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{{Short description|American actor (1919–1993)}}
{{Use American English|date=September 2021}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2021}}
{{Infobox person
{{Infobox person
| name = Mort Mills
| name = Mort Mills
| image = Mort Mills in Treasury Men in Action (Case of the Ready Guns.jpg
⚫
| image =
| alt = Mort Mills 1955
| imagesize =
| caption = Mills in an episode of ''[[Treasury Men in Action]]'' (1955)
⚫
| alt =
⚫
| birth_name = Mortimer Morris Kaplan
| caption =
⚫
| birth_date = {{Birth date|mf=yes|1919|01|11}}
⚫
| birth_name = Mortimer Morris Kaplan
⚫
| birth_place =
⚫
| birth_date = {{birth date|1919|01|11}}
⚫
| death_date = {{Death date and age|mf=yes|1993|06|06|1919|01|11}}
| birth_place = [[New York City]], U.S.
| death_place =
⚫
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1993|06|06|1919|01|11}}
| other_names =
| death_place = [[Ventura, California]], U.S.
| occupation = Actor
| occupation = Actor
| yearsactive = 1952–1973
| years_active = 1952–1973
| spouse = Mary Loretta Grady
| spouse =
⚫
| children =
<br>({{abbr|m.|married}} 19??; {{abbr|div.|divorced}} 19??)<br>{{marriage|Betty Dellball Pentland <br>|1956|1992|end=died}}
⚫
| relatives = [[Mary Treen]] (cousin)
| children = 3
⚫
| family = [[Mary Treen]] (cousin)
}}
}}


'''Mort Mills''' (born '''Mortimer Morris Kaplan'''; January 11, 1919 – June 6, 1993) was an American [[film]] and [[television]] [[actor]] who had roles in over 200 movies and television episodes. He was often the town lawman or the local bad guy in many popular westerns of the 1950s and 1960s. From 1957–1959 he had a recurring co-starring role as Marshal Frank Tallman in ''[[Man Without a Gun]]''. Other recurring roles were as Sergeant Ben Landro in the ''[[Perry Mason (TV series)|Perry Mason]]'' series and Sheriff Fred Madden in ''[[The Big Valley]]''. In 1958, he guest starred as a particularly greedy bounty hunter who clashes with [[Steve McQueen]]'s character of Josh Randall in the [[CBS]] [[Western (genre)|western]] series, ''[[Wanted: Dead or Alive (TV series)|Wanted: Dead or Alive]]''.
'''Mort Mills''' (born '''Mortimer Morris Kaplan'''; January 11, 1919 – June 6, 1993){{Citation needed |date=December 2023}} was an American [[film]] and [[television]] [[actor]] who had roles in over 150 movies and television episodes. He was often the town lawman or the local bad guy in many popular westerns of the 1950s and 1960s.
From 1957–1959 he had a recurring co-starring role as Marshal Frank Tallman in ''[[Man Without a Gun]]''. Other recurring roles were as Sergeant Ben Landro in the ''[[Perry Mason (1957 TV series)|Perry Mason]]'' series and Sheriff Fred Madden in ''[[The Big Valley]]''. He portrayed supporting roles in the [[Alfred Hitchcock]] films ''[[Psycho (1960 film)|Psycho]]'' (1960) and ''[[Torn Curtain]]'' (1966), and in [[Orson Welles]]' ''[[Touch of Evil]]'' (1958).


==Biography==
==Biography==
During World War II Mills served in the 3rd Marine Parachute Battalion in the Pacific<ref> Wheeler, Richard ''A Special Valor: The U.S. Marines and the Pacific War'' Naval Institute Press, 15 Nov 2013</ref>.
During World War II Mills served in the 3rd Marine Parachute Battalion in the Pacific.<ref>Wheeler, Richard ''A Special Valor: The U.S. Marines and the Pacific War'' Naval Institute Press, 15 Nov 2013</ref>

[[File:Mort Mills and Paul Newman (Torn Curtain).jpg|thumb|right|Mort Mills and [[Paul Newman]] in ''[[Torn Curtain]]'' (1966)]]

