Charles Bronson
Charles Bronson came by his tough-guy persona honestly. He was born to poor circumstances in Pennsylvania coal country Charles Dennis Buchinsky. He worked the mines before serving as a B-29 gunner in WW II. He took up his acting career after the war.
His early career had him limited to bit parts, including his first Western, Riding Shotgun (’53) with Randolf Scott. He followed that with a strong Indian part in Apache (’54) and later that year Vera Cruz. He landed the lead villain role to Alan Ladd in Drum Beat as the Modoc renegade Captain Jack.
In 1954 in the midst of Joe McCathy’s House Unamerican Activities Committee investigations of communism in Hollywood, Buchinsky changed his Eastern European sounding handle to Bronson. He also headed down the guest bad-guy circuit with appearances on episodes of Sheriff of Cochise, Colt .45, Yancy Derringer, Have Gun Will Travel, The Legend of Jesse James and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.
He joined my personal big screen Western stars list in 1960 as Bernardo O’Reilly in one of my all-time favorites, The Magnificent Seven. While that was enough to get him on my list, Bronson’s filmography more than justifies his place here, though he owed much of it to Europe and the spaghetti Western phenomenon. Sergio Leone called Bronson one of the greatest actors he ever worked with. He offered Bronson, The Man with No Name in A Fistful of Dollars (’64). Bronson turned it down, leading to the launch of legendary Clint Eastwood.
Bronson learned his lesson with Guns of Diablo (’65), followed by Villa Rides and Once Upon a Time in the West and Guns for San Sebastian (’68), Red Sun (’71), Chato’s Land (’72), Chino (’73), Breakheart Pass (’75), From Noon Till Three (’76), The White Buffalo (’77) and Death Hunt (’81). In all Bronson appeared in twenty-two Westerns over the course of his career. He definitely belongs in this series.
Charles Bronson passed away on August 30, 2003 at the age of 81. Adios Bernardo.
Next Week: James Coburn
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Ride easy,
Paul
His early career had him limited to bit parts, including his first Western, Riding Shotgun (’53) with Randolf Scott. He followed that with a strong Indian part in Apache (’54) and later that year Vera Cruz. He landed the lead villain role to Alan Ladd in Drum Beat as the Modoc renegade Captain Jack.
In 1954 in the midst of Joe McCathy’s House Unamerican Activities Committee investigations of communism in Hollywood, Buchinsky changed his Eastern European sounding handle to Bronson. He also headed down the guest bad-guy circuit with appearances on episodes of Sheriff of Cochise, Colt .45, Yancy Derringer, Have Gun Will Travel, The Legend of Jesse James and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.
He joined my personal big screen Western stars list in 1960 as Bernardo O’Reilly in one of my all-time favorites, The Magnificent Seven. While that was enough to get him on my list, Bronson’s filmography more than justifies his place here, though he owed much of it to Europe and the spaghetti Western phenomenon. Sergio Leone called Bronson one of the greatest actors he ever worked with. He offered Bronson, The Man with No Name in A Fistful of Dollars (’64). Bronson turned it down, leading to the launch of legendary Clint Eastwood.
Bronson learned his lesson with Guns of Diablo (’65), followed by Villa Rides and Once Upon a Time in the West and Guns for San Sebastian (’68), Red Sun (’71), Chato’s Land (’72), Chino (’73), Breakheart Pass (’75), From Noon Till Three (’76), The White Buffalo (’77) and Death Hunt (’81). In all Bronson appeared in twenty-two Westerns over the course of his career. He definitely belongs in this series.
Charles Bronson passed away on August 30, 2003 at the age of 81. Adios Bernardo.
Next Week: James Coburn
Return to Facebook to comment
Ride easy,
Paul
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