Chill Wills
Birthday: 1902-07-18
Deathday: 1978-06-29
Birthplace: Seagoville, Texas, USA
Gender: Male
Drafted: 0
Drafted By: Unowned
Owned By: Unowned
Owned Wins: 0
Owned Noms: 0
Win Bonus: 0
Nom Bonus: 0
Total Points: 0
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Chill Theodore Wills (July 18, 1902 – December 15, 1978) was an American film actor, and a singer in the Avalon Boys Quartet.
He was a performer from early childhood, forming and leading the Avalon Boys singing group in the 1930s. After appearing in a few westerns he disbanded the group in 1938, and struck out on a solo acting career.
One of his more memorable roles was that of the distinctive voice of Francis the Mule in a series of popular films. Wills' deep, rough voice, with its Western twang, was matched to the personality of the cynical, sardonic mule. As was customary at the time, Wills was given no billing for his vocal work, though he was featured prominently on-screen as blustery General Ben Kaye in the fourth entry, Francis Joins the WACS. He provided the deep voice for Stan Laurel's performance of "The Trail of the Lonesome Pine" in Way Out West (1937), in which the Avalon Boys Quartet appeared.
Wills was cast in numerous serious film roles, including as "the city of Chicago" as personified by a phantom police sergeant in the film noir City That Never Sleeps (1953), and that of Uncle Bawley in Giant (1956), which also features Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean. Wills was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for his role as Davy Crockett's companion "Beekeeper" in the film The Alamo (1960). However, his aggressive campaign for the award was considered tasteless by many, including the film's star/director/producer John Wayne, who publicly apologized for Wills. Wills' publicity agent, W.S. "Bow-Wow" Wojciechowicz, accepted blame for the ill-advised effort, claiming that Wills had known nothing about it. The Oscar was instead won by Peter Ustinov for his role as Lentulus Batiatus in Spartacus.
In Rory Calhoun's CBS western series The Texan, Wills appeared in the lead role in the 1960 episode entitled "The Eyes of Captain Wylie".
Wills starred in the short-run series Frontier Circus which aired for only one season (1961–62) on CBS. In 1966, he was cast in the role of a shady Texas rancher, Jim Ed Love, in the short-lived ABC comedy/western series The Rounders (reprising his role in the 1965 film The Rounders, starring Henry Fonda), with co-stars Ron Hayes, Patrick Wayne and Walker Edmiston.
in 1963-64, Wills joined William Lundigan, Walter Brennan and Efrem Zimbalist Jr. in making appearances on behalf of U.S. Senator Barry Goldwater, the Republican nominee in the campaign against U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson.
In 1968, Wills refused to support Richard Nixon for the presidency and served as master of ceremonies for George C. Wallace, former governor of Alabama, for the California campaign stops in Wallace's presidential campaign.[5] Wills was among the few Hollywood celebrities to endorse Wallace's bid against Nixon and Hubert H. Humphrey; another was Walter Brennan.
Also in 1968, he starred in the Gunsmoke episode "A Noose for Dobie Price", where he played Elihu Gorman, a former outlaw who joins forces with Marshal Matt Dillon, played by James Arness, to track down a member of his former gang who has escaped jail. His last role was in 1978, as a janitor in Stubby Pringle's Christmas. CLR
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Career Statisics
| Season | Age | Movie | Role | Result | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 59 | The Alamo (1960) | Supporting Actor | Nom | 0 | |
| Career | 0 |
Transaction History
| Date | Location | Team | Receives | Team | Receives | Team | Receives |
|---|
Credits
| Year | Title | Character | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
2001-08-31 | Drive-In Movie Memories | |
 |
1992-06-06 | John Wayne's 'The Alamo' | Beekeeper |
 |
1978-12-17 | Stubby Pringle's Christmas | The Janitor |
 |
1977-11-23 | Poco… Little Dog Lost | Big Burt |
 |
1977-03-03 | Mr. Billion | Col. Clayton T. Winkle |
 |
1973-05-23 | Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid | Lemuel |
 |
1973-05-01 | Guns of a Stranger | Tom Duncan |
 |
1971-09-15 | The Steagle | Tall Guy McCoy |
 |
1970-11-16 | The Over-the-Hill Gang Rides Again | Gentleman George Agnew |
 |
1970-03-18 | The Liberation of L.B. Jones | Mr. Ike |
 |
1969-07-06 | The Over the Hill Gang | Gentleman George Agnew |
 |
1969-06-11 | Big Daddy | |
 |
1966-06-07 | Fireball 500 | Big Jaw |
 |
1965-01-08 | The Rounders | Jim Ed Love |
 |
1963-12-12 | The Cardinal | Monsignor |
 |
