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Alex Nicol
1916-2001
Updated 11/9/2009 with more films available on DVD!
biography
Born in Ossining, New York, on January 20, 1916 (some sources cite January 1919), character actor Alex Nicol acted in a number of stage productions from the 1930s through the mid 1950s. Acting both on and off Broadway, some of the Broadway productions in which he appeared include King Richard II and South Pacific. He also portrayed Brick in the Broadway production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, replacing Ben Gazzara in late 1955. After more than ten years of acting onstage, Nicol signed with Universal-International in 1950 and acted in his first film, The Sleeping City (1950; with Coleen Gray and Richard Conte).
Early 1950s Universal-International photo of Alex Nicol
Nicol acted in numerous westerns while at Universal, including Lone Hand (1953; with Joel McCrea and Barbara Hale) and Dawn at Socorro (1954; with Rory Calhoun and Piper Laurie). When he left Universal in 1955, Nicol freelanced thereafter. He started a second career as a director with the horror film The Screaming Skull (1958; with John Hudson and Peggy Webber). And he also directed some television show episodes in the 1960s, including Tarzan (1966-1969; with Ron Ely) and The Wild, Wild West (1965-1969; with Robert Conrad).
the films of alex nicol
Target Unknown (1951)
Images from the Universal-International war flick Target Unknown. LEFT: With James Best. RIGHT: With Malú Gatica
Meet Danny Wilson (1952)
From Universal-International's musical drama Meet Danny Wilson. LEFT: With Frank Sinatra and Raymond Burr. RIGHT: With Shelley Winters
Champ for a Day (1953)
Poster from the Republic drama Champ for a Day
Lone Hand (1953)
From the Universal-International western Lone Hand with Joel McCrea and James Arness
The Redhead From Wyoming (1953)
As Sheriff Blaine in the colorful Universal-International western The Redhead From Wyoming
Dawn at Socorro (1954)
Nicol portrayed gunfighter Jimmy Rapp in Universal-International's Dawn at Socorro
Heat Wave (1954)
With Hillary Brooke in the British-made film noir release Heat Wave
The Screaming Skull (1958)
Peggy Webber is frightened by The Screaming Skull, released by American International. This film marks Alex Nicol's debut as a director, and he also portrays Mickey the caretaker. This film once aired on Mystery Science Theater 3000
Look in Any Window (1961)
With Carole Mathews in the Allied Artists potboiler Look in Any Window
Then There Were Three (1961)
With Frank Latimore in the low-budget war flick Then There Were Three, directed by Alex Nicol
The Savage Guns (1962)
Maria Granada tries to stop Alex Nicol from killing Richard Basehart in this scene from the western The Savage Guns, released by MGM
Point of Terror (1971)
Poster from the horror flick Point of Terror, the final film directed by Alex Nicol
later years
With film roles getting fewer and farther between in the 1960s, Nicol headed to Europe, where he acted in several westerns. His film career slowed considerably in the late 1960s; his last film was Woman in the Rain (1976; with Ron Masak and Barbara Luna). Afterward, he retired from acting. Alex Nicol passed away on July 29, 2001, and was survived by his wife and three children.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Season Three [DVD](1957) DVD
All 39 episodes from the series's third season--including "The Glass Eye" (with Jessica Tandy and William Shatner), "Together" (with Joseph Cotten), "Foghorn" (with Michael Rennie), "A Dip in the Poole" (with Fay Wray), and "Little White Frock" (with Julie Adams)--are collected in a five-disc set. 17 2/3 hrs. total. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital mono; Subtitles: English (SDH).
The Outer Limits: The Original Series, Vol. 2 [DVD](1964) DVD
The final 16 first-season episodes--including "Don't Open Till Doomsday," "The Invisibles," "Moonstone," "The Special One," and "The Forms of Things Unknown"--are featured in a two-disc collector's set. 13 2/3 hrs. total. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital mono. **16 episodes on 2 discs. 13 2/3 hrs.**
The Twilight Zone: The Definitive Edition: Season 3 [DVD](1961) DVD
All 37 episodes from the third season--including "Two," "It's a Good Life," "Deaths-Head Revisited," "Kick the Can," "To Serve Man," and "I Sing the Body Electric"--are featured in a five-disc set. 16 hrs. total. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital mono; audio commentary on selected episodes; interviews; promos; DVD-ROM content; more. **37 episodes on 5 discs. 16 hrs.**
Daniel Boone: Season 3 [DVD](1966) DVD
All 27 episodes from the third season--including "Dan'l Boone Shot a B'ar," "First in War, First in Peace," the two-part "The Williamsburg Cannon," "The Young Ones," and "The Fallow Land"--are collected in an eight-disc set. 22 hrs. total. Standard; Soundtracks: English Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital stereo, Spanish Dolby Digital stereo; audio commentary; featurettes. **27 episodes on 8 discs. 22 hrs.**
The Redhead From Wyoming [DVD](1953) DVD
Lovely Maureen O'Hara takes the rustling rap for a slimy politician, but when he goes too far and starts a range war, she tries to organize a group of settlers to stop him. Alex Nicol, Robert Strauss, William Bishop and a young Dennis Weaver also star in this exciting sagebrush story. 81 min. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital mono; Subtitles: Spanish, French; theatrical trailer.
