Little Known Spaghetti Western actors ~ Jim Beaver

[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 Norman Beaver Jr. was born in Laramie, Wyoming on August 12, 1950. The family name was originally de Beauvoir, and Beaver is a distant cousin of author and philosopher Simone de Beauvoir [1908-1986], and Pennsylvania governor James A. Beaver. [1837-1908] Beaver's mother has Cherokee, German, and Scottish ancestry, and is a descendant of three-time U.S. Attorney General John J. Crittenden [1787-1863].

Jim started acting in theater in Oklahoma while attending college. As a bourgeoning film historian, he also completed his first book at this time on actor John Garfield. His stage work continued with his move to New York City in the late 1970s and, in 1983, he ventured out to Hollywood. He joined Theater West and became both actor and playwright for the organization. Beaver soon thereafter branched into television with scripts for the famous suspense anthology ‘Alfred Hitchcock Presents’ and the war serials "Tour of Duty" and "Vietnam War Story." As a Marine Corps veteran, he was snatched up for a part as Bruce Willis's army buddy in 1989's "In Country." The role kick-started his onscreen acting career and he has worked steadily in film and TV ever since, most notably as the crusty but warm-hearted prospector Whitney Ellsworth on HBO's cunningly foul-mouthed Western "Deadwood" and in a recurring role on the horror-fraught ‘Supernatural’. His memoir, Life's That Way, recounts his wife's lost battle with lung cancer in 2003. He is also the author of a biography of George Reeves and was a consultant on "Hollywoodland," a film about the actor's curious death.

Beaver will appear in two upcoming Euro-westerns: “Where the Sparrows Fly” (2025) as The Bear-Like Man and the upcoming television series ‘Man is the Devil’ as Deputy Marshal Joyce

BEAVER, Jim (James Norman Beaver Jr.) [8/12/1950, Laramie, Wyoming, U.S.A. –     ] - producer, writer, film, TV actor, married to Deborah Sue Young [1954-   ] (1973-1976), married to actress Cecily Adams (Cecily April Adams) [1958-2004] (1989-2004) father of Madeline Rose Beaver, married to actress, singer Sarah Spiegel [1986-    ] (2019-2024).

Where the Sparrows Fly – 2025 (The Bear-Like Man)

Man is the Devil (TV) – 2025 (Deputy Marshal Joyce)