Jack Buetel
Birth nameJohn Alexander Beutel
Birth dateSeptember 5, 1915
Birth placeDallas, Texas, U.S.
Death dateJune 27, 1989 (aged 73)
Death placePortland, Oregon, U.S.
Resting placeWilhelm's Portland Memorial, Mausoleum JS2 Tier 3 Vault 10, Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Resting place coordinates45.47453°N 122.65186°W
OccupationActor
Years active1943–1961
SpouseJoann Jensen Beutel (m. 1937; ended 1984)

Jack Buetel (September 5, 1915 – June 27, 1989) was an American film and television actor best known for portraying Billy the Kid in Howard Hughes’s controversial Western The Outlaw (1943).[1]

Early life

Buetel was born John Alexander Beutel in Dallas, Texas.[1] He had stage experience in little theater in Dallas before being chosen to co-star in Hughes’s The Outlaw; Hughes also changed the spelling of his surname to "Buetel" in publicity to avoid mispronunciation.[1]

Career

Hughes cast Buetel as Billy the Kid in The Outlaw alongside newcomers Jane Russell and veterans Walter Huston and Thomas Mitchell.[2] Production took place in 1940–41, but troubles with the Production Code and local bans delayed general exhibition for years. The film had a 1943 premiere and piecemeal engagements, but wider releases followed in 1946–47 after further edits and highly publicized marketing.[2] Contemporary critics were mixed to hostile; Variety faulted the film beyond Russell’s sex appeal, and The New York Times called it “strictly second-rate…long and tedious and crudely acted,” assessments summarized in the AFI Catalog.[2]

After The Outlaw, Buetel’s screen opportunities were limited. He returned to features as Bob Younger in Best of the Badmen (1951) and appeared in Westerns including Rose of Cimarron (1952), The Half-Breed (1952), and Jesse James' Women (1954).[3]

Television

Buetel co-starred as deputy Jeff Taggert in the syndicated color Western series Judge Roy Bean (1955–56), which ran 39 episodes and was set in Langtry, Texas.[4] He also made guest appearances on 26 Men (1958), Maverick (1959), Hawaiian Eye (1960), Wagon Train (1959–61), and Lawman (1961).[5]

Later years

Buetel appeared as himself in the television special Night of 100 Stars (1982).[1] His last dramatic screen credit was a 1961 episode of Wagon Train.[6]

Personal life

An early marriage to Cereatha Browning was reported in 1941.[7] He later married Joann Jensen Crawford (also credited as Joann Jensen Beutel).[8] Buetel relocated to Portland, Oregon, by the 1970s.[1]

Death

Buetel died in Portland on June 27, 1989, aged 73, and was interred at Portland Memorial Mausoleum (Mausoleum JS2 Tier 3 Vault 10).[1][9]

Legacy and reception

The Outlaw’s stop-start release pattern and censorship battles have been widely studied; the AFI Catalog documents the film’s staggered openings (1943, 1946, 1947), bans, and edited rereleases, as well as contemporaneous critical reaction.[2] The role remained Buetel’s signature part.

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
1943The OutlawBilly the KidAs Jack Beutel[2]
1951Best of the BadmenBob Younger[10]
1952Rose of CimarronMarshal Hollister[11]
1952The Half-BreedCharlie Wolf[12]
1954Jesse James' WomenFrank James[13]
1955–1956Judge Roy BeanJeff Taggert39 episodes[14]
195826 MenRanger Johnny Whitecloud2 episodes[5]
1959Mustang!GableAs Jack Beutel[15]
1959Mackenzie's RaidersCorby's HenchmanEpisode: "The Poisoners"[5]
1959MaverickPhillipsEpisode: "Easy Mark"[5]
1960Hawaiian EyeDr. EliotEpisode: "The Kamehameha Cloak"[5]
1959–1961Wagon TrainJack Reynolds / Joe Hampler2 episodes[5]
1961LawmanRyderEpisode: "Whiphand" (final appearance)[5]

References

  1. ^ "Jack Buetel, 74; Billy the Kid in 'The Outlaw'". Los Angeles Times. July 1, 1989. Retrieved November 11, 2025.
  2. ^ "The Outlaw (1943) — AFI Catalog". American Film Institute. Retrieved November 11, 2025.
  3. ^ "Jack Buetel — Filmography". Turner Classic Movies. Archived from the original on June 6, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2025.
  4. ^ Hathorn, Billy (2013). "Roy Bean, Temple Houston, Bill Longley, Ranald Mackenzie, Buffalo Bill, Jr., and the Texas Rangers: Depictions of West Texans in Series Television, 1955 to 1967". West Texas Historical Review. 89: 110.
  5. ^ "Jack Buetel — Credits". TV Guide. Retrieved November 11, 2025.
  6. ^ "Jack Buetel — TCM biography". Turner Classic Movies. Archived from the original on June 6, 2013. Retrieved November 11, 2025.
  7. ^ "Movie Actor Keeps Wife Secret Years". The San Bernardino County Sun. United Press. September 18, 1941. p. 7. Retrieved November 11, 2025. – via Newspapers.com
  8. ^ "The California Register". Social Blue Book of California. 1966. Retrieved November 11, 2025.
  9. ^ Wilson, Scott (2016). Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons. 3rd ed. McFarland. p. 100. ISBN 978-1-476-62599-7.
  10. ^ "Best of the Badmen (1951) — Cast". TCM. Retrieved November 11, 2025.[dead link]
  11. ^ "Rose of Cimarron (1952) — Cast". TCM. Retrieved November 11, 2025.[dead link]
  12. ^ "The Half-Breed (1952) — Cast". TCM. Retrieved November 11, 2025.[dead link]
  13. ^ "Jesse James’ Women (1954) — Cast". TCM. Retrieved November 11, 2025.[dead link]
  14. ^ Hathorn, Billy (2013). "Depictions of West Texans in Series Television…". West Texas Historical Review. 89: 110.
  15. ^ "Mustang! (1959) — Cast". TCM. Retrieved November 11, 2025.[dead link]
  • Higham, Charles. Howard Hughes: The Secret Life. Putnam Berkeley Group, 1993. ISBN 0-7535-0971-7