Allan "Rocky" Lane (born Harry Leonard Albershardt; September 22, 1909 – October 27, 1973) was an American actor. He was the star of many cowboy B-movies in the 1940s and 1950s. He appeared in more than 125 films and TV shows in a career lasting from 1929 to 1966. He is best known for his portrayal of Red Ryder and for being the voice of the talking horse on the television series Mister Ed, from 1961 to 1966.
Biography Lane was born Harry Leonard Albershardt or Albershart (sources differ) in Mishawaka, Indiana to Linnie Anne and William H. Albershardt.1910 U.S. Census, St. Joseph County, Indiana He grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan.Allan Lane profile
Lane had been a photographer, model and stage actor by age 20. He played varsity sports, baseball, football and basketball at the University of Notre Dame but dropped out to pursue his interests in acting.
Film career Lane's first film role for Fox was as a romantic lead opposite June Collyer in the 1929 release, Not Quite Decent (now a lost film). He made several other films at Fox but jumped ship to Warner Bros.
While at Warner his career foundered, and after a number of bit parts he left films in the early 1930s. By 1936, Lane returned to films and to 20th Century Fox, taking supporting roles in the drama Laughing at Trouble and the Shirley Temple film Stowaway. After several more supporting roles at Fox, Lane longed for a starring role; therefore, he took the lead in a Republic Pictures' short feature, The Duke Comes Back (1937).
From 1929 through 1936, he appeared in twenty-four films. He was in 1938's The Law West of Tombstone. In 1940, he portrayed "RCMP Sergeant Dave King", the role becoming one of his most notable successes. The first was King of the Royal Mounted, a 12-part 1940 serial adaptation of Zane Grey's King of the Royal Mounted. He starred in several Royal Canadian Mounted Police films, including the serials The Yukon Patrol and King of the Mounties. He is best remembered for these today.
In 1946 and 1947, he portrayed Red Ryder in seven films, replacing Wild Bill Elliott in that role. The following year, he became "Rocky Lane" in Western films.
Between 1940 and 1966, Lane made eighty-two film and television series appearances, mostly in westerns. Between 1947 and 1953, he made over 30 B-movie westerns (as "Rocky" Lane) with his faithful horse 'Black Jack'.
His last roles were in voice-over acting, including providing the speech for Mister Ed (1961–1966). He was never credited on-screen for providing the voice for Mister Ed.
Death Lane died of cancer in Woodland Hills, California, on October 27, 1973, at age 64. He was interred at Inglewood Park Cemetery.
In popular culture
Lane was one of the movie cowboys named in the lyrics of the song “Whatever Happened To Randolph Scott” by The Statler Brothers, which became a hit single in 1974.
Comics
Allan "Rocky" Lane was often portrayed in the celebrity comics by his nickname, Rocky Lane, primarily during the heyday of Western-themed comics in the 1940s and 1950s.
The actor was featured in the comic book Rocky Lane Western, published in 1949 by Fawcett Comics. The series was published by the company until 1954, when it left the comics market following the lawsuit "National Comics Publications, Inc. v. Fawcett Publications, Inc.." Charlton Comics took over the title that same year, starting with issue #56 and ending with issue #87, published in 1959. The publisher also released a comic series starring his horse, Black Jack, titled Rocky Lane's Black Jack.
In Brazil, the Rocky Lane stories were published by Rio Gráfica Editora (RGE) in the 1960s. Between 1965 and 1968, the publisher even commissioned local stories from Primaggio Mantovi, an Italian cartoonist who became a naturalized Brazilian citizen.
Selected filmography
Not Quite Decent (1929) as Jerry Connor The Forward Pass (1929) as Ed Kirby Love in the Rough (1930) as Johnson Madame Satan (1930) as Zeppelin Majordomo (uncredited) Night Nurse (1931) as Intern (uncredited) The Star Witness (1931) as Young Deputy at the Leeds Home (uncredited) Honor of the Family (1931) as Joseph Expensive Women (1931) as Party Boy with Bobby (uncredited) Local Boy Makes Good (1931) as Runner with a Bad Knee (uncredited) The Famous Ferguson Case (1932) as Reporter (uncredited) The Tenderfoot (1932) as Actor (uncredited) Week-End Marriage (1932) as Office Clerk (uncredited) Winner Take All (1932) as Monty - Joan's Friend (uncredited) Miss Pinkerton (1932) as Herbert Wynn (scenes deleted) Crooner (1932) as Heckler on Dance Floor (uncredited) A Successful Calamity (1932) as Polo Player (uncredited) The Crash (1932) as Geoffrey's Associate (uncredited) One Way Passage (1932) as Friend of Joan's (uncredited) Laughing at Trouble (1936) as John Campbell Stowaway (1936) as Richard Hope Step Lively, Jeeves! (1937) as Party Guest (uncredited) Charlie Chan at the Olympics (1937) as Richard Masters The Jones Family in Big Business (1937) as Ted Hewett Fifty