⚫
Though Mills did much television work, he also found regular work in motion pictures. He is probably best known as the suspicious highway patrolman who follows Marion Crane ([[Janet Leigh]]) in [[Alfred Hitchcock]]'s classic thriller ''[[Psycho (1960 film)|Psycho]]'' (1960). A few years later, he worked again with Hitchcock, playing a spy in East Germany under the cover of being a farmer in Hitchcock's ''[[Torn Curtain]]'' (1966) starring [[Paul Newman]] and [[Julie Andrews]].<ref name="The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock">{{cite book |title=The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock |last=Spoto |first=Donald |year=1999 |publisher=Da Capo Press |isbn=978-0-306-80932-3 |page=[https://archive.org/details/darksideofgenius00spot_0/page/577 577] |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/darksideofgenius00spot_0/page/577 }}</ref><ref name="Hitchcock's Motifs ">{{cite book |title=Hitchcock's Motifs |last=Walker |first=Michael |year=2006 |publisher=Amsterdam University Press |isbn=978-90-5356-772-2 |page=455 }}</ref> Mills also appeared with [[Charlton Heston]] in [[Orson Welles]]'s suspense classic ''[[Touch of Evil]]'' (1958).<ref name="The Film Noir Encyclopedia">{{cite book |title=The Film Noir Encyclopedia |last1=Silver |first1=Alain |last2=Ward |first2=Elizabeth |last3=Ursini |first3=James |last4=Porfirio|first4=Robert |year=2010 |publisher=Overlook Hardcover |isbn=978-1-59020-144-2 |page=190}}</ref>


⚫
In 1955, he appeared as [[Samuel Mason]] on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s ''[[Walt Disney anthology television series|Disneyland]]'' miniseries ''[[Davy Crockett (TV miniseries)|Davy Crockett]]'' starring [[Fess Parker]]. From 1957–1959, Mills co-starred with [[Rex Reason]] in the [[Television syndication|syndicated]] western series ''[[Man Without a Gun]]''.<ref name="The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present ">{{cite book |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946–Present |last1=Brooks |first1=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle F |year=2007|publisher=Ballantine Books |isbn=978-0-345-49773-4 |page=733}}</ref> He portrayed [[Marshal]] Frank Tallman. Reason played his friend, Adam MacLean, editor of the ''Yellowstone Sentinel'' [[newspaper]]. He appeared as villains twice in ''[[Maverick (TV series)|Maverick]]'', first in 1957 with James Garner as Bret Maverick ("Day of Reckoning") and second in 1961 with [[Robert Colbert]] as Bret's brother Brent Maverick ("Benefit of Doubt"). In 1958, he guest starred as a particularly greedy bounty hunter who clashes with [[Steve McQueen]]'s character Josh Randall in the [[CBS]] [[Western (genre)|western]] series, ''[[Wanted: Dead or Alive (TV series)|Wanted: Dead or Alive]]''. In 1961 he appeared as Jack Saunders in the TV western ''[[Lawman (TV series)|Lawman]]'' in the episode titled "Owny O'Reilly." In the 1965 [[Three Stooges]] film, ''[[The Outlaws Is Coming]],'' Mills played Trigger Mortis.<ref name="One Fine Stooge: Larry Fine's Frizzy Life In Pictures">{{cite book |title=One Fine Stooge: Larry Fine's Frizzy Life In Pictures |last1=Cox |first1=Stephen |last2=Terry |first2=Jim |year=2006|publisher=Cumberland House Publishing|isbn=978-1-58182-363-9 |page=110}}</ref>
⚫
Though Mills did much television work, he also found regular work in motion pictures. He is probably best known as the suspicious highway patrolman who follows Marion Crane ([[Janet Leigh]]) in [[Alfred Hitchcock]]'s classic thriller ''[[Psycho (1960 film)|Psycho]]'' (1960). A few years later, he worked again with Hitchcock, playing a spy in East Germany under the cover of being a farmer in ''[[Torn Curtain]]'' (1966).<ref name="The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock">{{cite book |title=The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock |last=Spoto |first=Donald |year=1999 |publisher=Da Capo Press |isbn=978-0-306-80932-3 |page=[https://archive.org/details/darksideofgenius00spot_0/page/577 577] |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/darksideofgenius00spot_0/page/577 }}</ref><ref name="Hitchcock's Motifs ">{{cite book |title=Hitchcock's Motifs |last=Walker |first=Michael |year=2006 |publisher=Amsterdam University Press |isbn=978-90-5356-772-2 |page=455 |pages= |url= |accessdate=}}</ref> Mills also appeared with [[Charlton Heston]] in [[Orson Welles]]'s ''[[Touch of Evil]]'' (1958).<ref name="The Film Noir Encyclopedia">{{cite book |title=The Film Noir Encyclopedia |last=Silver |first=Alain |last2=Ward |first2=Elizabeth |last3=Ursini |first3=James |last4=Porfirio|first4=Robert |year=2010 |publisher=Overlook Hardcover |isbn=978-1-59020-144-2 |page=190}}</ref>


