Al Mulock
Al Mulock | |
|---|---|
 Al Mulock as "Knuckles" in Once Upon a Time in the West, 1968. | |
| Born | Alfred Mulock Rogers 30 June 1926 |
| Died | May 1968 (aged 41) |
| Cause of death | suicide |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1955-1968 |
| Known for | "One-armed bounty hunter" in The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly "Knuckles" in Once Upon a Time in the West |
| Spouse | Steffi Henderson (? - 1967; her death) |
| Children | Robin Mulock |
| Parent(s) | Adèle Cawthra Mulock Alfred Rogers |
| Relatives | Sir William Mulock (great grandfather) |
Alfred Mulock Rogers (30 June 1926 – May 1968), better known as Al Mulock or Al Mulloch, was a Canadian character actor.[1]
Early life
Alfred Mulock Rogers was born on 30 June 1926 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He was the only child of Adèle Cawthra Mulock (1904–1970) and Alfred Rogers. Maternally he was descended from the Mulock family, headed by Sir William Mulock KCMG, the former Postmaster-General of Canada and one of the wealthiest families in the then-Dominion of Canada.
Career
He attended the Lee Strasberg's Actors Studio in New York City, United States. Then, with David de Keyser, he started The London Studio, which taught method acting to British actors. Mulock became active in the British film industry in the 1950s and early 1960s, making numerous appearances in various British television series and films.
He is best known for his roles in Spaghetti Western films, most notably in his two collaborations with Sergio Leone, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and Once Upon a Time in the West.
Death
Mulock committed suicide by jumping from his hotel room in Guadix, Granada, Spain in May 1968, while filming for Once Upon a Time in the West. He was wearing his cowboy-style costume at the time of his fall. Mickey Knox, screenwriter for the film, and production manager Claudio Mancini witnessed Mulock's suicide as his body passed their hotel window near the end of the shoot. Mulock survived the fall, but suffered a pierced lung from a broken rib during the bumpy ride to the hospital. Before being taken away in the ambulance, director Sergio Leone shouted, "Get the costume, we need the costume."
The reasons for his suicide, as well as for his choice of killing himself while wearing his costume, are unknown. Though they had been separated for some time before her death, his wife had died the year before of cervical cancer. Mickey Knox also claimed in his book, The Good, the Bad and the Dolce Vita, that Mulock was a drug addict, and committed suicide out of desperation, as he was unable to acquire drugs in Guadix.[2]
Family
Al Mulock was the great-grandson of Sir William Mulock (1843–1944), the former Canadian Postmaster-General. He was married to actress Steffi Henderson, but she died in 1967 of cervical cancer. They had one child, Robin Mulock, who now goes under the name of Marcy Eclipse Neilson and lives in Rhode Island, United States.
Selected filmography
- Interpol (1957)
- Kill Me Tomorrow (1957)
- The One That Got Away (1957)
- High Hell (1958)
- Death Over My Shoulder (1958)
- Tarzan's Greatest Adventure (1959)
- Tarzan the Magnificent (1960)
- Jazz Boat (1960)
- The Mark (1961)
- The Hellions (1961)
- The Small World of Sammy Lee (1963)
- Call Me Bwana (1963)
- Lost Command (1966)
- The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
- Battle Beneath the Earth (1967)
- Day of Anger (1967)
- The Hellbenders (1967)
- Shoot Twice (1968)
- Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
References
- ^ "Al Mulock". The New York Times.
- ^ Knox, Mickey The Good, the Bad and the Dolce Vita: The Adventures of an Actor in Hollywood, Paris and Rome Nation Books March 25, 2004