BRIAN KEITH BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:
Brian Keith was born on November 14th, 1921 in Bayonne, New Jersey with the birth name Robert Keith Richey Jr. His father was a character actor, Robert Keith and his mother, Helena Shipman was a stage actress. As his parents traveled touring in various plays, he spent his toddler years on the road with them.
At the young age of three, he first appeared on screen in the silent film, "Pied Piper Malone" (1924) along side his father. His parents divorced when he was only four years old. He was raised by his grandmother in Long Island, New York and graduated from High School at East Rockaway High School in New York in 1939. Prior to World War II he was already acting in radio programs and on stage productions. During the war he briefly stopped acting, joined the Marine Corps and worked as a machine gunner.
After the war he returned to the Broadway stage and then began to get involved with television and more film. He made his debut on three episodes of the television series, "Tales of Tomorrow" (1952). From this role he was successful in getting quite a bit of work such as roles on, "Police Story" (1952), "The United States Steel Hour" (1953), "Robert Montgomery Presents" (1953) "The Motorola Television Hour" (1953), "Campbell Playhouse" (1954), "The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse" (1955) and "Jane Wyman Presents: The Fireside Theatre" (1955), "Climax!" (1957), "Zane Grey Theatre" (1959-1960), "The Beverly Hillbillies" (1965) plus many others guest roles on various television programs.
Keith won a decent amount of praise and respect for his starring role on the series, "The Westerner" (1960) and when he played a widowed uncle on the sitcom, "Family Affair" (1960) co-starring Sebastian Cabot, which earned him three Emmy nominations. He also did film work such as his role playing the father of twins on the film, "Parent Trap" (1961) starring with Hayley Mills, Maureen O'Hara, Charlie Ruggles, Una Merkel and Leo G. Carroll. Brian also earned respect from critics for his role in the 1966 comedy, "The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming" featurng an all-star cast including Carl Reiner, Eva Marie Saint, Theodore Bikel, Jonathan Winters, and in his film debut, Alan Arkin and in his portrayal on a traveling gunsmith opposite Steve McQueen in "Nevada Smith" (1966) also featuring Martin Landau, Karl Malden, Suzanne Pleshette, Arthur Kennedy, Howard Da Silva, Paul Fix and Pat Hingle.
In the 1970's Keith worked in Hawaii filming a NBC sitcom called, "The Brian Keith Show" which was cancelled after two seasons. He is very well known for his role from the series television show, "Hardcastle and McCormick" (1983) where he portrayed a unhappy irritable judge.
Keith was a very talented actor who's trademark was his gruff voice and he also spoke fluent Russian which helped him to take on two roles in the film, "World War III" (1982) starring with Rock Hudson, Cathy Lee Crosby and David Soul and the science fiction disaster film "Meteor" (1979) starring alongside Sean Connery, Natalie Wood, Henry Fonda, Karl Malden, Martin Landau, Trevor Howard, Joseph Campanella and Richard Dysart. His final film role was in, "Rough Riders" (1997) where he portrayed President William McKinley and also starring Tom Berenger, Sam Elliott, Gary Busey, Chris Noth, George Hamilton, Geoffrey Lewis and Illeana Douglas, granddaughter of actor Melvyn Douglas.
Brian Keith married three times. First to Frances Helm on January 3rd, 1948 and divorced in June 1954. His second marriage was to Judith Landon in June 1954 to April 1969 when they too divorced. He had five children with his second wife. His third and final marriage was to Victoria Young in 1970 and they remained together until he passed way. The couple had another two children together. Not all of his children were biological, only four were and the other three were adopted.
Brian Keith passed away on June 24th, 1997 in Malibu California by committing suicide and was buried in Westwood Village Memorial Park in Los Angeles, California. He had been suffering from emphysema and lung cancer and was also mourning the loss of his daughter, Daisy at the age of twenty seven who died from committing suicide with a gunshot.
