William Boyd (Hopalong Cassidy)

William Lawrence Boyd (June 5, 1895 – September 12, 1972) was an American film actor known for portraying Hopalong Cassidy. He was the lead actor in Cecil B. DeMille's The Volga Boatman (1926) and DeMille's extravaganza, The King of Kings, helping Christ carry the cross as Simon of Cyrene and also in DeMille's Skyscraper. He then appeared in D.W. Griffith's, Lady of the Pavements (1929). In 1935, he was offered the supporting role of Red Connors in the movie Hop-Along Cassidy, but asked to be considered for the title role and won it. The Hopalong Cassidy film series ended in 1948 after 66 films, with Boyd producing the last 12. Anticipating television's rise, Boyd spent $350,000 to purchase the rights to the Hopalong Cassidy character, books and films. In 1949, he approached the fledgling NBC television network. The initial broadcasts were so successful that NBC could not wait for a television series to be produced and simply reedited the old feature films down to broadcast length. On June 24, 1949, Hopalong Cassidy became the first network Western television series. Back to The Home Page

Hopalong Cassidy Films

Hopalong Cassidy TV Show

Other William Boyd Films

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