Site Revisions Underway Some Features May Not Work
Photo of William Boyd

William Boyd

Acting 77 (deceased) years old Hendrysburg, Ohio, USA ★ 0.5
Born: June 4, 1895
Died: September 12, 1972

Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

William Lawrence Boyd (June 5, 1895 – September 12, 1972) was an American film actor who is best known for portraying the cowboy hero Hopalong Cassidy. Boyd was born in Hendrysburg, Ohio, and reared in Cambridge, Ohio and Tulsa, Oklahoma. He was the son of a day laborer, Charles William Boyd, and his wife, the former Lida Wilkens (aka Lyda). Following his father's death, he moved to California and worked as an orange picker, surveyor, tool dresser and auto salesman.

In Hollywood, he found work as an extra in Why Change Your Wife? and other films. During World War I, he enlisted in the army but was exempt from military service because of a "weak heart". More prominent film roles followed, including his breakout role as Jack Moreland in Cecil B. DeMille's The Road to Yesterday (1925) which starred also Joseph Schildkraut, Jetta Goudal, and Vera Reynolds. Boyd's performance in the film was praised by critics, while movie-goers were equally impressed by his easy charm, charisma, and intense good-looks. Due to Boyd's growing popularity, DeMille soon cast him as the leading man in the highly acclaimed silent drama film, The Volga Boatman. Boyd's role as Feodor blew critics away, and with Boyd now firmly established as a matinee idol and romantic leading man, he began earning an annual salary of $100,000. He acted in DeMille's extravaganza The King of Kings (in which he played Simon of Cyrene, helping Jesus carry the cross) and DeMille's Skyscraper (1928). He then appeared in D.W. Griffith's Lady of the Pavements (1929).

Radio Pictures ended Boyd's contract in 1931 when his picture was mistakenly run in a newspaper story about the arrest of another actor, William "Stage" Boyd, on gambling and liquor charges. Although the newspaper apologized, explaining the mistake in the following day's newspaper, Boyd said, "The damage was already done." William "Stage" Boyd died in 1935, the same year William L. Boyd became Hopalong Cassidy, the role that led to his enduring fame. But at the time in 1931, Boyd was virtually broke and without a job, and for a few years he was credited in films as "Bill Boyd" to prevent being mistaken for the other William Boyd.

External Links

🎬 IMDb

Known For

The Greatest Show on Earth
The Greatest Show on Earth Hopalong Cassidy (uncredited) 1952
Hidden Gold
Hidden Gold Hopalong Cassidy 1940
False Paradise
False Paradise William "Hopalong" Cassidy 1948
Flaming Gold
Flaming Gold Dan Manton 1932
The Movie Orgy
The Movie Orgy Hopalong Cassidy (archive footage) 1968

Filmography

Acting Credits (145)

