Little Known Spaghetti Western actors ~ Chet Brandenburg

[These daily posts will cover little known actors or people that have appeared in more recent films and TV series. Various degrees of information that I was able to find will be given and anything that you can add would be appreciated.]

James Chester Brandenburg was born in Peoria, Illinois on October 15, 1897. He was the brother of stuntman Ed Brandeburg. Chet began his career on the silent screen in 1924s "Wide Open Spaces," which starred Stan Laurel. Chet's father was Alfred Daniel Brandenburg who.was an actor and stuntman. Chet began his career on the silent screen in 1924s "Wide Open Spaces," which starred Stan Laurel. He went on to appear in 436 films and television programs between 1924 and 1968.

Brandenburg appeared on several TV western series including multiple episodes of Gunsmoke, in uncredited roles

Chet’s only European western was in 1930’s “Men of the North” as a man at the dance.

BRANDENBURG, Chet (James Chester Brandenburg) [10/15/1897, Peoria, Illinois, U.S.A. - 7/17/1974, Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.] – assistant director, stuntman, film, TV actor, brother of stuntman, actor Ed Brandenburg (Marion Edgar Brandenburg) [1896-1969], married to Anna Beatrice Casey [1898-1989] (1915-1974) father of Robert Chester Brandenburg [1917-1993], Richard Casey Brandenburg [1931-2016].

Men of the North – 1930 (man at dance)

Spaghetti Western Directors, Screenwriters, Cinematographers

Spaghetti Western Director ~ Hans Billian

Hans Joachim Hubert Backe was born on April 15, 1918, in Breslau, Silesia, Germany. Billian originally wanted to become an opera singer but due to the deterioration of his voice during his nine years in military service he had to abandon this plan. After World War II, he settled in West Germany and started to work as an actor at theatres in Hamburg and Wolfenbüttel. He later began to work also as a director's assistant.

In 1950, he started to work for various German film producers. Especially, his work for Constantin-Film proved to be successful until 1961 when he left this company to work as a freelance screenwriter and director. Until the late 1960s, he wrote films or directed films that fell under the category Heimatfilm, such as “Ich kauf' mir lieber einen Tirolerhut” in 1965. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, he directed softcore sex comedies, like “Pudelnackt in Oberbayern” (1969) (a Bavarian sex comedy pioneer), “Die Jungfrauen von Bumshausen” (Run, Virgin, Run) (1970), and “Das Mädchen mit der heißen Masche” (Loves of a French Pussycat) (1972) (starring Sybil Danning).

In 1973, Billian directed hardcore short-length loops for the Swedish company Venus Film. When the ban on hardcore pornography was lifted in Germany, he started to direct numerous short-length hardcore films there. In the 1990s, he directed porn videos, especially for the producer Tabu of Bochum, but these videos fell far from the quality of his work in the 1970s.

Billian died in Gräfelfing, Bavaria, Germany on December 18, 2007 at the age of 89.

BILLIAN, Hans (aka Hans Billan, Phillip Halliday, Christian Kessler) [4/15/1918, Breslau, Silesia, Germany– 12/18/2007, Gräfelfing, Bavaria, Germany] – director, writer, actor.

Fräulein Surehand – 1975

Spaghetti Western Screenwriter ~ Chip Baker

Chip Baker was born on November 15, 1970, somewhere in the U.K. I can find no biographical information on him.

Baker has written screenplays for  two Spaghetti westerns: “6 Bullets to Hell” in 2016 and “Bullets for the Bad” in 2018 with Danny Garcia (Daniel Garcia), Jose L. Villanueva and Nick Reynolds.

BAKER, Chip [British] – producer, director, writer, cinematographer, composer, film editor, founded Chip Baker Films.

Reverend Colt – 2013, 2016 [Film was never made.]

6 Bullets to Hell – 2016

Bullets for the Bad – 2017 (co)

Spaghetti Western Cinematographer ~ Ray Binger

Ray Oliver Binger was born on November16, 1888, in Browntown, Wisconsin. He was an American cinematographer. He started working in Hollywood in 1924, mastering the art of process photography. By 1934 he had gravitated towards special effects work. He was one of the many technicians involved in bringing authenticity to “The Hurricane” in 1937, and was instrumental in the plane crash sequence in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Foreign Correspondent” in 1940. Not all his assignments were quite that showy, however. He received an Oscar nomination in the category Best Special Effects for generating fake crowds to fill up the baseball stands in 1942's “The Pride of the Yankees”. He was nominated twice more in the same category for The “Long Voyage Home” (1940) and “The North Star” (1943).

