Acting · Saginaw, Michigan, USA · Born April 10, 1891
One of the great stars of early American Westerns. McCoy was the son of an Irish soldier who later became police chief of Saginaw, Michigan, where McCoy was born. He attended St. Ignatius College in Chicago and after seeing a Wild West show there, left school and found work on a Wyoming ranch. He became an expert horseman and roper and developed a keen knowledge of the ways and languages of the Indian tribes in the area. He competed in numerous rodeos, then enlisted in the U.S. Army when America entered the First World War. He was commissioned and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel. At the end of World War I, he returned to his ranch in Wyoming, only to be called by Governor Bob Carry to the post of Adjutant General of Wyoming, a position he held until 1921. The position carried with it the rank of Brigadier General (a brevet promotion) and it has been reported that this made him the youngest general officer in the U.S. Army. His reputation as a friend to the Wind River Reservation Indians, both Arapahoe and Shoshone, preceded him and in 1922, he was asked by the head of Famous Players-Lasky, Jesse L. Lasky, to provide Indian extras for the Western extravaganza, The Covered Wagon (1923). He resigned from the state position and recruited several hundred Indians to the Utah movie location. When the film wrapped, he was asked to choose several Indians to accompany him to Hollywood. There the production company developed a live 'prologue' to be presented just prior to the movie showing. The idea was a success and McCoy and his Indian group toured the U.S. and eventually, Europe as well. After touring this country and Europe with the Indians as publicity, McCoy returned to Hollywood and used his connections to obtain further work in the movies, both as a technical advisor and eventually as an actor. MGM speedily signed him to a contract to star in a series of Westerns and McCoy rapidly rose to stardom, making scores of Westerns and occasional non-Westerns. He retired from the army and from films after the war, but emerged in the late 1940s for a few more films and some television work. In 1942 he ran for the Republican Nomination for the U.S. Senate in Wyoming. He was defeated and returned to Hollywood and an uncertain future. In 1946 he sold his Wyoming ranch and moved to Bucks County, Pennsylvania and the life of the gentleman farmer. While living there, he met and married Danish writer Inga Arvad. He later built a home in Nogales, Arizona where Inga subsequently died in 1973. He spent his later years as a retired rancher. He died at the U.A. Army hospital at Ft. Hauchuca, Arizona on January 29 1978 at the age of 86. Inducted into the Cowboy Hall of Fame in 1974. During World War I, he served as an artillery officer in the US Army in France. Spouse Inga Arvad (1945 - 1973) (her death) Alice Miller (? - 1931) (divorced) (3 children)
MovieMeanwhile, Back at the Ranch
1976
as (archive footage)
MovieHollywood: The Dream Factory
1972
as Self (archive footage)
MovieRequiem for a Gunfighter
1965
as Judge Irving Short
MovieRun of the Arrow
1957
as Gen. Allen (as Colonel Tim McCoy)
MovieAround the World in 80 Days
1956
as Colonel
MovieInjun Talk
1946
as Himself
MovieWest of the Law
1942
as Marshal Tim McCall
MovieRiders of the West
1942
as Marshal Tim McCall
MovieDown Texas Way
1942
as U. S. Marshal Tim McCall
MovieGhost Town Law
1942
as Marshal Tim McCall
MovieBelow the Border
1942
as Marshal Tim McCall
MovieForbidden Trails
1941
as Marshal Tim McCall
MovieThe Gunman From Bodie
1941
as Marshal Tim McCall
MovieArizona Bound
1941
as Tim McCall
MovieThe Texas Marshal
