Chris Alcaide

Actor. Known for his roles in television westerns. He surfaced to national attention as Deputy Joshua Tate in the 1956 film Gunslinger, co-starring Beverly Garland as a woman marshal. He was cast in his first, uncredited, screen role as Eddie in the 1950 production of the Tennessee Williams play, The Glass Menagerie. Uncredited roles followed in 1952 in the films Smoky Canyon and Cripple Creek, a reference to the mining town of Cripple Creek, Colorado. In 1953, he appeared as George Rose in the film The Big Heat, with Glenn Ford and Lee Marvin. In 1954, he was cast as Jason in the film Overland Pacific. His first television role was as George Timpkin in the 1953 episode "Ming Lama" of The Ford Television Theatre on NBC. In 1953, he was also cast in "Renegades Wires", the first of four episodes of the syndicated series, The Adventures of Kit Carson, starring Bill Williams in the title role. The 1954 Kit Carson episodes were "Counterfeit Country", "Trouble in Sundown", and "Outlaw's Justice". In 1954, he also appeared three times on the syndicated Annie Oakley series, with Gail Davis in the title role and Brad Johnson and Jimmy Hawkins. He appeared as Paul Dodson in "Annie and the Brass Collar" and "The Cinder Trail" and then as Gil Warren in "Outlaw Mesa". These were the first of many television western roles to follow for the then 31-year-old Alcaide. He had "piercing eyes, a cold stare and an earth-shattering deep voice ... his specialty was menacing such heroes as Lorne Greene (Ben Cartwright), Richard Boone (Paladin), Clint Walker (Cheyenne Bodie), and even Gail Davis (Annie Oakley)". His favorite role was that as the lead henchman in Kid Galahad, a 1962 musical film, in which he menaced Elvis Presley as a boxer, Gig Young, and Charles Bronson. In 2003, Alcaide was among recipients, including the Sons of the Pioneers, Tommy Lee Jones, Kris Kristofferson, and Kelo Henderson, of the 21st annual Golden Boot Awards for his extensive work in westerns. He appeared in 1955 in the syndicated series Buffalo Bill Jr., a Gene Autry Production starring Texas native Dick Jones. That same year, he appeared in Autry's The Adventures of Champion in episodes "The Saddle Tramp" and "Renegade Stallion". From 1955-1957, he appeared three times on CBS's Saturday morning western, Tales of the Texas Rangers, in episodes "Uranium Pete", "Hail to the Rangers", and "Trail Herd".