Law And Order [DVD](1953) DVD
Western drama stars Ronald Reagan as a marshal looking to retire with lady love Dorothy Malone, but forced to strap on his six-irons one last time to free a frontier town from the grip of outlaw leader Preston Foster, the man responsible for Reagan's brother's death. 80 min. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital mono; Subtitles: Spanish, French; theatrical trailer.
The Black Glove (1954)/The Deadly Game (1955) [DVD] DVD
"The Black Glove" is an early Hammer Studios suspenser concerning an American jazzman accused of slaying his girl singer and his race to uncover the person responsible. Intriguing effort stars Alex Nicol, Eleanor Summerfield. AKA: "Face the Music." And, Lloyd Bridges is an ex-GI living in Spain who's been accused of murdering a former Army buddy in order to obtain secret microfilm and betraying his country. With no one to turn to, Bridges must clear his name on his own, in "The Deadly Game." With Finlay Currie and Simone Silva. AKA: "Third Party Risk." Standard/Widescreen; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital stereo; biographies; trivia; photo gallery; theatrical trailers.
Hammer Film Noir Double Feature Collector's Set 1 [DVD] DVD
Three-disc set includes "Bad Blonde," "Man Bait," "A Stolen Face," "Blackout" (1954), "The Gambler and the Lady," and "Heatwave" (1954).
The Gambler And The Lady (1952)/Heatwave (1954) [DVD] DVD
First, "The Gambler and the Lady" finds American high-roller Jim Forster (Dane Clark) ditching his dancer girlfriend for a wealthier paramour. Hell hath no fury like a femme fatale scorned! Naomi Chance, Kathleen Byron, and Meredith Edwards also star. Then, Hilary Brooke stars as an unscrupulous seductress who becomes bored with her wealthy husband and their resort idyll, and makes local writer Alex Nicol her newest challenge, in "Heatwave." Alex Nicol, Susan Stephen also star. AKA: "The House Across the Lake." 140 min. total. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital stereo; biographies; featurette; theatrical trailers.
Heatwave [VHS](1954) VHS
British crime story stars Hilary Brooke as an unscrupulous seductress who becomes bored with her wealthy husband and their resort idyll, and makes local writer Alex Nicol her newest challenge. 69 min.
The Man From Laramie [DVD](1955) DVD
The final "adult western" to be made by director Anthony Mann and star James Stewart in their mid-'50s collaboration, with Stewart searching for the gunrunners responsible for his brother's death. His quest leads him into the middle of a range war and a bitter power struggle between the sons of a ranchlord. Arthur Kennedy, Donald Crisp, Aline MacMahon co-star. 104 min. Widescreen and Standard; Soundtracks: English Dolby 4.0 and Dolby Surround, Spanish; Subtitles: English, Chinese, French, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai; production notes; trailer. NOTE: This Title Is Out Of Print; Limit One Per Customer.
Stranger In Town [VHS](1957) VHS
A journalist investigating the murder of a fellow American and composer in an English village uncovers a sordid blackmail scheme. Alex Nicol and Anne Paige star. 73 min.
The Screaming Skull [DVD](1958) DVD
Macabre shocker about a young newlywed and former asylum patient who moves into the mansion her husband shared with his dead first wife. She soon begins seeing a skull wherever she goes. Is she still insane, or is there a more sinister answer? John Hudson, Peggy Webber star. 68 min. Standard; Soundtrack: English mono. Plays All Regions.
TV Guide Horror Classics: The Screaming Skull (1958)/Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter [DVD](1965) DVD
"The Screaming Skull" is a macabre shocker about a young newlywed and former asylum patient who moves into the mansion her husband shared with his dead first wife. She soon begins seeing a skull wherever she goes. Is she still insane, or is there a more sinister answer? John Hudson, Peggy Webber star. Then, in "Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter," it's actually the infamous mad doctor's granddaughter who makes a monster out of Jesse's buddy and sends "Igor" after his gunslinger pal. John Lupton and Narda Onyx play the title roles in director William Beaudine's sublimely silly sagebrush shocker. 153 min. total.
