William Steele (actor)

Infobox actor
name = William Steele
birthdate = 28 March, 1888
birthplace = San Antonio, Texas
deathdate = 13 February, 1966
deathplace = Los Angeles, California
othername = William Anton Gittinger
occupation = Actor
yearsactive = 1912 - 1956
imdb_id = 0824700

William Anton Gittinger (28 March, 1888 - 13 February, 1966) was an American actor of small roles in Westerns, particularly those of John Ford.

Although his screen credits and many records indicate a wide variety of names and spellings, Steele's own signatures on his military documents indicate that he was born William Anton Gittinger on March 28, 1888 (not 1889, as some sources have it) in San Antonio, Texas. Little is known of his life prior to his arrival in Los Angeles around 1910. As the film industry in Hollywood was just blossoming, and as he apparently had great experience with horses, Steele easily obtained work in quickie Westerns. He fought in Europe in World War I, then returned to Hollywood. [World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, Los Angeles County, California; Roll: 1530902; Draft Board: 14] While he was extremely inconsistent in the names he used, he worked consistently in Westerns throughout the silent era and up until the 1950s. His final appearance was as the wounded posse member Nesby in Ford's "The Searchers" in 1956, his tenth film for Ford. He died ten years later, not quite 78 years old. He was survived by his wife Josephine, an actress. He is buried under his birth name at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio, Texas. [National Cemetery Administration. U.S. Veterans Gravesites, ca.1775-2006]

tage names

*Billy Gettinger
*Bill Gettinger
*William Gettinger
*William Gittenger
*Bill Steele
*Robert Steele
*W.A. Steele
*William A. Steele
*William Steuer
*William Steele

elected filmography

* Ace of Spades (1925)
* The Last Man on Earth (1924)
* Shootin' for Love (1923)
* Dead Game (1923)
* Single Handed (1923)
* The Wallop (1921)
* The Avenging Arrow (1921)
* The Phantom Riders (1918)
* Bucking Broadway (1917)
* A Marked Man (1917)
* The Secret Man (1917)
* The Texas Sphinx (1917)
* Cheyenne's Pal (1917)
* The Soul Herder (1917)
* Six-Shooter Justice (1917)
* The Wrong Man (1917)
* The Golden Bullet (1917)
* The Mysterious Outlaw (1917)
* A 44-Calibre Mystery (1917)
* Hair-Trigger Burke (1917)
* The Fighting Gringo (1917)
* Goin' Straight (1917)
* The Outlaw and the Lady (1917)
* The Bad Man of Cheyenne (1917)
* Blood Money (1917)
* A Knight of the Range (1916)
* The Ring of Destiny (1915)

References

External links

*imdb name|id=0824700|name=William Steele

Persondata
NAME= Steele, William
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Actor
DATE OF BIRTH= 28 March, 1888
PLACE OF BIRTH= San Antonio, Texas
DATE OF DEATH= 13 February, 1966
PLACE OF DEATH= Los Angeles, California