Golden Saddles, Silver Spurs
Golden Saddles, Silver Spurs (archive footage) 2000
Television: The First Fifty Years
Television: The First Fifty Years Hopalong Cassidy (archive footage) 1999
Robert Mitchum: The Reluctant Star
Robert Mitchum: The Reluctant Star Self (archive footage) 1991
Going Hollywood: The '30s
Going Hollywood: The '30s (archive footage) 1984
Western von gestern
Western von gestern Bill Holbrook (archive footage) 1978
Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch
Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch (archive footage) 1976
It's Showtime
It's Showtime Self (archive footage) 1976
The Movie Orgy
The Movie Orgy Hopalong Cassidy (archive footage) 1968
Little Smokey
Little Smokey Hopalong Cassidy 1953
Hopalong Cassidy
Hopalong Cassidy Hopalong Cassidy 1952
The Greatest Show on Earth
The Greatest Show on Earth Hopalong Cassidy (uncredited) 1952
Strange Gamble
Strange Gamble Hopalong Cassidy 1948
False Paradise
False Paradise William "Hopalong" Cassidy 1948
Borrowed Trouble
Borrowed Trouble Hopalong Cassidy 1948
Sinister Journey
Sinister Journey Hopalong Cassidy 1948
The Dead Don't Dream
The Dead Don't Dream Hopalong Cassidy 1948
Silent Conflict
Silent Conflict Hopalong Cassidy 1948
Hoppy's Holiday
Hoppy's Holiday Hopalong Cassidy 1947
The Marauders
The Marauders Hopalong Cassidy 1947
Dangerous Venture
Dangerous Venture Hopalong Cassidy 1947
Unexpected Guest
Unexpected Guest Hopalong Cassidy 1947
The Devil's Playground
The Devil's Playground Hopalong Cassidy 1946
Fool's Gold
Fool's Gold Hopalong Cassidy 1946
Forty Thieves
Forty Thieves Hopalong Cassidy 1944
Mystery Man
Mystery Man Hopalong Cassidy 1944
Lumberjack
Lumberjack Hopalong Cassidy 1944
Texas Masquerade
Texas Masquerade Hopalong Cassidy 1944
Riders of the Deadline
Riders of the Deadline Ranger William "Hopalong" Cassidy 1943
False Colors
False Colors Hopalong Cassidy 1943
Bar 20
Bar 20 Hopalong Cassidy 1943
Colt Comrades
Colt Comrades Hopalong Cassidy 1943
Leather Burners
Leather Burners Hopalong Cassidy 1943
Border Patrol
Border Patrol Hopalong Cassidy 1943
Hoppy Serves a Writ
Hoppy Serves a Writ Hopalong Cassidy 1943
Lost Canyon
Lost Canyon Hopalong Cassidy 1942
Undercover Man
Undercover Man Hopalong Cassidy 1942
Secret of the Wastelands
Secret of the Wastelands Hopalong Cassidy 1941
Outlaws of the Desert
Outlaws of the Desert Hopalong Cassidy 1941
Twilight on the Trail
Twilight on the Trail Hopalong Cassidy 1941
Riders of the Timberline
Riders of the Timberline Hopalong Cassidy 1941
Stick to Your Guns
Stick to Your Guns Hopalong Cassidy 1941
Wide Open Town
Wide Open Town Hopalong Cassidy 1941
Pirates on Horseback
Pirates on Horseback Hopalong Cassidy 1941
Border Vigilantes
Border Vigilantes Hopalong Cassidy 1941
In Old Colorado
In Old Colorado Hopalong Cassidy 1941
Doomed Caravan
Doomed Caravan Hopalong Cassidy 1941
Three Men from Texas
Three Men from Texas Hopalong Cassidy 1940
Stagecoach War
Stagecoach War Hopalong Cassidy 1940
Hidden Gold
Hidden Gold Hopalong Cassidy 1940
The Showdown
The Showdown Hopalong Cassidy 1940
Santa Fe Marshal
Santa Fe Marshal Hopalong Cassidy 1940
Law of the Pampas
Law of the Pampas Hopalong Cassidy 1939
Range War
Range War Hopalong Cassidy 1939
Renegade Trail
Renegade Trail Hopalong Cassidy 1939
Land of Liberty
Land of Liberty (archive footage) 1939
Silver on the Sage
Silver on the Sage Hopalong Cassidy 1939
Sunset Trail
Sunset Trail Hopalong Cassidy 1939
The Frontiersmen
The Frontiersmen Hopalong Cassidy 1938
In Old Mexico
In Old Mexico Hopalong Cassidy 1938
Pride of the West
Pride of the West Hopalong Cassidy 1938
Bar 20 Justice
Bar 20 Justice Hopalong Cassidy 1938
Heart of Arizona
Heart of Arizona Hopalong Cassidy 1938
Cassidy of Bar 20
Cassidy of Bar 20 Hopalong Cassidy 1938
Partners of the Plains
Partners of the Plains Hopalong Cassidy 1938
Texas Trail
Texas Trail Hopalong Cassidy 1937
Hopalong Rides Again
Hopalong Rides Again Hopalong Cassidy 1937
Rustlers' Valley
Rustlers' Valley Hopalong Cassidy 1937
North of the Rio Grande
North of the Rio Grande Hopalong Cassidy 1937
