Biography
Barton MacLane graduated from Wesleyan University, where he displayed a notable aptitude for sports, in particular football and basketball. Not surprisingly, his physical prowess led to an early role in The Quarterback (1926) with Richard Dix. MacLane once commented that, as an actor, he needed to have the physical strength to tear the bad guys "from limb to limb", if necessary. Ironically, it was usually Barton himself who was destined to be at the end of a hiding (when not getting shot, instea...
Known For
Complete Filmography

Bogart: The Untold Story
1997
as Self (archive footage)
Stephen H. Bogart narrates the rise to fame of his father, Humphrey Bogart through the use of film clips, written material and interviews of friends a...

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
1983
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Out-takes (mostly from Warner Bros.), promotional shorts, movie premieres, public service pleas, wardrobe tests, documentary material, and archival fo...

It's Showtime
1976
as Self (archive footage)
A collection of film clips profiling animal actors.

Buckskin
1968
as Dr. H. 'Doc' Raymond
A Montana marshal fights a land baron out to parch homesteaders with a spite dam.

Arizona Bushwhackers
1968
as Sheriff Grover
During the Civil War, a Confederate spy takes a job as marshal of a small western town as a cover for his espionage activities. However, he soon finds...

Town Tamer
1965
as James Fell
A gunfighter is hired to clean up a wild frontier town, but there are forces afoot who want to keep the town as wide-open as it is. Lyle Bettger, Bruc...

The Rounders
1965
as Tanner
Ben (Glenn Ford) and Marion (Henry Fonda) are two cowboys who make a meager living breaking wild horses. Their frequent employer Jim (Chill Wills), wh...

Law of the Lawless
1964
as Big Tom Stone
A former gunfighter, now a circuit court judge, faces his father's killer in a small post-Civil War Kansas town.

Pocketful of Miracles
1961
as Police Commissioner
A New York gangster and his girlfriend attempt to turn street beggar Apple Annie into a society lady when the peddler learns her daughter is marrying ...

Noose for a Gunman
1960
as Carl Avery
Case Britton, gunslinger and wanted man, comes to town to meet his bride-to-be, stop a stagecoach robbery, and get even with the man who killed his br...

Gunfighters of Abilene
1960
as Seth
A gunman receives a request for help from his brother, but arrives too late to save him from the lawless rancher who wanted him dead.

The Geisha Boy
1958
as Major Ridgley
Gilbert Wooley is a second-rate magician who is sent to entertain the troops in the pacific. During his time in Japan he becomes attached to a little ...

Frontier Gun
1958
as Simon Crayle
Small-town sheriff discovers that gun-fighting is the only way to clean up the town.

Girl on the Run
1958
as Francis J. Brannigan
A Hollywood private eye (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) seeks a singer being stalked by a hired killer.

Girl in the Woods
1958
as Big Jim
Lumbering tale of lumbermen challenging the ownership of valuable woodlands.

Naked In The Sun
1957
as Wilson
In the 1830s a Florida slave trader captures the wife of Chief Osceola, setting off a war between the Seminoles and the U.S. Army.

Sierra Stranger
1957
as Lem Gotch
A prospector becomes a small town outcast after he rescues a man about to be lynched.

Hell's Crossroads
1957
as Clyde O'Connell
An imprisoned gunfighter must scatter to elude the authorities. Outlaws Bob Ford (Robert Vaughn) and Vic Rodell (Stephen McNally) are nabbed, but the ...

Three Violent People
1956
as Yates
A rancher, his shady bride and his one-armed brother fight amid carpetbaggers in Texas.

Naked Gun
1956
as Joe Barnum
Don Pablo Salazar steals a fortune in jewels from an Indian tribe and an Aztec medicine man puts a curse on the jewels until they are returned. Years ...

The Man Is Armed
1956
as Det. Lt. Dan Coster
Crime drama in which a man unknowingly helps a gang pull off a big heist. The gang discovers that the man is more trouble than he is worth and as a re...

Wetbacks
1956
as Karl Shanks
Former Coastguardsmen Jim Benson is about to lose his boat when a couple approaches him for a fishing charter. Jim departs just ahead of the Sherrif w...

