Ray Danton

{{Short description|American actor, director and producer (1931–1992)}} {{Use American English|date=December 2018}} {{Use mdy dates|date=December 2018}} {{Infobox person | name = Ray Danton | image = Ray-danton-trailer.jpg | caption = Danton in trailer for ''The George Raft Story'' (1961) | birth_name = Raymond Caplan | birth_date = {{birth date|mf=yes|1931|09|19}} | birth_place = New York City, U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|mf=yes|1992|02|11|1931|09|19}} | death_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | resting_place = | occupation = {{hlist|Actor|director|producer}} | years_active = 1942–1992 | spouse = {{marriage|Julie Adams|1954|1981|end=div}} | partner = Jeannie Austin | children = 2 | website = }}

'''Ray Danton''' (born '''Raymond Caplan'''; September 19, 1931 – February 11, 1992)<ref>Magill, Frank N., ed. (1993). ''[https://archive.org/details/magillscinemaann0000unse_e1b9/page/474/mode/2up?q=%22ray+danton%22 Magill's Cinema Annual, 1993]''. Pasadena, CA: Salem Press. p.&nbsp;475. {{ISBN|0-89356-412-5}}.</ref> was an American radio, film, stage, and television actor, director, and producer whose most famous roles were in the screen biographies ''The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond'' (1960) and ''The George Raft Story'' (1961).

==Life and career== ===Early life=== Danton was born Raymond Caplan<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1961/02/13/archives/obituary-1-no-title.html "CAPLAN -- Jack, devoted husband of Selma, Beloved father of Ray Danton, cherished grandfather of Stevcn and dear brother...."], ''The New York Times''</ref> in New York City, the son of Myrtle (née Menkin) and Jack Caplan.<ref name=bookref1>{{Cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wLFuAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Raymond+Danton+born+1931,%22 | title=Eliyahu's branches: The descendants of the Vilna Gaon (Of blessed and saintly memory) and his family| last1=Freedman| first1=Chaim| date=September 1997| publisher=Avotaynu| isbn=9781886223066}}</ref> His family was Jewish, and he was a descendant of the Vilna Gaon.<ref name=bookref1/>

Danton entered show business as a child radio actor on NBC radio's ''Let's Pretend'' show in 1943 at age twelve.<ref>Movie actor Ray Danton Chicago Tribune 15 Feb 1992: N19.</ref> He began acting on radio and stage regularly also working as an assistant stage manager.<ref name="life">The Life Story of RAY DANTON Picture Show; London Vol. 65, Iss. 1697, (Oct 8, 1955): 12.</ref>

Danton attended Horace Mann School and in 1947 he started at what is now Carnegie Mellon University where he appeared in many stage productions. He went to New York to try and make it on Broadway and ended up appearing on television dramas. In 1950, he went to London to appear on stage in the Tyrone Power production ''Mister Roberts''. He returned to guest star on shows like ''Danger'' (an episode directed by Sidney Lumet) and ''Starlight Theatre''.<ref name="life"/>

Danton's acting career was put on hold when he served in the United States Army infantry during the Korean War from 1951&ndash;1953. When he returned to the U.S., he resumed his television career, appearing in shows like ''Kraft Theatre'', ''The Man Behind the Badge'', ''Lux Video Theatre'' and ''You Are There''. He played Jean Lafitte in ''The Pirate and the Lawyer'' (1955) for the ''Hallmark Hall of Fame''. He then received an offer from Universal.<ref name="life"/>

===Universal=== Danton made his film debut in ''Chief Crazy Horse'' (1955) playing Little Big Man. His second film for Universal ''The Looters'' (1955) was where he met his future wife Julie Adams.<ref>Julie Adams and Ray Danton of Films Elope Los Angeles Times 21 Feb 1955: A1.</ref>

MGM borrowed him to play Susan Hayward's boyfriend in ''I'll Cry Tomorrow'' (1955), a sizeable hit. Back at Universal he had a role in ''The Spoilers'' (1955) then played his first lead in ''Outside the Law'' (1956).