Binger died in Seal Beach, California, on September 29, 1970 at the age of 81.

Ray’s only Euro-western was “The Men of the Borth” in 1930.

BINGER, Ray (aka Ray O. Binger, R.O. Binger) (Ray Oliver Binger) [11/16/1888, Browntown, Wisconsin, U.S.A. – 9/29/1970, Seal Beach, California, U.S.A.] – cinematographer, cameraman, SFX, married to Sarah Jane Flemming [1894-1967] (1917-1967) father of Olive Patricia Binger Losada [1921-1982].

The Men of the North - 1930

Spaghetti Western Locations Then & Now – “The Genius”

In the opening scene of “The Genius we see some locals watching the arrival of the morning stage and one of the passengers is Joe Thanks/Nobody.

This was filmed on the set of ‘Flagstone’ which was built for “Once Upon a Time in the West by architect Carlo Simi. The set was used several times over the years as many of the buildings were constructed of bricks and stood the test of time.

Poblado Flagstone is located across from the abandoned train depot in La Calahorra, Granada, Spain.

Only a shell of the original building still exists as can be seen in this 2025 photo.

European Western Comic Books - LA LEGGENDA D’ALEXIS MAC COY

 

The Legend of Alexis Mac Coy

This comic book was a monographic series, published in large-format albums, the western series The Legend of Alexis Mac Coy, by J. P. Gourmelen and A. H. Palacios. It was published in 1983 with issue #1 being released in March and ended with issue #4 in November. The comic book was published by EPC in Rome, Italy under managing director Arturo G. Bernacchi. Each issue contained 56 black and white pages with color covers.

 

Titles

01 (00.03.83) - "La leggenda d'Alexis Mac Coy" (The Legend of Alexis Mac Coy)

02 (00.00.83) - "Un certo Mac Coy" (A Certain Mac Coy)

03 (00.00.83) - "Una trappola per Mac Coy" (A Trap for Mac Coy)

04 (00.11.83) - "Il trionfo di Mac Coy" (The Triumph of Mac Coy)

From the WAI! vault

 

Little Known Spaghetti Western actors ~ Felipe Álvarez

[These daily posts will cover little known actors or people that have appeared in more recent films and TV series. Various degrees of information that I was able to find will be given and anything that you can add would be appreciated.]

“Felipe Álvarez was a background actor, active in Spanish films at least from the mid-1950's to the mid-1970's.

Álvarez has only two credited roles. In the first of these, “Aquí están las vicetiples”, he has a quite substantial speaking role and should certainly be credited. “El hombre del expreso de Oriente”, where he has a small speaking role with a couple of lines. It's not a large role, but Alvarez is credited second from last in a fairly lengthy cast list and in a film where Agustin Bescos is credited for just walking through a door it should be enough to get him credited.

While it is impossible to be absolutely certain of the identification from the information available, with the one role where he almost certainly must be credited and a second credited speaking role to back this up, I do think the following list of credits are accurate. There most likely others that have been missed.” – Thrilling Forum

Like most character and bit players there is no biographical information available on Felipe.

“Torrejón City” in 1962 as a saloon patron, “Brandy” (Ride and Kill) as a townsman and “Los pistoleros de Casa Grande” (Gunfighters of Casa Grande) as a rancher both in 1963, “Relevo para un pistolero” in1964 as a saloon patron and “Los cuatreros” as a saloon patron both in 1964. “Custer of the West” in 1967 as an attendee at the party, “Il mercenario” (The Mercenary) in 1968 as a Mexican in Garcia’s house, “Vivi preferibilmente, morti” (Sundance Cassidy and Butch the Kid as a townsman and “A Talent for Loving” as a saloon waiter both in 1969.

ALVAREZ, Felipe (Felipe Álvarez) [Spanish] – film actor.

Torrejón City – 1962 (saloon patron)

Gunfighters of Casa Grande -1963 (rancher)

Ride and Kill – 1963 (townsman)*

Relevo para un pistolero - 1964 (saloon patron)

Shoot to Kill – 1964 (saloon patron)

Custer of the West – 1967 (party attendee)

The Mercenary – 1968 (Mexican in Garcia’s house)

Sundance Cassidy and Butch the Kid – 1969 (townsman)

A Talent for Loving 1969 (saloon waiter)

