fbpx
Wikipedia

Kirby Grant

August 25, 2023

Kirby Grant (November 24, 1911 – October 30, 1985), born Kirby Grant Hoon Jr., was a long-time B movie and television actor, mostly remembered for having played the title role in the Western-themed adventure television series Sky King. Between 1949 and 1954, Grant starred in 10 Mounted-Police adventures, usually in the role of Corporal Rod Webb.

Kirby Grant Jr.
Kirby Grant (left) with Gloria Winters and Ron Hagerthy in Sky King
Born
Kirby Grant Hoon Jr.

(1911-11-24)November 24, 1911
Butte, Montana, U.S.
DiedOctober 30, 1985(1985-10-30) (aged 73)
Brevard County, Florida, U.S.
Resting placeMissoula, Montana
Occupation(s)Actor, musician
Years active1934–1959
SpouseCarolyn J. Gillis Grant (1928–1989)
Children3[1]

Early life and career Edit

Grant was born in Butte in Silver Bow County in southwestern Montana. He was a child prodigy violinist. He continued to study music and became a professional singer and bandleader.[2]

Movie career Edit

In 1939 the Gateway to Hollywood talent-search contest awarded him a movie contract. These "Gateway" contracts were already prepared with fictitious screen names (thus Josephine Cottle became "Gale Storm" and Ralph Bowman became "John Archer"; Grant won with Dorothy Howe, who became "Virginia Vale"). Grant's contract was made out to "Robert Stanton," and Grant used the pseudonym in his earliest films before adopting his first and middle names professionally. "Robert Stanton" and "Virginia Vale" were introduced in the RKO Radio Pictures feature Three Sons, with Edward Ellis and William Gargan. For the next few years Grant freelanced among various studios; his most familiar picture from this period (as Kirby Grant) is probably Blondie Goes Latin, a 1941 film with Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake. Grant also appeared briefly in the 1943 submarine picture Destination Tokyo, playing the role of Lieutenant Colonel James H. Doolittle, organizer of the famous Doolittle Raid on Japan.

In 1943, Grant signed with Universal Pictures, where he played romantic leads in B musicals, and in Abbott and Costello and Olsen and Johnson comedies. His smooth baritone voice got him teamed with Universal's singing star Gloria Jean for two features in 1944, and then Universal selected him to replace Rod Cameron (who had just been promoted to more important roles) as the studio's B-Western series star in 1945. These seven westerns established Kirby Grant as an action star. In 1949 Monogram Pictures hired him for a series of Mountie adventures, featuring "Chinook the Wonder Dog." Grant was working in this capacity when television beckoned in 1952 with the contemporary series Sky King.

Sky King Edit

Grant starred in the series Sky King during its entire run (1952, and 1956–59), filming 72 episodes in all. He played Arizona rancher-pilot Schuyler "Sky" King, who fought bad guys and rescued people with his airplane. Early villains were bank robbers and kidnappers; some later foils were Russian spies and saboteurs. Sky's first airplane was a Cessna T-50 (known among pilots as the "Bamboo Bomber" because of its wooden wings), and later a much more modern Cessna 310B. Sky's airplanes were named "Songbird". Sky and his niece Penny, played by Gloria Winters, lived on the "Flying Crown Ranch".

Later appearances and retirement Edit

Grant did little acting after Sky King ended, although he and Gloria Winters were in demand for personal appearances at fairs and aviation events. He traveled with the Carson and Barnes Circus from 1965 to 1967. Grant retired in 1970. Sky King continued to play in reruns from 1959 to 1966, but Grant received no residuals.

Grant and his wife, Carolyn, had three children. In the early 1970s, the Grants moved from California to Florida.

The couple founded the nonprofit Sky King Youth Ranches of America, which provided homes for abandoned or orphaned children. He had plans to resurrect the Sky King series with the Flying Crown Ranch becoming a home for such kids, and publicizing their stories, but it never materialized.

Death Edit

At about 8 a.m. on October 30, 1985, Grant was killed in an automobile accident west of Titusville in Brevard County, Florida. Three vehicles were traveling east bound in single file, Grant was in the third vehicle. He pulled out of line (to the left) to pass both vehicles in front of him, when the middle vehicle also pulled out to pass at the same time. To avoid a collision, Grant suddenly swerved farther left, and went onto the shoulder of the oncoming lane, he then over-corrected back all the way to the right, when his vehicle left the roadway and spun into a ditch, which contained three feet of standing water. Grant was thrown out of his car and into the water. A passerby pulled him out, and he was taken to Jess Parrish Hospital in Titusville, but was dead on arrival. That morning, Grant was en route from his condominium in Winter Springs to the Kennedy Space Center to watch the (last successful) launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger at Cape Canaveral.[3] He was to have been honored by the astronauts for encouraging aviation and space flight. He was 73 years old. Kirby is interred in Missoula, Montana.

Recording career Edit

Kirby Grant is listed as the recording artist on two Wizard Records singles, #245-A "Loving Time" and 245-B "Letter from Tina," circa 1970.

Selected filmography Edit

References Edit

  1. ^ "Kirby Grant, `Sky King,` Killed In Auto Accident". Orlando Sentinel (October 31, 1985).
  2. ^ . Archived from the original on December 27, 2002. Retrieved December 27, 2002.
  3. ^ Headline News – on the Death of Sky King, 1985 on YouTube

External links Edit

August 25, 2023
kirby, grant, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, june, 2018, l. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Kirby Grant news newspapers books scholar JSTOR June 2018 Learn how and when to remove this template message Kirby Grant November 24 1911 October 30 1985 born Kirby Grant Hoon Jr was a long time B movie and television actor mostly remembered for having played the title role in the Western themed adventure television series Sky King Between 1949 and 1954 Grant starred in 10 Mounted Police adventures usually in the role of Corporal Rod Webb Kirby Grant Jr Kirby Grant left with Gloria Winters and Ron Hagerthy in Sky KingBornKirby Grant Hoon Jr 1911 11 24 November 24 1911Butte Montana U S DiedOctober 30 1985 1985 10 30 aged 73 Brevard County Florida U S Resting placeMissoula MontanaOccupation s Actor musicianYears active1934 1959SpouseCarolyn J Gillis Grant 1928 1989 Children3 1 Contents 1 Early life and career 2 Movie career 3 Sky King 4 Later appearances and retirement 5 Death 6 Recording career 7 Selected filmography 8 References 9 External linksEarly life and career EditGrant was born in Butte in Silver Bow County in southwestern Montana He was a child prodigy violinist He continued to study music and became a professional singer and bandleader 2 Movie career EditIn 1939 the Gateway to Hollywood talent search contest awarded him a movie contract These Gateway contracts were already prepared with fictitious screen names thus Josephine Cottle became Gale Storm and Ralph Bowman became John Archer Grant won with Dorothy Howe who became Virginia Vale Grant s contract was made out to Robert Stanton and Grant used the pseudonym in his earliest films before adopting his first and middle names professionally Robert Stanton and Virginia Vale were introduced in the RKO Radio Pictures feature Three Sons with Edward Ellis and William Gargan For the next few years Grant freelanced among various studios his most familiar picture from this period as Kirby Grant is probably Blondie Goes Latin a 1941 film with Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake Grant also appeared briefly in the 1943 submarine picture Destination Tokyo playing the role of Lieutenant Colonel James H Doolittle organizer of the famous Doolittle Raid on Japan In 1943 Grant signed with Universal Pictures where he played romantic leads in B musicals and in Abbott and Costello and Olsen and Johnson comedies His smooth baritone voice got him teamed with Universal s singing star Gloria Jean for two features in 1944 and then Universal selected him to replace Rod Cameron who had just been promoted to more important roles as the studio s B Western series star in 1945 These seven westerns established Kirby Grant as an action star In 1949 Monogram Pictures hired him for a series of Mountie adventures featuring Chinook the Wonder Dog Grant was working in this capacity when television beckoned in 1952 with the contemporary series Sky King Sky King EditGrant starred in the series Sky King during its entire run 1952 and 1956 59 filming 72 episodes in all He played Arizona rancher pilot Schuyler Sky King who fought bad guys and rescued people with his airplane Early villains were bank robbers and kidnappers some later foils were Russian spies and saboteurs Sky s first airplane was a Cessna T 50 known among pilots as the Bamboo Bomber because of its wooden wings and later a much more modern Cessna 310B Sky s airplanes were named Songbird Sky and his niece Penny played by Gloria Winters lived on the Flying Crown Ranch Later appearances and retirement EditGrant did little acting after Sky King ended although he and Gloria Winters were in demand for personal appearances at fairs and aviation events He traveled with the Carson and Barnes Circus from 1965 to 1967 Grant retired in 1970 Sky King continued to play in reruns from 1959 to 1966 but Grant received no residuals Grant and his wife Carolyn had three children In the early 1970s the Grants moved from California to Florida The couple founded the nonprofit Sky King Youth Ranches of America which provided homes for abandoned or orphaned children He had plans