He was prolific in television work as well as film where he received the Golden Globe Award in 1956 for the new male star of the year in film.<ref>Danton Content Only When Asleep Stinson, Charles. Los Angeles Times 7 Dec 1958: f2.</ref>

He had the lead in ''The Night Runner'' (1957) and appeared in shows like ''Studio 57'', ''Schlitz Playhouse'', ''Playhouse 90'', ''Studio One in Hollywood'', ''Matinee Theatre'', ''Climax!'', and ''Decision''.

===Warner Bros.=== Danton had a supporting role in ''Too Much, Too Soon'' (1958) at Warner Bros playing an abusive husband of Diana Barrymore. He signed a long-term contract with the studio, appearing in ''Onionhead'' (1958).

Danton starred in ''Tarawa Beachhead'' (1958) at Columbia, with co-star Kerwin Mathews, and his off-screen wife Julie Adams. That year, Danton guest-starred in ''Yancy Derringer'' and shows ''77 Sunset Strip''.

He returned to MGM to star in two films for Albert Zugsmith: ''The Beat Generation'' and ''The Big Operator''.<ref>FILMLAND EVENTS: Danton to Star in 'Beat Generation', Los Angeles Times 30 Sep 1958: C7.</ref>

Warners gave him supporting roles in ''Yellowstone Kelly'' and ''Ice Palace'' and gave him the lead in a TV series ''The Alaskans'' (1959-1960).

The studio then cast him in his most famous role ''The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond'' (1960) where he played the eponymous gangster for director Budd Boetticher.

He appeared in the drama series ''Bourbon Street Beat'', ''Hawaiian Eye'', ''Cheyenne'', ''Maverick'' and ''The Roaring 20s''.

In 1960, Danton and Ron Foster were cast as Kane and Tommy Potts, respectively, in the episode "Bounty List" of the Western series ''Colt .45''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Colt .45 |url=https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/colt-45/episodes-season-3/1030263545/ |access-date=2024-06-18 |website=TVGuide.com |language=en}}</ref> He also appeared in the ABC/WB Western ''Lawman''. Response was so strong Warners announced they would give Danton his own show, ''Las Vegas''.<ref>HOLLYWOOD TIE-LINE: Hollywood Tie-Line, Waterbury, Ruth. Los Angeles Times 27 Nov 1960: A3.</ref>

Instead, he did ''A Fever in the Blood'' (1961) and reprised the role of Legs Diamond in Vic Morrow's ''Portrait of a Mobster''.

Danton maintained his gangster persona with the title role in ''The George Raft Story'', a screen biography of 1930s actor/dancer George Raft. "I guess I'm the last of the big time gangsters," he said in a 1962 interview.<ref>Alpert, D. (1962, Jan 28). The last of the big-time mobsters. ''Los Angeles Times''</ref>

In 1961, Danton co-starred with Rosalind Russell, Alec Guinness, and Madlyn Rhue in ''A Majority of One''. He was one of many stars in ''The Longest Day'' (1962) and had a supporting role in ''The Chapman Report'' (1962).

On October 9, 1962, Danton appeared as the gunfighter Vince Jackson in the episode "The Fortune Hunter" of ''Laramie''. He also guest-starred in the NBC Western ''Empire'' and its successor series ''Redigo'', both starring Richard Egan. November 7, 1962 he took on the role of Lt. Steve Hamilton, one of Col. Teddy Roosevelt's "Rough Riders"(It's 1898 and The Spanish American War)in an episode entitled "Riff-Raff" on the first season of "The Virginian."

Danton was in the TV movie ''FBI Code 98'' (1963).

In 1964, Danton was cast in the episode "The Wooing of Perilous Pauline" of ''Death Valley Days''. He returned to the stage to perform in ''110 in the Shade''.<ref>'110 in the Shade' Wil Open Sept. 28: STAGE, Los Angeles Times 20 Sep 1964: B26.</ref>

===Europe=== Danton went to Europe to star in ''Sandokan to the Rescue'' (1964) which was popular enough for a sequel ''Return of Sandokan'' (1964). He stayed in Europe to make ''Code Name: Jaguar'' (1965).