1963-11-14 | The Wheeler Dealers | Jay Ray Spinelby |
 |
1963-11-12 | McLintock! | Drago |
 |
1962-11-30 | Young Guns of Texas | Preacher Sam Shelby |
 |
1961-06-06 | The Deadly Companions | Turk |
 |
1961-06-01 | The Little Shepherd Of Kingdom Come | Major Buford |
 |
1961-02-18 | Gold of the Seven Saints | Doc Wilson Gates, M.D. |
 |
1960-12-28 | Where the Boys Are | Police Captain |
 |
1960-10-23 | The Alamo | Beekeeper |
 |
1959-03-01 | The Sad Horse | Capt. Connors |
 |
1958-04-29 | From Hell to Texas | Amos Bradley |
 |
1957-07-19 | Gun Glory | Preacher |
 |
1956-12-30 | Gun for a Coward | Loving |
 |
1956-11-08 | Giant | Uncle Bawley |
 |
1956-10-09 | New York Premiere Telecast 'Giant' | Host |
 |
1956-07-13 | Santiago | Captain 'Sidewheel' Jones |
 |
1956-07-01 | Kentucky Rifle | Tobias Taylor |
 |
1955-08-24 | Francis in the Navy | Francis (voice) (uncredited) |
 |
1955-02-18 | Timberjack | Steve Riika |
 |
1954-12-15 | Hell's Outpost | Kevin Russell |
 |
1954-11-01 | Ricochet Romance | Tom Williams |
 |
1954-07-30 | Francis Joins the WACS | Francis (as Francis the Talking Muke) |
 |
1953-12-01 | Tumbleweed | Sheriff Murchoree |
 |
1953-08-07 | The Man from the Alamo | John Gage |
 |
1953-06-12 | City That Never Sleeps | Sgt. Joe, the 'Voice of Chicago' |
 |
1953-06-10 | Francis Covers the Big Town | Francis (as Franis the Talking Mule) |
 |
1952-11-25 | Ride the Man Down | Ike Adams |
 |
1952-07-01 | Francis Goes to West Point | Francis (as Francis the Talking Mule) |
 |
1952-05-01 | Bronco Buster | Dan Bream |
 |
1951-11-06 | The Sea Hornet | Swede |
 |
1951-08-01 | Cattle Drive | Dallas |
 |
1951-05-01 | Francis Goes to the Races | Francis The Talking Mule (as Francis the Talking Mule) |
 |
1951-03-01 | Oh! Susanna | Sgt. Barhydt |
 |
1950-11-15 | Rio Grande | Dr. Wilkins |
 |
1950-09-01 | High Lonesome | Boatwhistle |
 |
1950-07-20 | Stella | Chief Clark |
 |
1950-05-18 | Rock Island Trail | Hogger McCoy |
 |
1950-02-08 | Francis | Francis the Talking Mule (voice) |
 |
1950-02-02 | The Sundowners | Sam Beers |
 |
1950-01-07 | The Grass Is Always Greener | Windy |
 |
1949-04-27 | Red Canyon | Brackton |
 |
1948-12-15 | Loaded Pistols | Sheriff Cramer |
 |
1948-12-06 | Family Honeymoon | Fred |
 |
1948-11-20 | That Wonderful Urge | Homer Beggs |
 |
1948-09-28 | The Saxon Charm | Captain Chatham |
 |
1948-07-28 | Northwest Stampede | Mileaway |
 |
1948-04-30 | The Sainted Sisters | Will Twitchell |
 |
1947-06-28 | Heartaches | 'Breezie' Mann |
 |
1946-12-18 | The Yearling | Buck Forrester |
 |
1946-12-05 | Gallant Bess | Chief Petty Officer |
 |
1946-01-18 | The Harvey Girls | H.H. Hartsey |
 |
1945-12-25 | Leave Her to Heaven | Leick Thome |
 |
1945-11-21 | What Next, Corporal Hargrove? | Sgt. Cramp |
 |
1944-12-31 | I'll Be Seeing You | Swanson |
 |
1944-12-08 | Sunday Dinner for a Soldier | Mr. York |
 |
1944-11-28 | Meet Me in St. Louis | Mr. Neely |
 |
1944-09-01 | Barbary Coast Gent | Sheriff Hightower |
 |
1944-03-18 | See Here, Private Hargrove | First Sgt. Cramp |
 |
1943-10-08 | Best Foot Forward | Chester Short |
 |
1943-04-01 | A Stranger in Town | Charles Craig |
 |
1942-12-31 | Stand by for Action | Mate Jenks, Chef-Bootsmann |
 |
1942-09-01 | Apache Trail | 'Pike' Skelton |
 |
1942-09-01 | The Omaha Trail | Henry Hawkins |
 |
1942-07-16 | Her Cardboard Lover | Judge |
 |
1942-05-29 | Mr. Gardenia Jones | Hotel Employee |
 |
1942-05-01 | Tarzan's New York Adventure | Manchester Montford |
 |
1942-01-30 | The Bugle Sounds | Sgt. Larry Dillon |
 |
1941-10-01 | Honky Tonk | The Sniper |
 |
1941-09-12 | Belle Starr | Blue Duck |
 |
1941-05-30 | Billy the Kid | Tom Patterson |
 |
1941-03-28 | The Bad Man | 'Red' Giddings |
 |
1941-02-21 | Western Union | Homer Kettle |
 |
1940-10-26 | Tugboat Annie Sails Again | Shiftless |
 |
1940-09-27 | Sky Murder | Sheriff Beckwith |
 |
1940-09-18 | The Westerner | Southeast |
 |
1940-09-13 | Wyoming | Lafe |
 |
1940-08-30 | Boom Town | Harmony Jones |
 |
1939-11-10 | Allegheny Uprising | M'Cammon |
 |
1939-09-13 | The Day the Bookies Wept | Man on Bus (uncredited) |
 |
1939-06-29 | Timber Stampede | Whopper Hatch |
 |
1939-05-26 | Racketeers of the Range | Whopper Hatch |
 |
1939-05-05 | Sorority House | Mr. Johnson |
 |
1939-03-23 | Trouble in Sundown | Whopper |
 |
1939-01-20 | Arizona Legion | Whopper Hatch |
 |
1938-11-03 | Lawless Valley | Deputy Speedy McGow |
 |
1937-04-23 | Nobody's Baby | Amateur Hour Lead Quartet Singer (as The Avalon Boys) |
 |
1937-04-16 | Way Out West | Lead Singer of the Avalon Boys / Stan's Bass Singing (uncredited) |
 |
1936-04-04 | At Sea Ashore | Leader of The Avalon Four (uncredited) |
 |
1936-03-06 | Call of the Prairie | Singing Cowhand |
 |
1935-12-06 | Bar 20 Rides Again | Henchman |