Art Acord

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Acord

Arthemus Ward "Art" Acord (April 17, 1890 – January 4, 1931) was an American silent film actor and rodeo champion.

Early life and career

Art (Artumus Ward) Acord was born to Mormon parents (Valentine Louis Acord and Mary Amelia Petersen) in Glenwood, Utah, as a young man Acord worked as a cowboy and ranch hand. He won the World Champion Steer Wrestling (Bulldogging) at the Pendleton Roundup in 1912 and repeated as champion in 1916, defeating challenger and friend Hoot Gibson.

Acord was one of the few cowboys to have ridden the proclaimed bucking horse Steamboat—who later inspired the bucking horse logo on the Wyoming license plate—for the full eight seconds. His rodeo skills had been sharpened when he worked for a time for the Miller Brothers' traveling 101 Ranch Wild West Show. It was with the 101 that he made friends with Tom Mix, Bee Ho Gray, "Broncho Billy" Anderson and Hoot Gibson, all cowboys of the silver screen. He went on to become one of the first true stars of western films. He was sometimes referred to as the "Mormon cowboy." A celebrated rodeo star, Acord not only acted but also wrote scripts and performed as a stunt man. He made over 100 film shorts, all but a few of which have been lost.

Acord enlisted in the United States Army in World War I and served overseas. He was awarded the Croix de Guerre for bravery. At war's end, he returned to the motion picture business, appearing in a series of popular film shorts and as "Buck Parvin", the title character for a Universal Pictures serial. Because of a heavy drinking problem and his inability to adapt to the advent of talkies, Acord's film career faded, and he ended up performing in road shows and mining in Mexico.

Personal life

Acord was married three times. His first marriage was to actress Edythe Sterling in 1913. They divorced in 1916. In 1920, he married former actress Edna May Nores. Nores filed for divorce in April 1924 citing physical abuse and infidelity. The divorce was finalized the following year. His third marriage was to actress Louise Lorraine on April 14, 1926. The couple divorced in June 1928.

Death

On January 4, 1931, Acord died in a Chihuahua, Mexico hospital shortly after consuming poison. According to published reports, Acord was suffering from depression and told the doctor who treated him shortly before he died that he had intentionally taken poison because he wanted to die.[4][5] Acord's body was sent back to California by train.[6] He was given a military funeral with full honors and was buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.

For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Art Acord has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1709 Vine Street.

Selected filmography

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Acord#Selected_filmography