George Dolenz (born Jure Dolenc; akas: Giorgio Dolenz and George Dolentz; January 5, 1908 February 8, 1963) was an American film actor born in

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into pr ...

(then part of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

, now

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

), in the city's Slovene community.

Biography

Under the name Giorgio Dolenz ( Slovene: Jure Dolenc), he

emigrated Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

via

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, arriving by steamship at the port of Key West, Florida in October 1934. By 1937, Dolenz was in Hollywood and working as a waiter. After appearing in small parts in

B movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feat ...

s, he graduated to supporting roles. Following the end of

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Dolenz became a leading man under contract to

RKO Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orph ...

under

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in t ...

. However, the failure of the feature film ''

Vendetta Vendetta may refer to: * Feud or vendetta, a long-running argument or fight Film * ''Vendetta'' (1919 film), a film featuring Harry Liedtke * ''Vendetta'' (1950 film), an American drama produced by Howard Hughes * ''Vendetta'' (1986 film), an ...

'' in 1950 resulted in his return to character and supporting parts for other studios, including MGM's '' The Last Time I Saw Paris'' as the husband of Donna Reed's character. He was cast as the star of the 1956 ITC Entertainment 39-episode

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed ...

The Count of Monte Cristo ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' (french: Le Comte de Monte-Cristo) is an adventure novel written by French author Alexandre Dumas (''père'') completed in 1844. It is one of the author's more popular works, along with '' The Three Musketeers''. L ...

'' as title character3 Edmond Dantes. On April 21, 1958, Dolenz played Count Peter Von Gilsa in the episode "The Outlander" of the NBC

Western 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 i ...

'' The Restless Gun''."The Outlander," ''The Restless Gun'', DVD, Timeless Media Group In 1959, he portrayed Colonel Gutterez in "The Town Is a Prisoner" episode of the NBC Western series '' Cimarron City''. Dolenz played Juan Amontillo in the 1961 episode "The Uncourageous" of the ABC Western series '' The Rebel''. That same year, he played Ramon Ortega in the "Brand of Honesty" episode of the NBC Western series '' The Deputy.'' Dolenz married actress Janelle Johnson and they had four children: actor and singer

Micky Dolenz George Michael Dolenz Jr. (born March 8, 1945) is an American actor, musician, TV producer and businessman. He is best known as the drummer and one of three primary vocalists for the Pop music, pop-Rock music, rock band the Monkees (1966–1970, ...

(George Michael Dolenz) of the 1960s musical band the Monkees, Gemma "Coco" Dolenz, Gina Dolenz and Debbie Dolenz. Dolenz died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which m ...

in 1963 at the age of 55. He is interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents ac ...

Partial filmography

References

External links

*
New York Times Movies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dolenz, George 1908 births 1963 deaths Actors from Trieste American male film actors American male television actors American people of Slovenian descent Austro-Hungarian emigrants to the United States Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) Male actors from Los Angeles RKO Pictures contract players 20th-century American male actors Dolenz family