Joel Mccrea
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Bibliography
Notes
"I liked doing comedies, but as I got older I was better suited to do Westerns. Because I think it becomes unattractive for an older fellow trying to look young, falling in love with attractive girls in those kinds of situations...Anyway, I always felt so much more comfortable in the Western. The minute I got a horse and a hat and a pair of boots on, I felt easier. I didn't feel like I was an actor anymore. I felt like I was the guy out there doing it." --Joel McCrea in 1978 interview.
Biography
Likable, ruggedly handsome figure, a durable star who first made his name in adventures and melodramas of the 1930s. McCrea gave one of his finest performances in Hitchcock's "Foreign Correspondent" (1940) and brought an amiable, relaxed charm to his comic roles, especially when directed by Preston Sturges in "Sullivan's Travels" (1941) and "The Palm Beach Story" (1942) and by George Stevens in "The More the Merrier" (1943). His offhand yet sincere style also kept him much in demand as a lead in "women's pictures" (as they were then called), and McCrea played romantically opposite female divas including Constance Bennett ("Rockabye" 1932), Irene Dunne ("The Silver Cord" 1933), Barbara Stanwyck ("Gambling Lady" 1934), Merle Oberon ("These Three" 1936) and Ginger Rogers ("Primrose Path" 1940)
Although McCrea had starred in a number of Westerns and action pictures in the 30s (e.g., Cecil B. DeMille's "Union Pacific" 1939), beginning with William Wellman's "Buffalo Bill" (1944), McCrea starred primarily in Westerns for the rest of his career. His many horse operas, the best of which included "Colorado Territory" (1949), "Trooper Hook" (1957) and "Ride the High Country" (1962), mirrored his own frontier roots as well as his personal life. A passionate outdoorsman, he listed his occupation as "rancher" and his hobby as "acting." McCrea was married to actress Frances Dee from 1933 until his death; their son Jody McCrea (b. 1934) appeared with him on his TV series "Wichita Town" (1959-60) and in the film "Cry Blood, Apache" (1970).
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Cast (Special)
Misc. Crew (Special)
Cast (Short)
Life Events
1922
Worked as extra, stuntman, and bit player in silent pictures
1928
Signed contract with MGM
1929
Film acting debut in "The Jazz Age"
1929
First leading film role in "The Silver Horde"
1930
Signed contract with RKO
1933
Purchased first 1,000 acres of his eventual 3,000-acre spread in Thousand Oaks, CA
1934
Made first of five films co-starring Miriam Hopkins, "The Richest Girl in the World"
1934
Made first of six films co-starring Barbara Stanwyck, "Gambling Lady"
1937
First actor to play Dr. Kildare on screen in "Internes Can't Take Money"
1941
Made first of three key films with writer-director Preston Sturges, "Sullivan's Travels"
1944
Made primarily Westerns after starring in "Buffalo Bill"
1953
Travelled to England to make one of his few late-career non-Westerns, "Shoot First/Rough Shoot"
1962
Made last feature film for many years, "Ride the High Country"
1969
Inducted into the Hall of Fame of Great Western Actors in Oklahoma City
1976
Last acting appearance, "Mustang Country"
1985
Appeared as himself in the feature documentary, "George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey"
1990
Last public appearance at a fundraiser for Republican gubernatorial candidate Pete Wilson in Beverly Hills CA (October 3)
Photo Collections
(Pressbook images courtesy of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences)
Videos
Movie Clip
Trailer
Promo
Family
Companions
Bibliography
Notes
"I liked doing comedies, but as I got older I was better suited to do Westerns. Because I think it becomes unattractive for an older fellow trying to look young, falling in love with attractive girls in those kinds of situations...Anyway, I always felt so much more comfortable in the Western. The minute I got a horse and a hat and a pair of boots on, I felt easier. I didn't feel like I was an actor anymore. I felt like I was the guy out there doing it." --Joel McCrea in 1978 interview.