Jeffrey Hunter

Jeffrey Hunter was the stage name of Henry Herman McKinnies, Jr., an actor whose all too brief career initially showed tremendous star-making potential. Tall, blue-eyed, and magnetically handsome, Hunter was offered a studio contract by talent scouts at 20th Century Fox while studying at UCLA. Often appearing alongside such formidable leading men as Charlton Heston and John Wayne, Hunter's reputation as an appealing co-star grew in the 1950s. He took on memorable roles in three classic John Ford-directed westerns: 1956's "The Searchers," 1958's "The Last Hurrah," and 1960's "Sergeant Rutledge." While the parts proved his meddle as a leading man-in-the-making, Hunter's debut as a top-billed actor in the 1961 Biblical film "King of Kings" yielded mixed reviews, with many critics opining that the then 35 year-old actor looked too young for the part of Jesus. The scathing reviews took their toll, and Hunter scarcely found movie roles in Hollywood during the late 1960s, even going so far as to relocate to Europe for a time to work in B-westerns. In May 1969, Hunter died from a cerebral hemorrhage after suffering two strokes.