Hopalong Cassidy (William Boyd)
William Lawrence Boyd was born June 5, 1895 in Hendrysburg, Ohio.
At a young age he moved with his family to Tulsa, Oklahoma.
After his father died, he moved to California and worked as an orange picker,
surveyor, tool dresser, and auto salesman.
He went to Hollywood in 1919.
During World War 1, he enlisted in the army but was exempt because of a
weak heart.
More film roles followed, and he became famous as a leading man in silent films.
William Boyd's contract ended in 1931 when his picture was mistakenly put in a
newspaper story about the arrest of another actor, William "Stage" Boyd.
Having not been careful with his money, he was broke and without a job.
In 1935, he was offered the supporting role of Red Connors in the movie
Hop-Along Cassidy. The original Hopalong Cassidy, written by Clarence E. Mulford
as fiction, was changed from a story about a rough cowboy to a story about a cowboy
who did not smoke, drink, or say bad words, and always let the bad guy start the fight.
Although William Boyd never branded a cow, mended a fence, or liked western music,
he, like cowboy stars Gene Autry and Roy Rogers, gained fame in the Western films.
His horse's name was Topper.
The Hopalong Cassidy films ended in 1947 after 66 films, with William Boyd producing
the last 12.
In 1949, he released the films to television, where they became extremely popular
and began the long-running genre of westerns on television.
He was featured on Hopalong Cassidy watches, trash cans, cups, dishes, radio shows
and cowboy outfits.
He appeared as Hopalong Cassidy on the cover of national magazines including the
August 29, 1950 issue of Look and the November 27, 1950 issue of Time.
Cecil B. DeMille asked Boyd to take the role of Moses in his remake, the Ten Commandments,
but William Boyd felt his identification with the Cassidy character would make it impossible
for audiences to accept him as Moses.
Following his retirement from the screen, Boyd moved to Palm Desert, California.
William Boyd died in 1972 in Laguna Beach, California from heart failure at age 77.
He was buried in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.
He was survived by his wife, Grace Bradley Boyd, who died on September
21, 2010, at 97 years of age.
William Lawrence Boyd was born June 5, 1895 in Hendrysburg, Ohio.
At a young age he moved with his family to Tulsa, Oklahoma.
After his father died, he moved to California and worked as an orange picker,
surveyor, tool dresser, and auto salesman.
He went to Hollywood in 1919.
During World War 1, he enlisted in the army but was exempt because of a
weak heart.
More film roles followed, and he became famous as a leading man in silent films.
William Boyd's contract ended in 1931 when his picture was mistakenly put in a
newspaper story about the arrest of another actor, William "Stage" Boyd.
Having not been careful with his money, he was broke and without a job.
In 1935, he was offered the supporting role of Red Connors in the movie
Hop-Along Cassidy. The original Hopalong Cassidy, written by Clarence E. Mulford
as fiction, was changed from a story about a rough cowboy to a story about a cowboy
who did not smoke, drink, or say bad words, and always let the bad guy start the fight.
Although William Boyd never branded a cow, mended a fence, or liked western music,
he, like cowboy stars Gene Autry and Roy Rogers, gained fame in the Western films.
His horse's name was Topper.
The Hopalong Cassidy films ended in 1947 after 66 films, with William Boyd producing
the last 12.
In 1949, he released the films to television, where they became extremely popular
and began the long-running genre of westerns on television.
He was featured on Hopalong Cassidy watches, trash cans, cups, dishes, radio shows
and cowboy outfits.
He appeared as Hopalong Cassidy on the cover of national magazines including the
August 29, 1950 issue of Look and the November 27, 1950 issue of Time.
Cecil B. DeMille asked Boyd to take the role of Moses in his remake, the Ten Commandments,
but William Boyd felt his identification with the Cassidy character would make it impossible
for audiences to accept him as Moses.
Following his retirement from the screen, Boyd moved to Palm Desert, California.
William Boyd died in 1972 in Laguna Beach, California from heart failure at age 77.
He was buried in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.
He was survived by his wife, Grace Bradley Boyd, who died on September
21, 2010, at 97 years of age.