George D. "Pete" Morrison (August 8, 1890 – February 5, 1973) was an American silent

western film 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 ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

born in

Westminster, Colorado The City of Westminster is a home rule municipality located in Adams and Jefferson counties, Colorado, United States. The city population was 116,317 at the 2020 United States Census with 71,240 residing in Adams County and 45,077 residing in ...

. During his childhood he lived in

Morrison, Colorado The Town of Morrison is a home rule municipality in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The population was 428 at the 2010 census. Red Rocks Amphitheatre is located nearby. History This small foothills settlement is named after George ...

(named for his grandfather George Morrison) and

Idaho Springs The City of Idaho Springs is the Statutory City that is the most populous municipality in Clear Creek County, Colorado, United States. Idaho Springs is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 ...

, and got his early tastes of horsemanship riding with his father Thomas during the summer. They drove cattle and sheep from the summer ranges in Middle Park and Fall River in Colorado to supply beef and mutton to the mining camps of Georgetown, Idaho Springs, Nevadaville, Black Hawk and

Central City In urban planning, a core city, principal city metropolitan core, or central city, is the largest or most important city or cities of a metropolitan area. A core city is surrounded by smaller satellite cities, towns, and suburbs. A central city ...

. During his mid-teens Pete worked in the mining industry, with his older brothers driving in sections of the

Argo Tunnel In Greek mythology the ''Argo'' (; in Greek: ) was a ship built with the help of the gods that Jason and the Argonauts sailed from Iolcos to Colchis to retrieve the Golden Fleece. The ship has gone on to be used as a motif in a variety of sou ...

where Pete was a motorman, hoist operator, topside helper, teamster hauler, assisting several of the larger miners in the Idaho Springs area. In the summer of 1910 Pete Morrison was an engine fireman for the

Colorado and Southern Railway The Colorado and Southern Railway was an American Class I railroad in the western United States that operated independently from 1898 to 1908, then as part of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad until it was absorbed into the Burli ...

when he was lured away by the early western movies. Pete began working as a stunt man for the Essanay Studios of '' Broncho Billy'' films, soon discovering he could make more money working in movies in two weeks than he could make working for a month on the railroad. Pete followed his older brother Chick Morrison to California, where he also became a star in early western pictures. Through his career, Morrison transcended from very early film in 1909 to sound in 1935 starring in some 132 pictures.Golden Landmarks Association website. The Pete Morrison Collection: Pete Morrison. Last Accessed: 2019/03/03
/ref>

Film career

Pete Morrison began work with the

American Film Manufacturing Company The American Film Manufacturing Company, also known as Flying “A” Studios, was an American motion picture production company. In 1915, the formal name was changed to the American Film Company. History The American Film Manufacturing Comp ...

, but soon was signed by

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...

and appeared in western serials and short films. Over time Morrison worked with many of the famous actors of his time, including

Tom Mix Thomas Edwin Mix (born Thomas Hezikiah Mix; January 6, 1880 – October 12, 1940) was an American film actor and the star of many early Western films between 1909 and 1935. He appeared in 291 films, all but nine of which were silent films. He w ...

, Wallace,

Noah Beery Noah Nicholas Beery (January 17, 1882 – April 1, 1946) was an American actor who appeared in films from 1913 until his death in 1946. He was the older brother of Academy Award-winning actor Wallace Beery as well as the father of prominen ...

and John Barry. He starred with

Charlotte Burton Charlotte E. Burton (May 30, 1881 – March 28, 1942) was an American silent film actress. Career Born in San Francisco, Burton was signed by the American Film Manufacturing Company in 1912 where she worked for several years. She join ...

in films such as '' The Bruiser'' in 1916. He took some time away from movies to travel the country in a Wild West Show, then returned and did numerous Westerns for Triangle and Universal. He agreed to make a series of pictures in Central and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

, but eventually returned to Universal. With the arrival of sound pictures, his career declined somewhat and he went into supporting roles in movies, then retired in 1935, aged 45. He appeared in''Scarface'', ''Cleopatra'', and ''The Big Trail'' where he met a young newcomer who happened to share his last name, Marion "Duke" Morrison, and reputedly taught the rising star Morrison some of his moves. The younger Morrison later gained fame as John Wayne.

Retirement from acting, later career, and death

In 1935 Pete Morrison retired and settled on his ranch near

Golden, Colorado Golden is a home rule city that is the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 20,399 at the 2020 United States Census. Golden lies along Clear Creek at the base of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountai ...

which he had purchased in 1926. There he lived with his family including wife Lillian (née Knapp) whom he married in 1912, and sons Clifford E. and Douglas K. Morrison. Pete became a deputy sheriff of

Jefferson County, Colorado Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 582,910, making it the fourth-most populous county in Colorado. The county seat is Golden, and the most populous city is Lakewood. ...

in 1936, and remained so for 37 years. He was also a member of the Golden Masonic Lodge, the Genesee Group and Jefferson County Sheriff's Posse. He ranched and farmed along with several outside jobs until his final retirement in the early 1960s. Pete Morrison died in

Los Angeles, California 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' ...

on February 5, 1973, of an abdominal aneurysm at the age of 82. He is buried in the Golden Cemetery, along with other members of his family.Edna Fiore, 1998. Cowboy Pete: Film Pioneer. Morrison Historical Society website. Last Accessed: 2019/03/03
/ref> The Pete Morrison Collection of his movie career paraphernalia now resides at the Golden Landmarks Association in

. Pete's career is featured in a historic mural near Bear Creek Avenue in

, as well as in a book about Essanay Studios.Historic Jeffco website. The Making of a Morrison Mural. Last Accessed: 2019/03/03
/ref>David Kiehn, ''Broncho Billy and the Essanay Film Company'', Farwell Books, 2003. .

Selected filmography

The Golden Landmarks Association offers a more complete list of his films, said to number between 132 and 204 in total. Many were produced at his own studio, Lariat Productions, at Universal Studios.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morrison, Pete 1890 births 1973 deaths People from Westminster, Colorado Male actors from Colorado American male film actors Male Western (genre) film actors American male silent film actors 20th-century American male actors People from Morrison, Colorado