Victor Edwin French (December 4, 1934 - June 15, 1989) was an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor and director.
Born in
Santa Barbara, CaliforniaSanta Barbara is a city in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the west coast, between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the sea, and having a Mediterranean climate, it is called California's...
, French began his television career as a
stuntmanA stuntman or stunt performer is someone who performs dangerous stunts.Stuntman may also refer to:*The Stunt Man, a 1980 film starring Peter O'Toole*Stuntman , a 2002 video game**Stuntman: Ignition, its sequel...
in mostly westerns and anthology shows. He guest starred in some thirty-nine television series, including the episode "The Noose" of the
syndicatedIn broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows to multiple individual stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in countries where television is scheduled by networks with local affiliates, particularly in the United States...
series
Two Faces WestTwo Faces West is a 39-episode half-hour syndicated television western series set in Gunnison in southwestern Colorado, which aired from October 17, 1960, to July 31, 1961. It stars Scottish native Charles Bateman in the dual roles of twin brothers, Rick January, M.D., and Marshal Ben January...
; his fellow guest star on the segment was veteran western star L.Q. Jones.
Victor Edwin French (December 4, 1934 - June 15, 1989) was an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor and director.
Early career
Born in
Santa Barbara, CaliforniaSanta Barbara is a city in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the west coast, between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the sea, and having a Mediterranean climate, it is called California's...
, French began his television career as a
stuntmanA stuntman or stunt performer is someone who performs dangerous stunts.Stuntman may also refer to:*The Stunt Man, a 1980 film starring Peter O'Toole*Stuntman , a 2002 video game**Stuntman: Ignition, its sequel...
in mostly westerns and anthology shows. He guest starred in some thirty-nine television series, including the episode "The Noose" of the
syndicatedIn broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows to multiple individual stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in countries where television is scheduled by networks with local affiliates, particularly in the United States...
series
Two Faces WestTwo Faces West is a 39-episode half-hour syndicated television western series set in Gunnison in southwestern Colorado, which aired from October 17, 1960, to July 31, 1961. It stars Scottish native Charles Bateman in the dual roles of twin brothers, Rick January, M.D., and Marshal Ben January...
; his fellow guest star on the segment was veteran western star L.Q. Jones. French appeared on
GunsmokeGunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
thirteen times, often playing a crook, whether dangerous or bumbling. He was also in a few episodes of
BonanzaBonanza is an American television series that ran on NBC from September 12, 1959 to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons, it is among the longest running Western television series and continues to air in syndication....
with
Michael LandonMichael Landon was an American actor, writer, director, and producer, who starred in three popular NBC TV series that spanned three decades...
at that time. He played the recurring character "Agent 44" in the series
Get SmartGet Smart is an American television comedy series that satirized the secret agent genre. Created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, the show starred Don Adams as Maxwell Smart, Agent 86, Barbara Feldon as Agent 99, and Edward Platt as Thaddeus, the chief of CONTROL, a secret American government...
in 1965-1966, where he portrayed an
undercoverBeing undercover is disguising one's own identity or using an assumed identity for the purposes of gaining the trust of an individual or organization to learn secret information or to gain the trust of targeted individuals in order to gain information or evidence...
spy who showed up in the worst, most unlikely of places (like a mailbox or a porthole in a boat).
Work with Michael Landon
French is most widely known for costarring with
Michael LandonMichael Landon was an American actor, writer, director, and producer, who starred in three popular NBC TV series that spanned three decades...
on two television series. He appeared on
Little House on the PrairieLittle House on the Prairie is an American one-hour dramatic television program, starring Michael Landon, about a family living on a farm in Minnesota in the 1870s and 1880s. The show was a loose adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s best-selling series of Little House on the Prairie books. It aired...
(1974-1977), (1981-1983, 1984) as Isaiah Edwards (French also directed some episodes of
Little House). He appeared on
Highway to HeavenHighway to Heaven is an American television drama series which ran on NBC from 1984 to 1989.It starred Michael Landon as Jonathan Smith, an angel sent down to earth "on probation", and his human companion Mark Gordon, played by Victor French...
(1984-1989) as Mark Gordon.
From 1977-79, he left "Little House" to star as a
sheriffA sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
in
Carter CountryCarter Country is an American television sitcom that ran from 1977 to 1979 on ABC.-Synopsis:Carter Country was set in the fictional small town of Clinton Corners in Georgia Carter Country is an American television sitcom that ran from 1977 to 1979 on ABC.-Synopsis:Carter Country was set in the...
. When the series ended, the actor was surprised that Michael Landon was agreeable to returning the character of Mr. Edwards. French appeared in Episode 8 of Season 6, in Episode 8 of Season 8, then returned full time, starting with Episode 19 of Season 8.
His father Ted French was also an actor and stuntman who appeared in westerns in the 1940s. He appeared with his son Victor in one episode of
Gunsmoke entitled "Prime Of Life" in 1966, as well as a war film in 1963 called
The Quick And The Dead. Ted French died in 1978. He appeared on an episode of "The Waltons" as a blacksmith whose wife cannot have children.
According to interviews with Cindy Landon, and Kent and Susan McCray on the A&E DVD release of
Highway to Heaven Season 3, Victor and Michael Landon were "crazy about each other", indicating that they always made each other laugh and enjoyed each other's company immensely. Cindy Landon mentions that Victor was a quiet and reclusive kind of guy as opposed to Michael Landon's very outgoing personality.
Death
French a life long heavy smoker died of
lung cancerLung cancer is a disease of uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. This growth may lead to metastasis, which is the invasion of adjacent tissue and infiltration beyond the lungs. The vast majority of primary lung cancers are carcinomas of the lung, derived from epithelial cells...
on June 15, 1989 in
Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles is the largest city in the state of California and the second largest in the United States. Often abbreviated as L.A. and nicknamed The City of Angels, Los Angeles has an estimated population of 3.8 million and spans over in Southern California...
. He was cremated. His ashes were scattered in
Santa BarbaraSanta Barbara is a city in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the west coast, between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the sea, and having a Mediterranean climate, it is called California's...
. According to one anecdote, he left a final, good-humoured message for friends and family at his wake, having arranged for an airplane to fly overhead with it. His death contributed to Michael Landon's decision to cancel production of
Highway to HeavenHighway to Heaven is an American television drama series which ran on NBC from 1984 to 1989.It starred Michael Landon as Jonathan Smith, an angel sent down to earth "on probation", and his human companion Mark Gordon, played by Victor French...
. Landon would die from pancreatic cancer 2 years later. Coincidentally, both men were 54 years old when they passed.
In 1998, French was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the
National Cowboy & Western Heritage MuseumThe National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It houses more than 28,000 Western and American Indian art works and artifacts. The facility is also home to the most extensive collection of American rodeo, photographs, barbed wire, saddlery, and early rodeo...
in
Oklahoma City, OklahomaOklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, the city ranks 31st among United States cities in population. The city's estimated population as of 2008 was 551,789, with an estimated metro-area population of 1,206,142...
.
External links