James Edward Brown (March 22, 1920 – April 11, 1992) was an American film and television actor. He was perhaps best known for playing Lt. Ripley Masters in the American

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 id ...

television series ''

The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin ''The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin'' is an American children's television series in the Western genre that aired from October 1954 to May 1959 on the ABC television network. In all, 164 episodes aired. The show starred Lee Aaker as Rusty, a boy orph ...

''.

Life and career

Brown was born in Desdemona,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. He attended

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the fir ...

, representing the university at

Tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

. Brown began his acting career in 1941 with an uncredited role as a medic in the film ''

Ride, Kelly, Ride ''Ride, Kelly, Ride'' is a 1941 American drama film directed by Norman Foster and written by William Conselman Jr. and Irving Cummings Jr.. The film stars Eugene Pallette, Marvin Stephens, Rita Quigley, Mary Healy, Richard Lane and Charles D. B ...

''. His first credited role was in the 1942 film '' The Forest Rangers''. Brown starred, co-starred and appeared on films including ''

The Good Fellows ''The Good Fellows'' is a 1943 American comedy film directed by Jo Graham and written by Hugh Wedlock Jr. and Howard Snyder. The film stars Cecil Kellaway, Helen Walker, Mabel Paige, James Brown, Patti Hale and Kathleen Lockhart. The film was r ...

'', ''

Objective, Burma! ''Objective, Burma!'' is a 1945 American war film that is loosely based on the six-month raid by Merrill's Marauders in the Burma Campaign during the Second World War. Directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Errol Flynn, the film was made by Warner ...

'', ''

Gun Street ''Gun Street'' is a 1961 American Western film directed by Edward L. Cahn and starring James Brown, Jean Willes and John Clarke.

'', '' The Big Fix'', ''

When the Clock Strikes ''When the Clock Strikes'' is a 1961 gangster film directed by Edward L. Cahn and starring James Brown and Merry Anders.Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...

'', ''

Irma la Douce ''Irma la Douce'' (, "Irma the Sweet") is a 1963 American romantic comedy film directed by Billy Wilder from a screenplay he co-wrote with I. A. L. Diamond, based on the 1956 French stage musical of the same name by Marguerite Monnot and Alexa ...

'', ''

The Fabulous Texan ''The Fabulous Texan'' is a 1947 American Western film directed by Edward Ludwig and written by Lawrence Hazard and Horace McCoy. The film stars Wild Bill Elliott, John Carroll, Catherine McLeod, Albert Dekker, Andy Devine and Patricia Knight. ...

'', ''

Young and Willing ''Young and Willing'' is a 1943 American comedy film produced and directed by Edward H. Griffith and starring William Holden, Eddie Bracken, Robert Benchley, and Susan Hayward. With a screenplay by Virginia Van Upp based on the play ''Out of the F ...

'', ''

The Gallant Legion ''The Gallant Legion'' is a 1948 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and written by Gerald Drayson Adams. The film stars Wild Bill Elliott, Lorna Gray, Joseph Schildkraut, Bruce Cabot, Andy Devine and Jack Holt. The film was release ...

'', ''

The Younger Brothers ''The Younger Brothers'' is a 1949 American Western film directed by Edwin L. Marin and starring Wayne Morris, Bruce Bennett, Janis Paige. Plot Determined to reform from their outlaw ways, Cole, Jim and Bob Younger ride to Cedar Creek, Minnesot ...

'', ''

Corvette K-225 ''Corvette K-225'' is a 1943 American war film starring Randolph Scott and James Brown, with Ella Raines making her feature film debut. Directed by Richard Rosson, the film was released in the UK as ''The Nelson Touch''. Robert Mitchum, cred ...

'', ''

Sands of Iwo Jima ''Sands of Iwo Jima'' is a 1949 war film starring John Wayne that follows a group of United States Marines from training to the Battle of Iwo Jima during World War II. The film, which also features John Agar, Adele Mara and Forrest Tucker, was w ...

'', '' Yes Sir, That's My Baby'', '' Our Hearts Were Young Gay'' (and its sequel ''

Our Hearts Were Growing Up ''Our Hearts Were Growing Up'' is a 1946 American comedy film directed by William D. Russell and written by Melvin Frank, Norman Panama and Frank Waldman. It is the sequel to the 1944 film ''Our Hearts Were Young and Gay''. The film stars Gail ...

''), '' Chain Lightning'', ''

Missing Women The term "missing women" indicates a shortfall in the number of women relative to the expected number of women in a region or country. It is most often measured through male-to-female sex ratios, and is theorized to be caused by sex-selective abort ...

'', ''

Inside the Mafia ''Inside the Mafia'' is a 1959 film noir crime film based on a true incident. It was based on the Albert Anastasia murder and subsequent Apalachin Meeting. Plot The gangster Augie Martello is riddled with bullets in an assassination attempt orga ...

'', '' The Groom Wore Spurs'' and ''

Going My Way ''Going My Way'' is a 1944 American musical comedy drama film directed by Leo McCarey and starring Bing Crosby and Barry Fitzgerald. Written by Frank Butler and Frank Cavett based on a story by McCarey, the film is about a new young priest ta ...

''.

In 1954, Brown joined the cast of the new

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

television series ''

'', in which he played Lt. Ripley Masters. After the series ended in 1959 Brown guest-starred in television programs including ''

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 ...

'', ''

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was re ...

'', ''

Lassie Lassie is a fictional female Rough Collie dog and is featured in a short story by Eric Knight that was later expanded to a full-length novel called ''Lassie Come-Home''. Knight's portrayal of Lassie bears some features in common with another fic ...

'' (3 episodes), '' The Virginian'', '' Laramie'', ''

Route 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) was one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The h ...

'', '' Barbary Coast'', ''

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 ...

'', ''

Bronco A bucking horse is any breed or either gender of horse with a propensity to buck. They have been, and still are, referred to by various names, including bronco, broncho, and roughstock. The harder they buck, the more desirable they are for rod ...

'', ''

Honey West Honey West is a fictional character created by the husband and wife writing team Gloria and Forest Fickling under the pseudonym "G.G. Fickling", and appearing in eleven mystery novels by the duo. The character is notable as being one of the firs ...

'' and ''

Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...

''. From 1979 to 1986 Brown played the recurring role of "Detective Harry McSween" in 39 episodes of the

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

television series ''

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

''. For about a decade from the mid-1960s Brown left acting to found a company making weight belts, eventually selling the company to Faberge. He returned to acting in television in the 1970s. Reward-Unlimited-17

Death

Brown died in April 1992 of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

at his home in

Woodland Hills, California Woodland Hills is a neighborhood bordering the Santa Monica Mountains in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Geography Woodland Hills is in the southwestern region of the San Fernando Valley, which is located east of Ca ...

, at the age of 72. He was cremated.

References

External links

*
James Brown
at

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

*
Rotten Tomatoes profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, James 1920 births 1992 deaths People from Texas Male actors from Texas Deaths from lung cancer in California American male film actors American male television actors 20th-century American male actors Baylor University alumni Western (genre) television actors American male tennis players