R.G. Armstrong

Finally retiring after six successful decades in show business -- his last film appearance was Purgatory (1999) -- R. G. and his lovely wife Mary Craven were mostly just enjoying life in California, and still traveled and vacationed in Europe occasionally. His upbeat, fun-loving personality made him a delight for all who come in contact with him. R. G.

Even though he had a long, versatile career, the younger generation knows him as the demonic Lewis Vandredi (pronounced VON-drah-dee), who just would not let the main characters have a good night's sleep on the television series Friday the 13th: The Series (1987).

During the filming of Steel (1979) in Kentucky, watching the mammoth Kincaid Tower being built, he made some good friends in the cast: "You become a family on the set," he said in an interview at the time.

Was credited as R. K. Armstrong in the English-language version of My Name Is Nobody (1973) (My Name is Nobody).

Cat (1966), playing tough, one-handed Captain MacAllister.

After meeting writer / director Sam Peckinpah on the set of his 1960 series The Westerner (1960), Armstrong became a regular in his films--playing an outspoken Christian fundamentalist in Ride the High Country (1962), with Randolph Scott and Joel McCrea; a minister in Major Dundee (1965) with Charlton Heston in the title role; and a vicious deputy sheriff alongside Kris Kristofferson and Bob Dylan (in a small role) in Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (1973).

In 1958, R. G.

took the plunge to Hollywood -- he appeared in two movies, a television series, and did numerous guest appearances on television series that year, usually in Westerns such as The Rifleman (1958), Have Gun - Will Travel (1957) and Zane Grey Theater (1956), among others. He would go on to appear in 80 movies and three television series in his career, and guest-starred in 90 television series, many of them Westerns, often as a tough sheriff or a rugged land baron. R. G. was a regular cast member in the television series T. H. E.

He received great reviews for his portrayal of Big Daddy in the Broadway production of "Cat On a Hot Tin Roof" in 1955.

got his first taste of movies, appearing in Garden of Eden (1954). However, he returned to New York and the live stage.

In 1953, along with many of his Actors Studio buddies, he was part of the cast of "End As a Man" -- this became the first play to go from off-Broadway to Broadway. The following year, R. G.

Attended Lee Strasberg's Actors Studio in the mid-1950s.

A golden career was reflected in his name. Robert Golden Armstrong ("Bob" to his friends) was born in Birmingham, Alabama on April 7, 1917. He attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. While there, he was frequently performing on stage with the Carolina Playmakers. After graduating, R. G. headed to New York, where his acting career really took off.