1941
as Marshal Trigger Tim Rand
MovieOutlaws of the Rio Grande
1941
as Tim Barton
MovieRiders of Black Mountain
1940
as Marshal Tim Donovan
MovieArizona Gang Busters
1940
as Trigger Tim Rand
MovieGun Code
1940
as Marshal Tim Hammond posing as Tim Hays
MovieFrontier Crusader
1940
as Trigger Tim Rand
MovieTexas Renegades
1940
as 'Silent' Tim Smith
MovieTrigger Fingers
1939
as 'Lightning' Bill Carson
MovieThe Fighting Renegade
1939
as Bill Carson posing as El Puma
MovieStraight Shooter
1939
as "Lightning" Bill Carson
MovieOutlaws' Paradise
1939
as William Carson / Trigger Mallory
MovieTexas Wildcats
1939
as 'Lightning' Bill Carson
MovieCode of the Cactus
1939
as Bill Carson
MovieSix-Gun Trail
1938
as Captain William Carson
MovieLightning Carson Rides Again
1938
as Lightning Bill Carson / Jose
MoviePhantom Ranger
1938
as Tim Hayes
MovieTwo Gun Justice
1938
as Tim
MovieCode of the Rangers
1938
as Tim Strong
MovieWest of Rainbow's End
1938
as Tim Hart
MovieThe Traitor
1936
as Tim McCoy: Sergeant Tim Vallance - Texas Ranger
MovieGhost Patrol
1936
as Tim Caverly
MovieThe Lion's Den
1936
as Tim Barton
MovieAces and Eights
1936
as Tim Madigan
MovieLightnin' Bill Carson
1936
as Marshal Lightnin' Bill Carson
MovieBorder Caballero
1936
as Tim Ross
MovieRoarin' Guns
1936
as Tim Corwin
MovieBulldog Courage
1935
as Slim Braddock / Tim Braddock
MovieThe Man from Guntown
1935
as Tim Hanlon
MovieRiding Wild
1935
as Tim Malloy / Tex Ravelle
MovieThe Outlaw Deputy
1935
as Tim Mallory
MovieJustice of the Range
1935
as Tim Condon
MovieFighting Shadows
1935
as Constable Tim O'Hara
MovieThe Revenge Rider
1935
as Tim O'Neil
MovieLaw Beyond the Range
1935
as Tim McDonald
MovieSquare Shooter
1935
as Tim Baxter
MovieThe Westerner
1934
as Tim Addison
MovieThe Prescott Kid
1934
as Tim Hamlin
MovieBeyond the Law
1934
as Tim Weston
MovieA Man's Game
1934
as Tim Bradley
MovieHell Bent for Love
1934
as Police Captain Tim Daley
MovieVoice in the Night
1934
as Tim Dale
MovieSpeed Wings
1934
as Tim
MovieStraightaway
1933
as Tim Dawson
MovieHold the Press
1933
as Tim Collins
MoviePolice Car 17
1933
as Tim Conlon
MovieRusty Rides Alone
1933
as Tim Burke
MovieThe Whirlwind
1933
as Tim Reynolds
MovieSilent Men
1933
as Tim Richards
MovieMan Of Action
1933
as Ranger Tim Barlow
MovieEnd of the Trail
1932
as Captain Tim Travers
MovieThe Western Code
1932
as Tim Barrett
MovieFighting for Justice
1932
as Tim Keene
MovieCornered
1932
as Sheriff Tim Laramie
MovieDaring Danger
1932
as Tim Madigan
MovieTwo-Fisted Law
1932
as Tim Clark
MovieHollywood on Parade
1932
as Self
MovieThe Riding Tornado
1932
as Tim Torrant
MovieTexas Cyclone
1932
as Texas Grant
MovieThe Fighting Fool
1932
as Sheriff Tim Collins
MovieThe Fighting Marshal
1931
as Tim Benton
MovieShotgun Pass
1931
as Tim Walker
MovieThe One Way Trail
1931
as Tim Allen
Heroes of the Flames
1931
as Bob Darrow
MovieThe Indians Are Coming
1930
as Jack Manning
MovieThe Desert Rider
1929
as Jed Tyler
MovieSioux Blood
1929
as Flood
MovieThe Overland Telegraph
1929
as Captain Allen
MovieMorgan's Last Raid
1929
as Capt. Daniel Clairbourne
The Bushranger
1928
as Edward
MovieBeyond the Sierras
1928
as The Masked Stranger
MovieThe Adventurer
1928
as Jim McClellan
Riders of the Dark
1928
as Lt. Crane
Wyoming
1928
as Lt. Jack Colton
MovieThe Law of the Range
1928
as Jim Lockhart
MovieSpoilers of the West
1927
as Lieutenant Lang
MovieForeign Devils
1927
as Capt. Robert Kelly
MovieThe Frontiersman
1927
as John Dale
MovieCalifornia
1927
as Capt. Archibald Gillespie
MovieWinners Of The Wilderness
1927
as Col. Sir Dennis O'Hara
MovieWar Paint
1926
as Lt. Tim Marshall
MovieThe Thundering Herd
1925
as Burn Hudnall
The Man Who Would Not Die
1924
