James Ellison
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. James Ellison (May 4, 1910 - December 23, 1993) was an American actor, born James Ellison Smith in Guthrie Center, Iowa, son of Edward James Smith and Ona Mary Ellis. Ellison appeared in nearly seventy films between 1932 and 1962. Ellison worked for a time in a film laboratory and while there was offered a screen test. He developed it himself and when he saw it, decided it was not satisfactory so he would not show it to the director. But he saw it anyway and Ellison got a contract. Despite his rugged good looks and height of 6 feet 3 inches, Ellison's limited range and somewhat wooden screen presence kept him from the first (or even second) ranks of stardom. He spent much of his career in Westerns, including a stint in the mid-thirties as the sidekick of Hopalong Cassidy in Paramount's successful series. In 1938, he played a charming, romantic character opposite 26 year old Lucille Ball in the comedy, "Next Time I Marry", a film where Ball had her first top billing on screen credits. Before that, in 1936, he played his highest-profile role, as Buffalo Bill in Cecil B. DeMille's The Plainsman, which also starred Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur. Despite that film's success, Ellison spent most of the remainder of his career shuttling between cowboy pictures and more varied roles, primarily in B movies with titles like Mr. District Attorney in the Carter Case and The Undying Monster. He had a supporting role in 1941's Charley's Aunt (which starred Jack Benny) and played the romantic lead in 1943's The Gang's All Here, a Twentieth Century Fox musical in which he seemed somewhat lost among the vivid antics of Carmen Miranda, Charlotte Greenwood, and Edward Everett Horton (and was the only principal not to sing a note). He also co-starred with Tom Conway and Frances Dee in Val Lewton's production of I Walked with a Zombie, directed by Jacques Tourneur. Ellison landed another romantic lead role as 'Jerry Gibson' in the musical film Lady, Let's Dance (1944) which starred ice skating sensation 'Belita'. In the early 1950s, Ellison moved from acting to real estate. Joining fellow veteran Jackie Coogan, Ellison returned to the screen only once to play Axel 'Longhorn' Gates in a picture called When the Girls Take Over (1962). James Ellison died at age 83 in Monterey, California after suffering a broken neck as the result of a fall. Description above from the Wikipedia article James Ellison (actor), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
I Walked with a Zombie
1943
Vivacious Lady
1938
The Plainsman
1936
The Gang's All Here
1943
Fifth Avenue Girl
1939
Zenobia
1939
Buried Loot
1935
The Famous Ferguson Case
1932
G.I. War Brides
1946
Last of the Wild Horses
1948
Heart of the West
1936
You Can't Fool Your Wife
1940
Filmography
I Walked with a Zombie
as Wesley Rand · 1943
Vivacious Lady
as Keith · 1938
The Plainsman
as William "Buffalo Bill" Cody · 1936
The Gang's All Here
as Andy Mason · 1943
Fifth Avenue Girl
as Mike · 1939
Zenobia
as Jeff Carter · 1939
Buried Loot
as Detective (uncredited) · 1935
The Famous Ferguson Case
as Reporter Lane (uncredited) · 1932
G.I. War Brides
as Steve Giles · 1946
Last of the Wild Horses
as Duke Barnum · 1948
Heart of the West
as Johnny Nelson · 1936
You Can't Fool Your Wife
as Andrew Hinklin · 1940
Oklahoma Justice
as Clancy · 1951
They Met in Argentina
as Tim Kelly · 1941
Reckless
as Dale Every · 1935
Johnny Doesn't Live Here Anymore
as Mike Burke · 1944
23 1/2 Hours Leave
as Sgt. Robert Gray · 1937
The Barrier
as Lt. Burrell · 1937
Next Time I Marry
as Anthony J. Anthony · 1938
Annapolis Salute
as William J. "Bill" Martin · 1937
The Eagle's Brood
as Johnny Nelson · 1935
The Ghost Goes Wild
as Monte Crandall · 1947
Hop-a-long Cassidy
as Johnny Nelson · 1935
Mother Carey's Chickens
as Ralph Thurston · 1938
The Texan Meets Calamity Jane
as Gordon Hastings · 1950
Bar 20 Rides Again
as Johnny Nelson · 1935
Best Foot Forward
as Cadet · 1943
Man from the Black Hills
as Jim Fallon (as Jimmy Ellison) · 1952
The Leathernecks Have Landed
as Mac MacDonald · 1936
The Undying Monster
as Robert Curtis · 1942
Three on the Trail
as Johnny Nelson · 1936
Dead Man's Trail
as Dan Winslow · 1952
Fast on the Draw
as Shamrock Ellison · 1950
Mr. District Attorney in the Carter Case
as P. Cadwallader Jones · 1941
Anne of Windy Poplars
as Tony Pringle · 1940
Almost a Gentleman
as Dan Preston · 1939
Texas City
as Jim Kirby (as Jimmy Ellison) · 1952
Call of the Prairie
as Johnny Nelson · 1936
West of the Brazos
as Shamrock Ellison · 1950
When the Girls Take Over
as Alex 'Longhorn' Gates (as Jimmy Ellison) · 1962
That Other Woman
as Henry Summers · 1942
Careful, Soft Shoulders
as Thomas Aldrich · 1942
Lady, Let's Dance
as Jerry Gibson · 1944
The Winning Ticket
as Jimmy · 1935
Calendar Girl
as Steve Adams · 1947
Charley's Aunt
as Jack Chesney · 1941
Hostile Country
as Shamrock Ellison · 1950
I Killed Geronimo
as Capt. Jeff Packard · 1950
Sorority House
as Bill Loomis · 1939
Dixie Dugan
as Roger Hudson · 1943
Crooked River
as Shamrock Ellison · 1950
Hitch Hike Lady
as Jimmy Peyton · 1935
Play Girl
as Thomas Elwood Dice · 1941
Ice-Capades
as Bob Clemens · 1941
Hotel for Women
as Jeff Buchanan · 1939
Kentucky Jubilee
as Jeff Benson · 1951
Everybody's Dancin'
as Jimmy Ellison · 1950
Borderland
as Johnny Nelson · 1937
Hollywood and Vine
as Larry Winters · 1945
Marshal of Heldorado
as Shamrock Ellison · 1950
Colorado Ranger
as Shamrock Kid · 1950
Texas Lawmen
as Sheriff Tod Merrick · 1951
Play Girl
as Elmer · 1932
Trail Dust
as Johnny Nelson · 1936
Whistling Hills
as Sheriff Dave Holland · 1951
Army Surgeon
as Capt. James Mason · 1942