| There were various players who wound up doing duty as a more serious helper to the hero. Occasionally, they would get into some comedic difficulties, but their primary role was not as a comic or buffoon. Several could be considered as 'second leads', and a few could even sing. Others often portrayed the heroine's brother or the son of the ranch owner ... and seemed to be in constant trouble. |
 Most of us remember James Ellison and Russell Hayden as the main helpers to William Boyd in his Hopalong Cassidy adventures. After the departures of Ellison and Hayden, various actors were utilized as replacements - they were Rand Brooks, Brad King, George 'Superman' Reeves, Jimmy Rogers ... and Jay Kirby (1920 - 1964). Jay Kirby was born William Bennett George on January 21, 1920 to Harry Virgil George and Eunice Bennett, and the family was living in Denver, Colorado at the time of the 1920, 1930 and 1940 census. Kirby's birth location could be Denver or Kansas City, Missouri, and there's information below on that confusion. He attended Denver's South High School, was on their track and football teams, and graduated in 1938. When he registered for the draft in July, 1941, 21 year old William Bennett George was a student at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. He briefly served in the Army Air Corp and his draft registration has a notation that he was given a medical discharge on February 12, 1943. Using a screen name of 'Jay Kirby', he began his film career portraying saddle pal 'Johnny Travers' in six Hoppy films released in 1942 - 1943. After those half dozen Hoppys, Kirby starred in SUNDOWN RIDERS with Russell Wade and Andy Clyde. RIDERS was an independent cheapie filmed in 16mm and color in 1944 for the non-theatrical market (meaning road shows, clubs, schools, and church audiences). Astor wound up releasing it to theaters in 1948. Kirby and his father H. V. George - along with Russell Wade and others - were behind the plans and financing for SUNDOWN and they formed a company named "Major 16mm Productions, Inc.". More about that below. In the post WW2 years, Kirby can be spotted in a dozen or so westerns with Jimmy Wakely at Monogram, Tim Holt at RKO, and at Republic Pictures with Bill Elliott, Monte Hale, others. Reverting to his real name of 'Bill George', he appears in a few 1950s cowboy TV shows including CISCO KID and ROY ROGERS. His first two marriages ended in divorce, and both wives were Hollywood starlets with a few film roles:
On August 15, 1963, William Bennett George suffered severe injuries when his car overturned in Norwalk, California. He never fully recovered and was a patient at the Sawtelle Veterans Administration Hospital in Los Angeles. He passed away there on July 30, 1964 and is interred at the Los Angeles National Cemetery (AKA Sawtelle Veterans Cemetery). The death certificate also notes another marriage - his wife was Chanson George and they lived in Rancho Santa Fe, San Diego County, California.
Family Search (free), Ancestry.com (subscription), and the death certificate provide more on William Bennett George / Jay Kirby. Note that the family resided in Denver, Colorado when the 1920, 1930 and 1940 census were taken. But Kirby's military records indicate he was born in Kansas City, Missouri. The confusion continues - in the 1920 census, he's born in Colorado, but in the 1930 census, his birth location is Missouri.
