William Desmond

Jan 23, 1878 - Nov 03, 1949 (71 years old) in Horseheads, New York, USA

Starting out in dramatic parts, Desmond soon switched to westerns and action serials, and became a major western star. When the sound era began Desmond was almost 50 years old, and was soon relegated to supporting roles.

Known For

poster

The Vanishing Legion

Milesburg Sheriff

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Oklahoma Jim

Lacy

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Desert Command

Capt. Boncour

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Strange Confession

Peanut Vendor (uncredited)

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Overland Mail

Williams - Banker

poster

The Ghost Rider

Guard

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The Sudden Gentleman

Garry Garrity

poster

Song of the Gringo

Bailiff

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Code of the West

Settler (uncredited)

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Phantom of the Opera

Stagehand (uncredited)

Credits

Savage Fury 1956

Allen

★ NR
Thunder Mountain 1947

Townsman (uncredited)

★ 5
The Egg and I 1947

Spectator at Country Dance (Uncredited)

★ 7
Code of the West 1947

Settler (uncredited)

★ 5
Desert Command 1946

Capt. Boncour

★ 3.8
Strange Confession 1945

Peanut Vendor (uncredited)

★ 6.8
The Naughty Nineties 1945

Showboat Customer (uncredited)

★ 6.7
The Return of the Durango Kid 1945

Street Ambusher (uncredited)

★ 8
Hi, Beautiful 1944

Passenger (uncredited)

★ 9.5
The Climax 1944

Backstage Technician (Uncredited)

★ 5.4
The Mummy's Ghost 1944

Museum Tourist (uncredited)

★ 5.7
Phantom Lady 1944

Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)

★ 7
Thank Your Lucky Stars 1943

Gower Gulch Cowboy (uncredited)

★ 6.1
Phantom of the Opera 1943

Stagehand (uncredited)

★ 6.2
The Lone Star Trail 1943

Bartender Mike

★ 5
Cheyenne Roundup 1943

Pete

★ 4
Overland Mail 1942

Williams - Banker

★ NR
The Silver Bullet 1942

Townsman

★ 4
Down Rio Grande Way 1942

Townsman

★ NR
Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie 1941

Bartender

★ 5
Where Did You Get That Girl? 1941

Tourist

★ 5
Junior G-Men 1940

Irish Cop (uncredited)

★ 6.1
The Boys from Syracuse 1940

Citizen

★ 5.8
Winners of the West 1940

Bill Brine

★ NR
Tim Tyler's Luck 1937

Dock Official

★ NR
Song of the Gringo 1936

Bailiff

★ 4.7
The Vigilantes Are Coming 1936

Anderson, Vigilante Member

★ 5.5
Hollywood Boulevard 1936

Pago Pago Patron (uncredited)

★ 2.5
Treachery Rides the Range 1936

Bill

★ 1
Flash Gordon 1936

Hawkman Lookout Captain

★ 6.4
Song of the Saddle 1936

Tim

★ 7
The Adventures of Frank Merriwell 1936

Captain of the 'Viking'

★ 4
The Broken Coin 1936

★ NR
Custer's Last Stand 1936

Wagon Master

★ 4.5
Headin' for the Rio Grande 1936

Mr. Mack (cattle buyer)

★ NR
Frisco Kid 1935

Vigilante Hangman (uncredited)

★ 6.8
Tailspin Tommy in The Great Air Mystery 1935

Foreman Burke

★ 6
Powdersmoke Range 1935

Happy - Bartender

★ NR
Courage of the North 1935

Gene Travis

★ NR
The Roaring West 1935

Jim Parker

★ NR
Social Error 1935

Policeman

★ 5
The Call of the Savage 1935

Allen

★ 5
The Ghost Rider 1935

Guard

★ 5
Cyclone of the Saddle 1935

Wagon Master

★ 5.2
The Cowboy and the Bandit 1935

Sheriff Pete

★ 6
Born to Battle 1935

John Brownell

★ 1.5
Naughty Marietta 1935

Gendarme Chief (uncredited)

★ 5.4
Wild Waters 1935

Sheriff Manning

★ NR
Timber Terrors 1935

Royce Horter

★ 5
Rustlers of Red Dog 1935

Ira Dale [Chs. 1-4, 6, 10-12]

★ 8
When Lightning Strikes 1934

Marshal Jack Stevens

★ 5
Frontier Days 1934

Sheriff Barnes

★ 2.5
The Way of the West 1934

'Cash' Horton (as Wm. Desmond)

