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Steve Cochran

Film Director / Actor | * 05/25/1917 († 48, 06/15/1965) | Eureka, California
Steve Cochran (born Robert Alexander Cochran, May 25, 1917 – June 15, 1965) was an American film, television and stage actor. He attended the University of Wyoming. After a stint working as a cowboy, Cochran developed his acting skills in local theatre and gradually progressed to Broadway, film and television. ()

He is perhaps best remembered for his role of Big Ed Somers, the power hungry gangster pal of James Cagney in "White Heat" (1949). Born Robert Alexander Cochran in Eureka, California, he was the son of a California lumberjack, who moved the family to Wyoming in the 1920s, where Cochran grew to adulthood. After graduating from the University of Wyoming in 1939, Cochran began working steadily as a Wyoming cowboy, while developing his acting skills working in summer stock and regional theaters and gradually moving on to Broadway. In 1945, he signed with MGM, and for the next several years, played mostly secondary roles as gangsters or boxers. He made his film debut with "Boston Blackie Booked on Suspicion" (1945) and quickly followed with "Wonder Man" (1945). Released from his contract in 1948, he returned to Broadway where he worked with Mae West; the next year he signed on with Warner Brothers, where he earned leading roles in such films as "The Damned Don't Cry" (1950), "Highway 301" (1950) and "Tomorrow is Another Day" (1951). Warner Brothers often had him playing the villain in several of its western films, such as "Dallas" (1950), and "Back to God's Country" (1953). With the end of his contract in 1953, he began his own film company, Robert Alexander Productions, while also freelancing for other studios and moving on to guest star roles on television shows. He would show up in such television shows as Death Valley Days, Burke's Law, The Untouchables, Naked City, The Twilight Zone, Route 66, and The Virginian. A notorious womanizer, Cochran was married and divorced three times, and was often in the Hollywood tabloids reportedly having affairs with such actresses as Mae West, Jayne Mansfield, Joan Crawford, Merle Oberon, Ida Lupino and Mamie Van Doren. Cochran died under mysterious circumstances. In May 1965, Cochran had revived his production company, and together with three women, whom he had hired as his assistants, boarded his 40-foot yacht to travel to Central and South America to look for filming locations. On June 25, 1965, the yacht drifted into Port Champerico, Guatemala, with three alive but very distraught women aboard and the body of Steve Cochran, who had died ten days earlier. The women did not know how to operate the boat, and were dependent upon its drifting to shore after his death. There were numerous rumors of murder and poisoning, and actress / former lover Merle Oberon used her influence to push for further police investigation, but no evidence of foul play was ever determined. The official cause of his death was given as Acute Infectious Edema (lung infection).

Photo of Steve Cochran
Most frequent genres for this person: Drama | Crime | Western

Known for these Movies & Shows

Awards & Nominations for Steve Cochran

Star On Hollywood Walk of Fame
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Movies with Steve Cochran as Actor(41)

as Brad Webster1964 Mozambique
as Steve Corey1963 Of Love and Desire
as Billy Keplinger1961 The Deadly Companions
as Dave Culloran1959 The Beat Generation
as Joe Sante1959 I, Mobster
as Bill Gibson1959 The Big Operator
as Captain Alan 'Wes' Westcott1958 Quantrill's Raiders
as H.R. Manley1957 Slander
as Aldo1957 Il Grido
as John C. Fremont1956 Fremont: The Trailblazer
as Mark Andrews1956 The Weapon
as Matt Ballot1956 Come Next Spring
as Joe Hammond1954 Carnival Story
as Police Sgt. Cal Bruner1954 Private Hell 36
as Captain Claude Fontaine1953 The Desert Song
as Dan Webley1953 Shark River
as Paul Blake1953 Back to God's Country
as Rick Sommers1953 She's Back on Broadway
as Marcel Brevoort1952 Operation Secret
as Ben Kirby1952 The Lion and the Horse
as Hank Rice1951 Storm Warning
as Cy Van Cleave1951 Raton Pass
as Bill Clark / Mike Lewis1951 Tomorrow Is Another Day
as Francis Aloysius 'Sully' Sullivan1951 The Tanks Are Coming
as Peter Allendine1951 Jim Thorpe – All-American
as George Legenza1950 Highway 301
as Nick Prenta1950 The Damned Don't Cry
as Bryant Marlow1950 Dallas
as 'Big Ed' Somers1949 White Heat
as Tony Crow1948 A Song Is Born
as Steve Hunt1947 Copacabana
as Cliff Scully1946 The Best Years of Our Lives
as Speed McFarlane1946 The Kid from Brooklyn
as Eddie Roman1946 The Chase
as Tim O'Brien1945 The Gay Senorita
as Jimmy Casey1945 Boston Blackie's Rendezvous
as Ten Grand Jackson1945 Wonder Man

TV Shows/Series with Steve Cochran as Actor(21)

as St. John Carlisle1963 Burke's Law
as Phil Ross1963 Burke's Law
as Fletcher Seamway1963 Burke's Law
as Jamie Dobbs1962 The Virginian
as Fred Renard1959 The Twilight Zone
as Niccolo Mori1958 Naked City
as Marshal Cam Tolby1956 Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
as Ralph Leslie1954 Climax!
as Jack Rice1954 Climax!
as Drogo1953 GE Theater
as Luke Martens1950 Lux Video Theatre
as Captain John Pringle1950 Robert Montgomery Presents
as Peter Hadley1948 Studio One
as Dan1948 Studio One

Movies with Steve Cochran as Crew(2)

Directing/Director1965 Tell Me In The Sunlight
Writing/Screenplay1965 Tell Me In The Sunlight

Full Name: Steve Cochran
Born: Friday, 05/25 1917 (May) in Eureka, California
Died: Tuesday, 06/15 1965 (June) in Guatemala (aged: 48)
Zodiac sign: Gemini (Chinese zodiac sign: Snake)
Educated at: University of Wyoming
Employer: Warner Bros.
Spouses (current/former): Fay McKenzie
Other names for Steve Cochran (nicknames, foreign languages etc.):
"Стив Кокран"
"Robert Alexander Cochran"
Steve Cochran frequently works together with these people:
Loretta Young (117x, Actress)
Vaughn Taylor (35x, Actor)
John Newland (35x, Crew)
Skip Homeier (30x, Actor)
Everett Sloane (28x, Actor)
Nina Foch (26x, Actress)
J. Pat O'Malley (25x, Actor)
Harry Townes (25x, Actor)
Eddie Albert (23x, Actor)
James Daly (22x, Actor)
Richard Carlson (22x, Actor)
Addison Richards (21x, Actor)
WatchPlayStream ID: PEOPLE:9844, Added: 05/06/2018, Last updated: 03/22/2024