Richard Edward Botiller (October 26, 1896 – March 24, 1953) was an American character actor of the 1930s and 1940s. While most of his roles were un-credited, many of them nameless as well, he was given more substantial roles occasionally.

Life and career

Botiller was born on October 26, 1896, in

Bakersfield Bakersfield is a city in and the county seat of Kern County, California, United States. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, which is located in the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's population as of the ...

, California. He entered the film industry in 1933, debuting with an unnamed, un-credited role in the western, '' Silent Men''. During the 1930s and 1940s Botiller appeared in over 150 films, film shorts, and

film serials A serial film, film serial (or just serial), movie serial, or chapter play, is a film, motion picture form popular during the first half of the 20th century, consisting of a series of short subjects exhibited in consecutive order at one theater ...

. He often played as henchmen or Indians. Some of his more notable roles include: as Little Feather in '' Range Warfare'' (1934); as Felipe Farley in the 1935 western ''Cheyenne Tornado''; as Bald Eagle in 1936's '' West of Nevada''; as Hernandez in ''

Torrid Zone The torrid zone was the name given by ancient Greek and Roman geographers to the equatorial area of the Earth, so hot that it was thought to be impenetrable. That notion became a deterrent for European explorers until the 15th century. Origin A ...

'' (1940); as Nardo in the 1940 crime drama '' Dark Streets of Cairo''; and as Indian Pete in '' The Yellow Rose of Texas''; Other notable films in which Botiller appeared include: the classic war drama, '' The Charge of the Light Brigade'', starring

Errol Flynn Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (20 June 1909 – 14 October 1959) was an Australian and American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Oliv ...

and

Olivia de Havilland Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (; July 1, 1916July 26, 2020) was a British and American actress. The major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988. She appeared in 49 feature films and was one of the leading actresses of her tim ...

, in which he played a native; as an Indian in

Cecil B. DeMille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American filmmaker and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of American cinema and the most co ...

's historical drama, ''

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad is a Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United States after BNSF, ...

'', starring

Barbara Stanwyck Barbara Stanwyck (; born Ruby Catherine Stevens; July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American actress and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career, she was known for her strong, realistic screen p ...

and

Joel McCrea Joel Albert McCrea (November 5, 1905 – October 20, 1990) was an American actor whose career spanned a wide variety of genres over almost five decades, including comedy, drama, romance, thrillers, adventures, and Westerns, for which he bec ...

; as a tourist in the 1939 drama, ''

Only Angels Have Wings ''Only Angels Have Wings'' is a 1939 American adventure romantic drama film directed by Howard Hawks, starring Cary Grant and Jean Arthur, and is based on a story written by Hawks. Its plot follows the manager of an air freight company in a r ...

'', starring

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English and American actor. Known for his blended British and American accent, debonair demeanor, lighthearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing, he ...

and

Jean Arthur Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American film and theater actress whose career began in silent films in the early 1920s and lasted until the early 1950s. Arthur had feature roles in three F ...

, which is considered to be one of

Howard Hawks Howard Winchester Hawks (May 30, 1896December 26, 1977) was an American film director, Film producer, producer, and screenwriter of the Classical Hollywood cinema, classic Hollywood era. Critic Leonard Maltin called him "the greatest American ...

' finest films; as a warrior in the

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was an American comedian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared ...

and

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, comedian, entertainer and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwi ...

comedy classic, ''

Road to Morocco ''Road to Morocco'' is a 1942 American comedy film starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour, and featuring Anthony Quinn and Dona Drake. Written by Frank Butler and Don Hartman and directed by David Butler, it’s the third of the " ...

'' (1942); in the classic World War I drama, ''

For Whom the Bell Tolls ''For Whom the Bell Tolls'' is a novel by Ernest Hemingway published in 1940. It tells the story of Robert Jordan, a young American volunteer attached to a Republican guerrilla unit during the Spanish Civil War. As a dynamiter, he is assigned ...

'' (1943), starring

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and

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, in which he played a sergeant; as a native officer in the classic World War II romance, ''

Casablanca Casablanca (, ) is the largest city in Morocco and the country's economic and business centre. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Chaouia (Morocco), Chaouia plain in the central-western part of Morocco, the city has a populatio ...

'', starring

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and Ingrid Bergman; as an aide in the 1944 version of '' Kismet'', starring

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; and in as an unnamed character in one of his final roles in Humphrey Bogart's 1951 drama, ''

Sirocco Sirocco ( ) or scirocco is a Mediterranean wind that comes from the Sahara and can reach hurricane speeds in North Africa and Southern Europe, especially during the summer season. Names ''Sirocco'' derives from '' šurūq'' (), verbal noun o ...

''. Botiller's final appearance was as a cattleman (un-credited) in the 1952 western ''Smoky Canyon'', one of Charles Starrett's Durango Kid films. In addition to his feature work, Botiller also appeared in numerous film serials, including: in several different roles in 1934's '' The Return of Chandu'', starring

Béla Lugosi Blaskó Béla Ferenc Dezső (; October 20, 1882 – August 16, 1956), better known by the stage name Bela Lugosi ( ; ), was a Hungarian–American actor. He was best remembered for portraying Count Dracula in the horror film classic ''Dracul ...

; as Cottonwood in '' The Miracle Rider'' (1935), starring

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 (genre), Western films between 1909 and 1935. He appeared in 291 films, all but nine of which were s ...

; as a phantom raider in '' The Great Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok'' (1938), starring

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; as Yellow Snake in '' The Oregon Trail'' (1939), starring

Johnny Mack Brown John Brown (September 1, 1904 – November 14, 1974) was an American college football player and film actor billed as John Mack Brown at the height of his screen career. He acted and starred mainly in Western films. Early life Born and raised ...

; as Krause in the 1942 serial '' Captain Midnight'', starring Dave O'Brien. Botiller died on March 24, 1953, in Ridgecrest, California. He was buried in Arroyo Grande Cemetery,

Arroyo Grande, California Arroyo Grande (Spanish for "Big Creek") is a town in San Luis Obispo County, California, San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. History The earliest inhabitants of Arroyo Grande Valley were the northern or Obispeno Chumash Indians ...

.Wilson, Scott. ''Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons'', 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 25047-25048). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition.

Selected filmography

* '' The Man Trailer'' (1934) * '' Wild Mustang'' (1935) *'' Lightning Triggers'' (1935) * '' Outlaw Rule'' (1935) * '' Gun Play'' (1935) * '' Million Dollar Haul'' (1935) * '' The Cheyenne Tornado'' (1935) * '' Arizona Bad Man'' (1935) * '' The Traitor'' (1936) * '' Gun Smoke'' (1936) * '' South of Arizona'' (1938) * '' Pioneer Trail'' (1938) * '' The Pinto Kid'' (1941) * '' Dizzy Detectives'' (1943) * '' The Return of the Durango Kid'' (1945) * '' Smoky Canyon'' (1952)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Botiller, Dick 1896 births 1953 deaths American male film actors Male actors from Bakersfield, California 20th-century American male actors