Jack Elam
| Jack Elam | |
|---|---|
Elam in Kansas City Confidential (1952)
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| Born |
William Scott Elam November 13, 1920 Miami, Arizona, U.S. |
| Died | October 20, 2003 (aged 82) Ashland, Oregon, U.S. |
| Years active | 1944–1995 |
| Spouse(s) | Jean L Hodgert (1937–61; her death) 2 daughters Margaret Jennison (1961–2003; his death) 1 son |
| Children | 3 |
William Scott Elam, known as Jack Elam (November 13, 1920 – October 20, 2003), was an American film and television actor best known for his numerous roles as villains in Western films and, later in his career, comedies (sometimes spoofing his villainous image). His most distinguishing physical quality was his lazy left eye. Before his career in acting, he took several jobs in finance and served two years in the United States Navy during World War II.
Elam played in 73 movies, and made an appearance in 41 television series. His best known works consist of Once Upon a Time in the West, High Noon and the television program The Twilight Zone.
Jack Elam died in 2003 of congestive heart failure, leaving behind two daughters and one son.
Elam was born in Miami in Gila County in south central Arizona, to Millard Elam and Alice Amelia Kirby. His mother died in 1922 when Jack was two years old. By 1930, he was living with his father, older sister Mildred, and their stepmother, Flossie Varney Elam.
He grew up picking cotton and lost the sight in his left eye during a boyhood accident when he was stabbed with a pencil at a Boy Scout meeting. He was a student at both Miami High School in Gila County and Phoenix Union High School in Maricopa County, graduating from there in the late 1930s.
Elam attended Santa Monica Junior College in California. After that, he worked as a bookkeeper at the Bank of America in Los Angeles and as an auditor for the Standard Oil Company. In World War II, he served two years in the United States Navy and subsequently became an independent accountant in Hollywood; one of his clients was movie mogul Samuel Goldwyn. At one time, he was the manager of the Bel Air Hotel in Los Angeles.
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