Iron Angel (1964)/Then There Were Three [DVD](1961) DVD
First, "Iron Angel" focuses on a squadron of American soldiers out to destroy a North Korean gun emplacement. While they deal with enemy fire and a no-nonsense nurse, the men find their mission threatened by in-fighting. Jim Davis, Don "Red" Barry, L.Q. Jones star. Next, in "Then There Were Three," a rag-tag platoon of American infantrymen in World War II is infiltrated by a German officer in disguise--resulting in murder. Barry Cahill, Frank Latimore, Alex Nicol star. 110 min. total. Standard; Soundtrack: English. Plays All Regions.
A Matter Of WHO [DVD](1962) DVD
Terry-Thomas stars in this offbeat farce as a U.N. health investigator trying to track down the source of a smallpox epidemic. Things get complicated when he meets an unscrupulous oilman based in the Middle East. Alex Nicol, Sonja Ziemann and Honor Blackman also star. 92 min. Soundtrack: English.
The Roger Corman Collection [DVD] DVD
Ray Milland's fear of "The Premature Burial" (1962) becomes real when he is buried alive. Roger Corman's Edgar Allan Poe shocker co-stars Hazel Court, Alan Napier. "'X'--The Man with X-Ray Eyes" (1963) finds Milland experimenting on himself, only to find that too much vision is dangerous. Co-stars Diana Van Der Vlis, Don Rickles, and Dick Miller. Corman then corrals "The Young Racers" (1963), who "treated beautiful women as if they were fast cars...ROUGH!" Filmed on real Grand Prix tracks, this action-packed drama stars Mark Damon, Luana Anders, and Patrick Magee. "The Trip" (1967), written by Jack Nicholson and directed by Corman, stars Peter Fonda as a movie producer who sees LSD as the escape from his problems. Co-stars Dennis Hopper, Bruce Dern, and Susan Strasberg. Corman's "Bloody Mama" (1970) boasts Shelly Winters as gun-toting Ma Barker, and Robert De Niro, Don Stroud, and Robert Walden as her sadistic sons. Corman's last film for A.I.P is a "Gas-s-s-s" (1971), an offbeat look at a world where no one lives past 25. Cindy Williams, Ben Vereen star. Also includes "A Bucket of Blood" and "The Wild Angels." 10 2/3 hrs. total. Widescreen; Soundtrack: English. Four-disc set.
APE [DVD](1976) DVD
He's 36-feet of killer, a hairy, rampaging ape who can destroy large ships and battle killer sharks. The monstrous monkey escapes from a freighter, snags a movie starlet (played by Joanna Kerns, then named Joanna De Varona) and wreaks havoc on the Korean Army. "When this ape die, everybody cry." Rod Arrants also stars. AKA: "A*P*E." 87 min. Widescreen (Enhanced); Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital mono.
out-of-print alex nicol vhs available from amazon.com
filmography
Woman in the Rain (1976) with Ron Masak and Mary Frann
APE (1976) with Joanna Kerns
Huckleberry Finn (1975) with Ron Howard, Donny Most, Antonio Fargas, Jack Elam, Merle Haggard, and Clint Howard
Winner Take All (1975) with Shirley Jones, Laurence Luckinbill, Sam Groom, Joyce Van Patten, Joan Blondell, and Sylvia Sidney
The Clones (1974) with Michael Greene, Gregory Sierra, and John Drew Barrymore
The Night God Screamed (1971) with Jeanne Crain
Homer (1970) with Don Scardino and Tisa Farrow
Bloody Mama (1970) with Shelley Winters, Pat Hingle, Don Stroud, Diane Varsi, Bruce Dern, Robert De Niro, and Robert Walden
Manila, Open City (1968) with John Ashley and James Shigeta
Relevo para un pistolero (1964) with Silvia Solar
Ride and Kill (1964)
Gunfighters of Casa Grande (1964)
Run with the Devil (1963) with Yvonne Furneaux
The Savage Guns (1962) with Richard Basehart and Fernando Rey
A Matter of WHO (1962) with Terry-Thomas and Honor Blackman
Then There Were Three (1961) with Frank Latimore
Look in Any Window (1961) with Paul Anka , Ruth Roman, Gigi Perreau, Carole Mathews, George Dolenz, and Jack Cassidy
Everybody Go Home (1960) with Martin Balsam
Under Ten Flags (1960) with Van Heflin, Charles Laughton, and John Ericson
5 Branded Women (1960) with Jeanne Moreau, Vera Miles, Barbara Bel Geddes, Van Heflin, Richard Basehart, and Steve Forrest
