Cliff Lyons

Who was Cliff Lyons?

Clifford William Lyons was an American motion picture actor, stuntman and second unit director, primarily of Westerns and particularly the films of John Ford and John Wayne.

Lyons, the son of Garrett Thomas Lyons and Wilhamena Johnson Lyons, was raised on a South Dakota farm, though his family lived for a time in Memphis, Tennessee, where he attended business school. An expert horseman, Lyons gave up the notion of a business career and opted for the rodeo arena instead, touring nationwide and eventually reaching Los Angeles at the age of 21. Accomplished cowboys were in great demand for western films, and Lyons found a home in that genre, working both as a stuntman and an actor. After only a couple of bit parts, he was signed by producer Bud Barsky to do seven inexpensive Westerns directed by Paul Hurst, with Lyons and Al Hoxie alternating as the hero and the heavy. Lyons and Hoxie alternated in another Western series produced by Morris R. Schlank and, as Cliff "Tex" Lyons, he seemed headed for minor stardom as a "B" western lead. Unfortunately, Lyons' voice was not well-suited for sound and the talkie revolution confined him to small roles.