Luke Askew

1932–2012 · American character actor, known for villain roles in Westerns and genre films

Biography

Francis Luke Askew (Macon, Georgia, 1932 - Oregon, 2012) was an American actor and rock and blues singer, best remembered for his supporting and villainous roles in Westerns and genre films of the 1960s and 1970s. He later built a long career in television, with guest appearances across many well-known series.

Born in Georgia, Askew studied at the University of Georgia and served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War, working in an intelligence unit. After appearing in Off-Broadway plays, he made his film debut in Hurry Sundown (1967), but it was his role in Cool Hand Luke, released the same year, that first drew attention to him. The following year he shared the screen with John Wayne in The Green Berets, and his hair had to be cropped short for the part.

His turn as a hitchhiker in Easy Rider (1969), credited as Stranger on Highway, brought him lasting popularity and made him a face that filmmakers came back to. That same year he took his first leading role in Night of the Serpent, a spaghetti Western now regarded as a cult film. He went on to appear in Westerns such as Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid and Posse, along with action and adventure films, usually playing villains or hard-edged supporting men.

Askew also performed as a singer, often at the Gaslight Cafe, where Bob Dylan remembered his voice with real admiration. In the following decades he kept working in genre films and in series such as Bonanza, Mission: Impossible and Walker, Texas Ranger. His last regular role came in Big Love (2007-2010) as Hollis Green. He died of lung cancer in Oregon in 2012, three days after his 80th birthday. His legacy lies in the gallery of tough, memorable faces that gave Westerns and road movies much of their texture.

Key films

Cool Hand Luke (1967)
Easy Rider (1969)
Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (1973)
Frailty (2001)

Trivia

A character without a name

In Easy Rider he was credited simply as Stranger on Highway. His hitchhiker became one of the most remembered figures in the film over the years.

Praise from Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan compared his singing at the Gaslight Cafe to a man who sounded like Bobby Blue Bland, an unusual compliment for an actor better known on screen.