He returned to the USA to guest star in ''Honey West'' and ''The Man from UNCLE'' then went back to Europe to make ''Secret Agent Super Dragon'' (1966), ''How to Win a Billion... and Get Away with It'' (1967), ''Si muore solo una volta'' (1967), ''Lucky, el intrépido'' (1967), ''Hello Glen Ward, House Dick'' (1968), and ''Die grosse Treibjagd'' (1969).

He would periodically return to the US to guest star on shows like ''Ironside'', ‘’Hawaii Five-0’’, ''It Takes a Thief'', and ''Dan August''.

===Producer and director=== He formed a production company in Europe producing films like ''The Last Mercenary'' and began directing with ''Deathmaster'' (1972) and ''Psychic Killer'' (1975). Danton continued directing as well as acting and started producing films such as ''Triangle'' in 1971.

He was in ''The Ballad of Billie Blue'' (1972), ''A Very Missing Person'' (1972), ''Runaway!'' (1973), ''The Centerfold Girls'' (1974), and ''Apache Blood'' (1975).

===Return to the U.S.=== He guest-starred in an episode of ''Nakia'' and a ''Hawaii Five-O'' episode, "Steal Now, Pay Later".

He began a busy directing career in television, helming episodes of ''Switch'', ''Baretta'', ''Cagney & Lacey'', ''Fame'', ''T.J. Hooker'' and ''Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer''. "Acting has fallen to an all-time low in this country," he said in a 1985 interview.<ref>LOW ACTING STANDARDS ARE NORM FOR TV, DIRECTOR SAYS: [3 STAR Edition], Vernon, Scott. Orlando Sentinel; Orlando, Fla. [Orlando, Fla]04 June 1985: E.7.</ref>

He directed a stage production of ''Come Back, Little Sheba'' in 1987.<ref>INNOCENTS GET LOST IN AMERICA IN `BIGNESS': [Home Edition], ARKATOV, JANICE. Los Angeles Times 17 May 1987: 44.</ref>

Danton directed many episodes of ''Magnum PI'' in Season 8, 1987–1988.

==Personal life== Danton was married to actress Julie Adams from 1954 or 1955<ref>{{cite news|title=Actress Expects November Baby|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/3205142/the_daily_inter_lake|newspaper=The Daily Interlake|date=May 6, 1956|page=17|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=September 11, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref> until their divorce in 1981. They had two sons: assistant director Steven Danton (b. 1956) and editor Mitchell Danton (b. 1962).<ref>[http://www.julieadams.biz/bio/bio.html Official Julie Adams website], julieadams.biz; accessed July 5, 2016.</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20121021043005/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/participant.jsp?spid=721&apid=91048 Profile], TCM.com; accessed July 5, 2016.</ref>

==Death== Danton died of kidney failure in Los Angeles, California.<ref>McMurray, Emily J (editor) ''Contemporary Theatre, Film, and Television'' Volume 11, Garland Publishing, Inc. (1993)</ref>