 (Courtesy of Les Adams) Above from left to right are William Boyd, Herbert Rawlinson, Jay Kirby and Hugh Prosser (with the badge) in a scene cropped from a 14x36 insert card from the Hopalong Cassidy LOST CANYON (Harry Sherman Prod/UA, 1942).  Above is the pressbook cover for SUNDOWN RIDERS. Filmed in 1944 in color and 16mm for the non-theatrical market, this ultra low budget oater wound up being released to theaters in 1948 by Astor. Jay Kirby and Andy Clyde are pictured at the top. And great rider Evelyn Finley and Russell Wade are shown at the bottom. The "Major 16mm Productions, Inc." company was formed by Kirby and others to produce and finance SUNDOWN. Kirby was one of the stars. And under his real name of William George, he did the music score. A few excerpts from the October 14, 1944 Motion Picture Herald at the Internet Archive:
"... with Russell Wade, Jay Kirby and Andy Clyde in the principal roles, directed by Lambert Hillyer from a script by himself, and photographed by Alan Stensvold, William George furnishing the music score." (William George being Kirby. In their 1948 divorce, wife Carmelle Bergstrom complained about Kirby spending all his time writing music.) More on Kirby, SUNDOWN RIDERS, "Major 16mm Productions, Inc." company, et al is available at the Internet Archive: Home Movie magazine from 1944 with photos and article about the film. Click HERE for the article and a separate window / tab will open. |
 (Courtesy of Les Adams) Above is John James (1913 - 1960) with George 'Gabby' Hayes and Wild Bill Elliott in MAN FROM THUNDER RIVER (Republic, 1943). He appeared in about 80 films from 1939 through the early 1950s. These included about twenty Republic westerns and serials released during 1941 - 1947. From the mid 1940s through the early 1950s, James did oaters with Jimmy Wakely, Bill Elliott, Lash LaRue, a few others. He also shows up in some A grade movies including THIRTY SECONDS OVER TOKYO (MGM, 1944). In DEVIL BAT'S DAUGHTER (PRC, 1946), James and Rosemary La Planche, Miss America of 1941, had the lead roles. In 1947, he married Jacqueline Hammette. As Jacqueline James, she became a star of 1950s - 1960s musicals and stage plays. And John became her mentor and manager. There's expanded coverage on John James in the Villains & Supporting Players section on the Old Corral. |
 (Courtesy of Ed Phillips) Above is Bob Nolan (1908 - 1980). Nolan, Roy Rogers (Leonard Slye) and Tim Spencer formed a trio in the early 1930s, and the group matured and expanded into the Sons of the Pioneers, the most influential of the B western singin' groups. The Canadian born Nolan, whose real name was Robert Nobles, was also a proficient and prolific songwriter, and among his creations are Cool Water and Tumbling Tumbleweeds. Nolan and the SOP did tunes and helper duty with Charles Starrett at Columbia. But he and they are probably best remembered for all their appearances in Roy Rogers films. The eternal question about Nolan and his career: how come he was never offered a solo shot as a movie cowboy hero/lead? There's a section on the Old Corral devoted to Bob Nolan (and the Sons of the Pioneers). |
 (From Old Corral collection) Above is Russell 'Russ' 'Lucky' Hayden (1911 - 1981). He was a member of Paramount's production crew prior to co-starring in the Hopalong Cassidy films of the late 1930s. Hayden then went on to co-star with Charles Starrett at Columbia ... moved to his own starring series at Columbia ... and then some other western and serial filmwork as the B film era faded. In the 1950s, he and former child star, Jackie Coogan, starred in the COWBOY G-MEN TV series, and Hayden wound up producing cowboy TVers such as 26 MEN and JUDGE ROY BEAN. You'll find expanded coverage on Hayden in the 'Heroes' section on the Old Corral homepage. There you will find that his birth / surname was Lucid. But there are many variations of his first and middle names. |
 (From Old Corral collection) Above is James 'Jimmy' 'Shamrock' Ellison (real name: James Ellison Smith) (1910 - 1993). He was the original trail partner to William Boyd in the early Hopalong Cassidy films, and was replaced in that series by Russell Hayden. Ellison was groomed to become a bigger name by Paramount, 20th Century Fox and RKO, but he was unable to fully make the transition to a star of A grade features. In the early 1950s, he was the second lead to Johnny Mack Brown at Monogram. He then retired and became a successful California contractor and home builder. You'll find expanded coverage on Ellison in the 'Heroes' section on the Old Corral homepage. |
