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Ray Teal

Ray Teal

Actor · 1902 – 1976 · Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Ray Elgin Teal (January 12, 1902 – April 2, 1976) was an American actor. His most famous role was as Sheriff Roy Coffee on the television series Bonanza (1959–1972), which was only one of dozens of sheriffs on television and in movies that he played during his long and prolific career stretching from 1937 to 1970. He appeared in pictures such as Western Jamboree (1938) with Gene Autry, The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) with Fredric March and Myrna Loy, The Black Arrow (1948), Billy Wilder's Ace in the Hole (1951) and Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) with Spencer Tracy and Burt Lancaster. Teal was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. A saxophone player, he worked his way through the University of California, Los Angeles as a bandleader before becoming an actor. His longest-running role was as Sheriff Roy Coffee, a law-enforcing sheriff on Bonanza. Teal was one of the most senior members of the crew having a permanent role. He had also played a sheriff in the Billy Wilder film Ace in the Hole (1951). Teal co-starred in numerous TV westerns throughout his career: he appeared five times on Cheyenne, four times on The Lone Ranger, on The Alaskans, three times in different roles on another long-running western series, Wagon Train, on NBC's Tales of Wells Fargo, on the ABC western series Broken Arrow, five times on the ABC western comedy Maverick, on the CBS western series The Texan, the NBC western series The Californians, twice on Colt .45, once on Wanted: Dead or Alive, and as "Sheriff Clay" for a single 1960 episode of the NBC western series Riverboat, and four times on a western series about the rodeo titled Wide Country. After more than 15 years performing in films and in early television, Teal secured a recurring role as a police officer in the 1953–1955 ABC sitcom with a variety-show theme, Where's Raymond?, later renamed The Ray Bolger Show. In 1955, Teal appeared as McCanles, a ruthless cattle baron in the episode "Julesburg" of the ABC/Warner Bros. Western series, Cheyenne. Altogether, Teal appeared five times on Cheyenne. He later appeared in a guest-starring role in another ABC/WB Western series, The Alaskans. From 1957 to 1962, Teal was cast three times in different roles on the Western series, Wagon Train. He also appeared in a number of episodes of Bat Masterson, an episode of The Rifleman and later in Green Acres. In 1957, Teal played a lawman, Captain McNelly, in the episode "Sam Bass" of NBC's Tales of Wells Fargo. Teal was cast as Fenster in "The Bounty Hunters" (1957) on the ABC Western series, Broken Arrow. In 1958, Teal guest-starred "No Tears for the Dead" on the CBS Western series, The Texan. He also later appeared in the CBS sitcom, Dennis the Menace. In 1960, Teal was cast as Sheriff Roy Coffee in Bonanza, a role he played until 1972, appearing in 98 episodes, occasionally as the lead character. He also portrayed judge/dentist/shoe repairman H.G. Cogswell in Bat Masterson starring Gene Barry. He died of undisclosed causes on April 2, 1976, at age 74 in Santa Monica, California. CLR

Movies24

  • Movie7.2

    Sergeant York

    1941 · 239 votes

  • Movie8.0

    Judgment at Nuremberg

    1961 · 988 votes

  • Movie7.7
  • Movie6.6

    Chisum

    1970 · 212 votes

  • Movie7.7

    Inherit the Wind

    1960 · 489 votes

  • Movie7.8

    Ace in the Hole

    1951 · 776 votes

  • Movie6.8

    One-Eyed Jacks

    1961 · 262 votes

  • Movie6.8

    Run for Cover

    1955 · 43 votes

  • Movie6.5

    The Wild One

    1953 · 345 votes

  • Movie7.0

    Woman of the Year

    1942 · 169 votes

  • Movie7.5

    The Asphalt Jungle

    1950 · 547 votes

  • Movie7.3

    Brute Force

    1947 · 220 votes

  • Movie6.1

    Back to Bataan

    1945 · 72 votes

  • Movie6.9
  • Movie7.0

    The Desperate Hours

    1955 · 188 votes

  • Movie6.6

    Ziegfeld Girl

    1941 · 39 votes

  • Movie6.7
  • Movie5.9

    Bathing Beauty

    1944 · 33 votes

  • Movie6.9

    Home from the Hill

    1960 · 69 votes

  • Movie6.7

    Gunman's Walk

    1958 · 60 votes

  • Movie6.3

    Captain Kidd

    1945 · 38 votes

  • Movie6.2

    Joan of Arc

    1948 · 89 votes

  • Movie7.3

    Winchester '73

    1950 · 419 votes

  • Movie7.1

    The Clock

    1945 · 53 votes

Series24

  • TV7.7

    Perry Mason

    1957 · 139 votes

  • TV7.0

    Maverick

    1957 · 43 votes

  • TV7.5

    Bonanza

    1959 · 500 votes

  • TV7.1

    The Rifleman

    1958 · 54 votes

  • TV7.3

    The Fugitive

    1963 · 63 votes

  • TV7.8

    I Dream of Jeannie

    1965 · 842 votes

  • TV6.6

    Wagon Train

    1957 · 31 votes

  • TV6.3

    Lassie

    1954 · 74 votes

  • TV8.5

    The Twilight Zone

    1959 · 1.1K votes

  • TV7.8

    Alfred Hitchcock Presents

    1955 · 265 votes

  • TV7.2

    Rawhide

    1959 · 49 votes

  • TV6.2

    Cheyenne

    1955 · 26 votes

  • TV6.7

    Route 66

    1960 · 20 votes

  • TV7.1

    Wanted: Dead or Alive

    1958 · 38 votes

  • TV6.7

    Gunsmoke

    1955 · 119 votes

  • TV6.2

    The Doris Day Show

    1968 · 11 votes

  • TV6.0

    Lawman

    1958 · 13 votes

  • TV7.2

    Green Acres

    1965 · 80 votes

  • TV7.3
  • TV6.4

    Bat Masterson

    1958 · 16 votes

  • TV6.8

    The Lone Ranger

    1949 · 36 votes

  • TV6.0

    The Texan

    1958 · 6 votes

  • TV6.2
  • TV5.8

    The Millionaire

    1955 · 4 votes