Steve Forrest (born William Forrest Andrews; September 29, 1925 – May 18, 2013) was an American actor who was well known for his role as Lt. Hondo Harrelson in the hit television series S.W.A.T. which was broadcast on ABC from 1975 to 1976.[1] He was also known for his performance in Mommie Dearest (1981).
Early years
Forrest was born William Forrest Andrews in Huntsville, Texas, the 12th of 13 children of Annis (née Speed) and Charles Forrest Andrews, a Baptist minister. One of his older brothers was film star Dana Andrews.[2]
Forrest enlisted in the U.S. Army at the age of 18 and fought in the Battle of the Bulge during World War II. In 1950, he earned a bachelor's degree with honors from UCLA, majoring in theater with a minor in psychology.[3][4]
Career
Forrest worked as a stagehand at the La Jolla Playhouse outside San Diego. There Gregory Peck discovered him, cast him in La Jolla's production of Goodbye Again, and then arranged for Forrest's first screen test with MGM, where he was signed to a contract.[1]
On a 1969 episode of Gunsmoke titled "Mannon", he portrayed Will Mannon (one of the very few men ever to outdraw Matt Dillon), then reprised the character 18 years later for the 1987 television film Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge with James Arness.
Jock Ewing, the character played by Jim Davis in the television series Dallas from 1978 to 1981, was presumed to have been killed in a helicopter crash during the 1981–82 season, although Jock's body was never found. This storyline was written into the series script on account of Davis' real-life death. In 1986 Lorimar Television, now renamed Lorimar Tele-Pictures, extended Forrest's contract from the 1985–1986 season of "Dallas" (the "Dream Season"), during which he had played the character Ben Stivers. They brought him back as a similar character renamed Wes Parmalee, who would be revealed to actually be Jock Ewing, in the 1986-87 season. While the season was still in production, the news leaked that Forrest would be playing the new Jock Ewing. Fans of the show believed the new storyline was disrespectful to the memory of Davis.[citation needed] Lorimar was forced to drop the Wes Parmalee character and change the story outcome.
In 1953, he earned the Most Promising Newcomer award from the Golden Globes for his performance in the Warner Bros. film 'So Big'. In a career that spanned six decades, among films he appeared in were 'Prisoner of War' (1954), 'The Living Idol' (1957), 'Flaming Star' (1960), 'The Longest Day' (1962), 'Rascal' (1969), 'The Wild Country' (1970), 'North Dallas Forty' (1979), 'Mommie Dearest' (1981), 'Sahara' (1983), 'Amazon Women on the Moon' (1987) and 'S.W.A.T.' (2003). Among television series he was featured in were 'Playhouse 90', 'Outlaws', 'Death Valley Days', 'The Virginian', 'Rawhide', 'Bonanza', 'Insight', 'Alias Smith and Jones', 'Ironside', 'Night Gallery', 'Medical Center', 'The Rookies', 'Dallas', and several different roles on 'Murder, She Wrote', however his most memorable TV role was that of Lt. Dan 'Hondo' Harrelson on 'S.W.A.T.' from 1975 through '76.
Personal life
Forrest married Christine Carilas on December 23, 1948. They had three sons: Michael, Forrest, and Stephen.[6]
An avid and accomplished golfer, Forrest often played in charity tournaments. He competed in 1976, for example, on the U.S. team at the Bing Crosby Great Britain vs. U.S.A. Tournament, which was held that year in Scotland at Gleneagles.[1]
