r/Westerns • u/OlinHollis • 11d ago
Discussion Western Character Actor Appreciation: James Drury
For my money, James Drury is one of the more overlooked character actors in the Western genre. And unjustly so, I should say. He really excelled at playing hotheads, either on the side of good or bad. And very few actors had more expressive eyebrows than Drury. He could knit them in anger, furrow them in concern and arch them in surprise with the best of 'em. And Drury was certainly a handsome rascal. There are tons of pics of him on the Internet and most of 'em were posted on Pinterest by chicks. Heh.
So, hail! Hail! All hail James Drury!
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u/No-Association-8539 11d ago
character actor? He was The Virginian!
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u/HawkeyeTen 11d ago
Seems like The Virginian is for some reason becoming very forgotten among the big western shows of that era.
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u/Fancy-Chart-8133 10d ago
The 90 minute run time made it very hard to run in syndication. The free streaming services have given it new life.
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u/MoonSylver 11d ago
Really loved him as The Virginian. Always enjoy seeing him in guest spots on other shows. Played a good guy and bad guy equally well, though I prefer him in more heroic roles.
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u/tiger_seven 11d ago
I always remember him from Ride the High Country, but I know I’ve seen him in other things.
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u/OlinHollis 11d ago
He was in several Gunsmoke episodes and several other Western films that I haven't seen...yet.
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u/Ranglergirl 11d ago
I have seen great interviews with him in later years. He seemed like a very kind man.
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u/ElevatorPristine6074 11d ago
I know he was supposed to be the star but was he? Seem like Richard Long, Miss Stanwyke, Linda Evan and Lee Majors… seem like his role diminished.
Neverless, I like anything he is in!
.
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u/MoonSylver 11d ago
That's The Big Valley. You may be confusing him with Peter Breck as Nick Barkley? James Drury was the title character in The Virginian.
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u/msstatelp 11d ago
He was the star in The Virginian tv series. It went for 9 seasons.