biography
Born Alexander Viespi Jr. May 3, 1933, in New York, actor Alex Cord came down with polio at age 12, leaving him crippled and with a left leg two inches shorter than his right leg. Cord's parents
sent him to a ranch in Wyoming to recover and build up strength in his left leg. During his recovery, Cord developed an affinity for riding horses and, by age 16, he was competing in rodeo
contests, winning so much prize money that he dropped out of school to compete full time. Five years later, he gave up the rodeo after a serious injury caused by a bull that gored Cord
in the stomach with its horn and ruptured his spleen. During an eight-month recuperation period, Cord settled on acting as a new vocation. Around the same time, a brief first marriage
in 1955 resulted in the birth of his daughter.Cord returned to his native New York and, after obtaining a high school diploma, attended New York University for a period. He then joined the American Shakespeare Theatre company in Connecticut, finding success acting on stage in New York and London. While still living in New York, Cord began commuting to Hollywood in 1961 to pick up roles on television series, including Laramie and Route 66, and got his first film role in The Chapman Report (1962; with Shelley Winters and Ty Hardin), using his birth name. By the time he was cast in his first starring film role, Synanon (1965; with Richard Conte and Stella Stevens), he changed his last name to Cord.   
LEFT: Mid 1960s photo of Alex Cord. CENTER: Late 1960s photo. RIGHT: With actress Joanna Pettet, Cord's second wife. The couple wed in June 1968 and their son Damien was born in September of that yearPerhaps the biggest picture of Cord's career was the 20th Century Fox western Stagecoach (1966; with Ann-Margret and Mike Connors), a remake of the 1939 John Ford western of the same name starring John Wayne. The film was not a box office success, but Cord maintained a thriving film career throughout the remainder of the 1960s and into the 1970s in such films as the spaghetti western A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die (1968; with Robert Ryan), the crime drama Stiletto (1969; with Britt Ekland), the horror flick The Dead Are Alive (1972; with Samantha Eggar), and the science fiction/horror thriller Chosen Survivors (1974; with Bradford Dillman). By the mid 1970s, Cord was again working in television and began shopping around for a TV series to overcome the financial insecurities of a film career. |
the films of alex cordSynanon (1965)  
From the groundbreaking Columbia drama Synanon, a tale of drug addiction and rehabilitation based on the organization of the same name. LEFT: With Chuck Connors. CENTER: Cord portrays junkie Zankie Albo. RIGHT: With love interest and fellow recovering addict Stella StevensStagecoach (1966)
With Ann-Margret in the 20th Century Fox western StagecoachThe Scorpio Letters (1967)
With Shirley Eaton in the NBC made-for-TV thriller The Scorpio Letters. This film was given a theatrical release in Europe and AustraliaThe Brotherhood (1968) 
From the underrated Paramount crime drama The Brotherhood. LEFT: Cord as Vince Ginetta. RIGHT: With co-star Kirk DouglasA Minute to Pray, A Second to Die (1968)
Cord stars in the spaghetti western A Minute to Pray, A Second to DieStiletto (1969) 
From the crime drama Stiletto. LEFT: With Britt Ekland. RIGHT: With Barbara McNairThe Last Grenade (1970)
From the war drama The Last GrenadeThe Dead Are Alive (1972)
Cord portrays Jason, an archeologist doing research on Etruscan tombs, in the violent Euro-horror flick The Dead Are AliveChosen Survivors (1974) 
LEFT: From the science fiction/horror flick Chosen Survivors. RIGHT: With Diana MuldaurFire! (1977)
With Ernest Borgnine in the made-for-television disaster movie Fire!Sidewinder 1 (1977)
Shot in New Mexico, Sidewinder 1 is arguably the first film about motocross racingAirwolf (1984-1986 CBS TV Series)
From the CBS TV series Airwolf with Jean Bruce Scott, Ernest Borgnine, and Jan-Michael Vincentlater yearsCord and Pettet had a rocky marriage that Pettet ended in 1975, yet their relationship continued for several years following their divorce. After a few failed TV pilots, such as Genesis II (1973; with Mariette Hartley), Cord finally landed a series titled W.E.B. in 1978 on NBC, but the series was canceled after just a few episodes. His next series, Cassie & Co., suffered a similar fate in 1982, but his third series Airwolf (1984-1986; with Jan Michael Vincent), was well-received. Following the death of his son, Damien, in 1995 from a drug overdose, Cord retreated from his career. Afterward, he remained mostly retired from acting but returned to writing novels. Sadly, Alex Cord passed away on August 9, 2021, at age 88. He was survived by his wife, Susannah, a daughter, Toni, and a son, Wayne. |
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This page premiered December 21, 2012.
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