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Jim Davis

Jim Davis

Birthday: 1909-08-26 | Place of Birth: Edgerton, Platte County, Missouri, USA

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jim Davis (born Marlin Davis, August 26, 1909 – April 26, 1981) was an American actor, best known for his role as Jock Ewing in the CBS prime-time soap opera, Dallas, a role which continued until he was too ill from a terminal illness to perform. He was known as Jim Davis by the time of his first major screen role, which was opposite Bette Davis in the 1948 melodrama Winter Meeting,[3] a lavish failure for which he was lambasted in the press as being too inexperienced to play the part properly. His subsequent film career consisted of mostly B movies, many of them westerns, although he made an impression as a U.S. senator in the Warren Beatty conspiracy thriller The Parallax View. Davis performed in numerous television series episodes in the 1950s-1970s. After years of relatively low-profile roles, Davis was cast as family patriarch Jock Ewing on Dallas, which debuted in 1978. During season four, he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma but continued to film the show as long as he could. In many scenes as the season progressed he was shown seated, and his voice became softer and more obviously affected by his illness. He wore a hairpiece to cover the hair he'd lost from chemotherapy. A season four storyline regarding the Takapa development and Jock's separation from Miss Ellie was ended abruptly at the end of season four. The writers depicted the couple suddenly leaving to go on an extended second honeymoon when it became obvious that Davis could no longer continue to work. Their departure in a limousine in the episode "New Beginnings" was Davis' only scene in that episode, and his condition was so poor that close watching reveals (based on his unsynchronized lip movement) that he overdubbed his one last line of dialogue. It was his final appearance on the show. He died of complications from his illness while season four was being aired.

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Known For

Acting

Year
Title

Role

1980
The Day Time Ended

as    Grant Williams

1979
Satan’s Triangle

as    Hal

1977
Just a Little Inconvenience

as    Dave Erickson

1973
Deliver Us from Evil

as    Dixie

1972
Bad Company

as    Marshal

1972
The Honkers

as    Sheriff Potter

1971
The Trackers

as    Sheriff Naylor

1970
Monte Walsh

as    Cal Brennan

1970
Rio Lobo

as    Rio Lobo Deputy

1969
Five Bloody Graves

as    Clay Bates

1969
The Ice House

as    Jake

1966
Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter

as    Marshal MacPhee

1965
Zebra in the Kitchen

as    Adam Carlyle

1964
Iron Angel

as    Sgt. Walsh

1961
The Gambler Wore a Gun

as    Case Silverthorne

1961
Frontier Uprising

as    Jim Stockton

1960
Noose for a Gunman

as    Case Britton

1959
Alias Jesse James

as    Frank James

1958
Lust to Kill

as    Marshal Matt Gordon

1957
Raiders of Old California

as    Angus Clyde McKane

1957
Last Stagecoach West

as    Bill Cameron

1957
Monster from Green Hell

as    Dr. Quent Brady

1957
The Badge of Marshal Brennan

as    Jeff Harlan

1957
The Quiet Gun

as    Ralph Carpenter

1956
The Wild Dakotas

as    Aaron Baring

1956
Blonde Bait

as    Nick Randall

1956
The Maverick Queen

as    The Stranger