James Griffith
Biography
James Griffith was an American character actor who also worked as a musician and screenwriter. Born in Los Angeles and raised in San Pedro, California, he acted in many plays as a youth and studied at UCLA before working in little theaters around Los Angeles. He found success in They Can't Get You Down in 1939, then after World War II moved from stage to film with Blonde Ice (1948). He built a lengthy career in supporting and bit roles, often as an outlaw in westerns, though he also played good guys, including a cavalry officer in Apache Drums (1951). He appeared in more than seventy television guest roles, among them Gunsmoke, Wagon Train and Perry Mason, and composed music and wrote screenplays, contributing to Lorna (1964). He died in 1993.
77years old at death
- Born Los Angeles
- Died Avila Beach
- Star sign: AquariusThe sign runs January 20 to February 18
- Also credited as James Jeffrey Griffith
Movie Career
- Films
- 20
- Career span
- 21 years1948 to 1969
First and latest
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Beyond film
Griffith was a musician as well as an actor, working early on as a vocalist and reed player with bandleader Spike Jones, and he later co-wrote title songs for several films.
A change of course
Griffith moved from the stage to films in 1948 with the film noir Blonde Ice, after putting his acting career on hold to serve in the Marine Corps during World War II.
First role
By age 17 Griffith had already acted in 70 plays, trying out for parts around Santa Monica and hitchhiking to auditions at the Pasadena Playhouse with his friend Gwyllyn Ford.
Behind the camera
Griffith wrote the music for the 1958 film Bullwhip and, for the 1964 picture Lorna, composed the music, wrote the screenplay and acted in a role.
James Griffith movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
- The Night of the Hunter1955 Crime, Drama, Film-Noir, Thrilleras District Attorney
IMDb rating 7.9110K votes
Most often with
George Marshall directed two of these films. Four actors appear in three of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Glenn Ford's page
John Qualen's page
Virginia Gregg's page
Coleen Gray's page
Whit Bissell's page
Royal Dano's page
All films by George Marshall
Also two films together10 more actors
- Joe SawyerNorth to Alaska (1960) and The Killing (1956)
- Walter SandeAnything Goes (1956) and Blonde Ice (1948)
- Audie MurphyThe Guns of Fort Petticoat (1957) and Ride Clear of Diablo (1954)
- Dabbs GreerThe Vampire (1957) and At Gunpoint (1955)
- John AndersonHeaven with a Gun (1969) and Day of the Evil Gun (1968)
- Herb VigranThe Vampire (1957) and Dragnet (1954)
- Stephen McNallyTribute to a Bad Man (1956) and Apache Drums (1951)
- Jeanette NolanThe Guns of Fort Petticoat (1957) and Tribute to a Bad Man (1956)
- Barbara BabcockHeaven with a Gun (1969) and Day of the Evil Gun (1968)
- Kim CharneyThe Guns of Fort Petticoat (1957) and At Gunpoint (1955)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.