One of the few Hollywood hunks of the 1960s who wasn't discovered by gay agent Henry Willson, Alex Cord (born Alexander Viespi) was a professional rodeo cowboy before the acting bug hit. After performing on the London stage, he moved to Hollywood, did some tv dramas, and then a string of B-movie buddy-bonding actioners:
1. Synanon (1965): Drug addict Zackie (Alex) triangulates with Ben (
Rifleman Chuck Connors) over a girl.
2.
The Scorpio Letters (1967). James Bond...um, I mean Joe Christopher (Alex) fights enemy agents.
3.
A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die (1968). Outlaw and Marshall bicker and bond in the Old West.
4.
The Brotherhood (1968): Two Mafia brothers (Alex, Kirk Douglas) bicker and bond (and share a kiss).
5.
The Last Grenade (1970): Two soldiers of fortune, once buddies, now enemies.
During the 1970s Alex returned to television, mostly in actioners like
Jake and the Fatman and
Airwolf. He continued to work in rodeos, making celebrity appearances across the country. And he became a writer, publishing several novels. He has been married to women twice, and is probably heterosexual, although his first novel,
Sandsong, is listed under "gay fiction" on the Library Thing website.
Alex was great in TV PIlot for Gene Roddenbery: GENESIS II, with Mariette Hartley.
ReplyDeleteHe also played Archangel in Airwolf.
ReplyDeleteInteresting about the book, Sandsong - which came out in 1976. Too bad there's no review or even description of the story online. After that he mostly wrote Western-based books...
ReplyDelete