 (Courtesy of Minard Coons) Above is Dennis 'Denny' 'Smoky' Moore (1908 - 1964), real name: Dennis Meadows. Moore couldn't land a job as a solo hero in a cowboy series. He did a brief stint as one of the three heroes at the tail end of the Monogram Range Busters series. Later at Monogram, he was the saddle pal to Jimmy Wakely. When Johnny Mack Brown left Universal, Moore came in to give Tex Ritter a hand in a film or two. And PRC used Moore several times as the helper to both George Houston and Bob Livingston in the Lone Rider series. Moore had better luck in cliffhangers, and was the hero in several, including RAIDERS OF GHOST CITY (Universal, 1944) and THE PURPLE MONSTER STRIKES (Republic, 1945). A decade later, Moore was the star/co-star in the last two serials that were filmed, BLAZING THE OVERLAND TRAIL (Columbia, 1956) and PERILS OF THE WILDERNESS (Columbia, 1956). Moore also had a lot of screen time as a villain, and you'll find "more on Moore" in the Villains & Supporting Players section on the Old Corral. |
 (Courtesy of Minard Coons) Above from L-to-R are Jim Bannon, Whip Wilson and Phyllis Coates. Bannon (1911 - 1986) was the hero of the serial DANGERS OF THE CANADIAN MOUNTED (Republic, 1948) and was the trail pard to Whip Wilson in his later Monogram films. He also portrayed Red Ryder in a brief series around 1950 for Eagle-Lion films, and played 'Uncle Sandy North' in the short-lived ADVENTURES OF CHAMPION TV show for Gene Autry's Flying A production company in the 1950s. In the 1950s, Bannon was the lead in a proposed Red Ryder TV show and a pilot episode was filmed. But the series never made it onto the little screen. You'll find expanded coverage on Bannon in the 'Heroes' section on the Old Corral homepage. |
 (Courtesy of Minard Coons) Above - Georgia born Raymond Otis 'Ray' Whitley (1901-1979) was a great western singer and songwriter ... he was in films with George O'Brien, Tim Holt, Jimmy Wakely, Rod Cameron, more, where he was the hero's helper or just around to add western tunes. Among Whitley's songwriting credits is Gene Autry's theme song, I'm Back In The Saddle Again. Whitley did star in some western musical shorts in the mid 1940s. But the same question arises (as with Bob Nolan): how come Whitley didn't get a shot at being a full-fledged screen hero? You'll find expanded coverage on Whitley in the 'Heroes' section on the Old Corral homepage. Whitley is a member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. When you get to the site, click on 'Hall of Fame': http://www.nashvillesongwritersfoundation.com/Site/inductees |
 (From Old Corral collection) Above is Tex Harding (1918 - 1981) (real name: John Karl Thye). He was the "singing sidekick" to Charles Starrett in about a half dozen Durango Kid escapades in the mid 1940s, and Harding also did a Durango in the late 1940s.
The Family Search website (free), Ancestry.com (subscription), Social Security Death Index (SSDI) and the death certificate provide more on Dorothy Thye (Dorothy Dix) and John Thye (Tex Harding):
 (From Old Corral collection) Above are sidekick Tex Harding with Charles Starrett in a mid 1940s Durango Kid adventure. Harding is riding 'Diablo' which was owned by trainer Ralph McCutcheon and later owned by Duncan Renaldo. |
 Rand Brooks (1918 - 2003) portrayed 'Lucky Jenkins' to William Boyd in the last dozen Hopalong Cassidy oaters which were released by United Artists in the mid to late 1940s. Brooks, whose full name was Arlington Rand Brooks, Jr., was also 'Corporal Randy Boone' in THE ADVENTURES OF RIN TIN TIN TV show. In the late 1930s, he was at MGM doing teen roles in the Andy Hardy films and more. His most remembered role is probably as 'Charles Hamilton', the ill-fated first husband of Scarlett O'Hara in GONE WITH THE WIND (MGM, 1939).Brooks' first marriage was to Stan Laurel's daughter Lois. After he left Hollywood, Brooks formed Professional Ambulance Service which grew into the largest private ambulance provider in Los Angeles County. He sold the company in the mid 1990s and he and his second wife Hermaine retired to the Santa Ynez Valley near Santa Barbara, California. Brooks passed away on September 1, 2003. Find A Grave website includes information on Brooks' interment at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7832354/rand-brooks
 (Courtesy of Les Adams) L-to-R are Andy Clyde, William Boyd, Rand Brooks and William Bailey (AKA William Norton Bailey) in the Hopalong Cassidy adventure FALSE PARADISE (United Artist, 1948). |
Although some of the data may be incomplete or inaccurate, the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) has information on Jay Kirby and wives: