James Coburn

1928 - 2002
American born Laurel, Nebraska

Height 6' 2" (1.88 m) . Lanky, charismatic and versatile actor with an amazing grin that put everyone at ease, James Coburn studied acting at UCLA, and then moved to New York to study under noted acting coach Stella Adler. After being noticed in several stage productions, Coburn appeared in a handful of minor westerns before being cast as the knife-throwing, quick-shooting Britt in the John Sturges mega-hit The Magnificent Seven (1960). Sturges remembered Coburn's talents when he cast his next major film project, The Great Escape (1963), where Coburn played the Australian POW Sedgewick. Regular work now came thick and fast for Coburn, including appearing in Major Dundee (1965), the first of several films he appeared in directed by Hollywood enfant terrible Sam Peckinpah. The next two years were a key period for Coburn, with his performances in the wonderful 007 spy spoof Our Man Flint (1966) and the eerie Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round (1966). Coburn followed up in 1967 with a Flint sequel, In Like Flint (1967), and the much underrated political satire The President's Analyst (1967). The remainder of the 1960s was rather uneventful for Coburn. However, he became associated with martial arts legend Bruce Lee and the two trained together, traveled extensively and even visited India scouting locations for a proposed film project, but Lee's untimely death (Coburn, along with Steve McQueen, was a pallbearer at Lee's funeral) put an end to that.The 1970s saw Coburn appearing again in several strong roles, starting off in Peckinpah's Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (1973), alongside Charles Bronson in the Depression-era Hard Times (1975) and as a disenchanted German soldier on the Russian front in Peckinpah's superb _Cross of Iron (1976)_ . Towards the end of the decade, however, Coburn was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, which severely hampered his health and work output for many years. After conventional treatments failed, Coburn turned to a holistic therapist, and through a restructured diet program, made a definite improvement. By the 1990s he was once again appearing regularly in both film and TV productions.No one was probably more surprised than Coburn himself when he was both nominated for, and then won, the Best Supporting Actor Award in 1997 for playing Nick Nolte's abusive and alcoholic father in Affliction (1997). At 70 years of age, Coburn's career received another shot in the arm, and he appeared in another 14 films, including Snow Dogs (2002) and The Man from Elysian Fields (2001), before his death from a heart attack in November of 2002. Coburn's passions in life included martial arts, card playing and enjoying fine Cuban cigars! Spouse Paula O'Hara (22 October 1993 - 18 November 2002) (his death), Beverly Kelly (11 November 1959 - 1979) (divorced) 2 children.

"Arli$$" (2002) , American Gun (2002) , Snow Dogs (2002) , Monsters, Inc. (2001) , The Man from Elysian Fields (2001) , Walter and Henry (2001) , Yellow Bird (2001) , Texas Rangers (2001) , Proximity (2001) , World's Scariest Ghosts: Caught on Tape (2000) ,Intrepid (2000) , Missing Pieces (2000) , The Good Doctor (2000) , "Dale's All Stars" (2000) ,Shake, Rattle and Roll: An American Love Story (1999) , Noah's Ark (1999) , Payback (1999/I) , "Vengeance Unlimited" (1999) , Mr. Murder (1998) , "Stories from My Childhood" (????) ,Affliction (1997) , Keys to Tulsa (1997) , The Second Civil War (1997) , "Profiler" (1997) , The Cherokee Kid (1996) , Okavango: Africa's Savage Oasis (1996) , The Nutty Professor (1996) , Eraser (1996) , Skeletons (1996) , "Picket Fences" (1995) , Ray Alexander: A Menu for Murder (1995) , The Avenging Angel (1995) , C.E.O. (1995) , The Set Up (1995) , Greyhounds (1994) , Maverick (1994) , Ray Alexander: A Taste for Justice (1994) , Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit (1993) , The Hit List (1993) , Christmas Reunion (1993) , Deadfall (1993) , Mastergate (1992) , "Murder, She Wrote" (1992) , "The Fifth Corner" (1992) , True Facts (1992) , Crash Landing: The Rescue of Flight 232 (1992) , Hudson Hawk (1991) , "Captain Planet and the Planeteers" (1990) , Young Guns II (1990) , Tåg till himlen (1990) , Call from Space (1989) ,"The Edge and Beyond" (1988) , Death of a Soldier (1986) , Sins of the Father (1985) , Draw! (1984) , "Faerie Tale Theatre" (1984) , Martin's Day (1984) , Malibu (1983) , Digital Dreams (1983) , "Saturday Night Live" (1982) , "Darkroom" (1981) , Looker (1981) , Jacqueline Susann's Valley of the Dolls (1981) , High Risk (1981) , Mr. Patman (1980) , Loving Couples (1980) , The Baltimore Bullet (1980) , Superstunt II (1980) , Goldengirl (1979) , The Muppet Movie (1979) , Firepower (1979) , California Suite (1978) , "The Dain Curse" (1978) , Cross of Iron (1977) , Midway (1976) , The Last Hard Men (1976) , Sky Riders (1976) , Hard Times (1975) , Bite the Bullet (1975) , The Internecine Project (1974) , Harry in Your Pocket (1973) , The Last of Sheila (1973) , Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (1973) , Ragione per vivere e una per morire, Una (1972) , The Honkers (1972) , The Carey Treatment (1972) , Giù la testa (1971) ,"Bracken's World" (1970) , Last of the Mobile Hot Shots (1970) , Hard Contract (1969) , Candy (1968) , Duffy (1968) , The President's Analyst (1967) , Waterhole #3 (1967) , In Like Flint (1967) , Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round (1966) , What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (1966) , Our Man Flint (1966) , The Loved One (1965) , A High Wind in Jamaica (1965) , Major Dundee (1965) , The Americanization of Emily (1964) , "The Defenders" (1964) , "Route 66" (1964) , The Man from Galveston (1963) , Kings of the Sun (1963) , Charade (1963) , "The Twilight Zone" (1963) , "The Eleventh Hour" (1963) , "The Greatest Show on Earth" (1963) ,
"Combat!" (1963) , The Great Escape (1963) , "Stoney Burke" (1963) , "Ripcord"(????) , Hell Is for Heroes (1962) , "Naked City" (1962) , "Tales of Wells Fargo"(1962) , "Bonanza" (1962) , "Perry Mason" (1962) , "The Dick Powell Show" (1962) , "Checkmate" (1962) , "Rawhide" (1962) , "Cain's Hundred" (1962) , "The Rifleman" (1961) , "Cheyenne" (1961) , "Bronco" (1961) , "Frontier Justice"(1961) , "The Brothers Brannagan" (1961) , "Laramie" (1961) , "Acapulco" (1961) , "Outlaws" (1961) , "The Untouchables" (1961) , "The Tall Man" (1961) , "Stagecoach West" (1961) , "The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor" (1961) , "The Aquanauts" (1961) , "King of Diamonds" (????) , The Murder Men (1961) , Klondike" (1960) , "Lawman" (1960) , The Magnificent Seven (1960) , "Zane Grey Theater"(1960) , "Death Valley Days" (1960) , "Wanted: Dead or Alive" (1960) , "Richard Diamond, Private Detective" (1960) , "Tate" (1960) , "The Deputy" (1960) , "Peter Gunn" (1960) , "Have Gun - Will Travel" (1960) , "Bourbon Street Beat" (1960) , "Men Into Space" (1960) , "Sugarfoot" (1960) , "Bat Masterson" (1960) , "Wichita Town" (1960) , "The Texan"(1960) , "The Millionaire" (1959) , "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" (1959) , "The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp" (1959) , "The DuPont Show with June Allyson" (1959) , "Disneyland" (1959) , "Tombstone Territory" (1959) , "Johnny Ringo" (1959) , "The Restless Gun" (1959) , Face of a Fugitive (1959) , "The Californians" (1959) , "The Rough Riders" (1959) , "M Squad" (1959) , "Black Saddle" (1959) , "State Trooper" (1959) , "Trackdown" (1959) , Ride Lonesome (1959) , "Wagon Train" (1958) , "General Electric Theater" (1958) , "Suspicion" (1958) , "Studio One" (1957)