Rand Brooks
Rand Brooks
Biography
Arlington Rand Brooks Jr. (September 21, 1918 – September 1, 2003) was an American film and television actor. Brooks was born in Wright City, Missouri. He was the son of Arlington Rand Brooks, a farmer. His mother and he moved to Los Angeles when he was four, though he continued to spend summers in Wright City. Brooks continued to make visits to his hometown of Wright City into the 1950s, up to and following the death of his father in 1950. His mother and his grandfather were actors. After leaving school, Brooks got a screen test at MGM and was given a bit part in Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938). His big fame came with his part as Charles Hamilton in Gone with the Wind (1939), a role which he later admitted he despised; he wanted to play more macho parts. He made $100 per week under contract at MGM, but when he was on loan to Selznick International Pictures for Gone with the Wind, he made $500 per week. After Gone With the Wind, he had relatively small parts in other movies including Babes in Arms, then a regular role as Lucky in the Hopalong Cassidy series of Westerns in the mid-1940s; Brooks succeeded Russell Hayden in the role. Among the films, which starred William Boyd as Hopalong, were Hoppy's Holiday, The Dead Don't Dream, and Borrowed Trouble. He received positive notice for his work in Fool's Gold, with Variety reporting that he did "an excellent job." In edited, half-hour versions of some of the films, he appeared in 12 of the 52 episodes of the Hopalong Cassidy television series. In 1948, he co-starred with Adele Jergens and Marilyn Monroe in the low-budget, black-and-white Columbia Pictures film, Ladies of the Chorus. Brooks became the first actor to share an on-screen kiss with Monroe, who in a few years was one of the world's biggest movie stars. Filmed in just 10 days, the film was released soon after its completion. Variety called his performance in the 1952 film The Steel Fist "capable." Television brought new opportunities, again often in Westerns. He played Cpl. Randy Boone in the 1950s television series, The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin. Brooks had guest roles in 1950s Western series, including Mackenzie's Raiders, The Lone Ranger, Maverick, Gunsmoke, and Bonanza. He appeared twice on the syndicated adventure series, Rescue 8, as well as on CBS's Perry Mason courtroom drama series. In 1962, he directed and produced a movie about brave dogs, Bearheart, but the film was entangled in legal troubles due to his business manager's involvement in crimes such as forgery and graft. The film was finally released in 1978, under the title Legend of the Northwest. After he left show business, Brooks ran a private ambulance company in Glendale, California. He commented that he "died in more pictures than almost anyone" and that though he was never very big in show business, he was willing to return to it. Brooks sold the ambulance company in 1994, and retired to his ranch in the Santa Ynez Valley, where he bred champion Andalusian horses. He attended a Gone with the Wind reunion for Clark Gable's birthday, along with Ann Rutherford and Fred Crane, in Cadiz, Ohio, in 1992. On September 1, 2003, Brooks died in Santa Ynez, California.
Known For
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
132
Gender
Male
Birthday
1918-09-21 (106 years old)
Place of Birth
Wright City, Missouri, USA
Acting

1974

The Sex Symbol as Edward Kelly (voice)

1971

Columbo as Jerry - Wine Lab Assistant (uncredited)

1968

Adam-12 as Mr. Edwards

1968

Adam-12 as Bus Driver

1968

Adam-12 as Mr. Marshall

1967

In Like Flint as Missle Control Officer (uncredited)

1966

The Green Hornet as Conway

1964

12 O'Clock High as Finance Officer

1964

The Munsters as The Man

1963

Petticoat Junction as Ernest Belden

1962

Combat! as G.I. Lieutenant

1962

The Virginian as Henry

1962

Stagecoach to Dancers' Rock as Quint Rucker

1960

My Three Sons as Frank Walker

1960

My Three Sons as Ed Henson

1960

Comanche Station as Station Man

1959

Bonanza as Cowboy

1959

Hawaiian Eye as Agent

1959

Tightrope as Young Man

1959

Stump Run as Not available

1958

Bat Masterson as Willard Wynant

1958

Peter Gunn as Not available

1958

The Last Hurrah as Votes Tallyman (uncredited)

1958

Jefferson Drum as Ray Comstock

1958

The Challenge of Rin Tin Tin as Not available

1957

Wagon Train as Thomas Pope

1957

Perry Mason as Trainer

1957

Perry Mason as Ted Richert

1957

Maverick as Second at Duel (uncredited)