Backlash
1956
as Sergeant George Lake
Jim Slater's father (whom he never knew) died in the Apache ambush at Gila Valley, and Jim is searching for the one survivor, who supposedly went for ...

Jaguar
1956
as Steve Bailey
Oil explorers suspect a South American jungle boy of murder.

Last of the Desperados
1955
as Mosby, Gang Leader
After killing Billy the Kid, Sheriff Pat Garrett is relentlessly dogged by members of the Kid's gang.

Jail Busters
1955
as Captain Jenkins
Slip and Sach go to prison to help a reporter with a story.

Foxfire
1955
as Jim Mablett
A part-Indian mining engineer looks for gold in an Arizona ghost town with his socialite bride.

The Silver Star
1955
as Henry 'Tiny' Longtree
A third generation deputy sheriff doubts whether or not he has the guts for the job that killed both his father and grandfather. His doubts are re-enf...

Treasure of Ruby Hills
1955
as Chalk Reynolds
Ranchers battle one another over water rights. Western.

Hell's Outpost
1954
as Sheriff Olson
A returning Korean War vet becomes embroiled in a fight over possession of a tungsten mine.

Jubilee Trail
1954
as Deacon Bartlett
A wild-west trader and his New York wife head out for the California by wagon train. The trader is killed enroute, and his wife finds herself with chi...

Rails Into Laramie
1954
as Lee Graham
A federal agent arrives in Laramie to try to find out who is behind the efforts to stop the construction of a new railroad track.

The Glenn Miller Story
1954
as General Arnold
A vibrant tribute to one of America's legendary bandleaders, charting Glenn Miller's rise from obscurity and poverty to fame and wealth in the early 1...

Jack Slade
1953
as Jules Reni
A young boy witnesses his father murdered by bandits and grows into adulthood vowing revenge.

Sea of Lost Ships
1953
as Capt. Jack Matthews
The son of a deceased Coast Guard hero is raised by a Coast Guard NCO, who also has a son the same age. When they get older both are accepted into the...

Captain Scarface
1953
as Captain Scarface
A group of communist spies plan to blow up an essential commercial artery, the Panama Canal. To this end, they have kidnapped a nuclear scientist and ...

Cow Country
1953
as Marvin Parker
A hired hand gets caught between a noble rancher and ruthless land grabbers.

Kansas Pacific
1953
as Cal Bruce
Just before the Civil War (but after the South has seceded), Southern saboteurs try to prevent railroad construction from crossing Kansas to the front...

Thunderbirds
1952
as Sgt. Durkee
An Oklahoma National Guard unit, comprised mainly of Native Americans, is called up for duty at the start of World War II.

The Half-Breed
1952
as Marshal Cassidy
An Apache of mixed blood tries to make peace between Indians and whites.

Bugles in the Afternoon
1952
as Capt. Myles Moylan
Old enemies stationed together at an Army post vie for the same woman.

Drums in the Deep South
1951
as Sgt. Mac McCardle
Two old friends find themselves on opposite sides during the Civil War in a desperate battle atop an impregnable mountain.

Best of the Badmen
1951
as Joad
After the North defeats the South, Union Maj. Jeff Clanton heads to Missouri to provide the Confederacy's Quantrill's Raiders a chance to claim allegi...

The Bandit Queen
1950
as Sheriff Jim Harden
Zara Montalve, half Spanish and half America, returns to her native California in time to see her parents murdered for their hacienda and gold by Sher...

Let's Dance
1950
as Larry Channock
Years after the death of her husband, Kitty McNeil takes her son and flees from the home of her wealthy and controlling mother-in-law. Alone and joble...

Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
1950
as Lieutenant John Reece
Ralph Cotter, a ruthless criminal, escapes violently from a farm prison. Then, he seduces a dead inmate’s sister, gets back quickly into the crime bus...

Red Light
1949
as Detective Strecker
Nick Cherney, in prison for embezzling from Torno Freight Co., sees a chance to get back at Johnny Torno through his young priest brother Jess. He pay...

The Walls of Jericho
1948
as Rufus J. "Gotch" McCurdy
In a small town in Kansas, a county attorney in an unhappy marriage falls in love with another woman.