⚫
Mills was a regular as [[police]] [[Lieutenant]] Bob Malone in [[Howard Duff]]'s [[NBC]]-[[Four Star Television]] series, ''[[Dante (TV series)|Dante]]'' (1960–1961), set at a [[San Francisco, California|San Francisco]], [[California]], [[nightclub]] called "Dante's Inferno". He appeared in eight episodes of ''[[Perry Mason (1957 TV series)|Perry Mason]]'', seven of them as Police Sgt. Ben Landro between 1961 and 1965.
⚫
In 1955, he appeared as [[Samuel Mason]] on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s ''[[Walt Disney anthology television series|Disneyland]]'' miniseries ''[[Davy Crockett (TV miniseries)|Davy Crockett]]'', starring [[Fess Parker]]. From 1957–1959, Mills co-starred with [[Rex Reason]] in the [[Television syndication|syndicated]] western series ''[[Man Without a Gun]]''.<ref name="The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present ">{{cite book |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946–Present |last=Brooks |first=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle F |year=2007|publisher=Ballantine Books |location= |isbn=978-0-345-49773-4 |page=733}}</ref> He portrayed [[Marshal]] Frank Tallman. Reason played his friend, Adam MacLean, editor of the ''Yellowstone Sentinel'' [[newspaper]]. In 1961 he appeared as Jack Saunders in the TV western ''[[Lawman (TV series)|Lawman]]'' in the episode titled "Owny O'Reilly." In the 1965 [[Three Stooges]] film, ''[[The Outlaws Is Coming]],'' Mills played Trigger Mortis.<ref name="One Fine Stooge: Larry Fine's Frizzy Life In Pictures">{{cite book |title=One Fine Stooge: Larry Fine's Frizzy Life In Pictures |last=Cox |first=Stephen |last2=Terry |first2=Jim |year=2006|publisher=Cumberland House Publishing|isbn=978-1-58182-363-9 |page=110}}</ref>


⚫
His cousin, [[Mary Treen]], was a film actress.{{Citation needed |date=December 2023}}
⚫
Mills was a regular as [[police]] [[Lieutenant]] Bob Malone in [[Howard Duff]]'s [[NBC]]-[[Four Star Television]] series, ''[[Dante (TV series)|Dante]]'' (1960–1961), set at a [[San Francisco, California|San Francisco]], [[California]], [[nightclub]] called "Dante's Inferno". He appeared in eight episodes of ''[[Perry Mason (TV series)|Perry Mason]]'', seven of them as Police Sgt. Ben Landro between 1961 and 1965.


He died June 6, 1993. It was first reported he had been smoking in bed, and died in the fire. After the autopsy, it was determined he had died of a heart attack, and the fire was subsequent to his death.
⚫
His cousin, [[Mary Treen]], was a film actress.