Hills of Old Wyoming
Hills of Old Wyoming Hopalong Cassidy 1937
Borderland
Borderland Hopalong Cassidy 1937
Trail Dust
Trail Dust Hopalong Cassidy 1936
Hopalong Cassidy Returns
Hopalong Cassidy Returns Hopalong Cassidy 1936
Go-Get-'Em, Haines
Go-Get-'Em, Haines Steve Haines 1936
Burning Gold
Burning Gold Jim Thornton 1936
Three on the Trail
Three on the Trail Hopalong Cassidy 1936
Federal Agent
Federal Agent Bob Woods 1936
Call of the Prairie
Call of the Prairie Hopalong Cassidy 1936
Heart of the West
Heart of the West Hopalong Cassidy 1936
Bar 20 Rides Again
Bar 20 Rides Again Hopalong Cassidy 1935
Racing Luck
Racing Luck Dan Morgan 1935
The Eagle's Brood
The Eagle's Brood Hopalong Cassidy 1935
Hop-a-long Cassidy
Hop-a-long Cassidy Hopalong Cassidy 1935
Port of Lost Dreams
Port of Lost Dreams Lars Christensen 1934
Cheaters
Cheaters Steve Morris 1934
Emergency Call
Emergency Call Joe Bradley 1933
Lucky Devils
Lucky Devils Skipper Clark 1933
Men Of America
Men Of America Jim Parker 1932
Flaming Gold
Flaming Gold Dan Manton 1932
Carnival Boat
Carnival Boat Buck Gannon 1932
Suicide Fleet
Suicide Fleet Baltimore 1931
The Big Gamble
The Big Gamble Alan Beckwith 1931
Beyond Victory
Beyond Victory Bill Thatcher 1931
The Painted Desert
The Painted Desert Bill Holbrook 1931
Screen Snapshots Series 10, No. 5
Screen Snapshots Series 10, No. 5 William Boyd 1930
Officer O'Brien
Officer O'Brien Bill O'Brien 1930
His First Command
His First Command Terry Culver 1929
The Flying Fool
The Flying Fool Bill Taylor 1929
High Voltage
High Voltage Bill 1929
The Leatherneck
The Leatherneck William Calhoun 1929
Lady of the Pavements
Lady of the Pavements Karl Von Arnim 1929
Power
Power Husky 1928
The Cop
The Cop Pete Smith 1928
Skyscraper
Skyscraper Blondy 1928
The Night Flyer
The Night Flyer Jimmy Bradley 1928
Dress Parade
Dress Parade Vic Donovan 1927
Two Arabian Knights
Two Arabian Knights Daingerfield Phelps 1927
The Yankee Clipper
The Yankee Clipper Hal Winslow 1927
The King of Kings
The King of Kings Simon Of Cyrene 1927
Jim the Conqueror
Jim the Conqueror Jim Burgess 1926
Her Man o' War
Her Man o' War Jim Sanderson 1926
The Last Frontier
The Last Frontier Tom Kirby 1926
The Volga Boatman
The Volga Boatman Feodor 1926
Eve's Leaves
Eve's Leaves Bill Stanley 1926
The Road to Yesterday
The Road to Yesterday Jack Moreland 1925
The Midshipman
The Midshipman Spud 1925
New Lives for Old
New Lives for Old Soldier (uncredited) 1925
Forty Winks
Forty Winks Lt. Gerald Hugh Butterworth 1925
Feet of Clay
Feet of Clay Young Society Man (uncredited) 1924
Tarnish
Tarnish Bill 1924
Changing Husbands
Changing Husbands Conrad Bardshaw 1924
Enemies of Children
Enemies of Children Sidney Godfrey 1923
The Temple of Venus
The Temple of Venus Stanley Dale 1923
Hollywood
Hollywood William Boyd 1923
Michael O'Halloran
Michael O'Halloran Douglas Bruce 1923
The Young Rajah
The Young Rajah Stephen Van Kovert 1922
Manslaughter
Manslaughter (uncredited) 1922
On the High Seas
On the High Seas Dick Deveraux 1922
Nice People
Nice People Oliver Comstock 1922
Moran of the Lady Letty
Moran of the Lady Letty Ramon's Friend at Homecoming 1922
Saturday Night
Saturday Night Party Guest 1922
Bobbed Hair
Bobbed Hair Dick Barton 1922
Exit the Vamp
Exit the Vamp Robert Pitts 1921
After the Show
After the Show (uncredited) 1921
The Affairs of Anatol
The Affairs of Anatol Guest 1921
Moonlight and Honeysuckle
Moonlight and Honeysuckle Robert V. Courtney 1921
A Wise Fool
A Wise Fool Gerard Fynes 1921
Brewster's Millions
Brewster's Millions Harrison 1921
The Jucklins
The Jucklins Dan Stuart 1921
Forbidden Fruit
Forbidden Fruit Billiards Player 1921
A City Sparrow
A City Sparrow Hughie Ray 1920
Something to Think About
Something to Think About (uncredited) 1920
The City of Masks
The City of Masks Carpenter 1920
The Six Best Cellars
The Six Best Cellars Holsappel (uncredited) 1920
Was He Guilty?
Was He Guilty? 1919
Old Wives for New
Old Wives for New (uncredited) 1918

Directing Credits (1)

Powered by

TMDB
× Person photo
❮ Back to Person Search