Larry Ward (October 3, 1924 – February 16, 1985) was an American

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 ...

who appeared in many films and

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 be ...

. He was sometimes credited under the name Ward Gaynor.

Biography

Ward was born in Columbus,

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. His father was a former college football coach and a member of the Ohio State Senate. Ward studied at a number of universities before joining the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, where he served for three years. Enrolling in the

American Theatre Wing The American Theatre Wing (the Wing for short) is a New York City–based non-profit organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre", according to its mission statement. Originally known as the Stage Women's War Relief ...

under the G.I. Bill of Rights, Ward soon appeared in several outstanding productions. He turned his talents to writing but also kept his hand in the acting profession by appearing in a television

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 ...

titled ''

The Brighter Day ''The Brighter Day'' is an American daytime soap opera which aired on CBS from January 4, 1954, to September 28, 1962. Originally created for NBC Radio by Irna Phillips in 1948, the radio and television versions ran simultaneously from 1954&nda ...

'' in 1954. Here he played a character called Dr. Randy Hamilton, but Ward had his sights set on Hollywood and left the show in 1957 when his character died of a

myocardial infarction 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 may ...

. Ward got his break in 1962 while he was visiting the

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

studio to discuss a film script with producer Jules Schermer, who was so impressed with his appearance that he gave him a minor part as Blake Stevens in the episode "The Holdout" of the western series '' Lawman'', starring John Russell and Peter Brown, which was filming the following morning during its last season on the air. This break was followed by minor roles in other TV series, and in 1963 Schermer gave Ward the starring role of

U.S. Marshal The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The USMS is a bureau within the U.S. Department of Justice, operating under the direction of the Attorney General, but serves as the enforce ...

Frank Ragan in a new western series called ''

The Dakotas The Dakotas is a collective term for the U.S. states of North Dakota and South Dakota. It has been used historically to describe the Dakota Territory, and is still used for the collective heritage, culture, geography, fauna, sociology, econo ...

'', which also featured Chad Everett, Mike Greene, and

Jack Elam William Scott "Jack" Elam (November 13, 1920 – October 20, 2003) was an American film and television actor best known for his numerous roles as villains in Western films and, later in his career, comedies (sometimes spoofing his villainou ...

as Ward's deputies. The series was suddenly canceled after a public outcry over the nineteenth episode, in which a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

was injured during a gunfight at a church. In the 1966–1967 season, Ward guest starred on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

series ''

The Road West The Road West is an American television Western series that aired on NBC from September 12, 1966, to May 1, 1967. Overview Ben Pride moves with his children Timothy, Midge, and Kip, his new wife Elizabeth, his father Tom, and his brother-in-law C ...

'' in the episode entitled "Shaman". In 1966, he appeared as a guest star on season 1 of Lost in Space, in the episode "All That Glitters" with Werner Klemplerer from "Hogan's Heroes". In 1976, Ward appeared in an episode of the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

western series '' Sara''. His last on-screen appearances were on two episodes in 1982 of CBSs ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker. Th ...

''. Ward died at the age of 60 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, in 1985.

Filmography

Film

* '' A Distant Trumpet'' (1964) - Sgt. Kroger * '' Hombre'' (1967) - Soldier * ''

Kill the Wicked! ''Kill the Wicked!'' ( it, Dio non paga il sabato, also known as ''God Does Not Pay on Saturday'' and ''Kill the Wickeds'') is a 1967 Italian Spaghetti Western film directed by Tanio Boccia and starring Larry Ward and Rod Dana. This movie passes ...

'' (1967) - Benny Hudson * ''Non sta bene rubare il tesoro'' (1967) - Bill * ''Sapevano solo uccidere'' (1968) - Saguaro * ''

Five for Hell ''Five for Hell'' ( it, Cinque per l'inferno, also known as ''Five Into Hell'') is a 1969 Italian " macaroni combat" war film starring John Garko, Margaret Lee and Klaus Kinski. Italian cinema specialist Howard Hughes referred to it as a deriv ...

