Scott Brady

Biography

Scott Brady, born Gerard Kenneth Tierney in Brooklyn on September 13, 1924, and died in Los Angeles on April 16, 1985, was an American actor whose career spanned Western films and a long run of television work. Though he is less remembered today than some contemporaries, his steady presence on screens in the 1950s and 1960s made him a familiar face to audiences of the period.

He came from a family of performers: his older brother Lawrence and younger brother Edward were also actors. His father was an Irish-American policeman who rose to lead the force guarding New York's water supply. Brady took his screen name from a friend's short story about a boxer with the same name. After serving in the Navy during World War II, where he became a boxing champion, he moved to Los Angeles and studied at a drama school.

He made his film debut in 1948 in In This Corner, and that same year appeared in He Walked by Night as a police sergeant. He became known for hard-edged characters in films such as Port of New York and Undertow, and later took lead roles in romantic comedies and low-budget Westerns. He appeared in The Model and the Marriage Broker and in Nicholas Ray's Johnny Guitar, alongside Joan Crawford. His starring role in Ambush at Cimarron Pass placed him in a cast that also included a young Clint Eastwood.

Television occupied much of his output. He worked repeatedly in anthology series such as Lux Video Theatre, The Ford Television Theatre and Schlitz Playhouse, and in many Westerns. He starred in the series Shotgun Slade, which ran from 1959 to 1961. In the 1970s he was a regular in police dramas such as Police Story, and he guest-starred on Laverne & Shirley.

Brady also faced public controversies: he was arrested for narcotics possession in 1957, though the charge was dropped, and in 1963 the New York State Harness Racing Commission barred him from the sport because of his links to known bookmakers. A lawsuit with Eagle-Lion Films in 1950 also drew attention.

His final film role was as Sheriff Frank Reilly in Gremlins (1984). He died of a lung disease, and today he is remembered mainly for his contribution to the Western of the 1950s and for his work in the television of his era.

Key films

• Johnny Guitar (1954), directed by Nicholas Ray, as the Dancin' Kid, a gunman in a cult Western.
• Port of New York (1949), one of his early tough-guy roles in film noir.
• Ambush at Cimarron Pass (1958), a starring role as a sergeant alongside Clint Eastwood.
• Gentlemen Marry Brunettes (1955), a comedy in which he plays David Action.
• The China Syndrome (1979), a supporting role as Herman De Young in the nuclear thriller.
• Gremlins (1984), his last film role, as Sheriff Frank Reilly.