Fess Elisha Parker, Jr. (born August 16, 1924) is
an American film and television
actor best
known for his 1950s portrayals of
Davy
Crockett for
Walt Disney and of
Daniel Boone in the late 1960s. He is
also known as a
wine maker and
resort owner-operator.
Biography
Early years
Parker was
born in Fort Worth,
Texas
, and grew up on a small farm outside San Angelo, TX
. He served in the
U.S. Marine
Corps at the end of
World War II.
He joined to become a
pilot, but was turned
down for being too tall (six feet, six inches) for a pilot.
After being discharged, he was stabbed in the neck by a drunken
driver during a post-collision argument. Parker required many
months of rehabilitation, but was unable to participate in sports
to the extent he desired.
At the
University of
Texas
he was initiated into the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity in 1948.
Parker
graduated from the University in 1950 with a history degree, and
then moved to California, where he studied drama at the University of
Southern California
.
Career
Parker began his show-business career in the play
Mister Roberts in 1951, although
he is credited with the voice of Leslie, the chauffeur, in the 1950
film
Harvey.
Parker became a contract player with
Warner Brothers appearing in small roles in
several films such as
Springfield Rifle (1952),
Island in the
Sky,
The Bounty Hunter and
Battle Cry. In 1954, he appeared as
Grat Dalton in the
Jim Davis western anthology
Stories of the Century in the
episode
The Dalton
Brothers.
There is an interesting story from Parker himself. When Walt Disney
Company was looking for their "Davy Crockett," they originally
considered
James Arness for the title
role. Parker had recently graduated to a contract weekly actor, but
listened to his agent, so he appeared instead in a
B movie called
Them!
that required only one day's work. He had a small scene in the
movie, that of a pilot put into an insane asylum after claiming his
plane had been downed by giant flying insects. Arness appeared in a
larger role in the same film.
It was during a screening of this film that Walt Disney discovered
Fess Parker. Disney was impressed when Parker, a pilot who had seen
flying giant ants was imprisoned in an insane asylum by the
authorities so as not to panic the population. Unswerving in his
belief in what he saw despite the forces of authority against him
impressed Disney over many other major stars considered for the
role such as Arness,
George
Montgomery, and
Buddy Ebsen who
eventually played Georgie Russel. Parker was asked to drop by the
Disney Studio. When he did, he brought his guitar, met Walt, sang a
song, and then said his goodbye. A couple of weeks later he was
told that he had been selected to play Davy Crockett.
He was subsequently hired by the
Walt Disney
Studios in 1954 to play the legendary
Davy Crockett in three episodes depicting his
exploits as frontiersman, congressman, and heroic figure of the
Alamo (in the first television
miniseries
though the term had not yet been coined).
Davy Crockett was a
tremendous hit with children, and led to a merchandising frenzy for
all things Crockett.
Parker became a contract star for Disney appearing in many films
such as
The Great
Locomotive Chase,
Old Yeller, and
Westward Ho, The Wagons! but
complained they were all the same role. Disney refused to loan out
Parker for roles not of his persona, such as
The Searchers and
Bus Stop.
Parker made guest appearances on many television programs; and
composed and sang music. In 1962 Parker starred in the title role
of the TV series
Mr Smith Goes to
Washington and from 1964 to 1970 he starred in the
NBC series
Daniel Boone, portraying
another historic figure of America's
frontier days. Turning down the title role of
McCloud, Parker retired from the
film industry in the 1970s, after a short-lived 1974
sitcom,
The Fess
Parker Show.
In 2003, Parker received the
Texas
Cultural Trust's Texas Medal of Arts, established only the year
before.
Fess Parker Winery
Parker
currently devotes most of his time operating his Fess Parker Family
Winery and Vineyards in Los Olivos, California
. The winery is owned and operated by Parker
and his family, and has produced several different types of
award-winning wines.
Parker's operation includes over of vineyards, and a tasting room
and visitor center along the Foxen Canyon Wine Trail. In addition
to wine, Parker is known for selling
coon
skin caps and bottle toppers at his winery (inspired by his
Crockett and Boone characters).
Personal life
Parker married Marcella Belle Rinehart on January 18, 1960. They
have two children: Fess Elisha III and Ashley Allen Rinehart.
Filmography
Television
References
- Disney Legends: Fess Parker
- Fess Parker Interview Playset Magazine #34
- http://www.fessparker.com/
External links
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