Lee Van Cleef

Lee Van Cleef

  • Birthday: 1925-01-09
  • Deathday: 1989-12-16
  • Place of birth: Somerville, New Jersey, USA
  • Also know as: Clarence Leroy Van Cleef Jr.

Biography

Clarence LeRoy "Lee" Van Cleef Jr. was an American actor best known for his roles in Spaghetti Westerns such as For A Few Dollars More and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Hatchet-faced with piercing eyes, he had declined to have his nose altered to play a sympathetic character in his film debut, High Noon, and was relegated to a non-speaking outlaw as a result. For a decade he was typecast as a minor villain, his sinister features overshadowing his acting skills. After suffering serious injuries in a car crash, Van Cleef began to lose interest in his apparently waning career by the time Sergio Leone gave him a major role in For a Few Dollars More. The film made him a box-office draw, especially in Europe. Military service: After basic training and further training at the Naval Fleet Sound School, Van Cleef was assigned to a submarine chaser and then to a minesweeper, USS Incredible, on which he worked as a sonarman. After leaving the Navy, Van Cleef read for a part in Our Town at the Little Theater Group in Clinton, New Jersey and received his first stage role. From there, he continued to meet with the group and audition for parts. The next biggest part was that of the boxer, Joe Pendleton, in the play Heaven Can Wait. During this time, he was observed by visiting talent scouts, who were impressed by Van Cleef's stage presence and delivery. One of these scouts later took him to New York City talent agent Maynard Morris of the MCA agency, who then sent him to the Alvin Theater for an audition. Van Cleef's screen debut came in High Noon. During a performance of Mister Roberts in Los Angeles, he was noticed by film director Stanley Kramer, who offered Van Cleef a role in his upcoming film. Kramer originally wanted Van Cleef for the role of the deputy Harvey Pell, but as he wanted Van Cleef to have his "distinctive nose" fixed, Van Cleef declined the role in favor of the part of the silent gunslinger Jack Colby. He was then cast mostly in villainous roles, due to his sharp cheeks and chin, piercing eyes, and hawk-like nose, from the part of Tony Romano in Kansas City Confidential (1952), culminating 14 years later in Sergio Leone's The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) Despite suffering from heart disease from the late 1970s and having a pacemaker installed in the early 1980s, Van Cleef continued to work in films until his death on December 16, 1989, at age 64. He was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Hollywood Hills, California, with an inscription on his grave marker referring to his many acting performances as a villain: "BEST OF THE BAD". Description above from the Wikipedia article Lee Van Cleef, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Filmography

Barquero

1970

As Travis

Beyond the Law

1968

As Billy Joe Cudlip

It Conquered the World

1956

As Dr. Tom Anderson

The Magnificent Seven Ride!

1972

As Marshal Chris Adams

The Grand Duel

1972

As Sheriff Clayton

Take a Hard Ride

1975

As Kiefer

The Big Gundown

1967

As Jonathan Corbett

Death Rides a Horse

1967

As Ryan

Sabata

1969

As Sabata

Return of Sabata

1971

As Sabata / Major

Day of Anger

1967

As Frank Talby

El Condor

1970

As Jaroo

Kid Vengeance

1976

As McClain

God's Gun

1976

As Father John / Lewis

Bad Man's River

1971

As Roy King

Commandos

1968

As MSgt. Sullivan

Captain Apache

1971

As Capt. Apache

The Perfect Killer

1977

As Harry Chapman

The Squeeze

1978

As Chris Gretchko / Ray Sloan

The Master Ninja 5

1985

As John Peter McAllister

Master Ninja

1984

As John Peter McAllister

Nowhere to Hide

1977

As Ike Scanlon

Master Ninja II

1984

As John Peter McAllister

For a Few Dollars More

1965

As Col. Douglas Mortimer

Escape from New York

1981

As Police Commissioner Bob Hauk

Armed Response

1986

As Burt Roth

Thieves of Fortune

1990

As Sergio Danielo Christophero

Jungle Raiders

1985

As Warren

The Hard Way

1980

As McNeal

The Commander

1988

As Col. Mazzarini

Peter Baumgartner, Filmkameramann

2014

As (archive footage)

The Octagon

1980

As McCarn

Killing Machine

1984

As Julot

Code Name: Wild Geese

1984

As Archie 'China' Travers

Guns, Girls and Gangsters

1959

As Mike Bennett

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

1966

As Sentenza / Angel Eyes

Raiders of Old California

1957

As Damon Pardee

Last Stagecoach West

1957

As Steve Margolies

The Quiet Gun

1957

As Doug Sadler

Kansas City Confidential

1952

As Tony Romano

The Big Combo

1955

As Fante

Ride Lonesome

1959

As Frank

China Gate

1957

As Maj. Cham

Gypsy Colt

1954

As Hank

The Nebraskan

1953

As Pvt. Reno Benton

I Cover the Underworld

1955

As Flash Logan

Pardners

1956

As Gus

The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms

1953

As Corp. Stone

Accused of Murder

1956

As Police Sgt. Emmett Lackey

Machete

1958

As Miguel

Joe Dakota

1957

As Adam Grant

A Man Alone

1955

As Clanton

The Yellow Tomahawk

1954

As Fire Knife

The Desperado

1954

As Paul Clayton/Buck Clayton

The Lonely Man

1957

As Faro

Arrow In The Dust

1954

As Tillotson Henchman

The Vanishing American

1955

As Jay Lord

The Badge of Marshal Brennan

1957

As Shad Donaphin

The Road to Denver

1955

As Pecos Larry

The Lawless Breed

1952

As Dirk Hanley

Arena

1953

As Smitty

Treasure of Ruby Hills

1955

As Frank Emmett

White Lightning

1953

As Brutus Allen

Tumbleweed

1953

As Marv

The Young Lions

1958

As 1st Sgt. Rickett

Rails Into Laramie

1954

As Ace Winton

Jack Slade

1953

As Bolt Mackay

The Tin Star

1957

As Ed McGaffey

The Bravados

1958

As Alfonso Parral

Untamed Frontier

1952

As Dave Chittun

The Conqueror

1956

As Chepei

Vice Squad

1953

As Pete Monty

Dawn at Socorro

1954

As Earl Ferris

Tribute to a Bad Man

1956

As Fat Jones

Day of the Badman

1958

As Jake Hayes

Posse from Hell

1961

As Leo

High Noon

1952

As Jack Colby

Ten Wanted Men

1955

As Al Drucker

Klaus Kinski: I'm not an actor

2000

As Col. Douglas Mortimer (archive footage)

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

1957

As Ed Bailey

The Naked Street

1955

As Harry Goldish (uncredited)

Speed Zone

1989

As Grandfather

Princess of the Nile

1954

As Hakar (uncredited)

How the West Was Won

1962

As River Pirate (uncredited)

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