Spaghetti Western Directors, Screenwriters, Cinematographers

Spaghetti Western Director ~ Paolo Bianchini

Paolo Bianchini was born in Rome, Italy on August 13, 1931. He hailed from a family with deep ties to Italy's resistance during World War II, as the nephew of Mariano Buratti, a partisan educator awarded the Gold Medal of Military Valor posthumously after his execution at Forte Bravetta in 1944. This familial legacy, rooted in the anti-fascist struggle, likely shaped Bianchini's perspective on social justice and resilience amid Italy's turbulent mid-20th-century political landscape

 He began his career in 1953 working as an assistant director of a number of notable directors, including Mario Monicelli, Luigi Comencini, Vittorio De Sica, Mauro Bolognini and particularly Luigi Zampa, with whom he collaborated several times. From the second half of the 1960 Bianchini was also active as a director and a screenwriter, specializing in low-budget genre films. Starting in the 1970s he focused his work on television and advertising commercials.

Bianchi was also credited under the alias Paul Maxwell several times and as Paolo Bianchi.

Bianchin directed four Spaghetti westerns: “Quel caldo maledetto giorno di fuoco” (Gatling Gun) and “Dio il crea... io li ammazzo!” (God Made Them…I Kill Them” and “Lo voglio morto” (I Want Him Dead) all in 1968 and “Ehi Amigo… sei morto!” (Hey Amigo! A Toast to Your Death) in 1970.

BIANCHINI, Paolo (aka Paolo Bianchi, Paul Maxwell) [8/13/1931, Rome, Lazio, Italy - ] – producer, director, assistant director, writer, married to model, actress Susan Kaszner Worth (Susan Lee Kaszner Van Horn) [1936-    ] (1963-1975) father of Paolo Bianchini Jr. one other child.

Gatling Gun – 1968

God Made Them... I Kill Them – 1968 [as Paolo Bianchi]

I Want Him Dead – 1968

Hey Amigo! A Toast to Your Death - 1970 [as Paul Maxwell]

Spaghetti Western Screenwriter ~ Rafael Azcona

Rafael Azcona Fernández was born on October 24, 1926, in Logroño, La Rioja, Spain. He was a Spanish screenwriter and novelist who worked with some of the best Spanish and international filmmakers. Azcona won five Goya Awards during his career, including a lifetime achievement award in 1998.

Azcona initially began his career writing for humor magazines. He became known as a screenwriter when he penned the screenplay for the film, “El Pisito” (The Little Apartment), which was based on his own novel. The 1959 film was directed by Italian film director, Marco Ferreri.

Azcona teamed up with director Fernando Trueba in “Belle Époque,” which won an Academy Award for best foreign film in 1994. He collaborated with other Spanish directors including Luis Garcia Berlanga, Jose Luis Cuerda, José Luis García Sánchez, Pedro Olea, and Carlos Saura. Azcona was also awarded the Gold Medal of Merit in the Fine Arts in 1994.

Rafael Azcona died at his home in Madrid, Spain, on March 24, 2008, at the age of 81.

Azcona wroter screenplays for three Spaghetti westerns: “Si può fare... amigo” (It Can Be Done Amigo) and “Una ragione per vivere e una per morire” (Masscare at Fort Holman) with Ernesto Gastaldi and Tonino Valerii, both in 1972 and “Non toccare la donna bianca” (Don’t Touch the White Woman) with Marco Ferreri in 1973

AZCONA, Rafael (aka Raffaele Ascona, Raphael Atzcona, R. Azcona, Raphael Azcona) (Rafael Azcona Fernández) [10/24/1926, Logroño, La Rioja, Spain – 3/24/2008, Madrid, Madrid, Spain (lung cancer)] – writer, actor, married to director, writer Susan Youdelman [1942-     ] (19??-998) father of Daniel Azcona, Barbara Azcona.

It Can Be Done Amigo - 1972

Massacre at Fort Holman – 1972 (co) [as Howard Sandford/Jay Lynn]

Don’t Touch the White Woman! – 1973 (co)

Spaghetti Western Cinematographer ~ Enrico Betti Berutto

Little is known about Italian cinematographer Enrico Betti Berutto. He was primarily a cameraman who worked on thirty-three films between 1948-1971 and a cinematographer on six films between 1948 and 1966. He was a production manager on the 1956 film “Donne sole”.

Berutto’s only Spaghetti western was as a co-cinematographer on 1962’s “Cabalgando hacia la Muerte” (Shadow of Zorro) with Rafael Pacheco.

BERUTTO, Enrico Betti (aka Enrico Betti Berruti, Enrico Betti) [Italian] – cinematographer, cameraman.

Shadow of Zorro – 1962 (co)