Jay Kirby (born William Bennett George, January 28, 1920 – July 30, 1964) was an American actor in films and television. He was best known for playing Johnny Travers, the youthful sidekick of Hopalong Cassidy in six films in the 1940s.
In 1948, he and his wife Carmelle George were divorced and the custody of their one-year-old son was given to his wife."Hubby's Chord Off Key for Actress' Harmony," Los Angeles Times, Wednesday, December 1, 1948, page 16
Career Kirby was born in Kansas City, Missouri. He began acting in films in 1942, when he was cast to replace Russell Hayden as the boyish partner to cowboy hero Hopalong Cassidy. He was an aviation cadet in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II but does not appear to have served long, as his screen appearances are continuous throughout the war and afterward for several years. In 1949 he reverted to his real name, Bill George, for his last feature film and his subsequent television roles. He died at 44 and was buried in the Los Angeles National Cemetery.
Filmography Year Title Role Notes1942 Undercover Man Breezy Travers 1942 Lost Canyon Johnny Travers 1943 Hoppy Serves a Writ 1943 Border Patrol Texas Ranger Johnny 1943 The Leather Burners Johnny Travers 1943 Colt Comrades 1944 Marshal of Reno Danny Boyd 1944 Zorro's Black Whip Randolph Meredith Serial, [Ch.1]1944 Sheriff of Las Vegas Tom Blackwell 1944 Sundown Riders Jay Kirby 1945 Rockin' in the Rockies Rusty Williams 1945 Wagon Wheels Westward Bob Adams 1946 Days of Buffalo Bill Jim Owens 1946 King of the Forest Rangers Hale - Forest Ranger at Assayer's Office Serial, [Ch. 11], Uncredited1946 Conquest of Cheyenne Tom Dean 1947 Bells of San Angelo Rider Uncredited1948 Oklahoma Badlands Ken Rawlins 1948 Partners of the Sunset Dan Thompson 1948 Son of God's Country Frank Thornton 1949 Masked Raiders Luke Trevitt He starred in an episode of The Cisco Kid.
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