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JAMES DRURY is the star of the first 90-minute color western television series, ‘The Virginian’, which aired from 1962-1971. ‘The Virginian’ is one of the longest running western series in the history of television.
James Child Drury was born April 18, 1934 in New York City and spent a great deal of his boyhood on the family ranch in Oregon. Jim grew up with a love for horses and the outdoor life.
The acting bug first bit Jim at the age of 8, when he played Herod in a children’s Christmas play. Trained as a classical actor at New York University and credited with 18 major Shakespeare roles and 20 major Shaw roles, Jim left the theatre in New York and went to Hollywood in 1954.
He worked in such classic films as 'Blackboard Jungle', 'Forbidden Planet', ‘The Tender Trap’, 'Love Me Tender', 'The Last Wagon', 'Pollyanna', 'Ride the High Country' and many others. Jim was guest star in numerous television series like 'Playhouse 90', 'Gunsmoke', 'Rifleman', 'Cheyenne', 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents', 'Wagon Train', 'Rawhide', 'Death Valley Days', before being chosen for the role of ‘The Virginian’ in 1962.
Averaging thirty 90-minute episodes a season, The Virginian series had one of the most demanding production schedules in TV history.
"There were times when we had four Virginian episodes shooting on the same day," he recalls. "I would literally ride on horseback from set to set to give two lines here, three lines there, then over here to do 10 pages of script."
After portraying 'The Virginian' for nine years, he returned to the theatre across the U.S. in the ‘70s. His stage credits are diverse with not only Shakespeare and George Bernard Shaw, but also well-known classics as 'The Odd Couple', 'The Rainmaker', 'A Thousand Clowns', 'Once More With Feeling', 'Forty Karats', and ‘Prisoner of Second Avenue'. In 1974, he starred in television series 'Firehouse'.
In the years that follow, Jim appears as Special Guest in numerous films and television shows like 'Alias Smith and Jones', 'Walker, Texas Ranger', 'Kung Fu: TLC’, the film 'The Virginian’ in 2000 and 'Hell to Pay' (2005). Known for his distinctive voice, he has done many documentaries and audio books. He is a guest celebrity at many Western Events, Festivals and Autograph Shows.
James Drury, now 75, and Carl Ann, his wife of over 30 years, reside in Houston, TX.
‘THE VIRGINIAN' television series is adapted from Owen Wister’s book, ‘The Virginian’, which was published in 1902. The series is set at Shiloh Ranch near Medicine Bow, Wyoming. The main character (James Drury) is known only as the Virginian and is the foreman of Shiloh Ranch. The first eight seasons the show aired as ‘The Virginian’ and with a name change came back for a ninth season as ‘Men From Shiloh’. ‘The Virginian’, one of the longest running western series, has been continuously shown all over the world. It is currently being shown in Ireland on TG4 and in Australia on Foxtel. A quality western series that has stood the test of time is still great entertainment.
Jim says, "Be patient, it will be back on U.S. television."
(For further information about James Drury and The Virginian see the links on this page)
Season 8
Harper (Harper Flaherty)
Virginian (James Drury)
Jim Horn (Tim Matheson)
Season 9 - New Title Men From Shiloh
Trampas (Doug McClure)
Col. Alan Mackenzie (Stewart Granger)
Virginian (James Drury)
Not Shown: Roy Tate (Lee Majors)
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