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Actor. Born Gwyllyn Samuel Newton Ford in Canada, when he was eight years old his father, a railroad executive, moved his family to Santa Monica, California. He performed in high school plays and then joined "West Coast", a traveling theater company. His film debut was in "Heaven With a Barbed Wire Fence" (1939). After World War II started, he put his career on hold and enlisted in the United States Marines. In 1992, Ford was awarded the French Legion of Honor Medal for his service in France during the war aiding those fleeing from the Nazis. He also served in Vietnam as a member of the United States Naval Reserves. He was married to dancer Eleanor Powell (1943 to 1959) and they had a son, Peter. He resumed his film career after the war and became a star after appearing opposite Rita Hayworth in "Gilda" (1946). Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, he maintained his status as a popular star showing his diverse talents in dramas, comedies and westerns. His extensive list of films includes "Blackboard Jungle" (1955), "The Teahouse of the August Moon" and "Ransom!" (both in 1956), "3:10 to Yuma" (1957), "The Sheepman" (1958), "The Gazebo" (1960), "Experiment in Terror" (1962), "The Courtship of Eddie's Father" (1963), "Dear Heart" (1964), "The Rounders" (1965), "Is Paris Burning?" (1966), "Heaven With a Gun" (1969), "Midway" (1976), "Superman" (1978), "Day of the Assassin" (1979), and many more. He starred in two short-lived but well-received television series, "Cade's County" (1971 to 1972) and "The Family Holvak" (1975), as well as guest starring in other television programs and movies. In 1970 he published "Glenn Ford R.F.D. Beverly Hills", a memoir. He was married three more times, but all ended in divorce. He is quoted as saying, "The Western is a man's world and I love it." His ability to draw and fire in 0.4 seconds earned him the title of "fastest gun" in Hollywood westerns, outdrawing the likes of John Wayne and James Arness. In 1978 Glenn Ford was inducted into the National Cowboy Hall of Fame by the Western Heritage Museum. After developing heart and circulatory problems, he retired from acting in 1991. The highly respected and popular actor died in Beverly Hills at the home he shared with his son and his family.
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