Fred Burns (April 24, 1878 – July 18, 1955) was an American actor who mainly appeared in

Western films Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US * Western, New York, a town in the US * Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia * Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that ...

. He appeared in over 265 films before his death in 1955.

Biography

Fred Burns was born on April 24, 1878, in

Fort Keogh Fort Keogh is a former United States Army post located at the western edge of modern Miles City, in the U.S. state of Montana. It is situated on the south bank of the Yellowstone River, at the mouth of the Tongue River. Colonel Nelson A. Miles, ...

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

. For six years, he was in charge of

Buffalo Bill Cody William Frederick Cody (February 26, 1846January 10, 1917), known as "Buffalo Bill", was an American soldier, bison hunter, and showman. He was born in Le Claire, Iowa Territory (now the U.S. state of Iowa), but he lived for several years in ...

's ranch near

Cheyenne, Wyoming Cheyenne ( or ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming, as well as the county seat of Laramie County, with 65,132 residents, per the 2020 US Census. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne metropolitan statistical ...

. He " broke" wild

mustangs The mustang is a free-roaming horse of the Western United States, descended from horses brought to the Americas by the Spanish. Mustangs are often referred to as wild horses, but because they are descended from once-domesticated animals, they ...

for

Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show William Frederick Cody (February 26, 1846January 10, 1917), known as "Buffalo Bill", was an American soldier, bison hunter, and showman. He was born in Le Claire, Iowa Territory (now the U.S. state of Iowa), but he lived for several years in ...

. He traveled with Buffalo Bill's Wild West show, and later with the 101 Ranch Wild West Show. Burns was a roping champion for five years in the early 1900s. By 1916, he had moved to Hollywood to work in movies full-time. He appeared in 23 movies between 1921 and 1930, and 91 movies during the sound era. He also was in charge of the stock at Fine Arts Studios. Burns died in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, on July 18, 1955, at age 77.

Partial filmography

* '' During the Round-Up'' (1913) as the Foreman * ''

An Indian's Loyalty ''An Indian’s Loyalty'' is a 1913 American short silent Western film directed by Christy Cabanne and featuring Lillian Gish. Cast * Frank Opperman as The Ranchero * Lillian Gish as The Ranchero's Daughter * Edward Dillon as The Young F ...

'' (1913) as the Ranch Hand * ''

Jordan Is a Hard Road ''Jordan Is a Hard Road'' is a 1915 American silent drama film directed by Allan Dwan and starring Dorothy Gish, Frank Campeau and Sarah Truax. The production was under the overall supervision of D. W. Griffith, and was the first film made by Dw ...

'' (1915) * '' Sold for Marriage'' (1916) * ''

The Good Bad-Man ''The Good Bad-Man'' is a 1916 American silent Western film directed by Allan Dwan. The film was written by Douglas Fairbanks, and produced by Fairbanks and the Fine Arts Film Company. It stars Fairbanks and Bessie Love. The film was original ...

'' (1916) as the Sheriff * ''

The Hero of the Hour ''The Hero of the Hour'' is a 1917 American silent Western film directed by Raymond Wells. It stars Jack Mulhall, Wadsworth Harris, and Fritzi Ridgeway.

'' (1917) * ''

The Fighting Trail ''The Fighting Trail'' is a lost 1917 American silent Western serial film directed by and starring William Duncan. It was produced and distributed by the Vitagraph Company of America. It was released in 15 chapters. Plot As described in a fil ...

'' (1917) * '' Sunlight's Last Raid'' (1917) * ''

Bound in Morocco ''Bound in Morocco'' is a 1918 American silent action romantic comedy film starring Douglas Fairbanks. Fairbanks produced and wrote the film's story and screenplay (under the pseudonym Elton Thomas), and Allan Dwan directed. The film was produced ...

'' (1918) * ''

Ruth of the Rockies ''Ruth of the Rockies'' is a 1920 American silent Western film serial directed by George Marshall. Two of the 15 episodes survive in the UCLA Film and Television Archive. Plot As described in a film magazine, in New York City breezy Bab Murphy ...

'' (1920) * ''

Shadows of Conscience ''Shadows of Conscience'' is a 1921 American silent Western film directed by John P. McCarthy and starring Russell Simpson, Barbara Tennant and Gertrude Olmstead.Connelly, p. 250. Cast * Russell Simpson as Jim Logan * Landers Stevens as Wad ...

'' (1921) * '' Cyclone Jones'' (1923) * '' Breed of the Border'' (1924) * ''

Wild West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

'' (1925) * ''

Speed Wild ''Speed Wild'' is a 1925 American silent action film directed by Harry Garson and starring Maurice 'Lefty' Flynn, Ethel Shannon Ethel Shannon (May 22, 1898 – July 10, 1951) was an American actress. She appeared in over 30 silent movi ...

'' (1925) * '' The Unknown Cavalier'' (1926) * '' The Outlaw Express'' (1926) * ''

Wild to Go ''Wild to Go'' is a 1926 American silent Western film directed by Robert De Lacey and starring Tom Tyler, Frankie Darro and Eugenia Gilbert.Munden, p. 1045. Cast * Tom Tyler as Tom Blake * Frankie Darro as Frankie Blake * Fred Burns as Simon ...

'' (1926) * ''

The Windjammer ''The Windjammer'' is a 1926 American silent action film directed by Harry Joe Brown and starring Billy Sullivan, Thelma Hill and Billy Franey.Munden p.907 It was distributed by the independent Rayart Pictures, the forerunner of Monogram Pictu ...

