Lorne Greene

Biography for Lorne Greene

Canadian-born Lorne Greene began acting while attending Canada's Queen's University, and after graduation got a job in radio broadcasting. His rich, deep, authoritarian voice quickly propelled him to prominence as Canada's top newscaster. He left Canada in the early '50s for a film career in Hollywood, and soon began appearing regularly in television, films and on radio. His greatest successes came in two television series, the long-running Western "Bonanza" (1959), in which he played the patriarch of a wealthy frontier family, and the sci-fi series "Battlestar Galactica" (1978).

Canadian actor born on February 12, 1915 who, after studying chemistry, turned to the theater. Lorne Greene became famous thanks to her voice during the Second World War. In the 1950s, he left his country and left for Hollywood who first asked him to make the narrator of some films. Later, he finally found roles: he interpreted Othello in a television adaptation of 1953. However, his first performance recognized by the public will remain his role as Patriarch in the series "Bonanza". For 14 years, from September 1959 to January 16, 1973, he remained one of the favorite Cowboys for viewers. After the series, we will see him again in "earthquake" by Mark Robson alongside Charlton Heston. However, the actor remains very attached to television. He turns many TV movies, some series such as "Griff", a program produced by David Victor and Steven Bochco and broadcast from September 29, 1973 to January 04, 1974 on ABC, and some mini series, including "Racines". In 1978, it was announced in the most expensive series in the whole history of television: "Galactica". His presence on the screen has reassured investors a lot. Even if the series is not a success, Lorne Greene comes out of this adventure. In 1981, he turned his eighth and last series, "Code Red", broadcast from November 01, 1981 to September 12, 1982 on ABC and produced by Irwin Allen, where he interpreted an aging and courageous firefighter. He will also be the host/narrator of the documentary series, Lorne Greene's Last of the Wild from 1974 to 1979. Lorne Greene died on September 11, 1987.

Lorne Greene was a Canadian actor known for his role in the television series "Bonanza" in the 1960s. Born February 12, 1915 in Ottawa, Ontario, Greene grew up in the city of Ottawa and attended Queen's University before continuing A career in journalism. In addition to "Bonanza", he played in several other television and films series, including "Battlestar Galactica" and "Beijing Express". Greene died on September 11, 1987 in Santa Monica, California, at the age of 72.

Photos

Filmography

Trivia

• Attended Lisgar Collegiate, Ottawa, Ontario
• Had a #1 hit in the U.S. with his 1960's recording "Ringo", a spoken word song.
• When he was an announcer for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in the early years of World War II, he was nicknamed "The Voice of Doom" for the combination of his deep voice and the usually gloomy news reports about the war he had to read.
• Interred at Hillside Memorial Park, Culver City, California, USA.
• Just before his death, Greene had signed on to reprise the role of Ben Cartwright in a TV-movie revival of "Bonanza."
• He was the Monday night host for CBS Radio's "Sears Mystery Theater" (1979). He was still Monday's host when it became "The Mutual Radio Theater" on Mutual Radio (1980).
• Founded Toronto's Academy of Radio Arts.
• Invited to play Ben Cartwright after a well-received performance as Big Brother in a CBS production of Nineteen Eighty-Four.
• Served, along with Betty White, as co-host of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on NBC-TV for almost a decade, 1963-72.
• Ben Cartwright, Greene's character on "Bonanza" (1959), was ranked #2 by TV Guide in its list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" [20 June 2004 issue].
• Died the same day as Peter Tosh.

Family

• Spouse : Nancy Deale (December 1961 - 11 September 1987) (his death) 1 child, Rita Hands (1938 - 1960) (divorced) 2 children
• Has two children, Belinda and Charles, from his first marriage.
• His daughter Gillian Greene, is married to the director Sam Raimi. One of the Raimis' sons is named Lorne, after Lorne Greene.

Author of the card

• Creation date: 01/07/2003 by eldea66