| Gordon Scott | |
|---|---|
| Born | Gordon Merrill Werschkul August 3, 1926 Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
| Died | April 30, 2007 (aged 80) Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
Gordon Scott (August 3, 1926[1] - April 30, 2007) was an American actor known for his portrayal of Tarzan in five films (and one compilation of three made-as-a-pilot television episodes) from 1955 to 1960.
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Scott was born Gordon Merrill Werschkul in Portland, Oregon, one of nine children of advertising man Stanley Werschkul and his wife Alice.[2] Scott was raised in Oregon and attended the University of Oregon for one semester. Upon leaving school, he was drafted into the United States Army in 1944 and was honorably discharged in 1947. He then worked at a variety of jobs until 1953, when he was spotted by a talent agent while working as a lifeguard at the Las Vegas Sahara Hotel.
Due in part to his muscular frame and 6'3" height, he was quickly signed to replace Lex Barker as Tarzan.[3] Scott's Tarzan films ranged from rather cheap re-edited television pilots to larger scale epics. Following his departure from the Tarzan films, he moved to Italy and became a popular star of what were known as "sword and sandal" epics, featuring handsome bodybuilders as various characters from Greek and Roman myth.
Scott was a friend of Hercules star Steve Reeves, and collaborated with him as Remus to Reeves' Romulus in Duel of the Titans (1961). Scott also played Hercules in a couple of low-budget productions during the mid-1960s. His final film appearance was in The Tramplers (filmed in 1966 and released in the USA in 1968).
Scott was married apparently three times, including once to his Tarzan co-star, actress Vera Miles, from 1954 to 1959. He had one son, Michael, born 1957, with Miles, and possibly several other children[4]. For the last two decades of his life, he was a popular guest at film conventions and autograph shows.[4]
Scott died on April 30, 2007, aged 80, in Baltimore, Maryland of lingering complications from multiple heart surgeries earlier in the year. [5][6] He is buried in Valhalla, New York's Kensico Cemetery.
| Preceded by Lex Barker |
Actors to portray Tarzan 1955-1960 |
Succeeded by Denny Miller |
   | Gordon Scott's final newspaper interview - The Last of the Strongmen: Gordon Scott Was A Hero Wherever He Went--From Hollywood To Italy To South Baltimore | Baltimore City Paper |
| | Gordon Scott at Brian's Drive-In Theater - Gordon Scott at Brian's Drive-In Theater |
| | YouTube Tribute to Gordon Scott - YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. |
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