Hank Worden
Actor
Biography
Raised on a cattle ranch in Montana. Educated at Stanford and the University of Nevada as an engineer. Washed out as an Army pilot. Toured the country in rodeos as a saddle bronc rider. Broke his neck in a horsefall in his 20s, but didn't know it until his 40s. Chosen along with Tex Ritter from a rodeo at Madison Square Garden in New York to appear in the Broadway play "Green Grow the Lilacs", the play from which the musical "Oklahoma" was later derived. Drove a cab in New York, then worked on dude ranches as a wrangler and as a guide on the Bright Angel trail of the Grand Canyon. Recommended by Billie Burke to several movie producers. Became friends with John Wayne, Howard Hawks, and later John Ford, all of whom provided him with much work. Survived by adopted daughter Dawn Henry.
Date of Death: 6 December 1992, Los Angeles, California, USA (natural causes)
Filmography
Stagecoach
as Cavalryman (uncredited) 1939
Bedknobs and Broomsticks
as Old Home Guardsman (uncredited) 1971
True Grit
as R. Ryan - Undertaker (uncredited) 1969
Smokey and the Bandit
as Trucker (uncredited) 1977
Runaway Train
as Old Con 1985
Red River
as Simms Reeves 1948
Every Which Way but Loose
as Trailer Court Manager 1978
Fort Apache
as Southern Recruit 1948
The Alamo
as Parson 1960
Bronco Billy
as Station Mechanic 1980
Rio Lobo
as Hank - Hotel Clerk (uncredited) 1970
The Horse Soldiers
as Deacon Clump 1959
McLintock!
as Curly Fletcher 1963
One-Eyed Jacks
as Doc 1961
Big Jake
as Hank 1971
The Ice Pirates
as Elderly Jason 1984