'' (1926) * '' Set Free'' (1927) * ''

The Galloping Gobs ''The Galloping Gobs'' is a 1927 American silent Western film directed by Richard Thorpe and starring Jay Wilsey, Morgan Brown and Betty Baker. Cast * Jay Wilsey as Bill Corbitt * Morgan Brown as Chub Barnes * Betty Baker as Mary Whippl ...

'' (1927) * ''

Tide of Empire ''Tide of Empire '' is a 1929 American silent Western film directed by Allan Dwan and starring Renée Adorée and Tom Keene. The film was originally slated to star Joan Crawford in the female lead, but the final filming had Renée Adorée ins ...

'' (1929) * ''

Queen of the Northwoods ''Queen of the Northwoods'' is 1929 American silent Western film serial by Pathé, directed by Spencer Gordon Bennet and Thomas Storey, with a story by George Arthur Gray. Known cast members were Walter Miller, Ethlyne Clair and Frank Lackteen ...

'' (1929) * ''

Border Romance ''Border Romance'' is a 1929 American pre-Code Western romance film directed by Richard Thorpe. An early sound film, it stars Armida, Don Terry, Marjorie Kane, and Victor Potel. A copy is preserved at the Library of Congress, Packard.''Catalog ...

'' (1929) * '' The Mounted Stranger'' (1930) * ''

Men Without Law ''Men Without Law'' is a 1930 American pre-Code Western film directed by Louis King and starring Buck Jones, Carmelita Geraghty, Thomas Carr, Lydia Knott, and Harry Woods. The film was released by Columbia Pictures on October 15, 1930. Cas ...

'' (1930) * '' The Utah Kid'' (1930) * ''

Breed of the West ''Breed of the West'' is a 1930 American Western film directed by Alan James, starring Hal Taliaferro, Virginia Brown Faire, and Buzz Barton. Plot Wally Weldon works as a ranch hand on Colonel Jim Sterner's ranch, reporting in to Longrope Whe ...

'' (1930) * '' Branded'' (1931) * ''

Freighters of Destiny ''Freighters of Destiny'' is a 1931 American pre-Code Western film produced and directed by film editor Fred Allen, from a screenplay by Adele Buffington. Allen had started in the film industry as an editor in the early 1920s during the silent e ...

'' (1931) * '' The Texas Tornado'' (1932) * '' Trailing North'' (1933) * '' The Dude Bandit'' (1933) * ''

War of the Range ''War of the Range'' is a 1933 American western film directed by J.P. McGowan and starring Tom Tyler, Charles K. French and Lane Chandler.Pitts p.386 It was the last of the Tom Tyler Westerns made by the independent Poverty Row company the Mona ...

'' (1933) * ''

Lawless Range ''Lawless Range'' is a 1935 American Western film released by Republic Pictures, directed by Robert N. Bradbury and starring John Wayne. He appears as a "singing cowboy" in the film, with his singing voice dubbed by Glenn Strange, who later ...

'' (1935) * ''

The Law of 45's ''The Law of the 45's'' (also known as ''The Mysterious Mr. Sheffield'' in the United Kingdom) is a 1935 American Western film directed by John P. McCarthy. The screenplay was based on the 1933 novel of the same name by William Colt MacDonald ...

'' (1935) * '' Oh, Susanna!'' (1936) * ''

Springtime in the Rockies ''Springtime in the Rockies'' is an American Technicolor musical comedy film released by Twentieth Century Fox in 1942. It stars Betty Grable, with support from John Payne, Carmen Miranda, Cesar Romero, Charlotte Greenwood, and Edward Everett Ho ...

'' (1937) * ''

Trailin' Trouble ''Trailin' Trouble'' is a 1937 American Western film directed by Arthur Rosson and starring Ken Maynard, Lona Andre, and Roger Williams. It was released on November 12, 1937. During production its working title was ''Alias Blackie Burke''. Pl ...

'' (1937) * '' Call of the Rockies'' (1938) * ''

Days of Jesse James ''Days of Jesse James'' is a 1939 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Roy Rogers. Cast *Roy Rogers as Roy Rogers *George 'Gabby' Hayes as Gabby Whittaker *Don 'Red' Barry as Jesse James *Pauline Moore as Mary Whittaker * ...

'' * ''

Thundering Frontier ''Thundering Frontier'' is a 1940 American Western film directed by D. Ross Lederman and starring Charles Starrett. Cast * Charles Starrett as Jim Filmore * Iris Meredith as Norma Belknap * Ray Bennett as Ed Filmore (as Raphael Bennett) * Ale ...

'' (1940) * ''

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

'' (1940) * '' Carolina Moon'' (1940) * ''

Man from Cheyenne '' Man from Cheyenne '' is a 1942 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Roy Rogers. Cast * Roy Rogers as himself * George "Gabby" Hayes as Gabby Whittaker * Sally Payne as Sally Whittaker * Lynne Carver as Marian Hardy ...

'' (1942) * ''

Sons of the Pioneers The Sons of the Pioneers are one of the United States' earliest Western singing groups. Known for their vocal performances, their musicianship, and their songwriting, they produced innovative recordings that have inspired many Western music perf ...

'' (1942) * '' Silver River'' (1948)

References

External links

* 1878 births 1955 deaths Male Western (genre) film actors 20th-century American male actors American male silent film actors Male actors from Montana American male film actors {{US-film-actor-1870s-stub