By the late 1930s, Tim had the acting bug and worked at RKO in some oaters starring their current range hero, George O'Brien, as well as with veteran Harry Carey. Other film work included portraying Anne Shirley's boyfriend, Richard Grosvenor III, in the Barbara Stanwyck STELLA DALLAS (Samuel Goldwyn, 1937). Recall the cavalry patrol in John Ford's STAGECOACH (United Artists, 1939) --- the officer leading the troop was a young Tim Holt at about age 20. By the early 1940s, Tim Holt had his own cowboy series at RKO, replacing the muscular O'Brien who had retired from films.  In the Holt oaters, there were several sidekick groupings --- singer Ray Whitley, Lee 'Lasses' White, whiskered codger Emmett Lynn, and Cliff 'Ukelele Ike' Edwards (who is more famous as the voice of the Walt Disney character Jiminy Cricket and singer of When You Wish Upon A Star). Holt did eighteen RKO oaters which were released from 1940-1943, and his first starring role was WAGON TRAIN (RKO, 1940). One of his better films from this period is THE BANDIT TRAIL (RKO, 1941) which features Whitley and 'Lasses' White.  Morris Ankrum, who did many of the Hopalong Cassidy flicks using a screen name of Stephen Morris, portrays 'Red' Haggerty, a no good relative of Holt who reforms at the end and is killed in a blazing gun battle with Roy Barcroft and gang. RKO also used Holt in some non-westerns: he starred as a Nazi youth in the wartime HITLER'S CHILDREN (RKO, 1943) with Bonita Granville. And he had a meaty role in Orson Welles' THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS (Mercury/RKO, 1942). Then there was a break as Holt did World War II military service, attaining the rank of Lieutenant in the Air Force and serving as a bombadier.

Above, from L-to-R are Ray Whitley, Lee 'Lasses' White and a young Tim Holt at RKO prior to Holt entering WW2 service. (Courtesy of Les Adams) Above, from L-to-R are Richard 'Dick' Cramer, Cliff 'Ukelele Ike' Edwards and Holt in PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIE (RKO, 1942). Tim Holt, with a close cut hairstyle, in HITLER'S CHILDREN (RKO, 1943).

From L-to-R are Tim Holt, Dolores Costello, and Joseph Cotten in Orson Welles' THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS (1942).  (Thanks to Robert Gregory for identifying the lady in this pic.  He also noted that Dolores Costello was one of John Barrymore's ex-wives and the grandmother of Drew Barrymore.)

After the war, Holt continued his western career at RKO, and his films from this period rank at the top of the B western genre.  Richard "Chito" Martin was Holt's saddle pal during the entire group.  Additionally, Holt worked in some A grade films, co-starring as one of the Earp brothers in MY DARLING CLEMENTINE (1946) with Henry Fonda and Victor Mature, as well as in the John Huston directed THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE (1948), starring Humphrey Bogart and Walter Huston.

From L-to-R are Tim Holt, Humphrey Bogart and Walter Huston in the John Huston directed tale of greed while searching for gold, THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE (1948).

Tim Holt's last cowboy film was DESERT PASSAGE (RKO, 1952), and soon after, he abandoned Hollywood. Over the next twenty years, he appeared in less than a handful of films. Of these few films, only one was a starring role for Holt --- he was a Navy officer battling THE MONSTER THAT CHALLENGED THE WORLD (United Artists, 1957), one of many mediocre 1950s sci-fi monster movies.

Holt also did personal appearance tours and show work to pick up some cash.

(Courtesy of Joe Taylor & Patty Corbett)

RKO cowboy Tim Holt with the Red Birds country western singing group and other musicians during his personal appearance at the Buck Lake Ranch in Indiana, circa 1954, a couple years after his RKO western series had ended.

Tim Holt married Berdee Stephens in 1952 and this relationship worked.  They moved to Oklahoma.  There were a variety of jobs including a couple of years of personal appearance touring ... Holt did work at radio stations, TV stations ... and there was other work which took the family to Iowa and Colorado.  Tim even hosted a Saturday morning "Tim Holt Western Theater" on an Oklahoma City TV station circa 1959-1960.  On February 15, 1973, and at age 54, Tim Holt passed away from cancer.  He is buried at Memory Lane Cemetery, Harrah, Oklahoma.

Holt was a pretty good actor, and was reasonably successful in obtaining non-western screen roles.  His pre WWII cowboy series was average fare.  But the 29 films that he made for RKO after World War II are very good westerns with solid scripts, superior photography, and beautiful locations.  The director on about half of the Holt oaters was Lesley Selander, a veteran movie maker who had directing experience on the Hopalong Cassidy films as well as Republic westerns.

You may want to go to the In Search Of ... page on the Old Corral and check the Social Security Death Index.  You should find a record for a Charles Holt, birthdate of February 5, 1919, and he passed away in February 1973 in Harrah, Oklahoma.

The Motion Picture Herald and Boxoffice polls were conducted from about the mid 1930s through the mid 1950s.  With a few exceptions, the annual results would list the 'Top Ten' (or 'Top Five') cowboy film stars.  In most cases, the winners were what you would expect --- Autry, Rogers, Starrett, Hoppy, Johnny Mack Brown, Bill Elliott ... and Tim Holt.