Eddie Little Sky (August 15, 1926 – September 5, 1997), also known as Edward Little, was an indigenous North American actor of the

Oglala Lakota The Oglala (pronounced , meaning "to scatter one's own" in Lakota language) are one of the seven subtribes of the Lakota people who, along with the Dakota people, Dakota, make up the Sioux, Očhéthi Šakówiŋ (Seven Council Fires). A majority ...

tribe. He had parts in 36 feature films and over 60 television shows,''Indian Country Today'', retrieved on 21 June 2009 mainly

westerns The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...

in the role of a Native American. He was one of the first Native American actors to play Native American roles such as his performance in the 1970 film '' A Man Called Horse''.

Career

Little Sky was born as Edsel Wallace Little on the

Pine Ridge Indian Reservation The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation ( lkt, Wazí Aháŋhaŋ Oyáŋke), also called Pine Ridge Agency, is an Oglala Lakota Indian reservation located entirely within the U.S. state of South Dakota. Originally included within the territory of the Gr ...

in Shannon County, South Dakota to Oglala Lakota parents Wallace Little, Sr. and Wileminna Colhoff. He attended the Holy Rosary Indian Mission school as a child. After leaving the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

where he had served in the Pacific theater during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he began working the

rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working va ...

circuit as a bull rider and bareback rider. Following his work on the 1955 film ''

Chief Crazy Horse Crazy Horse ( lkt, Tȟašúŋke Witkó, italic=no, , ; 1840 – September 5, 1877) was a Lakota war leader of the Oglala band in the 19th century. He took up arms against the United States federal government to fight against encroachment by w ...

'',

Audie Murphy Audie Leon Murphy (20 June 1925 – 28 May 1971) was an American soldier, actor and songwriter. He was one of the most decorated American combat soldiers of World War II. He received every military combat award for valor available from t ...

encouraged Little Sky to become a professional actor; thus Little Sky, along with

Jay Silverheels Jay Silverheels (born Harold Jay Smith; May 26, 1912 – March 5, 1980) was an Indigenous Canadian actor and athlete. He was well known for his role as Tonto, the Native American companion of the Lone Ranger in the American Western television ...

and Chief Dan George became one of the first Native Americans to play Native American roles in films. Hollywood normally used white actors wearing black wigs and dark make-up to play the parts of Native Americans. His first television role was in 1957 on the series ''

Cheyenne The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enroll ...

'' in the episode titled ''The Iron Trail''. From that time onwards, Little Sky had numerous roles in many Western television series such as ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central character ...

'', ''

Bat Masterson Bartholemew William Barclay "Bat" Masterson (November 26, 1853 – October 25, 1921) was a U.S. Army scout, lawman, professional gambler, and journalist known for his exploits in the 19th and early 20th-century American Old West. He was born to ...

'', ''

The Rifleman ''The Rifleman'' is an American Western television program starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the fictional town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show wa ...

'', '' The Virginian'', ''

The Men From Shiloh ''The Virginian'' (later renamed ''The Men from Shiloh'' in its final year) is an American Western television series starring James Drury in the title role, along with Doug McClure, Lee J. Cobb, and others. It originally aired on NBC from 19 ...

'' (rebranded name of '' The Virginian''), ''

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 13, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 432 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running western, the second-longest-running western series on U ...

'', ''

Daniel Boone Daniel Boone (September 26, 1820) was an American pioneer and frontiersman whose exploits made him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. He became famous for his exploration and settlement of Kentucky, which was then beyond the we ...

'' and ''

The High Chaparral ''The High Chaparral'' television series, which was broadcast on NBC from 1967 to 1971, is an American Western action adventure drama set in the 1870s. It stars Leif Erickson and Cameron Mitchell. The series was made by Xanadu Productions in ...

''. He also played in many films such as ''

The Light in the Forest ''The Light in the Forest'' is a novel first published in 1953 by U.S. author Conrad Richter. Though it is a work of fiction and primarily features fictional characters, the novel incorporates historic figures and is based in historical fact rel ...

'', '' Paint Your Wagon'', ''

Duel at Diablo ''Duel at Diablo'' is a 1966 American Western film starring James Garner in his first Western after leaving the long-running tv series ''Maverick'', as well as Sidney Poitier in his first ever Western. Based on Marvin H. Albert's 1957 novel ' ...

'', '' Breakheart Pass'', and ''

The Hallelujah Trail ''The Hallelujah Trail'' is a 1965 American Western mockumentary spoof directed by John Sturges, with top-billed stars Burt Lancaster, Lee Remick, Jim Hutton and Pamela Tiffin. It was based on the book of the same title (originally released as " ...

'', but he is mainly remembered for his performance as ''Black Eagle'' in the 1970 film '' A Man Called Horse'' which starred

Richard Harris Richard St John Francis Harris (1 October 1930 – 25 October 2002) was an Irish actor and singer. He appeared on stage and in many films, notably as Corrado Zeller in Michelangelo Antonioni's '' Red Desert'', Frank Machin in ''This Sporting ...

. He was also technical adviser for ''

Soldier Blue ''Soldier Blue'' is a 1970 American Revisionist Western film directed by Ralph Nelson and starring Candice Bergen, Peter Strauss, and Donald Pleasence. Adapted by John Gay from the novel ''Arrow in the Sun'' by T.V. Olsen, it is inspired by eve ...

''. He made several appearances as a Pacific native on ''

Gilligan's Island ''Gilligan's Island'' is an American sitcom created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz. The show's ensemble cast features Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr., Jim Backus, Natalie Schafer, Tina Louise, Russell Johnson and Dawn Wells. It aired for thr ...

''.

Later years/marriage

Upon his retirement from the film industry in the late 1970s, he worked as director of the Oglala Lakota Tribal Parks and Recreation Authority. He married Dawn Gates, who became an actress known as Dawn Little Sky; the couple had five children.

Death

Eddie Little Sky died on September 5, 1997, aged 71 in

Pennington County, South Dakota Pennington County is a county in the U.S. state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 109,222, making it the second-most populous county in South Dakota. Its county seat is Rapid City. The county was created in 1875, and wa ...

from lung cancer. He was interred at the Little's Flat Family cemetery in Oglala, South Dakota.

Filmography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Littlesky, Eddie 1926 births 1997 deaths 20th-century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from South Dakota Native American male actors Oglala people People from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota United States Navy sailors United States Navy personnel of World War II Deaths from lung cancer Deaths from cancer in South Dakota