==Acting roles==
==Acting roles==
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{{col-begin}}
{{col-begin}}
{{col-break}}
{{col-break}}
*''[[Perry Mason (TV series)|Perry Mason]]'' as Sgt. Ben Landro
*''[[Perry Mason (1957 TV series)|Perry Mason]]'' as Sgt. Ben Landro
:"The Case of the Difficult Detour" (1961)
:"The Case of the Difficult Detour" (1961)
:"The Case of the Pathetic Patient" (1961)
:"The Case of the Pathetic Patient" (1961)
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:"Most Beautiful Woman" (1960) as Frank
:"Most Beautiful Woman" (1960) as Frank
*''[[Wagon Train]]''
*''[[Wagon Train]]''
:"The Jesse Cowan Story" (1958) as Bob Cowan
:"The Jesse Cowan Story" (1957) as Bob Cowan
:"The Clay Shelby Story" (1964) as Sgt. Bragan
:"The Clay Shelby Story" (1964) as Sgt. Bragan
:"The Jarbo Pierce Story" (1965) as Grant
:"The Jarbo Pierce Story" (1965) as Grant
Line 122: Line 130:
*''[[Maverick (TV series)|Maverick]]''
*''[[Maverick (TV series)|Maverick]]''
:"Day of Reckoning" (1958) as Red Scanlon
:"Day of Reckoning" (1958) as Red Scanlon
:"Benefit of the Doubt" (1961) as McGaven
:"[[List of Maverick episodes|Benefit of Doubt]]" (1961) as McGaven
*''[[Bronco (TV series)|Bronco]]''
*''[[Bronco (TV series)|Bronco]]''
:"The Long Ride Back" (1958) as Jacob Stint
:"The Long Ride Back" (1958) as Jacob Stint
Line 185: Line 193:
*''[[The Adventures of Kit Carson]]'' – Badman's Escape" (1953)
*''[[The Adventures of Kit Carson]]'' – Badman's Escape" (1953)
*''[[Hopalong Cassidy]]'' – "Arizona Troubleshooters" (1953) as George Byers
*''[[Hopalong Cassidy]]'' – "Arizona Troubleshooters" (1953) as George Byers
*''[[Rocky Jones, Space Ranger]]'' – Beyond the Curtain of Space'' (1954) as Ophician Soldier
*''[[Rocky Jones, Space Ranger]]'' – "Beyond the Curtain of Space" (1954) as Ophician Soldier
*''Waterfront'' – "Captain for a Day" (1955) as Darby
*''Waterfront'' – "Captain for a Day" (1955) as Darby
*''[[Crusader (TV series)|Crusader]]'' – "The Farm" (1956) as Heinrich
*''Crusader'' – "The Farm" (1956) as Heinrich
*''[[The Man Behind the Badge]]'' – "The Case of the Unwelcome Stranger" (1955) as Lloyd
*''[[The Man Behind the Badge]]'' – "The Case of the Unwelcome Stranger" (1955) as Lloyd
*''[[Treasury Men in Action]]'' – "The Case of the Ready Guns" (1955) as Ben Adams
*''[[Treasury Men in Action]]'' – "The Case of the Ready Guns" (1955) as Ben Adams
*''[[Big Town]]'' – "Shield of a Killer" (1955)
*''[[Big Town]]'' – "Shield of a Killer" (1955)
*''[[The Lone Ranger (TV series)|The Lone Ranger]]'' – "Six-Gun Artist" (1955) as Lafe, Second Thug
*''[[The Lone Ranger (TV series)|The Lone Ranger]]'' – "Six-Gun Artist" (1955) as Lafe, Second Thug
*''[[Cavalcade of America]]'' – The Doll Who Found a Mother'' (1956)
*''[[Cavalcade of America]]'' – "The Doll Who Found a Mother" (1956)
*''[[You Are There (series)|You Are There]]'' – Decatur's Raid at Tripoli (February 16, 1804) '' (1956)
*''[[You Are There (series)|You Are There]]'' – "Decatur's Raid at Tripoli (February 16, 1804)" (1956)
*''[[Sheriff of Cochise]]'' – "Fire on Chiricahua Mountains" (1956) as Barlett
*''[[Sheriff of Cochise]]'' – "Fire on Chiricahua Mountains" (1956) as Barlett
*''[[Crossroads (1955 TV series)|Crossroads]]'' – "Boom Town Padre" (1957) as Luke Cassidy
*''[[Crossroads (1955 TV series)|Crossroads]]'' – "Boom Town Padre" (1957) as Luke Cassidy
*''Panic!" – "The Subway" (1957) as Detective
*''Panic!'' – "The Subway" (1957) as Detective