The Screaming Skull (1958) with John Hudson, Peggy Webber, and Russ Conway; directed by Alex Nicol. Once aired on Mystery Science Theater 3000
Stranger in Town (1957)
Great Day in the Morning (1956) with Virginia Mayo, Robert Stack, Ruth Roman, Raymond Burr, Leo Gordon, and Regis Toomey
Sincerely Yours (1955) with Liberace, Joanne Dru, Dorothy Malone, William Demarest, Lurene Tuttle, Lori Nelson, Edward Platt, and Guy Williams
The Man from Laramie (1955) with James Stewart, Arthur Kennedy, and Cathy O'Donnell
Strategic Air Command (1955) with James Stewart, June Allyson, Barry Sullivan, Bruce Bennett, and Rosemary DeCamp
The Gilded Cage (1954)
Dawn at Socorro (1954) with Rory Calhoun, Piper Laurie, David Brian, Kathleen Hughes, Edgar Buchanan, Mara Corday, Lee Van Cleef, and Richard Garland
About Mrs. Leslie (1954) with Shirley Booth, Robert Ryan, and Philip Ober
Heat Wave (1954) with Hillary Brooke
Face the Music (1954)
Champ for a Day (1953) with Audrey Totter and Hope Emerson
Law and Order (1953) with Ronald Reagan, Dorothy Malone, Russell Johnson, Jack Kelly, and Dennis Weaver
Lone Hand (1953) with Joel McCrea, Barbara Hale, and Charles Drake
The Redhead From Wyoming (1953) with Maureen O'Hara, Gregg Palmer, Jack Kelly, Jeanne Cooper, and Dennis Weaver
Because of You (1952) with Loretta Young, Jeff Chandler, and Frances Dee
Red Ball Express (1952) with Jeff Chandler, Charles Drake, Sidney Poitier, Hugh O'Brian, Gregg Palmer, John Hudson, and Jack Kelly
Meet Danny Wilson (1952) with Frank Sinatra, Shelley Winters, and Raymond Burr
The Raging Tide (1951) with Shelley Winters, Richard Conte, Stephen McNally, and Charles Bickford
Air Cadet (1951) with Stephen McNally, Gail Russell, Richard Long, Charles Drake, Rock Hudson, Peggie Castle, and James Best
Target Unknown (1951) with Mark Stevens, Gig Young, Joyce Holden, and James Best
Tomahawk (1951) with Van Heflin, Yvonne De Carlo, Preston Foster, Rock Hudson, and Susan Cabot
The Sleeping City (1950) with Richard Conte, Coleen Gray, and Peggy Dow
TELEVISION GUEST APPEARANCES
McCloud, episode The Day New York Turned Blue, originally aired February 22, 1976
Boney, episode Boney and the Black Clansman, originally aired April 11. 1973
The F.B.I., episode Game of Terror, originally aired November 7, 1971
The Outer Limits, episode Moonstone, originally aired March 9, 1964
The Dick Powell Show, episode The Old Man and the City, originally aired April 23, 1963
Dr. Kildare, episode The Dark Side of the Mirror, originally aired March 28, 1963
Cain's Hundred, episode The Quick Brown Fox, originally aired May 15, 1962
The Twilight Zone, episode Young Man's Fancy, originally aired May 11, 1962
Alcoa Theatre, episode Medals for Harry, originally aired June 1, 1959
U.S. Marshal, episode Cop Hater, originally aired November 8, 1958
Climax!, episode Cabin B-13, originally aired June 26, 1958
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, episode Heroes Never Group Up, originally aired February 7, 1958
Kraft Television Theatre, episode Run, Joe, Run, originally aired January 29, 1958
Alfred Hitchcock Presents, episode The Percentage, originally aired January 5, 1958
Climax!, episode Shadow of a Memory, originally aired December 26, 1957
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, episode No Trial by Jury, originally aired November 11, 1955
Damon Runyon Theater, episode Earthquake Morgan, originally aired August 27, 1955
Lux Video Theatre, episode Eight Iron Men, originally aired May 12, 1955
TV Reader's Digest, episode The Great Armored Car Robbery, originally aired April 25, 1955
Lux Video Theatre, episode Christmas in July, originally aired September 9, 1954
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, episode Groundloop, originally aired March 12, 1954
Letter to Loretta, episode Laughing Boy, originally aired December 6, 1953
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This page premiered August 25, 2004.
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