001. She is known for her role in the TV series St. Elsewhere.
Fuller met with the other surviving cast members of Emergency! at a convention in 1998. All the main actors attended except for Julie London, who had health issues. Fuller and the cast answered questions from fans and shared memories about their time together on the show.
In 2010, Fuller honored his late co-star John Smith at the Festival of the West. He shared many stories about Smith's life and their great chemistry on and off screen during Laramie.
In 2004, Fuller and his wife Jennifer Savidge moved from Los Angeles to a ranch in north Texas. His friend Alex Cord had encouraged him to move there. They met in 1961 on the set of Laramie.
In 2010, Fuller, James Drury, and Don Reynolds took part in the Wild West Toy Show in Azle, Texas. This event promotes horse riding and Western items. In 2012, Fuller and other Western celebrities attended the first Spirit of the Cowboy Western Festival in McKinney, Texas.
On July 29, 2013, Robert Fuller celebrated his 80th birthday with his fans and wife while on vacation in Libby, Montana. In 2014, Fuller and his friend James Best attended the 100th birthday celebration of their friend Norman Lloyd. James Best passed away a few months later.
Awards and Honors
- In 1961, Robert Fuller won the Best Actor Award in Japan. He also received the Japanese Golden Order of Merit, presented by the Empress of Japan. He was the first American to ever receive this award.
- In 1970, he won five Ottos, which are like the Emmy Awards in Germany. That same year, he won the Buffalo Bill award for being an Outstanding Western Entertainer.
- On April 16, 1974, he received the Outstanding Service Award from the Huntsville (Alabama) Fire Department.
- Robert Fuller has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6608 Hollywood Blvd for his work in television.
- In 1989, he won the Golden Boot Award, which honors actors in Western films and TV shows.
- On March 18, 2006, a bronze sculpture of his character Jess Harper on his horse Traveller was given to him by his fans and the National Festival of the West.
- On October 12, 2007, he won the Silver Spur Award.
- On April 12, 2008, Fuller was added to the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.
- On October 12, 2013, Fuller was the first person to receive the Spirit of the Cowboy Lonestar Legacy Award.
- On October 27, 2018, Fuller was added to the Texas Trail Of Fame.
- On April 11, 2019, Fuller was inducted into the Newhall Walk of Western Stars.
Filmography
- 1971: The Virginian (TV series) (TV) season 9 episode 19 (Flight from Memory) : Carl Ellis
- 1989: Paradise (American TV series) (TV) season 2 episode 3 (Home Again) : Sam Clanton
- 2001: JAG (American TV series) (TV) Season 6 Episode 16 (Retreat, Hell) : Marine Corps General
See also
In Spanish: Robert Fuller para niños