'' (1969) - Thompson (English version, voice, uncredited) * ''Macabre'' (1969) - Peter / John * '' Naked Violence'' (1969) - Sampero (English version, voice, uncredited) * ''

Blackie the Pirate ''Blackie the Pirate'' ( it, Il corsaro nero) is a 1971 comedy film with Terence Hill and Bud Spencer, unusual in that the popular team has little screen time together. Story In the late 17th century, Captain Blackie (Terence Hill) is a notoriou ...

'' (1971) - Blackie (English version, voice, uncredited) * ''

A Bay of Blood ''A Bay of Blood'' (Italian: ''Ecologia del delitto'', lit. "Ecology of Crime", later retitled ''Reazione a catena'' it. "Chain Reaction" (also known as ''Carnage'', ''Twitch of the Death Nerve'' and ''Blood Bath'') is a 1971 Italian giallo sla ...

'' (1971) - Simon (English version, voice, uncredited) * ''

Caliber 9 ''Caliber 9'' ( it, Milano calibro 9, lit=Milan caliber 9; also released as ''The Contract'') is a 1972 Italian noir-poliziottesco film written and directed by Fernando Di Leo and starring Gastone Moschin, Mario Adorf, Barbara Bouchet, Philippe L ...

'' (1972) - Fonzino / Masucci (English version, voice, uncredited) * '' The Deathhead Virgin'' (1974) - Frank Cutter * ''

Mister Scarface ''Mister Scarface'' ( it, I padroni della città) is a 1976 '' noir'' -'' action'' film directed by Fernando Di Leo and starring Jack Palance. Plot Tony ( Harry Baer) is a mob loan collector who is unsatisfied with his position in life, and c ...

'' (1976) - (English version, voice, uncredited)

Television

* '' Have Gun Will Travel'' (1962) - S6/E7: "Memories of Monica" as Monica's ( Judi Meredith) ex-boyfriend who is released from prison and is determined to take her away from her husband, the sheriff ( Bing Russell). * '' The Outer Limits'' (1964) – S2/E14: "Counterweight" as Keith Ellis * ''

Lost in Space ''Lost in Space'' is an American science fiction television series, created and produced by Irwin Allen, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968 on CBS. The series was inspired by the 1812 novel ''The Swiss Family Robinson.'' The series fo ...

'' (1965) – "All That Glitters" as Ohan * '' The Fugitive'' (1965) - S3/E15: "When The Wind Blows" as Steve Jackson * ''

The Time Tunnel ''The Time Tunnel'' is an American color science fiction TV series written around a theme of time travel adventure starring James Darren and Robert Colbert. The show was creator-producer Irwin Allen's third science-fiction television series and ...

'' (1966) – "One Way To the Moon" as Colonel Kane * ''

The Invaders ''The Invaders'' is an American science-fiction television series created by Larry Cohen that aired on ABC for two seasons, from 1967 to 1968. Roy Thinnes stars as David Vincent, who after stumbling across evidence of an in-progress invas ...

'' (1967) - "The Condemned" as Detective Carter * ''

Land of the Giants ''Land of the Giants'' is a one-hour American science fiction television series that aired on ABC for two seasons, beginning on September 22, 1968 and ending on March 22, 1970. The show was created and produced by Irwin Allen. ''Land of the Gi ...

'' (1969) – "Shell Game" as Talf Ekorb * '' Sara'' (1976) – "The Mountain Man" as Joe * ''

'' (1982) - "Where There's a Will, There's a War" as General Kratzer * ''M*A*S*H'' (1982) - " The Moon Is Not Blue" as General Rothaker (final appearance)

External links

*
Larry Ward
at Find a Grave {{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Larry 1924 births 1985 deaths Male actors from Columbus, Ohio American male film actors American male television actors People from Greater Los Angeles United States Navy sailors 20th-century American male actors Warner Bros. contract players Burials at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery United States Navy personnel of World War II