Angel in Exile
1948
as Max Giorgio
An ex-convict on his way to make his fortune in a gold mine in Arizona has his trip interrupted when the residents of a small Mexican village believe ...

Unknown Island
1948
as Capt. Tarnowski
Adventure-seeker Ted Osborne has convinced his finacee Carole to finance his expedition to an uncharted South Pacific island supposedly populated with...

Relentless
1948
as Tex Brandow
A man wrongly accused of murder tracks the true culprit across the desert.

The Dude Goes West
1948
as Texas Jack Barton
Daniel Bone is aiming for success. A Brooklyn gunsmith by trade, he figures the place to be is where the guns are. So off he goes into the West and be...

Silver River
1948
as 'Banjo' Sweeney
Unjustly booted out of the cavalry, Mike McComb strikes out for Nevada, and deciding never to be used again, ruthlessly works his way up to becoming o...

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
1948
as Pat McCormick
Two jobless Americans convince a prospector to travel to the mountains of Mexico with them in search of gold. But the hostile wilderness, local bandit...

Jungle Flight
1947
as Case Hagin
Kelly Jordan and Andy Melton are former AAF fliers operating a cargo service over the South American mountain ranges in order to get enough money to r...

Cheyenne
1947
as Webb Yancey
Slick gambler James Wylie is apprehended by the law and given the option to forgo a prison sentence if he poses as a bandit. His mission is to uncover...

Tarzan and the Huntress
1947
as Paul Weir
A shortage of zoo animals after World War II brings beautiful animal trainer Tanya, her financial backer and her cruel trail boss to the jungle. After...

San Quentin
1946
as Nick Taylor
An ex-con sets up a program to straighten out hard-core prisoners. Things don't go as planned.

Santa Fe Uprising
1946
as Crawford
The Duchess, the aunt of Red Ryder, comes to town to protect her property. Crawford, a town big-shot behind an outlaw gang, tries to prevent her from ...

Mysterious Intruder
1946
as Detective Taggart
A private detective is hired to find a young heiress but finds himself accused of murder.

The Spanish Main
1945
as Capt. Benjamin Black
Laurent van Horn is the leader of a band of Dutch refugees on a ship seeking freedom in the Carolinas, when the ship is wrecked on the coast of Cartag...

Scared Stiff
1945
as George 'Deacon' Markham
A meek reporter happens upon a murder, an escaped gangster and a stolen jade chess set.

Tarzan and the Amazons
1945
as Ballister
A group of archaeologists asks Tarzan to help them find an ancient city in a hidden valley of women. He refuses, but Boy is tricked into doing the job...

Gentle Annie
1944
as Sheriff Tatum
The Goss family live on a farm they call the dust bowl where the wind blows during the day and the coyotes howl at night. When the train is robbed, ev...

Cry of the Werewolf
1944
as Lt. Barry Lane
A young gypsy girl turns into a wolf to destroy her enemies.

Secret Command
1944
as Red Kelly
Sam Gallagher returns home to Los Angeles as an undercover spy for the Navy, getting a job at the shipyards where his brother, Jeff, is a foreman. Jef...

Marine Raiders
1944
as Sgt. Maguire
A Marine major (Pat O'Brien) looks out for his captain (Robert Ryan) on Guadalcanal and in Australia.

The Mummy's Ghost
1944
as Inspector Walgreen
An Egyptian high priest travels to America to reclaim the bodies of ancient Egyptian princess Ananka and her living guardian mummy Kharis. Learning th...

Nabonga
1944
as Carl Hurst
When a treasure hunter seeks a downed airplane in the jungles of Africa, he encounters one of the passenger's young daughter, now fully grown, and wit...

The Crime Doctor’s Strangest Case
1943
as Detective Rief
The Crime Doctor gets involved in the case of the poisoning of a wealthy industrialist.

The Underdog
1943
as John Tate
During WWII, a strong-willed 12-year-old boy tries to steer his vocationally and maritally confused father straight, at the same time striving to keep...

Song of Texas
1943
as Jim Calvert
A man of no worth brags to his daughter back East that he is rich and owns a big ranch. When she decides to pay a visit to her father, Roy and his bud...

Bombardier
1943
as Archie Dixon
A documentary/drama about the training of bombardiers during WWII. Major Chick Davis proves to the U.S. Army the superiority of high altitude precisio...

