- George F. Houston
infobox actor
name=George Fleming Houston
birthdate=birth date|1896|1|11
birthplace=Hampton, New Jersey
deathdate=death date and age|1944|11|12|1896|1|11
deathplace=
othername=George Byron
occupation=Film , stageactor
spouse=Virginia CardGeorge Fleming Houston (
January 11 ,1896 –November 12 ,1944 ) was an American B-westernfilm actor and accomplished singer in the early half of the 20th century.Early life, World War I service
Born and raised in
Hampton, New Jersey , his parents were Thomas and Margaret Fleming Houston. His father, Thomas, was fromScotland , and had beenblind ed as a child in an accident. His father became a successfulPresbyterian minister, and was called, respectfully, "the blind evangelist". George Houston attended his fathers services, and learned to sing through the church.Although Hollywood would later advertise that George Houston attended
Rutgers University , he did not. Instead, he attendedBlair Academy , inNew Jersey , where he rantrack , then later he attended the "Institute of Musical Art", the original name for what would eventually becomeJuilliard School . Houston received two degrees, one in voice, and one for teaching music.Houston joined the
US Army , serving inFrance duringWorld War I , attached to the 17th French Division, in theAmbulance Service. His military service ran fromJune 5 ,1917 toApril 12 ,1919 .Acting career
After doing some stage acting on Broadway, Houston was enticed to try his acting skills in Hollywood by the early 1930s, hoping to win parts in singing films. He received small bit parts in six different films, but no roles that cast him in a starring role, nor a singing role. After his sixth, he found himself unemployed.
In 1935 a small production company,
Grand National Pictures , took notice of Houston, and hired him to play the lead role in the 1936 film "Captain Calamity", then later to play the role ofWild Bill Hickok in "Frontier Scout ". The film, released in 1938, was successful, and brought Houston to the notice of other production companies. That same year he would play a small role in "Blockade" withHenry Fonda andMadeleine Carroll , but in which he was billed as "George Byron."By 1940, following several failed film endeavors, Grand National Pictures was in trouble, and they went out of business soon after. Houston had been billed prior to this time by a new company,
Producers Distribution Corp. , as the future character ofBilly the Kid in an eight film series for that company. However, when it came time to film the series,Bob Steele was cast in the role for six episodes, and was replaced byBuster Crabbe following Steele's departure toRepublic Pictures .Despite his not being cast in the "Billy the Kid" role, Producers Distribution, known as PDC, did give Houston his own series of films. In total, he would play in eleven films surrounding his character "The Lone Rider". Al "Fuzzy" St. John played his
sidekick in all eleven films. However, by the end of 1942, Houston was being replaced by veteran actorBob Livingston in the character of the "Lone Rider". St. John and actorDennis Moore would remain with the series.Houston would return to his singing interests, but died unexpectedly on November 12th, 1944, of a
heart attack . His wife,Virginia Card , was at the time starring in the Broadway hit "Oklahoma! ", which had just debuted in 1943. Houston was, at the time of his death, preparing to take his opera company on a nationwide tour.External links
*imdb|0396829|George Houston
*amg name|2:33426|George Houston
* [http://www.b-westerns.com/houston2.htm George Houston] at b-westerns.com
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