Robert J. Wilke

Robert J. Wilke Headshot

Actor

Birth Date: May 18, 1914

Death Date: March 28, 1989

Birth Place: Cincinnati, Ohio

While he looked as rugged as other Western television actors of his day, Robert J. Wilke never quite achieved the same level of stardom as some of his contemporaries. Nevertheless, he had a lengthy and prolific career, beginning in the mid-'30s as a movie stuntman, which led to acting roles in features (in small parts, generally henchmen or ne'er do wells). By the early '50s, he was still appearing in minor Westerns when he had a breakthrough in "High Noon" as Jim Pierce, one of the three bad guys waiting for Gary Cooper's Will Kane at the train station. Although the vast majority of his subsequent film roles were also villains, "High Noon" led to a small part in "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea," as well as lots of television work.

During the late '50s and the '60s, Wilke landed his first recurring characters, on two episodes of "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color" and the "Zorro" series, and around this time he also became familiar to fans of Western shows, logging credits for "Gunsmoke," "Bonanza," and countless others. Toward the end of his career, his highlights included Terrence Malick's 1978 romance "Days of Heaven," in which he played the main characters' primary antagonist. Yet Wilke's farm foreman was something of a revelation, coming across more as a working man with responsibilities to carry out than the sneering villain one might have expected.

