Rex Reason
Encyclopedia
Rex Reason is an American
actor.
He is the brother of actor Rhodes Reason
, who is two years younger. The two bore a strong resemblance and many may have mistakenly assumed they were twins.
He began his show business career in 1948 at the Pasadena Playhouse
, performing as a stage actor for three years before coming to the notice of Hollywood. In 1951 he was given a screen test at Columbia Pictures
and was cast as the lead in a starring role in his first picture, a low-budget adventure drama titled Storm Over Tibet. Reason was under contract for two more years at Columbia until moving to Universal in mid-1953, after making a promising appearance in the sword-and-sandal epic Salome
opposite Rita Hayworth
.
A tall (6'2"), handsome, leading man with a distinctive baritone speaking voice, Reason appeared in several films and television shows throughout the 1950s and 1960s. He made two pictures at Universal Studios
under the name "Bart Roberts" before demanding to be able to use his own name, which actually sounds like a Hollywood screen name.
Reason is perhaps best remembered for his role as stalwart, heroic scientist Dr. Cal Meacham in the 1955 Technicolor science fiction
cult classic This Island Earth. Reason co-starred as sympathetic scientist Dr. Tom Morgan in the third--and final--installment of Universal International Pictures' successful Creature from the Black Lagoon
horror film series in 1956's The Creature Walks Among Us
. He also appeared opposite Clark Gable
and Sidney Poitier
in Band of Angels
(WB,1957). He appeared in Badlands of Montana (1957) as an opponent of a corrupt Mayor played by John M. Pickard
. In the story line, Pickard administers ten lashes with a whip to Reason's back.
Reason starred as newspapermen in two television series: (1) a syndicated
western
, Man Without a Gun
(1957–1959), in the role of Adam MacLean, editor of the Yellowstone Sentinel newspaper in Dakota Territory
, and (2) ABC
's The Roaring Twenties
(1960–1962), a crime drama rich in period music, in the role of Scott Norris, reporter for the fictitious New York Record.
He appeared in 1961 as a guest on an NBC
interview program, Here's Hollywood
, and guest-starred on a number of popular TV series, including 77 Sunset Strip
, Perry Mason
and Wagon Train
.
Reason walked out on his film contract with Warner Brothers in the fall of 1961 when he was being considered for a starring role in the Frank Sinatra
production of John Frankenheimer
's The Manchurian Candidate
. The film began as a WB project, but was completed as an independent film, and was released by United Artists
in 1962. The role he was going to play went to Laurence Harvey
instead.
After his film and television acting career ended, he worked as a real estate broker, and had a second career as a voiceover actor. Reason is retired and lives in Walnut, California, with his wife, Shirley.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor.
He is the brother of actor Rhodes Reason
Rhodes Reason
Rhodes Reason is an American actor.Reason is the younger brother of actor Rex Reason, whom he strongly resembles, to the point that many have mistakenly assumed that they were twins. Rhodes Reason is two years younger.-Biography:Reason made his acting start at age 18 in Romeo and Juliet, directed...
, who is two years younger. The two bore a strong resemblance and many may have mistakenly assumed they were twins.
Biography
Reason was raised in Los Angeles, attended Hoover High School in Glendale, California, and enlisted in the Army at age 17.He began his show business career in 1948 at the Pasadena Playhouse
Pasadena Playhouse
The Pasadena Playhouse is a historic performing arts venue located 39 S El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, California. The 686-seat auditorium produces a variety of cultural and artistic events, professional shows, and community engagements each year.-History:...
, performing as a stage actor for three years before coming to the notice of Hollywood. In 1951 he was given a screen test at Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
and was cast as the lead in a starring role in his first picture, a low-budget adventure drama titled Storm Over Tibet. Reason was under contract for two more years at Columbia until moving to Universal in mid-1953, after making a promising appearance in the sword-and-sandal epic Salome
Salome
Salome , the Daughter of Herodias , is known from the New Testament...
opposite Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth was an American film actress and dancer who attained fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars...
.
A tall (6'2"), handsome, leading man with a distinctive baritone speaking voice, Reason appeared in several films and television shows throughout the 1950s and 1960s. He made two pictures at Universal Studios
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
under the name "Bart Roberts" before demanding to be able to use his own name, which actually sounds like a Hollywood screen name.
Reason is perhaps best remembered for his role as stalwart, heroic scientist Dr. Cal Meacham in the 1955 Technicolor science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
cult classic This Island Earth. Reason co-starred as sympathetic scientist Dr. Tom Morgan in the third--and final--installment of Universal International Pictures' successful Creature from the Black Lagoon
Creature from the Black Lagoon
Creature from the Black Lagoon is a 1954 monster horror film directed by Jack Arnold, and starring Richard Carlson, Julia Adams, Richard Denning, Antonio Moreno, and Whit Bissell. The eponymous creature was played by Ben Chapman on land and Ricou Browning in underwater scenes...
horror film series in 1956's The Creature Walks Among Us
The Creature Walks Among Us
The Creature Walks Among Us is the third and final installment of the Creature from the Black Lagoon horror film series from Universal Pictures, following 1955's Revenge of the Creature. The film was released April 26, 1956, in the United States....
. He also appeared opposite Clark Gable
Clark Gable
William Clark Gable , known as Clark Gable, was an American film actor most famous for his role as Rhett Butler in the 1939 Civil War epic film Gone with the Wind, in which he starred with Vivien Leigh...
and Sidney Poitier
Sidney Poitier
Sir Sidney Poitier, KBE is a Bahamian American actor, film director, author, and diplomat.In 1963, Poitier became the first black person to win an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Lilies of the Field...
in Band of Angels
Band of Angels
Band of Angels is a 1957 romantic drama film set in the American South before and during the American Civil War, based on the novel of the same name by Robert Penn Warren. It starred Clark Gable, Yvonne De Carlo, and Sidney Poitier. The movie was directed by Raoul Walsh.-Plot:Amantha Starr is the...
(WB,1957). He appeared in Badlands of Montana (1957) as an opponent of a corrupt Mayor played by John M. Pickard
John Pickard (American actor)
John M. Pickard was an American actor who appeared primarily in television Westerns.-Early life and career:...
. In the story line, Pickard administers ten lashes with a whip to Reason's back.
Reason starred as newspapermen in two television series: (1) a syndicated
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
, Man Without a Gun
Man Without a Gun
Man Without a Gun is a western television series produced by 20th Century Fox television and presented in first-run syndication in the United States from 1957 to 1959...
(1957–1959), in the role of Adam MacLean, editor of the Yellowstone Sentinel newspaper in Dakota Territory
Dakota Territory
The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of North and South Dakota.The Dakota Territory consisted of...
, and (2) ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's The Roaring Twenties
The Roaring Twenties (TV series)
The Roaring 20s is an American drama series that aired on the ABC network beginning on October 15, 1960, and ending on September 21, 1962.-Synopsis:...
(1960–1962), a crime drama rich in period music, in the role of Scott Norris, reporter for the fictitious New York Record.
He appeared in 1961 as a guest on an NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
interview program, Here's Hollywood
Here's Hollywood
Here's Hollywood is an American celebrity interview program which aired on weekday afternoons on NBC at 4:30 Eastern time from September 26, 1960, to December 28, 1962.-Overview:...
, and guest-starred on a number of popular TV series, including 77 Sunset Strip
77 Sunset Strip
77 Sunset Strip is an hour-length American television private detective series created by Roy Huggins and starring Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., Roger Smith, and Edd Byrnes....
, Perry Mason
Perry Mason
Perry Mason is a fictional character, a defense attorney who was the main character in works of detective fiction authored by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason was featured in more than 80 novels and short stories, most of which had a plot involving his client's murder trial...
and Wagon Train
Wagon Train
Wagon Train is an American Western series that ran on NBC from 1957–62 and then on ABC from 1962–65...
.
Reason walked out on his film contract with Warner Brothers in the fall of 1961 when he was being considered for a starring role in the Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
production of John Frankenheimer
John Frankenheimer
John Michael Frankenheimer was an American film and television director known for social dramas and action/suspense films...
's The Manchurian Candidate
The Manchurian Candidate
The Manchurian Candidate , by Richard Condon, is a political thriller novel about the son of a prominent US political family who is brainwashed into being an unwitting assassin for the Communist Party....
. The film began as a WB project, but was completed as an independent film, and was released by United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
in 1962. The role he was going to play went to Laurence Harvey
Laurence Harvey
Laurence Harvey was a Lithuanian-born actor who achieved fame in British and American films.- Early life :Harvey maintained throughout his life that his birth name was Laruschka Mischa Skikne. However, his legal name was Zvi Mosheh Skikne. He was the youngest of three boys born to Ber "Boris" and...
instead.
After his film and television acting career ended, he worked as a real estate broker, and had a second career as a voiceover actor. Reason is retired and lives in Walnut, California, with his wife, Shirley.