Forrest Taylor

Edwin Forrest Taylor (December 29, 1883 – February 19, 1965) was an American character actor whose artistic career spanned six different decades, from silents through talkies to the advent of color films.

Forrest Taylor
Taylor in 1911
Born
Edwin Forrest Taylor

(1883-12-29)December 29, 1883
Bloomington, Illinois
DiedFebruary 19, 1965(1965-02-19) (aged 81)
Garden Grove, California
OccupationActor
Years active1915–1963
Spouse(s)Ada Daniels (? - ?)
Children1 son
1 daughter
Parent(s)Mr. and Mrs. Chris Taylor

Early years

Taylor was born in Bloomington, Illinois.[1] His father managed the Dreamland Theatre in Kewanee, Illinois, and a news item in 1916 reported, "Manager Chris Taylor of Dreamland at Kewanee features his son, E. Forrest Taylor, in Western pictures every Monday."[2]

Career

Stage

Taylor was a veteran of the stage by the time he started appearing as a silent lead in both short and feature-length films. His talents extended beyond acting to include management. The Richfield Reaper, in a January 23, 1908, article, wrote about Taylor's efforts with the Empire Amusement Company, saying, "Mr. Taylor certainly deserves success as when he took hold of the company it was badly disorganized and in debt, but he has brought order out of the chaos and is now in good shape ..."[3]

A newspaper article published in The Arizona Republic on October 13, 1922, described Taylor and Anne Berryman as "two of the best known players in the western portion of the country."[4] At that time, Taylor headed his own troupe after having spent nine months with the Majestic Theatre Players in Los Angeles.[4]

Taylor's Broadway credits include Open House (1947) and We, the People (1932).[5]

Film

Taylor essayed prime roles in the films The Terror of Twin Mountains (1915), Sunset Country (1915), April (1916), True Nobility (1916) and The Abandonment (1916), before joining the army during World War I. He would not return to films until 1926, appearing in A Poor Girl's Romance.

During the 1930s, Taylor became entrenched as a supporting player in B-westerns and several cliffhanger serials, often playing either the action or brains heavy roles. As he grew older and grayer, Taylor migrated to nice guy roles, such as the father of the heroine, a lawman, or a scientist.

Taylor is identified in about 400 films, including 325 sound era films and of those, 201 are westerns and 36 are chapterplays, according to the Internet Movie Database. As well, his credits at Republic Pictures number about 75 for the period 1937-1953 (most all of these are B-westerns and serials).

His last film was Bitter Creek (1954).[1]

Television

After the westerns and serials faded Taylor migrated to television work. From 1952 through 1954, he costarred as Grandpa Fisher on the religious TV series This is the Life. In 1960 Taylor appeared as the Minister on the TV western Cheyenne in the episode titled "The Long Rope." He retired in 1963 after filming an episode of Ripcord.

Personal life

Taylor was married to actress Ada Daniels, and the two appeared together in stage productions. They had a son and a daughter.[6]

Death

Taylor died of natural causes on February 19, 1965, in Garden Grove, California, at the age of 81.[1]

Filmography

Films

Serials

Television appearances
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References
  1. Katchmer, George A. (2009). A Biographical Dictionary of Silent Film Western Actors and Actresses. McFarland. p. 368. ISBN 9781476609058. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  2. The Moving Picture World. World Photographic Publishing Company. 1916. p. 277. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  3. "Amusements". The Richfield Reaper. Utah, Richfield. January 23, 1908. p. 8. Retrieved June 9, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "Stock Satellites to Open Columbia Season Wednesday". Arizona Republic. Arizona, Phoenix. October 13, 1922. p. 15. Retrieved June 9, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "("Forrest Taylor" search results)". Playbill Vault. Playbill. Archived from the original on 9 June 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  6. "Ada Daniels Taylor". The Salt Lake Tribune. Utah, Salt Lake City. January 3, 1952. p. 12. Retrieved June 9, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
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