*''[[Casey Jones (TV series)|Casey Jones]]'' – "Night Mail" (1957) as Mike Nelson
*''[[Casey Jones (TV series)|Casey Jones]]'' – "Night Mail" (1957) as Mike Nelson
*''[[Broken Arrow (TV series)|Broken Arrow]]'' – "Black Moment" (1957) as Halley
*''[[Broken Arrow (TV series)|Broken Arrow]]'' – "Black Moment" (1957) as Halley
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*''[[Law of the Plainsman]]'' – "The Gibbet" (1959) as Zeb Derkson
*''[[Law of the Plainsman]]'' – "The Gibbet" (1959) as Zeb Derkson
*''[[The Man from Blackhawk]]'' – "Station Six" (1959)
*''[[The Man from Blackhawk]]'' – "Station Six" (1959)
*''[[Bat Masterson (TV series)|Bat Masterson]] – "Who'll Bury My Violence?" (1959) as Barney Kaster
*''[[Bat Masterson (TV series)|Bat Masterson]]'' – "Who'll Bury My Violence?" (1959) as Barney Kaster
*''[[Wichita Town]] – "Man on the Hill" (1959) as Pete Bennett
*''[[Wichita Town]]'' – "Man on the Hill" (1959) as Pete Bennett
*''[[David Niven|The David Niven Show]]''– Sticks and Stones'' (1959) as Police Lieutenant O'Brien
*''[[David Niven|The David Niven Show]]''– "Sticks and Stones" (1959) as Police Lieutenant O'Brien
*''[[The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor]]'' – ''The Scalpel'' (1960) as Dr. Bruce
*''[[The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor]]'' – "The Scalpel" (1960) as Dr. Bruce
*''[[The Aquanauts (TV series)|The Aquanauts]]'' – Deep Escape'' (1960)
*''[[The Aquanauts (TV series)|The Aquanauts]]'' – "Deep Escape" (1960)
*''[[Dante (TV series)|Dante]] – "Opening Night" (1960) as Lt. Robert Malone
*''[[Dante (TV series)|Dante]]'' – "Opening Night" (1960) as Lt. Robert Malone
*''[[Markham (TV series)|Markham]] – "13 Avenida Muerte" (1960) as Cal
*''[[Markham (TV series)|Markham]]'' – "13 Avenida Muerte" (1960) as Cal
*''[[Tate (TV series)|Tate]]'' – "The Mary Hardin Story" (1960) as Tetlow
*''[[Tate (TV series)|Tate]]'' – "The Mary Hardin Story" (1960) as Tetlow
*''[[The Texan (TV series)|The Texan]]'' – "Thirty Hours to Kill" (1960) as Ben Dawson/Blackie Dawson
*''[[The Texan (TV series)|The Texan]]'' – "Thirty Hours to Kill" (1960) as Ben Dawson/Blackie Dawson
Line 228: Line 236:
*''[[The Iron Horse (TV series)|The Iron Horse]]'' – "Explosion at Waycrossing" (1966) as Sheriff Harkness
*''[[The Iron Horse (TV series)|The Iron Horse]]'' – "Explosion at Waycrossing" (1966) as Sheriff Harkness
*''[[The Invaders]]'' – "Condition: Red" (1967) as Mr. Arius
*''[[The Invaders]]'' – "Condition: Red" (1967) as Mr. Arius
*''[[Felony Squad]] – "The Death Bag" (1967) as Louie Antonides
*''[[Felony Squad]]'' – "The Death Bag" (1967) as Louie Antonides
*''Maya'' – "The Legend of Whitney Markham" (1968) as Frank Sanders
*''Maya'' – "The Legend of Whitney Markham" (1968) as Frank Sanders
* ''[[The Outcasts (U.S. TV series)|The Outcasts]]'' – "They Shall Rise Up" (1969) as Tauber
* ''[[The Outcasts (U.S. TV series)|The Outcasts]]'' – "They Shall Rise Up" (1969) as Tauber
Line 237: Line 245:
*''[[Alias Smith and Jones]]'' – "McGuffin" (1972) as First Man
*''[[Alias Smith and Jones]]'' – "McGuffin" (1972) as First Man
* ''[[The Mod Squad]]'' – "Kill Gently, Sweet Jessie" (1972)
* ''[[The Mod Squad]]'' – "Kill Gently, Sweet Jessie" (1972)
*''[[The Streets of San Francisco]]'' – "Deathwatch" (1973) as Victor W. Snyder (final television appearance)
*''[[The Streets of San Francisco]]'' – "Deathwatch" (1973) as Victor W. Snyder (final appearance)
{{div col end}}
{{div col end}}


