Robert Conrad

For other uses, see Robert Conrad (disambiguation).

Robert Conrad
Conrad in 1972
Born	Conrad Robert Norton Falk (1935-03-01) March 1, 1935 Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1957–2002
Spouse(s)	Joan Kenlay (February 23, 1952–1977; divorced); 5 children LaVelda Ione Fann (March 28, 1983–2010; divorced); 3 children

Robert Conrad (born March 1, 1935) is an American film and television actor, best known for his role in the 1965–69 television series The Wild Wild West, playing the sophisticated Secret Service agent James T. West. He portrayed World War II ace Pappy Boyington in the television series Black Sheep Squadron. He was a recording artist of pop/rock songs in the early 1960s as Bob Conrad before he began his acting career. He has hosted a weekly two-hour national radio show (The PM Show with Robert Conrad) on CRN Digital Talk Radio since 2008.

Early years

Conrad was born Conrad Robert Norton Falk in Chicago, Illinois. His father, born Leonard Henry Falkowski (born November 3, 1918), was then 16 years old; Leonard was of Polish ancestry. His mother, Alice Jacqueline Hartman (born May 15, 1919, daughter of Conrad and Hazel Hartman), was 15 years old when she gave birth, and named her son after her own father. She would go on to become first publicity director of Mercury Records, known as Jackie Smith. She would marry several times, including once to Chicago radio personality Eddie Hubbard in 1948. Eddie Hubbard and Jackie Smith reportedly had a child together (born circa 1949) before splitting up in 1958.

Career

Signed to Warner Bros. as an actor, Conrad took advantage of Warner's recording division. He eventually released several recordings issued on a variety of LPs, EPs, and SPs 33-1/3 and 45 rpm records during the late 1950s and early 1960s. He had a minor Billboard hit song in "Bye Bye Baby" which reached #113. In 1959, he played Billy the Kid in the episode "Amnesty" of Colt .45.

In 1958, he appeared in the second season of the James Garner series Maverick (episode: "Yellow River"). Before The Wild Wild West, Conrad played Tom Lopaka on Hawaiian Eye. The show was a hit from 1959-63, both in the U.S. and overseas. In Mexico, he signed a recording contract with the Orfeon label, where he released two albums, with a few singles sung in Spanish. He played "Eric Dean" in Palm Springs Weekend (1963). In 1964, he went to Spain and filmed La Nueva Cenicienta with star Marisol. In the film, they performed a duet, "Me conform", which was a popular hit in Spain.

In 1965, he garnered fame with his starring role in The Wild Wild West (airing on CBS for four seasons until its cancellation in 1969). Conrad later starred in such roles as prosecuting attorney Paul Ryan in the short-lived 1971 NBC series, The D.A., and as American spy Jake Webster in Assignment Vienna. He starred in a third-season episode of Mannix, called "The Playground", and in an episode of Columbo ("An Exercise in Fatality").

He found ratings success again from 1976-78 as legendary tough-guy World War II fighter ace Pappy Boyington in Baa Baa Black Sheep, retitled for its second season and in later syndication as Black Sheep Squadron. In 1978, he starred in the short-lived TV series The Duke, as Duke Ramsey, a boxer turned private eye. In 1980, he played a paraplegic coach in Coach of the Year. In the late 1970s, he served as the captain of the NBC team for six editions of Battle of the Network Stars. He played a modern-day variation of James West in the short-lived series A Man Called Sloane in 1979, which was around the same time that he reprised the role of West in a pair of made-for-TV films. He also starred in the 1978 TV miniseries Centennial.

Conrad was widely identified in the late 1970s for his television commercials for Eveready batteries, particularly his placing of the battery on his shoulder and prompting the viewer to challenge its long-lasting power: "Come on, I dare ya". The commercial was frequently parodied on Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show and The Carol Burnett Show. In 1986, he was a special guest referee for the main event at Wrestlemania II featuring Hulk Hogan vs King Kong Bundy inside a steel cage.

In 1988, Conrad starred in a short-lived television series, High Mountain Rangers, with two of his sons. High Mountain Rangers, known for its spectacular scenery and stunts, had a one-season spinoff, Jesse Hawkes. In 1990, Conrad starred in the made-for-television adventure film Anything to Survive alongside Matt LeBlanc and Emily Perkins. In 1992, Conrad played the role of the sheriff in Richard Marx's "Hazard" music video. In 1996, he played the part of a police officer in the film Jingle All the Way. He took over hosting The History Channel's Weapons At War (later Tech Force) in 2000, succeeding George C. Scott.

In 2006, Conrad recorded audio introductions for every episode of the first season of The Wild Wild West for its North American DVD release on June 6. The DVD set also included one of Conrad's Eveready battery commercials; in his introduction, Conrad stated he was flattered to be parodied by Carson. He was inducted into the Stuntman's Hall of Fame for his work on The Wild, Wild West series. He appeared in the documentary film, Pappy Boyington Field, where he recounted his personal insights about the legendary Marine Corps aviator whom he portrayed in the television series. Conrad hosts a weekly radio talk show on CRN Digital Talk Radio.

Personal life

Conrad was married to Joan Kenlay from February 23, 1952, until their divorce in 1977; the couple had five children. His second marriage, to LaVelda Ione Fann, produced three children. After living in Bear Valley in the High Sierra, Conrad and Fann relocated to Thousand Oaks, California, in 2006. Conrad and Fann divorced in 2010.

Conrad was joined on some television shows by his sons, Shane and Christian, and his daughter, Nancy. Another daughter, Joan, became a television producer. In a 2008 interview, Conrad described the late Chicago Outfit "made man" and burglar, Michael Spilotro, as his "best friend". Spilotro's slaying was featured in the movie Casino.

Conrad was involved with a volunteer organization in Bear Valley known as Bear Valley Search and Rescue, which later formed the basis for High Mountain Rangers.

On March 31, 2003, while on Highway 4 in the California Sierra foothills near his Alpine County home, Conrad drove his Jaguar over the center median and slammed head-on into a Subaru being driven by 26-year-old Kevin Burnett. Both men suffered serious injuries. Tried on felony charges, Conrad pleaded no contest, and he was convicted of drunk driving. (His blood-alcohol level had been 0.22%, nearly three times the legal limit.) He was sentenced to six months of house confinement, alcohol counseling, and five years probation.

A civil suit filed by Kevin Burnett against Conrad was settled the following year for an undisclosed amount. In 2005, Burnett died at age 28 from perforated ulcers, which his family attributed to his difficult recovery from the crash. Conrad himself suffered severe nerve injuries from the crash, which left his right side partially paralyzed.

In February 2013, Conrad gave $500 to a British couple on vacation in Los Angeles after they were interviewed on KFI Radio, recounting that their hotel was closed after a corpse was found in the Cecil Hotel's water cistern.

Selected filmography

• Palm Springs Weekend (1963)
• Young Dillinger (1965)
• The Bandits (1967)
• Weekend of Terror (1970)
• Live A Little, Steal A Lot (1975)
• Smash-Up on Interstate 5 (1976)
• Sudden Death (1977)
• The Lady in Red (1979)
• Coach of the Year (1980)
• Wrong Is Right (1982)
• The Fifth Missile (1986)
• Anything to Survive (1990)
• Samurai Cowboy (1993)
• Jingle All the Way (1996)
• Garbage Day (short film; 1999)

External links

• Robert Conrad at the Internet Movie Database
• Robert Conrad interview video at the Archive of American Television