Man of Courage
1943
as John Wallace
A crusading district attorney tries to stop a local mob boss who has connections in high places.

Man of Courage
1943
Story, Screenplay
A crusading district attorney tries to stop a local mob boss who has connections in high places.

Highways by Night
1942
as Leo Bronson
A young millionaire (Richard Carlson) joins the real world and meets a maid (Jane Randolph) and mobsters.

The Big Street
1942
as Case Ables
Meek busboy Little Pinks is in love with an extremely selfish nightclub singer who despises and uses him.

All Through the Night
1942
as Marty Callahan
Broadway gamblers stumble across a plan by Nazi saboteurs to blow up an American battleship.

The Maltese Falcon
1941
as Lt. of Detectives Dundy
A private detective takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a beautiful liar, and their quest for a priceless statuette.

Wild Geese Calling
1941
as Pirate Kelly
In the 1890s lumberjack John leaves Seattle for Alaska to look for gold. After he marries dancehall girl Sally, he finds she used to be in love with h...

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
1941
as Sam Higgins
Dr. Jekyll believes good and evil exist in everyone and creates a potion that allows his evil side, Mr. Hyde, to come to the fore. He faces horrible c...

Manpower
1941
as Smiley Quinn
Hank McHenry and Johnny Marshall work as power company linesmen. Hank is injured in an accident and subsequently promoted to foreman of the gang. Tens...

Hit the Road
1941
as James J. Ryan
Kids look to get revenge when their fathers are all killed in a mob war.

Barnacle Bill
1941
as John Kelly
A fishing boat captain searches for romance in hopes of improving his financial picture.

Western Union
1941
as Jack Slade
When Edward Creighton leads the construction of the Western Union to unite East with West, he hires a Western reformed outlaw and a tenderfoot Eastern...

Come Live with Me
1941
as Barney Grogan
Seeking US citizenship, a Viennese refugee arranges a marriage of convenience with a struggling writer.

High Sierra
1941
as Jake Kranmer
Given a pardon from jail, Roy Earle gets back into the swing of things as he robs a swanky resort.

Melody Ranch
1940
as Mark Wildhack
His Arizona hometown of Torpedo invites Gene back to be the honorary sheriff of the Frontier Days Celebration.

The Secret Seven
1940
as Sam O'Donnell
Scientists assembled to prove their methods are effective in criminal investigation try to solve a series of murders.

Men Without Souls
1940
as Blackie Drew
A prison chaplain (John Litel) rescues a young convict (Glenn Ford) on a misguided mission of revenge.

Gangs of Chicago
1940
as Jim Ramsey
A criminal uses his knowledge of the law for his not-very-legal purposes, betraying friends along the way.

Breakdowns of 1939
1939
as Self
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1939.

Mutiny in the Big House
1939
as Red Manson
A young man forges a check in order to help his mother, but is caught and sentenced to 14 years in prison...

Torchy Runs for Mayor
1939
as Steve McBride
Torchy conducts a one woman campaign against a corrupt mayor and crime boss, and when the reform candidate is murdered, she takes up the banner.

Big Town Czar
1939
as Phil Daley
When gangster Phil Daley gets rid of his chief Paul Burgess he has everything that money can buy, except the respect of his parents and his sweetheart...
I Was a Convict
1939
as Ace King
In this crime drama a wealthy business tycoon serves a sentence for tax fraud. While there he becomes good friends with his cellmates and after they a...

Torchy Blane in Chinatown
1939
as Det. Lt. Steve 'Mac' McBride
Torchy Blane joins her police-detective fiance to solve a series of murders involving a set of Chinese grave tablets taken and sold to a collector and...

Stand Up and Fight
1939
as Crowder
A southern aristocrat clashes with a driver transporting stolen slaves to freedom.

Torchy Gets Her Man
1938
as Detective Steve McBride
A notorious counterfeiter passes himself off as a Secret Service agent to Steve and gets him to unwittingly help him bilk the racetrack out of tens of...

The Storm
1938
as Captain Cogswell
A passenger ship unexpectedly runs into a typhoon.

