Ward Bond
| Ward Bond | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Wardell Edwin Bond April 9, 1903 Benkelman, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Died | November 5, 1960 (aged 57) Dallas, Texas, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Heart attack |
| Occupation | Actor, Singer |
| Years active | 1929–1960 |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Louise May (m.1954–1960; his death) Doris Sellers Childs (m.1936–1944; divorced) |
Wardell Edwin "Ward" Bond (April 9, 1903 – November 5, 1960), was an American film character actor whose rugged appearance and easygoing charm were featured in over 200 films and the television series Wagon Train. He is remembered for his roles as Bert, the cop, in It's a Wonderful Life (1946) and Captain Clayton in The Searchers (1956).
Bond was born in Benkelman, Nebraska, a small town located in the southwestern corner of the state near the Kansas and Colorado state lines. The Bond family, John W., Mabel L., and sister Bernice, lived in Benkelman until 1919 when they moved to Denver. Ward graduated from East High School in Denver.
Bond attended the University of Southern California and played football on the same team as future USC coach Jess Hill. At 6' 2" and 195 pounds, Bond was a starting lineman on USC's first national championship team in 1928.
Bond and John Wayne, who as Marion Michael Morrison had played tackle for USC in 1926 before an injury ended his career, became lifelong friends and colleagues. Bond, Wayne, and the entire Southern Cal team were hired to appear in Salute (1929), a football film starring George O'Brien and directed by John Ford. During the filming of this movie, Bond and Wayne befriended Ford, and appeared in many of Ford's later films.
Bond made his screen debut in Salute and thereafter was a busy character actor, playing over 200 supporting roles. He appeared in 31 films released in 1935 and 23 in 1939. Rarely playing the lead in theatrical films, he starred in the television series Wagon Train from 1957 until his death in 1960. He was frequently typecast as a friendly policeman or as a brutal thug. He had a long-time working relationship with directors John Ford and Frank Capra, performing in such films as The Searchers, Drums Along the Mohawk, The Quiet Man, and Fort Apache for Ford, with whom he made 25 films, and It Happened One Night, It's a Wonderful Life, and Riding High for Capra. Among his other well-known films were Bringing Up Baby (1938), Gone with the Wind (1939), The Maltese Falcon (1941), Sergeant York (1941), They Were Expendable (1945), Joan of Arc (1948), in which he was atypically cast as Captain La Hire, Rio Bravo (1959), and Raoul Walsh's 1930 widescreen wagon train epic The Big Trail, which also featured John Wayne's first leading role. Bond later starred in the popular NBC Western television series Wagon Train from 1957 until his death. Wagon Train was inspired by the 1950 film Wagon Master, in which Bond also appeared, and was influenced by The Big Trail. For Wagon Train, Bond specifically requested Terry Wilson for the role of assistant trailmaster Bill Hawks and Frank McGrath as the cook Charlie Wooster. Wilson and McGrath stayed with the series for the entire run.
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