Lee Van Cleef
Acting
Born January 9, 1925 · Somerville, New Jersey, USA
Clarence LeRoy "Lee" Van Cleef Jr. (January 9, 1925 – December 16, 1989) was an American actor best known for his roles in Spaghetti Westerns such as For A Few Dollars More and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Hatchet-faced with piercing eyes, he had declined to have his nose altered to play a sympathetic character in his film debut, High Noon, and was relegated to a non-speaking outlaw as a result. For a decade he was typecast as a minor villain, his sinister features overshadowing his acting skills. After suffering serious injuries in a car crash, Van Cleef began to lose interest in his apparently waning career by the time Sergio Leone gave him a major role in For a Few Dollars More. The film made him a box-office draw, especially in Europe. Despite suffering from heart disease from the late 1970s and having a pacemaker installed in the early 1980s, Van Cleef continued to work in films until his death on December 16, 1989, at age 64. He was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Hollywood Hills, California, with an inscription on his grave marker referring to his many acting performances as a villain: "BEST OF THE BAD".
Films (92)
The Conqueror: Hollywood Fallout
2024
Peter Baumgartner, Filmkameramann
2014
Klaus Kinski: I'm not an actor
2000
Thieves of Fortune
1990
Speed Zone
1989
The Commander
1988
Armed Response
1986
Jungle Raiders
1985
The Master Ninja 5
1985
Code Name: Wild Geese
1984
Killing Machine
1984
Master Ninja
1984
Master Ninja II
1984
Escape from New York
1981
The Octagon
1980
The Hard Way
1980
When the West Was Fun: A Western Reunion
1979
The Squeeze
1978
The Perfect Killer
1977
Nowhere to Hide
1977
Kid Vengeance
1976
God's Gun
1976
Take a Hard Ride
1975
The Stranger and the Gunfighter
1974
Mean Frank and Crazy Tony
1973
The Grand Duel
1972
The Magnificent Seven Ride!
1972
Captain Apache
1971
Bad Man's River
1971
Return of Sabata
1971
Barquero
1970
El Condor
1970
Sabata
1969
Commandos
1968
Beyond the Law
1968
Day of Anger
1967
Death Rides a Horse
1967
The Big Gundown
1967
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
1966
For a Few Dollars More
1965
How the West Was Won
1962
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
1962
Posse from Hell
1961
The Slowest Gun in the West
1960
Ride Lonesome
1959
Guns, Girls and Gangsters
1959
Machete
1958
The Bravados
1958
The Young Lions
1958
Day of the Badman
1958
The Tin Star
1957
Raiders of Old California
1957
Joe Dakota
1957
Gun Battle at Monterey
1957
The Quiet Gun
1957
Last Stagecoach West
1957
The Lonely Man
1957
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
1957
China Gate
1957
The Badge of Marshal Brennan
1957
Accused of Murder
1956
Pardners
1956
It Conquered the World
1956
Tribute to a Bad Man
1956
The Conqueror
1956
The Vanishing American
1955
A Man Alone
1955
The Naked Street
1955
The Road to Denver
1955
I Cover the Underworld
1955
The Big Combo
1955
Ten Wanted Men
1955
Treasure of Ruby Hills
1955
Dawn at Socorro
1954
Princess of the Nile
1954
The Desperado
1954
The Yellow Tomahawk
1954
Arrow In The Dust
1954
Rails Into Laramie
1954
Gypsy Colt
1954
The Nebraskan
1953
Tumbleweed
1953
Jack Slade
1953
Vice Squad
1953
Arena
1953
The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms
1953
White Lightning
1953
The Bandits of Corsica
1953
The Lawless Breed
1952
Kansas City Confidential
1952
Untamed Frontier
1952
High Noon
1952