Rod Taylor - #95

Rod Taylor, star of "The Time Machine," dies at 84

He was number 95 on the list.

Actor Rod Taylor, the ruggedly handsome Australian who appeared in films spanning nearly six decades, has died, Reuters has reported. He was 84.

Best known for starring in such classics as George Pal's "The Time Machine" (1960) and Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds" (1963), Taylor stayed active until recently. His last role was as Winston Churchill in Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds" (2009).

Though he never became a huge box office draw, Taylor worked steadily throughout the '60s and '70s, most notably in "Young Cassidy," "The VIPS," "A Gathering of Eagles," "Fate Is the Hunter," "Do Not Disturb" and "The Glass Bottom Boat" (the latter two both with Doris Day).

He starred as the romantic lead in "Sunday in New York" (opposite Jane Fonda) and in "Hotel," and as the title western gunfighter "Chuka" (1967).

Other credits include "36 Hours," "Zabriskie Point," and "The Picture Show Man."

He also provided the voice for Pongo in the Walt Disney animated feature, "101 Dalmatians."

By the early 1970s Taylor turned his attention to television. He starred in the series "Bearcats!" (1971) with Dennis Cole, and later had recurring roles in "Falcon Crest," "Murder She Wrote," and "Walker, Texas Ranger."

Originally an art student in his native Sydney, Taylor turned to acting and was featured in small roles in the 1950s films "The Catered Affair," "Giant," "Raintree County," and "Separate Tables."

Taylor is survived by his wife, Carol Kikumura, and his daughter with Mary Hilem, former CNBC anchor Felicia Taylor.

Filmography

Feature films

    King of the Coral Sea (1954) as Jack Janiero (film debut)

    Long John Silver (1954) as Israel Hands

    The Virgin Queen (1955) as Cpl. Gwilym (uncredited)

    Hell on Frisco Bay (1955) as John Brodie Evans

    Top Gun (1955) as Lem Sutter

    World Without End (1956) as Herbert Ellis

    The Catered Affair (1956) as Ralph Halloran

    Giant (1956) as Sir David Karfrey

    The Rack (1956) as Al (uncredited)

    Raintree County (1957) as Garwood B. Jones

    Step Down to Terror (1958) as Mike Randall

    Separate Tables (1958) as Charles

    Ask Any Girl (1959) as Ross Tayford

    The Time Machine (1960) as H. George Wells

    Colossus and the Amazon Queen (1960) as Pirro

    One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) as Narrator Pongo (voice)

    Seven Seas to Calais (1962) as Sir Francis Drake

    The Birds (1963) as Mitch Brenner

    The V.I.P.s (1963) as Les Mangrum

    A Gathering of Eagles (1963) as Col. Hollis Farr

    Sunday in New York (1963) as Mike MItchell

    Fate Is the Hunter (1964) as Capt. Jack Savage

    36 Hours (1965) as Maj. Walter Gerber

    Young Cassidy (1965) as John Cassidy

    The Liquidator (1965) as Boysie Oakes

    Do Not Disturb (1965) as Mike Harper

    The Glass Bottom Boat (1966) as Bruce Templeton

    Hotel (1967) as Peter McDermott

    Chuka (1967) as Chuka

    Dark of the Sun (1968) as Capt. Bruce Curry

    Nobody Runs Forever (1968) (a.k.a. The High Commissioner) as Scobie Malone

    The Hell with Heroes (1968) as Brynie MacKay

    Zabriskie Point (1970) as Lee Allen

    Darker than Amber (1970) as Travis McGee

    The Man Who Had Power Over Women (1970) as Peter Reaney

    Powderkeg (1971, TV Movie) as Hank Brackett

    Family Flight (1972, TV Movie) as Jason Carlyle

    The Train Robbers (1973) as Grady

    Gli eroi (1973) (a.k.a. The Heroes) as Lieutenant Bob Robson

    Trader Horn (1973) as Trader Horn

    The Deadly Trackers (1973) as Frank Brand

    Hell River (1974) (a.k.a. Partizani) as Marko

    A Matter of Wife... and Death (1975, TV Movie) as Shamus McCoy

    Blondie (1976) as Christopher Tauling

    The Oregon Trail (1976, Series) as Evan Thorpe

    Gulliver's Travels (1977) as Reldresal / King of Blefuscu (voice, uncredited)

    The Picture Show Man (1977) as Palmer

    The Treasure Seekers (1979) as Marian Casey

    Cry of the Innocent (1980, TV Movie) as Steve Donegin

    Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy (1981, TV Movie) as 'Black Jack' Bouvier

    A Time to Die (1982) as Jack Bailey

    On the Run (1983) as Mr. Payatta

    Terror in the Aisles (1984) as Himself

    Marbella, un golpe de cinco estrellas (1985) as Commander

    Mask of Murder (1985) as Supt. Bob McLaine

    Half Nelson (1985, TV Series)

    Danielle Steel's 'Palomino' (1991, TV Movie) as Bill King

    Grass Roots (1992, TV Movie) as Gen. Willoughby

    Open Season (1995) - Billy Patrick

    Point of Betrayal (1995) as Ted Kitteridge

    Welcome to Woop Woop (1998) as Daddy-O

    Warlord: Battle for the Galaxy (1998, TV Movie) as General Sorenson

    Kaw (2007, TV Movie) as Doc

    Inglourious Basterds (2009) as Winston Churchill (final film role)

Documentaries

    Inland with Sturt (1951) as George Mcleady

    The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal (1985)

    Time Machine: The Journey Back (1993)

    All About the Birds (2000)

    Not Quite Hollywood (2008)

Television

As a regular

Taylor had several lead roles in television, from the early 1960s to the early first decade of the 21st century. Among his television shows as a regular are:

    Hong Kong with co-star Lloyd Bochner (1960, ABC)

    Bearcats! (1971, CBS)

    The Oregon Trail as Evan Thorpe, a widower taking his three children from their Illinois farm to the Pacific Northwest by way of the Oregon Trail (1977, NBC)

    Masquerade (1983)

    Outlaws (1986)

Guest appearances

    Studio 57 (1955) – "The Last Day on Earth", "The Black Sheep's Daughter"

    Lux Video Theatre (1955) – "Dark Tribute", "The Browning Version"

    Cheyenne (1955) – "The Argonauts"

    Suspicion (1957) – "The Story of Marjorie Reardon"

    Schlitz Playhouse of Stars (1958) – "A Thing to Fight For"

    Studio One (1958) – "Image of Fear"

    Lux Playhouse (1958) – "The Best House in the Valley"

    Playhouse 90 (1958–59) – "Verdict of Three", "The Great Gatsby", "The Long March", "The Raider", "Misalliance"

    The Twilight Zone (1959) – "And When the Sky Was Opened"

    Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre (1960) – "Picture of Sal"

    Goodyear Theatre (1960) – "Capital Gains"

    General Electric Theater (1960) – "Early to Die", "The Young Years"

    Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse (1960) – "Thunder in the Night"

    Bus Stop (1961) – "Portrait of a Hero"

    The DuPont Show of the Week (1962) – "The Ordeal of Dr. Shannon"

    Tales of the Unexpected (TV series) (1980) – "The Hitch-Hiker"

    Walker, Texas Ranger (1996) – "Redemption"

    Murder, She Wrote (1995)

    Falcon Crest (1988–1990) as Frank Agretti

Theatre credits

    Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (Independent, 1950)

    Home of the Brave by Arthur Laurents (Independent, 1950)

    Misalliance by George Bernard Shaw (John Alden Company, 1951)

    Twins by Plautus (Mercury, 1952)

    The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare (Mercury, 1952)

    The Witch by John Masefield (Mercury, 1952)

    They Knew What They Wanted by Sidney Howard (Mercury, 1952)

    The Happy Time by Samuel A. Taylor (Mercury, 1953)