Prison Break
1938
as Joaquin Shannon
Story of a tuna fisherman who has been wrongfully convicted of a murder he did not commit. His exemplary behavior in prison ensures that he is up for ...

You and Me
1938
as Mickey
Mr. Morris, the owner of a large metropolitan department store, gives jobs to paroled ex-convicts in an effort to help them reform and go straight. Am...

Gold Is Where You Find It
1938
as Slag Martin
Colonel Ferris, a wealthy farmer in northern California, is strongly opposed to hydraulic mining, a new method developed during the gold rush of the 1...

The Kid Comes Back
1938
as Gunner Malone
A ring veteran turns a Texas tenderfoot into a winning fighter.

Blondes at Work
1938
as Lt. Steve McBride
When a rival newspaper publisher complains to his captain about possible collusion between himself and reporter Torchy Blane on scooping her rivals in...

Breakdowns of 1937
1937
as Self
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1937.

The Adventurous Blonde
1937
as Det. Lt. Steve McBride
The third of nine Torchy Blane movies. Angry that police detective Steve McBride (Barton MacLane) is giving preferential treatment to his reporter-fi...

Wine, Women and Horses
1937
as Jim Turner
An ex-gambler hooks up with an old flame after his old habit resurfaces and drives off his wife.

Ever Since Eve
1937
as Al McCoy
Madge Winton, a beautiful secretary, makes herself look homely in order to avoid advances by lecherous bosses. When her new employer, writer Freddy Ma...

Born Reckless
1937
as Jim Barnes
Racketeer Jim Barnes is trying to force the independent taxicab-drivers to join his "protection service" at the cost of five bucks a day. Champion rac...

Fly Away Baby
1937
as Steve McBride
Torchy Blane solves a murder and smuggling case during a round-the-world flight.

San Quentin
1937
as Lt. Druggin
Ex-Army officer Jameson takes a job a prison guard at San Quentin. Joe, the brother of his new girlfriend May, is sentenced to the prison for robbery....

Draegerman Courage
1937
as Andrew Beaupre
After a mine cave in, the rescue crew risks their lives to search for two trapped miners.

The Prince and the Pauper
1937
as John Canty
Two boys – the prince Edward and the pauper Tom – are born on the same day. Years later, when young teenage Tom sneaks into the palace garden, he meet...

You Only Live Once
1937
as Stephen Whitney
Based partially on the story of Bonnie and Clyde, Eddie Taylor is an ex-convict who cannot get a break after being released from prison. When he is fr...

God's Country and the Woman
1937
as Bullhead
Hard-nosed Jefferson Russett runs a logging company; his brother, Steve, is the prodigal son. Steve becomes stranded on the competition's property and...

Smart Blonde
1937
as Steve McBride
Ambitious reporter Torchy Blane guides her policeman boyfriend to correctly pinpoint who shot the man she was interviewing.

Breakdowns of 1936
1936
as Self
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1936.

Jailbreak
1936
as Detective Captain Rourke
A reporter gets himself sent to prison so he can solve a murder behind bars.

Bengal Tiger
1936
as Cliff Ballenger
After causing his friend's death, an animal trainer marries the man's daughter to atone.

Bullets or Ballots
1936
as Al Kruger
After Police Captain Dan McLaren becomes police commissioner, former detective Johnny Blake publicly punches him, convincing rackets boss Al Kruger th...

Times Square Playboy
1936
as Casey (Vic's Butler/Trainer)
A stock broker's small-town best friend thinks the bride-to-be and her family are gold-diggers so he does everything he can to prevent the wedding.

The Walking Dead
1936
as Loder
Down-on-his-luck John Ellman is framed for a judge's murder. After he's convicted and sentenced to death, witnesses come forth and prove his innocence...

Ceiling Zero
1936
as Al Stone
War veteran pilots Dizzy Davis, Texas Clark and Jake Lee are working in an airline. Dizzy is fooling with one of the younger pilot's girl-friend and d...

A Dream Comes True
1935
as Himself (uncredited)
A promotional short to hype the production of A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935).

Man of Iron
1935
as Chris Bennett
A construction company foreman's life changes--not necessarily for the better--when he is promoted to an executive position.

Frisco Kid
1935
as Spider Burke
After a roustabout sailor avoids being shanghaied in 1850s San Francisco, his audacity helps him rise to a position of power in the vice industry of t...

