Actor. He is best remembered for his portrayal of 'Captain Marvel' in the acclaimed 1941 movie serial "The Adventures of Captain Marvel." Born Vincent Markowski into a Polish-American family, he worked a number of strenuous jobs, including a coal miner and lumberjack, before arriving in Los Angeles, California and finding work as a movie extra and stuntman. In 1925, Film Booking Office (FBO) Pictures signed him to a contract and changed his name to Tom Tyler. He became one of the studio's most popular silent film action stars and initially made a smooth transition into talking pictures. He had a long career in films starting from the 1920s to the 1950s, with over 90 of them low-budget B-movie westerns for FBO and Reliable Pictures. He appeared a few prominent films, including "Cheyenne Rides Again" (1938), John Ford's "Stagecoach" (1939), "Gone With the Wind" (1939, uncredited), "The Mummy's Hand" (1940), "The Talk of the Town" (1942), "San Antonio" (1945), and "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" (1949). In the first film adaptation of a comic-strip superhero, he had the title role in the 1941 film serial "The Adventures of Captain Marvel," and starred in 13 films as 'Stone Brooke', one of "The Three Mesquiteers" in Republic Picture's series of western features. In 1943 he starred in his last major film "The Phantom," based on Lee Falk's famous comic strip. In the early 1950s he made a number of appearances in television series, including "The Lone Ranger," "Dick Tracy," "The Cisco Kid," "The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok," "Boston Blackie," "The Range Rider," and "The Gene Autry Show." In the later part of his career, he was plagued by rheumatoid arthritis, and was limited to occasional supporting roles. Nearly destitute, he returned to live with his sister near Detroit, Michigan, and died there of heart failure at the age of 50.
Actor. He is best remembered for his portrayal of 'Captain Marvel' in the acclaimed 1941 movie serial "The Adventures of Captain Marvel." Born Vincent Markowski into a Polish-American family, he worked a number of strenuous jobs, including a coal miner and lumberjack, before arriving in Los Angeles, California and finding work as a movie extra and stuntman. In 1925, Film Booking Office (FBO) Pictures signed him to a contract and changed his name to Tom Tyler. He became one of the studio's most popular silent film action stars and initially made a smooth transition into talking pictures. He had a long career in films starting from the 1920s to the 1950s, with over 90 of them low-budget B-movie westerns for FBO and Reliable Pictures. He appeared a few prominent films, including "Cheyenne Rides Again" (1938), John Ford's "Stagecoach" (1939), "Gone With the Wind" (1939, uncredited), "The Mummy's Hand" (1940), "The Talk of the Town" (1942), "San Antonio" (1945), and "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" (1949). In the first film adaptation of a comic-strip superhero, he had the title role in the 1941 film serial "The Adventures of Captain Marvel," and starred in 13 films as 'Stone Brooke', one of "The Three Mesquiteers" in Republic Picture's series of western features. In 1943 he starred in his last major film "The Phantom," based on Lee Falk's famous comic strip. In the early 1950s he made a number of appearances in television series, including "The Lone Ranger," "Dick Tracy," "The Cisco Kid," "The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok," "Boston Blackie," "The Range Rider," and "The Gene Autry Show." In the later part of his career, he was plagued by rheumatoid arthritis, and was limited to occasional supporting roles. Nearly destitute, he returned to live with his sister near Detroit, Michigan, and died there of heart failure at the age of 50.
Bio by: William Bjornstad
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