Clint Walker

Clint Walker, born Norman Eugene Walker on May 30, 1927, in Hartford, Illinois, was an American actor best known for his towering 6‑ft‑6‑in frame and resonant baritone voice that defined the archetypal Western hero of mid‑century television. He began his working life in factories, on riverboats, and as a doorman at the Sands Hotel before joining the United States Merchant Marine at seventeen, later returning to serve in the Korean War. After the war he was discovered by agent Henry Willson, who renamed him Jett Norman and helped launch a career that would span over four decades. Walker’s breakout role came in 1955 when Warner Bros. cast him as the roaming cowboy Cheyenne Bodie in the series Cheyenne, a part he inhabited for seven seasons and which cemented his status as a household name. The show’s success allowed him to transition to feature films, where his impressive physique earned him leading parts in titles such as Fort Dobbs (1958) and Yellowstone Kelly (1959).

Beyond the western frontier, Walker demonstrated versatility in a variety of genres, appearing in the comedy Send Me No Flowers (1964), the war epic The Dirty Dozen (1967), and even lending his voice to the animated feature Small Soldiers (1998). His personal life was marked by three long‑lasting marriages—to Verna Garver, Giselle Hennesy, and Susan Cavallari—and the birth of a daughter, Valerie, who became one of the first female airline pilots. A pescetarian who eschewed beef, Walker also engaged in literary pursuits, co‑authoring the novel Yaqui Gold in 2003. He received numerous honors, including a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a Golden Boot Award, and induction into the Hall of Great Western Performers, before passing away from congestive heart failure on May 21, 2018, in Grass Valley, California.