Actor. Born Guinn Terrell Williams, Junior in Decatur, Texas, the son of an an influential banker and cattleman. After serving during the First World War, he tried his hand at baseball and rodeo before finding his way to Hollywood. He first appeared, uncredited, as a stunt man in a few silent films before making his acting debut in the 1919 comedy, 'Almost A Husband' with Will Rogers, who would become his close friend, and with whom he would make more than a dozen more films. Rogers dubbed him Big Boy, and he was occasionally credited so during his silent period. He landed the lead in the western 'The Jack Riders' in 1921, and by the time he transitioned to talkies, he seemed typecast, continually appearing in low budget 'B' westerns. In the 1930s and 40s his role types broadened, and he was almost always employed as a supporting character is such films as 'The Bachelor Father' (1931); 'Here Comes the Navy' (1934); 'The Littlest Rebel' (1935); 'A Star is Born' (1937); 'Dodge City' (1939) and 'Santa Fe Trail' (1940) with his good friends Alan Hale and Erroll Flynn; Columbia's first Technicolor film, 'The Desperados' (1943); and 'Road to the Big House' (1947). He once said that he worked as an actor only to support his expensive polo habit; he owned a string of 125 polo ponies and a 5,500-acre ranch in South Texas. He was known as a world-class player, and was called the Babe Ruth of polo. In the late 1950s, he landed a role in the early television series, 'My Friend Flicka,' and then as a regular in 'Circus Boy.' He also appeared as a guest star in several other series such as 'Gunsmoke,' 'Wagon Train,' 'The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin,' and 'Tales of Wells Fargo.' He appeared in two feature films, 'The Alamo (1960) and The Comancheros (1961) when his health went on decline. He had just finished a pilot for a new television series, 'Button and Bows,' when he succumbed to uremic poisoning at the age of 63.
Actor. Born Guinn Terrell Williams, Junior in Decatur, Texas, the son of an an influential banker and cattleman. After serving during the First World War, he tried his hand at baseball and rodeo before finding his way to Hollywood. He first appeared, uncredited, as a stunt man in a few silent films before making his acting debut in the 1919 comedy, 'Almost A Husband' with Will Rogers, who would become his close friend, and with whom he would make more than a dozen more films. Rogers dubbed him Big Boy, and he was occasionally credited so during his silent period. He landed the lead in the western 'The Jack Riders' in 1921, and by the time he transitioned to talkies, he seemed typecast, continually appearing in low budget 'B' westerns. In the 1930s and 40s his role types broadened, and he was almost always employed as a supporting character is such films as 'The Bachelor Father' (1931); 'Here Comes the Navy' (1934); 'The Littlest Rebel' (1935); 'A Star is Born' (1937); 'Dodge City' (1939) and 'Santa Fe Trail' (1940) with his good friends Alan Hale and Erroll Flynn; Columbia's first Technicolor film, 'The Desperados' (1943); and 'Road to the Big House' (1947). He once said that he worked as an actor only to support his expensive polo habit; he owned a string of 125 polo ponies and a 5,500-acre ranch in South Texas. He was known as a world-class player, and was called the Babe Ruth of polo. In the late 1950s, he landed a role in the early television series, 'My Friend Flicka,' and then as a regular in 'Circus Boy.' He also appeared as a guest star in several other series such as 'Gunsmoke,' 'Wagon Train,' 'The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin,' and 'Tales of Wells Fargo.' He appeared in two feature films, 'The Alamo (1960) and The Comancheros (1961) when his health went on decline. He had just finished a pilot for a new television series, 'Button and Bows,' when he succumbed to uremic poisoning at the age of 63.
Bio by: Iola
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