Line 254: Line 262:
*''[[Pushover (film)]]'' (1954) as Second Bartender (uncredited)
*''[[Pushover (film)]]'' (1954) as Second Bartender (uncredited)
*''[[A Star Is Born (1954 film)|A Star Is Born]]'' (1954) as Makeup Man (uncredited)
*''[[A Star Is Born (1954 film)|A Star Is Born]]'' (1954) as Makeup Man (uncredited)
*''Cry Vengeance'' (1954) as Johnny Blue-Eyes
*''[[Cry Vengeance]]'' (1954) as Johnny Blue-Eyes
*''[[Jupiter's Darling]]'' (1955) as Hannibal's Guard (uncredited)
*''[[Jupiter's Darling]]'' (1955) as Hannibal's Guard (uncredited)
*''[[Dial Red O]]'' (1955) as Newspaper Photographer (uncredited)
*''[[Dial Red O]]'' (1955) as Newspaper Photographer (uncredited)
Line 263: Line 271:
*''Desert Sands'' (1955) as Woloack, Radio Man
*''Desert Sands'' (1955) as Woloack, Radio Man
*''[[Ransom!]]'' (1956) as Service Man (uncredited)
*''[[Ransom!]]'' (1956) as Service Man (uncredited)
*''[[The Harder They Fall]]'' (1956) as Reporter in Hospital (uncredited)
*''[[The Harder They Fall (1956 film)|The Harder They Fall]]'' (1956) as Reporter in Hospital (uncredited)
*''[[Crashing Las Vegas]]'' (1956) as Oggy
*''[[Crashing Las Vegas]]'' (1956) as Oggy
{{col-break}}
{{col-break}}
*''[[Tension at Table Rock]]'' (1956) as Deputy Sheriff (uncredited)
*''[[Tension at Table Rock]]'' (1956) as Deputy Sheriff (uncredited)
*''[[The Shadow on the Window]]'' (1957) as Myra's Husband (uncredited)
*''[[The Shadow on the Window]]'' (1957) as Myra's Husband (uncredited)
*''The Iron Sheriff'' (1957) as Range Detective Sutherland
*''[[The Iron Sheriff]]'' (1957) as Range Detective Sutherland
*''[[Man in the Shadow (American film)|Man in the Shadow]]'' (1957) as Empire Ranch Gateman Bill Edmunds
*''[[Man in the Shadow (American film)|Man in the Shadow]]'' (1957) as Empire Ranch Gateman Bill Edmunds
*''[[Bombers B-52]]'' (1957) as Sergeant addressing Flyers (uncredited)
*''[[Bombers B-52]]'' (1957) as Sergeant addressing Flyers (uncredited)
Line 275: Line 283:
*''[[Psycho (1960 film)|Psycho]]'' (1960) as Highway Patrol Officer
*''[[Psycho (1960 film)|Psycho]]'' (1960) as Highway Patrol Officer
*''Twenty Plus Two'' (1961) as Harbin (uncredited)
*''Twenty Plus Two'' (1961) as Harbin (uncredited)
*''Gunfight at Comanche Creek'' (1963) as Ben Bady
*''[[Gunfight at Comanche Creek]]'' (1963) as Ben Bady
*''[[The Quick Gun]]'' (1964) as Cagle
*''[[The Quick Gun]]'' (1964) as Cagle
*''[[Bullet for a Badman]]'' (1964) as Ira Snow
*''[[Bullet for a Badman]]'' (1964) as Ira Snow
*''[[Where Love Has Gone (film)|Where Love Has Gone]]'' (1964) as Petey Peterson (uncredited)
*''[[Where Love Has Gone (film)|Where Love Has Gone]]'' (1964) as Petey Peterson (uncredited)
*''[[The Outlaws Is Coming]]'' (1965) as Trigger Mortis
*''[[The Outlaws Is Coming]]'' (1965) as Trigger Mortis
*''[[Blindfold (1966 film)|Blindfold]]'' (1965) as Homburg
*''[[Blindfold (1966 film)|Blindfold]]'' (1966) as Homburg
*''[[Torn Curtain]]'' (1966) as Farmer
*''[[Torn Curtain]]'' (1966) as Farmer
*''[[Return of the Gunfighter (1967 film)|Return of the Gunfighter]]'' (1967) as Will Parker
*''[[Return of the Gunfighter (1967 film)|Return of the Gunfighter]]'' (1967) as Will Parker
Line 293: Line 301:


==External links==
==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{IMDb name|id=0590123|name=Mort Mills}}
* {{IMDb name|id=0590123|name=Mort Mills}}
* {{Find a Grave|24820915}}


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}
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[[Category:American male television actors]]
[[Category:American male television actors]]
[[Category:Male actors from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Male actors from New York (state)]]
[[Category:People from Ventura, California]]
[[Category:20th-century American male actors]]
[[Category:20th-century American male actors]]
[[Category:Western (genre) television actors]]
[[Category:Western (genre) television actors]]
[[Category:Jewish American male actors]]
[[Category:Jewish American male actors]]
[[Category:20th-century American Jews]]

Latest revision as of 11:35, 29 December 2024

Mort Mills
Mort Mills 1955
Mills in an episode of Treasury Men in Action (1955)
Born
Mortimer Morris Kaplan

(1919-01-11)January 11, 1919
DiedJune 6, 1993(1993-06-06) (aged 74)
OccupationActor
Years active1952–1973
RelativesMary Treen (cousin)

Mort Mills (born Mortimer Morris Kaplan; January 11, 1919 – June 6, 1993)[citation needed] was an American film and television actor who had roles in over 150 movies and television episodes. He was often the town lawman or the local bad guy in many popular westerns of the 1950s and 1960s.

From 1957–1959 he had a recurring co-starring role as Marshal Frank Tallman in Man Without a Gun. Other recurring roles were as Sergeant Ben Landro in the Perry Mason series and Sheriff Fred Madden in The Big Valley. He portrayed supporting roles in the Alfred Hitchcock films Psycho (1960) and Torn Curtain (1966), and in Orson Welles' Touch of Evil (1958).

Biography

[edit]

During World War II Mills served in the 3rd Marine Parachute Battalion in the Pacific.[1]

Mort Mills and Paul Newman in Torn Curtain (1966)

Though Mills did much television work, he also found regular work in motion pictures. He is probably best known as the suspicious highway patrolman who follows Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) in Alfred Hitchcock's classic thriller Psycho (1960). A few years later, he worked again with Hitchcock, playing a spy in East Germany under the cover of being a farmer in Hitchcock's Torn Curtain (1966) starring Paul Newman and Julie Andrews.[2][3] Mills also appeared with Charlton Heston in Orson Welles's suspense classic Touch of Evil (1958).[4]

In 1955, he appeared as Samuel Mason on ABC's Disneyland miniseries Davy Crockett starring Fess Parker. From 1957–1959, Mills co-starred with Rex Reason in the syndicated western series Man Without a Gun.[5] He portrayed Marshal Frank Tallman. Reason played his friend, Adam MacLean, editor of the Yellowstone Sentinel newspaper. He appeared as villains twice in Maverick, first in 1957 with James Garner as Bret Maverick ("Day of Reckoning") and second in 1961 with Robert Colbert as Bret's brother Brent Maverick ("Benefit of Doubt"). In 1958, he guest starred as a particularly greedy bounty hunter who clashes with Steve McQueen's character Josh Randall in the CBS western series, Wanted: Dead or Alive. In 1961 he appeared as Jack Saunders in the TV western Lawman in the episode titled "Owny O'Reilly." In the 1965 Three Stooges film, The Outlaws Is Coming, Mills played Trigger Mortis.[6]

Mills was a regular as police Lieutenant Bob Malone in Howard Duff's NBC-Four Star Television series, Dante (1960–1961), set at a San Francisco, California, nightclub called "Dante's Inferno". He appeared in eight episodes of Perry Mason, seven of them as Police Sgt. Ben Landro between 1961 and 1965.

His cousin, Mary Treen, was a film actress.[citation needed]

He died June 6, 1993. It was first reported he had been smoking in bed, and died in the fire. After the autopsy, it was determined he had died of a heart attack, and the fire was subsequent to his death.

Acting roles

[edit]

Starring in his own TV series

[edit]

Recurring role in a series

[edit]

Multiple appearances on a television series

[edit]

Single episode television appearances

[edit]

Theatrical films

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Wheeler, Richard A Special Valor: The U.S. Marines and the Pacific War Naval Institute Press, 15 Nov 2013
  2. ^ Spoto, Donald (1999). The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock. Da Capo Press. p. 577. ISBN 978-0-306-80932-3.
  3. ^ Walker, Michael (2006). Hitchcock's Motifs. Amsterdam University Press. p. 455. ISBN 978-90-5356-772-2.
  4. ^ Silver, Alain; Ward, Elizabeth; Ursini, James; Porfirio, Robert (2010). The Film Noir Encyclopedia. Overlook Hardcover. p. 190. ISBN 978-1-59020-144-2.
  5. ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F (2007). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946–Present. Ballantine Books. p. 733. ISBN 978-0-345-49773-4.
  6. ^ Cox, Stephen; Terry, Jim (2006). One Fine Stooge: Larry Fine's Frizzy Life In Pictures. Cumberland House Publishing. p. 110. ISBN 978-1-58182-363-9.
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