Roads to Town (1937) as Leroy Smedley Sing and Be Happy (1937) as Hamilton Howe The Duke Comes Back (1937) as Duke Foster Night Spot (1938) as Pete Cooper Maid's Night Out (1938) as Bill Norman This Marriage Business (1938) as Bill Bennett Having Wonderful Time (1938) as Maxwell Pingwell aka Mac Crime Ring (1938) as Joe Ryan Fugitives for a Night (1938) as John Nelson The Law West of Tombstone (1938) as Danny Sanders Pacific Liner (1939) as Bilson Twelve Crowded Hours (1939) as Dave Sanders They Made Her a Spy (1939) as James Huntley Panama Lady (1939) as Dennis McTeague The Spellbinder (1939) as Steve Kindal Conspiracy (1939) as Steve Kendall Grand Ole Opry (1940) as Fred Barnes King of the Royal Mounted (1940, Serial) as Dave King All-American Co-Ed (1941) as Second Senior King of the Mounties (1942) as Sergeant Dave King Air Force (1943) as Marine (uncredited) Daredevils of the West (1943) as Duke Cameron The Dancing Masters (1943) as George Worthing Call of the South Seas (1944) as Kendall Gaige The Tiger Woman (1944) as Allen Saunders Silver City Kid (1944) as Jack Adams Stagecoach to Monterey (1944) as Bruce Redmond - Posing as Chick Weaver Sheriff of Sundown (1944) as Tex Jordan The Topeka Terror (1945) as Chad Stevens Corpus Christi Bandits (1945) as Captain James Christie / Corpus Christi Jim Bells of Rosarita (1945) as Himself Trail of Kit Carson (1945) as Bill Harmon Gay Blades (1946) as Andy Buell A Guy Could Change (1946) as Michael 'Mike' Hogan Night Train to Memphis (1946) as Dan Acuff Santa Fe Uprising (1946) as Red Ryder Out California Way (1946) as Himself Stagecoach to Denver (1946) as Red Ryder Vigilantes of Boomtown (1947) as Red Ryder Homesteaders of Paradise Valley (1947) as Red Ryder Oregon Trail Scouts (1947) as Red Ryder Rustlers of Devil's Canyon (1947) as Red Ryder Marshal of Cripple Creek (1947) as Red Ryder The Wild Frontier (1947) as Rocky Lane Bandits of Dark Canyon (1947) as Rocky Lane Oklahoma Badlands (1948) as Allan Rocky Lane The Bold Frontiersman (1948) as Rocky Lane Carson City Raiders (1948) as Rocky Lane Marshal of Amarillo (1948) as Marshal Rocky Lane Desperadoes of Dodge City (1948) as Rocky Lane The Denver Kid (1948) as Rocky Lane Posing as the Denver Kid Sundown in Santa Fe (1948) as Rocky Lane Renegades of Sonora (1948) as Rocky Lane Sheriff of Wichita (1949) as Sheriff Rocky Lane Death Valley Gunfighter (1949) as Rocky Lane Frontier Investigator (1949) as Rocky Lane The Wyoming Bandit (1949) as Marshal Rocky Lane Bandit King of Texas (1949) as Rocky Lane Navajo Trail Raiders (1949) as Rocky Lane Powder River Rustlers (1949) as Rocky Lane Gunmen of Abilene (1950) as Rocky Lane Code of the Silver Sage (1950) as Lieutenant Rocky Lane Salt Lake Raiders (1950) as Deputy Marshal Rocky Lane Covered Wagon Raid (1950) as Rocky Lane Vigilante Hideout (1950) as Rocky Lane Frisco Tornado (1950) as Marshal Rocky Lane Rustlers on Horseback (1950) as Marshal Rocky Lane Trail of Robin Hood (1950) as Rocky Lane Rough Riders of Durango (1951) as Rocky Lane Night Riders of Montana (1951) as Rocky Lane Wells Fargo Gunmaster (1951) as Rocky Lane Fort Dodge Stampede (1951) as Deputy Sheriff Rocky Lane Desert of Lost Men (1951) as Rocky Lane Captive of Billy the Kid (1952) as Marshal 'Rocky' Lane Leadville Gunslinger (1952) as U. S. Marshal Rocky Lane Black Hills Ambush (1952) as Rocky Lane Thundering Caravans (1952) as Marshal Rocky Lane Desperadoes' Outpost (1952) as Rocky Lane Marshal of Cedar Rock (1953) as Marshal Rocky Lane Savage Frontier (1953) as U.S. Marshal Rocky Lane Bandits of the West (1953) as Marshal Rocky Lane El Paso Stampede (1953) as Rocky Lane The Saga of Hemp Brown (1958) as Sheriff Hell Bent for Leather (1960) as Kelsey Posse from Hell (1961) as Burl Hogan
Television Series Mister Ed, 1961–1966 syndicated and later CBS TV series. Lane provided the voice for Mister Ed. This was an uncredited role. Red Ryder, 1956–1957 TV series. Lane portrayed Red Ryder
Guest appearances Cheyenne, episode "Massacre at Gunsight Pass", originally aired May 1, 1961 Gunsmoke, episode "Long Hours, Short Pay", originally aired April 29, 1961 Bonanza, episode "The Blood Line", originally aired December 31, 1960 Gunsmoke, episode "The Badge", originally aired November 12, 1960 Lawman, episode "The Payment", originally aired May 8, 1960 Bronco, episode "Death of an Outlaw", originally aired March 8, 1960 Colt .45, episode "Arizona Anderson", originally aired February 14, 1960 Tales of Wells Fargo, episode "The Reward", originally aired April 21, 1958 Wagon Train, episode "The Daniel Barrister Story", originally aired April 16, 1958 Alfred Hitchcock Presents (Season 3 Episode 28: "Lamb to the Slaughter") (originally aired April 13, 1958) as Patrick Maloney Gunsmoke, episode "Texas Cowboys", originally aired April 5, 1958 Mike Hammer, episode "Husbands Are Bad Luck", originally aired 1957
References
External links
Rocky Lane westerns Recollections of Allan Lane FanBase page - Notre Dame Football