==Filmography== {{Div col|colwidth=23em}} *''Chief Crazy Horse'' (1955) as Little Big Man *''The Looters'' (1955) as Pete Corder *''The Spoilers'' (1955) as Blackie *''I'll Cry Tomorrow'' (1955) as David Tredman *''Outside the Law'' (1956) as John Conrad, alias Johnny Salvo *''Somebody Up There Likes Me'' (1956) as Off-Screen Reporter (voice, uncredited) *''The Night Runner'' (1957) as Roy Turner *''Trackdown'', episode "Sweetwater Texas" (1957) as Clem Reese *''Too Much, Too Soon'' (1958) as John Howard *''Decision'', season 1, episode 3: "The Danger Game" (1958) *''Onionhead'' (1958) as Ensign Dennis Higgins *''Yancy Derringer'', episode "An Ace Called Spade" (1958) as Spade Stuart *''Tarawa Beachhead'' (1958) as Lt. Joel Brady *''The Beat Generation'' (1959) as Stan Hess *''The Big Operator'' (1959) as Oscar 'The Executioner' Wetzel *''Lawman'', 2 episodes (1959, 1960) as different characters *''Yellowstone Kelly'' (1959) as Sayapi, Gall's Nephew *''Ice Palace'' (1960) as Bay Husack *''The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond'' (1960) as Jack 'Legs' Diamond *''Cheyenne'', season 5, episode 5: "Savage Breed" (1960) as Marshal Al Lestrade *''Maverick'', season 4, episode 16: "A State Of Siege" (1961) as Don Felipe Archuleta *''A Fever in the Blood'' (1961) as Attorney Clem Marker *''Portrait of a Mobster'' (1961) as 'Legs' Diamond *''The George Raft Story'' (1961) as George Raft *''A Majority of One'' (1961) as Jerry Black *''The Longest Day'' (1962) as Capt. Frank *''Laramie'' (1962) as Vince Jackson, a very suave conman/gunslinger *''The Virginian'', episode "Riff Raff" (1962) as Lieutenant Steve Hamilton, an officer serving under Colonel Teddy Roosevelt in the Spanish-American War *''The Chapman Report'' (1962) as Fred Linden *''FBI Code 98'' (1963) as Fred Vitale * ''Sandokan to the Rescue'' (1964) as Sandokan * ''Sandokan Against the Leopard of Sarawak'' (1964) as Sandokan *''Code Name: Jaguar'' (1965) as Jeff Larson *''Secret Agent Super Dragon'' (1966) as Bryan Cooper / Super Dragon *''Ballata da un miliardo'' (1967) as Big Joe Martin *''{{Interlanguage link|Si muore solo una volta|it|3=Si muore solo una volta}}'' (1967) as Mike Gold *''Lucky, the Inscrutable'' (1967) as Lucky *''Llaman de Jamaica, Mr. Ward'' (1968) as Glen Ward *''The Last Mercenary'' (1968) as Mark / Marco Anderson *''Triangle'' (1970) as Carlo Di Fermi *''Hawaii Five-O'' (1970) as Jimmy Nuanu *''{{Interlanguage link|Riuscirà il nostro eroe a ritrovare il più grande diamante del mondo?|it|3=Riuscirà il nostro eroe a ritrovare il più grande diamante del mondo?}}'' (1971) as Jimmy Logan *''The Ballad of Billie Blue'' (1972) *''The Runaway Train'' (1973) as Prof. Jack Dunn *''Blood, Black and White'' (1973) *''Hawaii Five-O'' (1974) as Colby *''Centerfold Girls'' (1974) as Perry *''Apache Blood'' (1975) as Yellow Shirt *''The Rockford Files'', episode: "Chicken Little is a Little Chicken" (1975) as Chester Sierra *''Psychic Killer'' (1975) as Narrator (voice, uncredited) *''Sixpack Annie'' (1975) as Mr. O'Meyer *''Our Man Flint: Dead on Target'' (1976) as Derek Flint {{div col end}}

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== {{commons}} *{{IMDb name|0200645}} *[https://archive.today/20130129032443/http://moviemorlocks.com/2010/09/18/secret-agent-super-dragon.htm Ray Danton in Secret Agent Super Dragon (TCM Movie Morlocks)]

{{Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year Actor}} {{Subject bar|Biography|New York City|California|Radio|Theatre|Film|Television|Judaism}} {{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Danton, Ray}} Category:1931 births Category:1992 deaths Category:20th-century American businesspeople Category:20th-century American male actors Category:20th-century American Jews Category:American expatriates in Italy Category:American male film actors Category:American male radio actors Category:American male stage actors Category:American male television actors Category:American television directors Category:Deaths from kidney failure in California Category:Film directors from New York City Category:Jewish American male actors Category:Male actors from Los Angeles Category:Television producers from California Category:United States Army personnel of the Korean War Category:Warner Bros. contract players Category:Western (genre) television actors Category:American people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent