12 Western Stars Who Got Famous Without ANY Acting Talent

Wooden. Stiff. Can't act. That's what the critics wrote about some of the biggest western stars who ever lived. The funny part? A few of these men said it first. One told his own director, "I'm working here with a handicap. I have no talent," and then made his studio's biggest hit. One said everybody in town was a better actor than he was, and went home with an Academy Award. One lied about the only skill the job needed. And one said he didn't even call himself an actor, and became the biggest western star of them all. In this video we use their own words and the words of the directors who hired them. Featured in this video: 1. Lash LaRue — the man in black with the bullwhip 2. Guy Madison — The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok 3. Ricky Nelson — Rio Bravo 4. Clint Walker — Cheyenne 5. Chuck Connors — The Rifleman 6. Dale Robertson — Tales of Wells Fargo 7. Randolph Scott — Ride the High Country 8. Ben Johnson — Shane, The Last Picture Show 9. Gary Cooper — High Noon 10. Gene Autry — the singing cowboy 11. Audie Murphy — To Hell and Back 12. John Wayne — Stagecoach, True Grit Which of these twelve was your favorite growing up, and who was the most natural cowboy ever put on a screen? Tell us in the comments, and subscribe to Hollywood Weekly for more true stories of classic western legends. Note: This is an affectionate, documentary-style retrospective drawn from published interviews, obituaries and biographies. "No acting talent" is what critics said, or what these stars joked about themselves. Where a story is only an anecdote, we say so. #westerns #johnwayne #classicwesterns