Cliff Lyons
- Acting
- July 5, 1901 · Clarno Township, Lake County, South Dakota, USA
- January 6, 1974
Biography
Cliff Lyons was an American actor, stuntman and second-unit director, primarily of Westerns, particularly the films of John Ford and John Wayne. Lyons, the son of Garrett Thomas Lyons and Wilhamena Johnson Lyons, was raised on a South Dakota farm, though his family lived for a time in Memphis, TN, where he attended business school. An expert horseman, he gave up the notion of a business career and opted for the rodeo arena instead, touring the country;y and eventually reaching Los Angeles at the age of 21. With accomplished cowboys in great demand, Lyons quickly became involved in movies, working both as a stuntman and an actor. After only a couple of bit parts, he was signed by producer Bud Barsky to do seven inexpensive Westerns directed by Paul Hurst, with Lyons and Al Hoxie alternating as the hero and the heavy. Lyons and Hoxie alternated in another Western series produced by Morris R. Schlank, and, as Cliff 'Tex' Lyons, he seemed headed for minor stardom as a B-Western lead. However, Lyons' voice was not well-suited for sound and the talkie revolution confined him to small roles. As his small shot at stardom faded, however, his career as a stunt double for stars big and small was on the rise. He doubled such cowboy stars as Tom Mix, Ken Maynard, Buck Jones and Johnny Mack Brown. In 1936 he worked with John Wayne for the first and struck up a personal and business relationship that would remain strong for three decades. Wayne was influential in getting Lyons his first work as a second-unit director and in introducing Lyons to John Ford, for whom Lyons would do some of his finest work. Lyons' reputation as a stunt coordinator is comparable to that of acknowledged master Yakima Canutt, with whom Lyons partnered on numerous occasions. Perhaps Lyons' most impressive work was the massive and dynamic battle sequences of Wayne's The Alamo (1960). He was married from 1938 to 1955 to actress Beth Marion, with whom he had two sons. Cliff Lyons died in 1974 at 72, not long after coordinating stunts for Wayne's The Train Robbers (1973). Date of Birth 4 July 1901, near Clarno Township, Lake County, South Dakota Date of Death 6 January 1974, Los Angeles, California
Known for
Filmography
- The Train Robbers · Second Unit Director, Stunt Coordinator
- Chisum · Wrangler (uncredited)
- The Green Berets · Hugh Parkinson (uncredited)
- The War Wagon · Outrider (uncredited), Stunts
- Marco the Magnificent · (uncredited)
- Genghis Khan · (uncredited), Second Unit Director
- Major Dundee · Trooper (uncredited), Second Unit Director
- Cheyenne Autumn · Stunts
- McLintock! · Stunt Coordinator, Technical Advisor
- Taras Bulba · Second Unit Director
- How the West Was Won · Stunts
- Two Rode Together · William McCandless (uncredited), Stunts
- The Alamo · Bowie's Man (uncredited), Second Unit Director
- Spartacus · Soldier (uncredited)
- Sergeant Rutledge · Sam Beecher (uncredited), Stunts
- Ben-Hur · The Lubian (uncredited)
- The Horse Soldiers · Union Sergeant (uncredited), Stunts
- The Young Land · Reynolds - Jury Foreman (uncredited), Jury Foreman
- The Missouri Traveler · Stunts
- Wagon Train · Creel Weatherby
- Apache Warrior · Trooper (uncredited)
- The Abductors · Secret Service Agent
- The Wings of Eagles · Officer in Brawl (uncredited), Stunts
- 7 Men from Now · Henchman
- The Searchers · Stunts
- The Conqueror · Second Unit Director, Stunts
- The Prodigal · Harun (uncredited), Stunts
- The Sun Shines Bright
- Bend of the River · Willie, Stunts
- The Red Badge of Courage · Soldier (uncredited)
- Rio Grande · Soldier (uncredited), Second Unit Director
- Wagon Master · Marshal of Crystal City, Second Unit Director
- When Willie Comes Marching Home · Churchgoer (uncredited)
- She Wore a Yellow Ribbon · Trooper Cliff (uncredited), Second Unit Director
- 3 Godfathers · Guard at Mojave Tanks (uncredited), Stunts
- Red River · Stunts
- Fort Apache · Second Unit Director, Stunts
- The Phantom Rider · Stunts
- The Purple Monster Strikes · Stunts
- Death Valley Manhunt · Stunts
- Wagon Tracks West · Henchman Matt
- Colt Comrades · Rancher
- The Old Chisholm Trail · Stand In
- The Silver Bullet · Stage Driver, Barfly
- They Died with Their Boots On · Stunt Double
- How Green Was My Valley · Stunts
- Riders of Death Valley · Stunts
- Winners of the West · Indian / Henchman, Stunts
- The Man from Tumbleweeds · Stunts
- The Light That Failed · Stunts
- Destry Rides Again · Stunts
- Renegade Trail · Henchman, Stunts
- Three Texas Steers · Stunts
- Dodge City · Stunts
- Jesse James · Stunt Double
- Cassidy of Bar 20 · Stunts
- Hollywood Round-Up · Saloon Set Brawler
- Black Aces · Rider
- North of the Rio Grande · Barfly, Stunts
- Trailin' West · Gambler (uncredited)
- The Phantom Rider · Stunts
- Three on the Trail · Stunts
- Three Godfathers · Stunts
- The Lawless Nineties · Henchman Davis
- The Singing Vagabond · Stunts
- Bar 20 Rides Again · Stunts
- The Eagle's Brood · Cowhand
- Stormy · Cowhand (uncredited)
- The Last Days of Pompeii · Ostorius - a Gladiator (uncredited)
- The Miracle Rider · Stunts
- The Crimson Trail · Barroom Cowhand
- In Old Santa Fe · Cowhand (uncredited)
- Love Time · Stunts
- The Red Rider · Stunts
- Gordon of Ghost City · Rider
- Robbers' Roost · Stunt Double
- The Devil Horse · Cowhand (uncredited), Stunts
- The Night Rider · Bert Logan
- The Texas Bad Man · Stunts
- Mystery Ranch · Stunts