1957

Maverick as Jack Blair

1957

The Real McCoys as Mr. Foster

1957

M Squad as Purser

1956

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre as Banker Wilson

1956

The Man Called X as Not available

1955

The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp as Sheriff Del Mathey

1955

Sergeant Preston of the Yukon as Not available

1955

Gunsmoke as Rand

1955

Gunsmoke as Man

1955

The Millionaire as Allan Carter

1954

Lassie as Bulldozer Operator

1954

The Wonderful World of Disney as Baseball Coach (uncredited)

1954

Studio 57 as Not available

1954

The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin as Cpl. Boone (uncredited)

1954

Crash of Moons as Andrews

1954

Silver Needle in the Sky as Ranger Andrews

1953

City Detective as Not available

1953

Born to the Saddle as John Grant

1952

The Steel Fist as Captain Giorg Nicholoff

1952

The Gunman as Jud Calvert

1952

Waco as Al

1952

The Maverick as Trooper Barnham

1952

Montana Incident as Dave Connors

1952

Man from the Black Hills as Fake Jimmy Fallon

1952

Behind Southern Lines as Captain Loomis

1951

The Adventures of Kit Carson as Not available

1951

The Roy Rogers Show as Not available

1951

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars as Not available

1951

Heart of the Rockies as Jim Corley

1951

Yukon Manhunt as Len Kaufman

1950

The Cisco Kid as Clint Riley

1950

Lux Video Theatre as Uncle George

1950

The Gene Autry Show as Jeff Elwood

1950

The Gene Autry Show as Young Deputy

1950

Riding High as Henry Early

1950

Bunco Squad as Robert (uncredited)

1950

The Vanishing Westerner as Sanderson's First Victim

1949

The Lone Ranger as Dick Larrabee

1949

The Lone Ranger as Deputy Jim Tyler

1949

The Lone Ranger as Marshal Roy Bell

1949

The Lone Ranger as Private Phillips

1949

The Lone Ranger as Private Jack Carey

1949

The Lone Ranger as Al Sommers

1949

The Lone Ranger as Express Rider

1949

The Lone Ranger as Lieutenant Tipton

1949

The Lone Ranger as Ben

1949

The Wyoming Bandit as Jimmy Howard

1949

Black Midnight as Daniel Jordan

1948

Joan of Arc as Jean d'Arc, Joan's older brother

1948

Ladies of the Chorus as Randy Carroll

1948

Strange Gamble as Lucky Jenkins

1948

False Paradise as Lucky Jenkins

1948

Silent Conflict as Lucky Jenkins

1948

The Dead Don't Dream as Lucky Jenkins

1948

Sundown in Santa Fe as Tom Wyatt

1948

Borrowed Trouble as Lucky Jenkins

1948

Sinister Journey as Lucky Jenkins

1947

The Marauders as Lucky Jenkins

1947

Kilroy Was Here as Rodney Meadows

1947

Hoppy's Holiday as Lucky Jenkins

1947

Unexpected Guest as Lucky Jenkins

1947

Dangerous Venture as Lucky Jenkins

1946

Fool's Gold as Lucky Jenkins

1946

The Devil's Playground as Lucky Jenkins

1945

The Great Morgan as Film Character (uncredited)

1944

Lady in the Dark as Ben

1944

Ditch and Live as T / Sgt. Ryan

1943

Air Force as Co-Pilot (uncredited)

1943

High Explosive as Jimmy Baker

1942

Fingers at the Window as Young Reporter (uncredited)

1942

The Affairs of Jimmy Valentine as Not available

1942

Cowboy Serenade as Jim Agnew

1942

The Sombrero Kid as Philip Martin

1941

Niagara Falls as Honeymooner

1941

Lady Scarface as James 'Jimmy' Powell

1941

Life with Henry as Daniel Gordon (uncredited)

1940

The Son of Monte Cristo as Hans Mirbach

1940

Northwest Passage as Eben Towne

1940

Florian as Victor

1940

And One Was Beautiful as Joe Havens

1940

Laddie as Peter Dover

1939

Gone with the Wind as Charles Hamilton

1939

Babes in Arms as Jeff Steele

1939

Balalaika as Crying Soldier (uncredited)

1939

Thunder Afloat as Listener (uncredited)

1939

The Old Maid as Jim

1939

Dancing Co-Ed as Steve (uncredited)

1938

Love Finds Andy Hardy as Young Man on Bandstand (uncredited)

1938

Dramatic School as Pasquel Jr.
Crew

1967

The King's Pirate Dialogue Coach