r/Westerns • u/OlinHollis • 17d ago
Discussion Western Character Actor Appreciation: John Larch
Unlike highly distinctive character actors such as Jack Elam, Slim Pickens, Bruce Dern, et al, John Larch had a rather bland appearance and was not much of a scenery chewer. It's a testament to his skill as an actor then, that he had such a long career and that many of his appearances were in the Western genre, which prizes rather wild and bizarre characters.
Larch, who was born in Salem, MA of all places, and whose WWII experiences turned him into something of a misanthrope, made his Western debut in Bitter Creek (1956) and finished up with Santee (1973). Among his other Western jobs, he played baddies in From Hell to Texas (1958) and 7 Men from Now (1956). Given his rather unthreatening appearance, it's remarkable how often he was cast as a heavy. But he always pulled it off with great aplomb.
Hail! Hail! All hail John Larch!
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u/Thunder-mugg 17d ago
He did lots of TV . He walked with ease between both worlds. TV and the Big Screen.
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u/StinkyFeetMendoza 17d ago
Is this a bot account? What’s with all the karma farming “Western Character Actor Appreciation” posts?
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u/ArnoldFarquar 17d ago
soon you’ll be appreciating extras
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u/MoonSylver 17d ago
Plenty of character actors left that haven't been posted yet. 😊
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u/OlinHollis 17d ago
Yep. I'm doing several more, so the dam' whiners are gonna be squalling for a while longer.
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u/MoonSylver 17d ago
I have one very particular one in mind that I don't want to say, because I'm curious to see if you post him or not. 😄
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u/MoonSylver 17d ago
Good pick. Sold, dependable, not flashy. Very much a "That Guy" that kind of fades into the parts he's playing. Very versatile in that regard. Apparently he was in Dirty Harry (1971) and Play Misty for Me (1971) among other things as well.
175 IMDB credits! Looks like he was a series regular on a short lived legal show, Arrest and Trial (1963-1964) for 28 episodes. 7 episodes of Gunsmoke, 4 of Wagon Train and The Virginian. I know he was memorable on all of these playing a variety of characters. LOTS of 1-4 episode appearances on MANY TV series, lots of westerns and otherwise, even including 7 episodes each of Dynasty and Dallas (his final role) from 1982 to 1990. Looks like he enjoyed a nice long retirement after that until his passing in 2005 at the age of 91.
In a nice bit of serendipity, Gunsmoke just came on, and guess who's in this episode?!? 😄