to resurrect the Sky King series with the Flying Crown Ranch becoming a home for such kids and publicizing their stories but it never materialized Death EditAt about 8 a m on October 30 1985 Grant was killed in an automobile accident west of Titusville in Brevard County Florida Three vehicles were traveling east bound in single file Grant was in the third vehicle He pulled out of line to the left to pass both vehicles in front of him when the middle vehicle also pulled out to pass at the same time To avoid a collision Grant suddenly swerved farther left and went onto the shoulder of the oncoming lane he then over corrected back all the way to the right when his vehicle left the roadway and spun into a ditch which contained three feet of standing water Grant was thrown out of his car and into the water A passerby pulled him out and he was taken to Jess Parrish Hospital in Titusville but was dead on arrival That morning Grant was en route from his condominium in Winter Springs to the Kennedy Space Center to watch the last successful launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger at Cape Canaveral 3 He was to have been honored by the astronauts for encouraging aviation and space flight He was 73 years old Kirby is interred in Missoula Montana Recording career EditKirby Grant is listed as the recording artist on two Wizard Records singles 245 A Loving Time and 245 B Letter from Tina circa 1970 Selected filmography EditSweet Adeline 1934 Singing Beer Garden Patron uncredited I Dream Too Much 1935 Violinist uncredited In Old Chicago 1938 Moustached Quartette Member Old Virginny Number uncredited Radio City Revels 1938 Group Singer uncredited My Lucky Star 1938 Singing Student on Sleighride uncredited There Goes My Heart 1938 Customer uncredited Lawless Valley 1938 Ranch Hand uncredited Red River Range 1938 Tex Reilly Three Sons 1939 Bert Pardway Mexican Spitfire 1940 Airline Clerk uncredited The Marines Fly High 1940 Lt Bob Hobbes Millionaire Playboy 1940 Bill uncredited Bullet Code 1940 Bud Mathews Blondie Goes Latin 1941 Hal Trent Orchestra Leader Always Tomorrow The Portrait of an American Business 1941 1st Picknicker uncredited The Power of God 1942 Kenneth Hale Dr Kildare s Victory 1942 Sgt Brown uncredited My Favorite Blonde 1942 Pilot uncredited Hello Frisco Hello 1943 Specialty Singer Bombardier 1943 Pilot uncredited The Stranger from Pecos 1943 Tom Barstow Destination Tokyo 1943 Army Briefing Officer uncredited Chip Off the Old Block 1944 Member The Jivin Jacks and Jills uncredited Hi Good Lookin 1944 King Castle Rosie the Riveter 1944 Singer at Award Presentation uncredited Law Men 1944 Clyde Miller Ghost Catchers 1944 Clay Edwards In Society 1944 Peter Evans Babes on Swing Street 1944 Dick Lorimer I ll Remember April 1945 Dave Ball Trail to Vengeance 1945 Jeff Gordon Penthouse Rhythm 1945 Dick Ryan Bad Men of the Border 1945 Ted Cameron Easy to Look At 1945 Tyler Code of the Lawless 1945 Grant Carter posing as Chad Hilton Gun Town 1946 Hal Wentley The Spider Woman Strikes Back 1946 Hal Wentley Blonde Alibi 1946 Henry Rothmore uncredited She Wrote the Book 1946 Eddie Caldwell Lawless Breed 1946 Ted Everett Rustlers Round Up 1946 Bob Ryan Gunman s Code 1946 Jack Douglas Song of Idaho 1948 King Russell Singin Spurs 1948 Jeff Carter Trail of the Yukon 1949 Mountie Bob McDonald Black Midnight 1949 Sheriff Gilbert The Wolf Hunters 1949 Mountie Corporal Rod Webb Feudin Rhythm 1949 Ace Lucky Snow Dog 1950 Mountie Corporal Rod McDonald Indian Territory 1950 Lieutenant Randy Mason Dial 1119 1950 Reporter uncredited Call of the Klondike 1950 Corporal Rod Webb Rhythm Inn 1951 Dusty Rhodes Yukon Manhunt 1951 Corporal Rod Webb Comin Round the Mountain 1951 Clark Winfield Yukon Manhunt 1951 Cpl Rod Webb Northwest Territory 1951 Cpl Rod Webb Yukon Gold 1952 Mountie Cpl Rod Webb Fangs of the Arctic 1953 Mountie Corporal Rod Webb Northern Patrol 1953 Cpl Rod Webb RCMP Yukon Vengeance 1954 Corporal Rod Webb RCMPReferences Edit Kirby Grant Sky King Killed In Auto Accident Orlando Sentinel October 31 1985 Who Was Sky King Archived from the original on December 27 2002 Retrieved December 27 2002 Headline News on the Death of Sky King 1985 on YouTube Airport Journals Jan 2006 interview with Gloria Winters Missoula city website https web archive org web 20120225013557 http www ci missoula mt us index aspx NID 175 http www signonsandiego com uniontrib 20060611 news m1m11history html Link no longer active External links EditKirby Grant at IMDb Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Kirby Grant amp oldid 1123625031, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.