Guinn "Big Boy" Williams

Guinn "Big Boy" Williams
Guinn Williams, Alan Hale, Ronald Reagan, and Errol Flynn in Santa Fe Trail (1940)
Born	Guinn Terrell Williams Jr. (1899-04-26)April 26, 1899 Decatur, Texas, U.S.
Died	Hollywood, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1919–1961
Spouse(s)	Barbara Weeks Kathleen Collins Dorothy Peterson (1943-1962) (his death)

Guinn Terrell Williams Jr. (April 26, 1899 – June 6, 1962) was an American actor who appeared in memorable westerns such as Dodge City (1939), Santa Fe Trail (1940), and The Comancheros (1961). He was nicknamed "Big Boy" as he was 6' 2" and had a muscular build from years of working on ranches and playing semi-pro and professional baseball.

Biography

Williams made his screen debut in the 1919 comedy, Almost A Husband, with Will Rogers and Cullen Landis, and was featured in a large supporting role ten years later in Frank Borzage's Lucky Star with Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell. Throughout the 1920s Williams would have a string of successful films, mostly westerns.

He then appeared in The Great Meadow alongside Johnny Mack Brown, which was Brown's breakout film. Throughout the 1930s, Williams acted in supporting roles, mostly in westerns, sports, or outdoor dramas. Although not the lead actor in any of them, he was always employed, and was successful as a supporting actor. He often played alongside Hoot Gibson and Harry Carey during that period. In 1941, he became one of many actors cast by Universal Pictures in their large film series, Riders of Death Valley. From the late 1930s to the mid-1940s, Williams appeared in supporting roles in a number of A-pictures, sometimes with high billing, such as You Only Live Once, and in Columbia's first Technicolour film The Desperadoes (1943).

His father, Guinn Williams, represented the 13th Texas Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives from 1922 to 1932. Williams was frequently teamed with Alan Hale, Sr. as sidekicks to Errol Flynn in several of his pictures. In 1960, he was cast in the epic film The Alamo and in Home from the Hill with Robert Mitchum. His last role was opposite his close friend John Wayne and Stuart Whitman in The Comancheros.

He was married to three actresses, the first being silent film actress Kathleen Collins. For a time, he was married to B-movie actress Barbara Weeks. His last wife was Dorothy Peterson, whom he first met in the 1940s.

Williams died unexpectedly of uremic poisoning on June 6, 1962, aged 63.

Partial filmography

• Godless Men (1920)
• Rounding Up the Law (1922)
• The Trail of Hate (1922)
• The Eagle's Claw (1924)
• Snowbound (1927)
• The College Widow (1927)
• Noah's Ark (1928)
• My Man (1928)
• The Big Fight (1930)
• Polly of the Circus (1932)
• The Mystery Squadron (1933)
• The Glass Key (1935)
• Big Boy Rides Again (1935)
• The Law of 45's (1935)
• Dangerous Holiday (1937)
• You Only Live Once (1937)
• A Star Is Born (1937) as Posture Coach
• Dodge City (1939)
• Blackmail (1939)
• The Fighting 69th (1940)
• Virginia City (1940)
• Santa Fe Trail (1940)
• Swamp Water (1941)
• The Desperadoes (1943)
• Minesweeper (1943)
• The Hired Gun (1957)
• The Alamo (1960)
• The Comancheros (1961)

External links

• Guinn "Big Boy" Williams at the Internet Movie Database
• Guinn "Big Boy" Williams at AllMovie
• Guinn "Big Boy" Williams full biography
• Guinn "Big Boy" Williams at Find a Grave