Rugged, masculine lead with slicked-back jet-black hair, usually cast as cads or insentitive lovers, who hit his peak in the 1950s. Discovered by Mae West, with whom he appeared on stage in the Broadway revival of "Diamond Lil" (1948) and "Catherine the Great" (the latter winning him a Warner Bros. contract), Cochran was forceful as a gangster in Raoul Walsh's "White Heat" (1949); he starred as a wanderer in Michelangelo Antonioni's sullen "Il Grido" (1957), and directed, produced and wrote a feature, "Tell Me in the Sunlight" (released 1967), before his premature death aboard his yacht in 1965.
- Also Credited As:
Robert Alexander Cochran
- Born:
June 25, 1917 in Eureka, California, USA
- Died:
June 16, 1965.
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Job Titles:
Actor, Director, Producer, Screenwriter, Cowpuncher, Railway hand, Store detective
Education
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Barter Theater, Abingdon, Virginia
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University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming
Milestones
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1944 Broadway debut
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1945 Screen acting debut in Wonder Man
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1949 Under contract to Warner Bros.
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1953 Founded Robert Alexander Productions
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1965 Directorial and producing debut, Tell Me in the Sunlight (also photographed and starred; released posthumously in 1967)
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Began acting career with the Federal Theater during the Depression
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Grew up in Laramie, Wyoming
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Organized and directed shows for West Coast Army camps during WWII
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Worked as a railway hand, cowpuncher and Macy s store detective before stage career