Credits

Manu Baunilha, Bia Chocolate

Actor
Movie
2014

The Great Monkey Rip-Off

Actor
Zaerbo
Movie
1979

DallasStream

Guest Star
Soap
1978

Days of HeavenStream

Actor
The Farm Foreman
Movie
1978
93%

The QuestStream

Guest Star
Series
1976

Starsky & HutchStream

Guest Star
Series
1975

The Boy Who Cried Werewolf

Actor
The Sheriff
Movie
1973

Santee

Actor
Deake
Movie
1973

Kung FuStream

Guest Star
Series
1972

A Gunfight

Actor
Marshal Tom Cater
Movie
1971

The Desperate Mission

Actor
Gant
Movie
1971

They Call It Murder

Actor
Sheriff Rex Brandon
Movie
1971

The Resurrection of Zachary Wheeler

Actor
Hugh Fielding
Movie
1971

The Rookies

Actor
Officer Shaw
Movie
1971

The Cheyenne Social ClubStream

Actor
Corey Bannister
Movie
1970

Cimarron Strip

Guest Star
Show
1967

Tarzan

Guest Star
Spooner
Series
1966

Smoky

Actor
Jeff Nicks
Movie
1966

The Wild, Wild WestStream

Guest Star
Series
1965

The Legend of Jesse James

Actor
Marshal Sam Corbett
Show
1965

Shock Treatment

Actor
Mike Newton
Movie
1964

Fate Is the Hunter

Actor
Stillman
Movie
1964
40%

The FugitiveStream

Guest Star
Johnny
Series
1963

The Dakotas

Guest Star
Judge Everett Markham
Series
1963

The Gun Hawk

Actor
Johnny Flanders
Movie
1963

The Lucy ShowStream

Guest Star
Series
1962

The VirginianStream

Guest Star
Conrad
Series
1962

Target: The Corruptors

Guest Star
Show
1961

Blueprint for Robbery

Actor
Capt. Swanson
Movie
1961

The Long Rope

Actor
Ben Matthews
Movie
1961

My Three SonsStream

Guest Star
Series
1960

The Tall Man

Guest Star
Marshal Ben Hartley
Series
1960

The Slowest Gun in the West

Actor
Billy the Kid Blake
Movie
1960

The Magnificent SevenStream

Actor
Wallace
Movie
1960
89%

The Untouchables

Guest Star
Series
1959

LaramieStream

Guest Star
Slate
Series
1959

BonanzaStream

Guest Star
Series
1959

RawhideStream

Guest Star
Series
1959

Never Steal Anything Small

Actor
Lennie
Movie
1959

U.S. Marshal

Guest Star
Henry Brandon
Show
1958

77 Sunset Strip

Guest Star
Vern Reece
Series
1958

Bat MastersonStream

Guest Star
Bull Kirby
Series
1958

The RiflemanStream

Guest Star
Series
1958

Bronco

Guest Star
Series
1958

Return to Warbow

Actor
Red
Movie
1958

ZorroStream

Guest Star
Series
1957

Perry MasonStream

Guest Star
Deputy Sheriff Connors
Series
1957

The Thin Man

Guest Star
Duke Martin
Show
1957

Wagon TrainStream

Guest Star
Series
1957

Have Gun -- Will TravelStream

Guest Star
Series
1957

Tales of Wells FargoStream

Guest Star
Jack Simmons
Series
1957

Hot Summer Night

Actor
Tom Ellis
Movie
1957

Night Passage

Actor
Concho
Movie
1957
50%

The Tarnished Angels

Actor
Hank
Movie
1957
100%

The Lone RangerStream

Actor
Cassidy
Movie
1956
90%

Raw Edge

Actor
Sile Doty
Movie
1956

BacklashStream

Actor
Jeff Welker
Movie
1956

The Rawhide Years

Actor
Neal
Movie
1956

Canyon RiverStream

Actor
Joe Graycoe
Movie
1956

Gun the Man DownStream

Actor
Matt Rankin
Movie
1956

Screen Directors Playhouse

Actor
Show
1955

Cheyenne

Guest Star
Series
1955

GunsmokeStream

Guest Star
Hickock
Series
1955

Marshal Dillon

Guest Star
Show
1955

Smoke SignalStream

Actor
1st Sgt. Daly
Movie
1955

Shotgun

Actor
Bentley
Movie
1955

Coup de Fouet en Retour

Actor
Jeff Welker
Movie
1955

WichitaStream

Actor
Ben Thompson
Movie
1955
100%

Lassie

Guest Star
Mr. Corey
Series
1954

Jeff's Collie

Guest Star
Show
1954

20,000 Leagues Under the SeaStream

Actor
First Mate of the Nautilus
Movie
1954
91%

War PaintStream

Actor
Trooper Grady
Movie
1953

ArrowheadStream

Actor
Sgt. Stone
Movie
1953

Hellgate

Actor
Sgt. Maj. Kearn
Movie
1953

From Here to EternityStream

Actor
Sgt. Henderson (uncredited)
Movie
1953
88%

Death Valley DaysStream

Actor
Sgt. Flanagan
Series
1952

Four Star PlayhouseStream

Actor
Series
1952

Adventures of SupermanStream

Guest Star
Series
1952

Cattle Town

Actor
Keeno
Movie
1952

Laramie Mountains

Actor
Henry Mandel
Movie
1952

Wyoming Roundup

Actor
Henchman Wyatt
Movie
1952

The Las Vegas Story

Actor
Clayton
Movie
1952

High NoonStream

Actor
Pierce
Movie
1952
94%

The Roy Rogers ShowStream

Guest Star
Mark Bender
Series
1951

The Range RiderStream

Guest Star
Series
1951

Pistol Harvest

Actor
Andy Baylor
Movie
1951

Best of the BadmenStream

Actor
Jim Younger
Movie
1951

Overland Telegraph

Actor
Bellew
Movie
1951

Hot Lead

Actor
Stoney Dawson
Movie
1951

The Gene Autry ShowStream

Guest Star
Henchman in Plaid Shirt
Series
1950

Across the Badlands

Actor
Duke Jackson / Keno Jackson
Movie
1950

The Lone RangerStream

Guest Star
Series
1949

Laramie

Actor
Cronin
Movie
1949

Buck Privates Come Home

Actor
GI Buddy (uncredited)
Movie
1947

Trail of Kit Carson

Actor
Dave MacRoy
Movie
1945

The Yellow Rose of Texas

Actor
Deputy (uncredited)
Movie
1944

Call of the Rockies

Actor
Deputy Jim
Movie
1944

The San Antonio Kid

Actor
Henchman
Movie
1944