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Lee Kinsolving

Lee Kinsolving

Acting

Biography

Gifted, poetic actor who never fulfilled his potential. The son of an Episcopal minister and the eldest of four, Kinsolving began acting after his first year of college. A Method actor, Kinsolving studied under Mary Welch of the famed Actors Studio in New York. After a short turn on Broadway, he was signed by agent Richard Clayton, who had brought both James Dean and Tab Hunter to stardom. Soon, Kinsolving was appearing in various East Coast television shows, including the live presentation of Eugene O'Neill's "Ah, Wilderness!" with Helen Hayes. In 1959, Kinsolving headed for Hollywood, rooming with actor James Franciscus. After several more TV appearances in such shows as Have Gun - Will Travel (1957), Kinsolving landed his first movie role, with Alan Ladd, in 1960's All the Young Men (1960). That same year, he gave a moving performance as "Sammy Golden" in the film adaptation of William Inge's The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1960). Kinsolving won raves and a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Regrettably, Kinsolving made only one more film, The Explosive Generation (1961), before completing his brief career in TV guest roles. Nonetheless, Kinsolving brought a striking combination of sexuality, pathos and vulnerability to his work (including an outstanding performance in Route 66 (1960)). Kinsolving retired from acting in 1966, due to his personal frustrations with the business. For two years, he owned a hip restaurant-bar, "Toad Hall", in Manhattan. After brief romances with Tuesday Weld and Candice Bergen, Kinsolving sold his bar and married in late 1969. Moving to Florida, he managed two art galleries. After divorcing his wife in 1972, Kinsolving, an avid seaman, spent the remainder of his life sailing exotic locales in his private schooner. Sadly, Kinsolving developed a strange respiratory illness which, without warning, rendered him unconscious. On the afternoon of December 4, 1974, Kinsolving collapsed and died in his Palm Beach apartment. He was 36.

Known For

Have Gun, Will Travel
7.3

Have Gun – Will Travel is an American Western television series that aired on CBS from 1957 through 1963. It was rated number three or number four in the Nielsen ratings every year of its first four seasons. It was one of the few television shows to spawn a successful radio version. The radio series debuted November 23, 1958. The television show is presently shown on the Encore-Western channel. Have Gun – Will Travel was created by Sam Rolfe and Herb Meadow and produced by Frank Pierson, Don Ingalls, Robert Sparks, and Julian Claman. There were 225 episodes of the TV series, 24 written by Gene Roddenberry. Other contributors included Bruce Geller, Harry Julian Fink, Don Brinkley and Irving Wallace. Andrew McLaglen directed 101 episodes and 19 were directed by series star Richard Boone.

Have Gun, Will Travel

1957Series
The Detectives
6.7

The Detectives is an American crime drama series which ran on ABC during its first two seasons, and on NBC during its third and final season. The series, starring motion picture star Robert Taylor, was produced by Four Star Television. Captain Matt Holbrook (Robert Taylor) is head of the detective division of a large metropolitan police force—a man whose devotion to duty, professional brilliance, and quick judgment are reflected in his 20-year career on the force. His aides, Lt. Johnny Russo (Tige Andrews), Lt. Otto Lindstrom (Russ Thorson), and Sgt. Chris Ballard (Mark Goddard) form a team that is both proficient and warmly human. The stories stress the interrelationships between the men as well as the solutions to crimes and the apprehension of criminals, adding a dimension of human drama to the excitement, action, and suspense inherent in each story of the detectives' difficult, sometimes thankless, and frequently dangerous assignments.

The Detectives

1959Series