I Found Stella Parish
1935
as Clifton Jeffords
A blackmailer preys on an actress who is trying to protect her daughter from her past.

Dr. Socrates
1935
as Red Bastian
Dr. Socrates gave up his brilliant career as surgeon in a prominent hospital because his betrothed died under his knife. He is now a struggling doctor...

The Case of the Lucky Legs
1935
as Bisonette
A con man who stages phony "lucky legs" beauty contests and leaves town with the money is found with a surgical knife in his heart by Mason.

Page Miss Glory
1935
as Blackie
A country girl goes to the city and gets a job in a posh hotel, and winds up becoming an instant celebrity thanks to an ambitious photographer.

Stranded
1935
as Sharkey
A Traveler's Aid worker who delights in solving people's problems gets mixed up with gangsters.

Black Fury
1935
as McGee
A simple Pennsylvania coal miner is drawn into the violent conflict between union workers and management.

'G' Men
1935
as Collins
James “Brick” Davis, a struggling attorney, owes his education to a mobster, but always has refused to get involved with the underworld. When a friend...

Go Into Your Dance
1935
as Duke Hutchinson
An irresponsible Broadway star gets mixed up with gambling and gangsters.

The Case of the Curious Bride
1935
as Detective Lucas
After giving the District Attorney another stinging defeat, Perry plans to take a vacation in China. That is, he was, until Rhoda, his old flame, meet...

The Last Round-up
1934
as Charley Benson
Randolph Scott plays Jim Cleve, one of several volunteers keeping the US-Mexican border safe on behalf of American settlers. Ostensibly the hero, Clev...

All of Me
1934
as First Cop (uncredited)
A professor tires of the direction his life is going and wants to move west, but his girlfriend doesn't understand why he is so dissatisfied.

Lone Cowboy
1933
as Policeman Baxter
Young Scooter O’Neal, orphaned after his father’s suicide, is sent out West to live with family friend Dobe Jones. Unaware of his father’s fate Scoote...

Big Executive
1933
as Harry the Guide
Big Executive

Tillie and Gus
1933
as Commissioner McLennan
Tillie and Augustus Winterbottom are thought to be missionaries when they arrive to find Phineas Pratt trying cheat the Sheridans out of her father's ...

To the Last Man
1933
as Neil Stanley
In Kentucky just after the Civil War, the Hayden-Colby feud leads to Jed Colby being sent to prison for 15 years for murder. The Haydens head for Neva...

Man of the Forest
1933
as Mulvey
Beasley, who is after Gayner's land, plans to kidnap his daughter. But Dale overhears their plan and kidnaps her himself. When Gayner arrives to retri...

Let's Dance
1933
Sailor George and his pals visit the Roseland Dance Hall, where funny things happen between conversations with dizzy hostess Gracie.

Buffalo Stampede
1933
as Henchman Pruitt
A buffalo hunter tries to stop a thief and his minions from stealing hides.
The Acid Test
1932
George Shelton asks Tom Howard to help him impress his girl as a he-man. Howard is to insult him, and then Shelton comes up and punches out Howard. Th...
Naughty-Cal
1932
as Sailor
A pair of borrowed pants are an obstacle to a sailor's romance.

His Woman
1931
as Crewman
Tough Caribbean freighter Captain Sam Whelan engages Sally Clark, a tramp masquerading as a missionary's daughter, to care for an abandoned baby on bo...

The Gigolo Racket
1931
as Cafe Customer
As a publicity stunt, a musical comedy star announces her engagement to a young man she believes is a gigolo, with whom she eventually falls in love.

Crimes Square
1931
as Detective with Handcuffs
When a crook decides to go straight, his jealous cast off moll exposes him to the police.
Politics
1930
An ambitious campaign manager makes friends, influences people and welcomes his long-lost mother to Ellis Island.

The Cocoanuts
1929
as Bather
During the Florida land boom, the Marx Brothers run a hotel, auction off some land and thwart a jewel robbery.

The Quarterback
1926
as Football Player (uncredited)
Elmer Stone, quarterback of the 1899 Colton College football team vows to remain a student until Colton beats its biggest rival, State University. Twe...