★ NR
The Red Rider 1934

Sheriff Campbell

★ 4
I Can't Escape 1934

Parole Officer Donovan

★ 6
Crack-Up 1934

Police Chief

★ NR
The Vanishing Shadow 1934

MacDonald

★ 6.5
The Rawhide Terror 1934

Tom Blake

★ 4.2
Border Guns 1934

Dr. Jim Wilson

★ NR
Pirate Treasure 1934

Capt. Jim Carson

★ 4
Fargo Express 1933

Sheriff Joe Thompson

★ NR
Perils of Pauline 1933

Prof. Thompson

★ 5.7
Strawberry Roan 1933

Colonel Brownlee

★ 5.5
Mr. Broadway 1933

1st Suitor (archive footage)

★ NR
Gordon of Ghost City 1933

John Mulford

★ 4
Laughing at Life 1933

Military Cabinet Officer

★ 6
The Phantom of the Air 1933

Thomas Edmonds

★ 6
The Three Musketeers 1933

Capt. Boncour

★ 5.6
The Rustler's Roundup 1933

San Dimas Sheriff Holden

★ NR
Clancy of the Mounted 1933

Dave Moran

★ NR
A Scarlet Week-End 1932

★ 1
The Last Frontier 1932

General Custer

★ 6
Heroes of the West 1932

John Blaine

★ 5.5
Battling with Buffalo Bill 1931

John Mills

★ 5
The Lightning Warrior 1931

Townsman (uncredited)

★ 5
Oklahoma Jim 1931

Lacy

★ NR
The Vanishing Legion 1931

Milesburg Sheriff

★ 9
The Phantom of the West 1930

Martin Blair

★ NR
No Defense 1929

John Harper

★ NR
No Children 1929

Self

★ NR
The Mystery Rider 1928

Winthrop Lane / The Mystery Rider

★ NR
The Vanishing Rider 1928

Jim Davis / The Vanishing Rider

★ NR
The Strings of Steel 1926

Ned Brown

★ NR
The Ace of Spades 1925

Dan Harvey

★ NR
The Meddler 1925

Richard Gilmore

★ 2
The Burning Trail 1925

Smiling Bill Flannigan

★ NR
Red Clay 1925

Chief John Nisheto

★ NR
Straight Through 1925

Good Deed O'Day

★ NR
Barriers of the Law 1925

Rex Brandon

★ NR
Ridin' Pretty 1925

Sky Parker

★ NR
Outwitted 1925

Jack Blaisdel

★ NR
The Sunset Trail 1924

Happy Hobo

★ NR
The Measure of a Man 1924

John Fairmeadow

★ NR
Hello, 'Frisco 1924

William Desmond

★ 5
Big Timber 1924

Walter Sandry

★ NR
The Breathless Moment 1924

Billy Carson

★ NR
The Extra Girl 1923

Himself

★ 5.9
Shadows of the North 1923

Ben 'Wolf' Darby

★ NR
McGuire of the Mounted 1923

Bob McGuire

★ NR
The Phantom Fortune 1923

Larry Barclay

★ NR
Around the World in 18 Days 1923

Phineas Fogg III

★ NR
Night Life in Hollywood 1922

Self

★ NR
Perils of the Yukon 1922

Jack Merrill Sr. / Jack Merrill Jr.

★ NR
Fightin' Mad 1921

Bud McGraw

★ NR
The Policeman and the Baby 1921

The Policeman

★ NR
The Child Thou Gavest Me 1921

Tom Marshall

★ NR
Women Men Love 1921

David Hunter

★ NR
The Prince and Betty 1919

John Maude

★ 7.5
A Sage Brush Hamlet 1919

Larry Lang

★ NR
Bare-Fisted Gallagher 1919

'Bare-Fisted' Gallagher

★ NR
The Mints of Hell 1919

Dan Burke

★ NR
Her Code of Honor 1919

Eugene La Salle

★ NR
Life's a Funny Proposition 1919

Jimmie Pendleton

★ NR
Society for Sale 1918

Honorable Billy

★ NR
The Marriage Bubble 1918

The Actor

★ NR
Captain of His Soul 1918

Horace

★ NR
The Sudden Gentleman 1917

Garry Garrity

★ NR
Married in Name Only 1917

★ NR
Flying Colors 1917

Brent Brewster

★ NR
Master of His Home 1917

Carson Stewart

★ NR
Paws of the Bear 1917

Ray Bourke

★ NR
Paddy O'Hara 1917

Paddy O'Hara

★ NR
The Last of the Ingrams 1917

Jules Ingram

★ NR
The Iced Bullet 1917

The Author / Horace Lee

★ NR
A Gamble in Souls 1916

★ NR
The Dawn Maker 1916

Bruce Smithson

★ NR
Bullets and Brown Eyes 1916

Prince Carl

★ NR
Peggy 1916

Rev. Donald Bruce

★ NR
Peer Gynt 1915

The Parson

★ NR
The Majesty of the Law 1915

Jackson Morgan Kent

★ NR
Kilmeny 1915

Bob Meredith

★ NR

Images