For his contribution to the Motion Picture Industry he was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Filmography
1999 Follow Your Heart
1995-1998 Spider-Man
1997 Rough Riders
1997 Duckman: Private Dick/Family Man
1997 The Second Civil War
1997 Walking Thunder
1996 Touched by an Angel
1996 Walker, Texas Ranger
1996 Entertaining Angels: The Dorothy Day Story
1996 Pacific Blue
1996 Cybill
1995 Favorite Deadly Sins
1995 Picture Windows
1995 The Marshal
1995 The Return of Hunter
1994 The Commish
1994 Burke's Law
1994 Under a Killing Moon
1993 The Secrets of Lake Success
1993 Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
1993 Wind Dancer
1992 Major Dad
1991-1992 Walter & Emily
1992 T.V.
1991 The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw
1991 Evening Shade
1990 The Young Riders
1989 Lady in the Corner
1989 Welcome Home
1989 Heartland
1989 Perry Mason: The Case of the Lethal Lesson
1988 After the Rain
1988 Young Guns
1987-1988 Pursuit of Happiness
1987 Death Before Dishonor
1987 The Alamo: Thirteen Days to Glory
1986 The B.R.A.T. Patrol
1983-1986 Hardcastle and McCormick
1984 The Murder of Sherlock Holmes
1984 Murder, She Wrote
1982 Cry for the Strangers
1982 World War III
1981 Sharky's Machine
1981 Charlie Chan and the Curse of the Dragon Queen
1980 The Mountain Men
1980 The Silent Lovers
1980 Power
1979 The Seekers
1979 Meteor
1979 The Chisholms
1978-1979 Centennial
1978 Hooper
1978 How the West Was Won
1977 Hallmark Hall of Fame
1977 In the Matter of Karen Ann Quinlan
1976 Nickelodeon
1976 The Loneliest Runner
1976 Joe Panther
1976 The Quest
1975 The Wind and the Lion
1975 Archer
1974 The Yakuza
1974 The Zoo Gang
1972-1974 The Brian Keith Show
1972 Second Chance
1971 Something Big
1971 Scandalous John
1966-1971 Family Affair
1970 The McKenzie Break
1970 Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came?
1969 Gaily, Gaily
1969 Krakatoa: East of Java
1968 With Six You Get Eggroll
1960-1968 Insight
1967 Reflections in a Golden Eye
1966 Way... Way Out
1966 Nevada Smith
1966 The Russians Are Coming the Russians Are Coming
1966 The Rare Breed
1965 The Hallelujah Trail
1965 Those Calloways
1964 The Pleasure Seekers
1964 Profiles in Courage
1959-1964 Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color
1964 The Great Adventure
1964 Kraft Suspense Theatre
1964 A Tiger Walks
1963 The Raiders
1963 77 Sunset Strip
1963 Wagon Train
1963 The Fugitive
1963 Savage Sam
1963 Dr. Kildare
1963 Sam Benedict
1963 The Virginian
1962 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
1962 Target: The Corruptors
1959-1962 Alfred Hitchcock Presents
1962 Moon Pilot
1962 Follow the Sun
1961-1962 Outlaws
1961 Alcoa Premiere
1961 Frontier Circus
1961 The Parent Trap
1961 The Deadly Companions
1961 The Americans
1961 The Untouchables
1960 The Westerner
1960 Ten Who Dared
1959 Laramie
1959 Rawhide
1959 The Young Philadelphians
1959 Zane Grey Theatre
1958 Villa!!
1958 Sierra Baron
1958 Desert Hell
1958 Violent Road
1958 Fort Dobbs
1957 Climax!
1957 Hell Canyon Outlaws
1957 I Appointment with a Shadow
1957 Wire Service
1957 Chicago Confidential
1957 Dino
1957 Run of the Arrow
1955-1957 The Ford Television Theatre
1957 The Brothers
1953-1957 Lux Video Theatre
1957 Nightfall
1955-1956 Crusader
1956 Storm Center
1956 Strange Stories
1955 Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre
1954-1955 Studio 57
1955 Mystery Is My Business
1955 The Elgin Hour
1955 5 Against the House
1955 The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse
1955 Tight Spot
1955 The Violent Men
1954 The Bamboo Prison
1954 The Mask
1954 Campbell Summer Soundstage
1954 Jivaro
1954 Alaska Seas
1953 The Motorola Television Hour
1953 Robert Montgomery Presents
1953 The United States Steel Hour
1953 Arrowhead
1953 Eye Witness
1952 Suspense
1952 Police Story
1952 Tales of Tomorrow
1951 Shadow of the Cloak
1951 Fourteen Hours
1948 Portrait of Jennie
1947 Boomerang!
1940 Knute Rockne All American
1924 The Other Kind of Love
1924 Pied Piper Malone
