Gordon Mitchell
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Roles are weighted by involvement: director 1.0, screenwriter 0.7, lead 0.8, supporting 0.4, crew 0.1.
Gordon Mitchell was born "Charles Pendleton" in Colorado and served his country in both World War II and the Korean War (during which he was briefly a POW). Afterward he worked as a teacher in inner city schools in California and got heavily involved in personal fitness and bodybuilding. He became friends with Joe Gold (of Gold's Gym), joining Mae West's comedy act as one of her "strongmen" who would carry her on and off the stage. During this time he also found himself in demand as an extra in several Hollywood films including "Lil Abner", "The Enemy Below", and "The Ten Commandments" (in which he and Joe Gold bring Moses to Ramsey's court in chains). When the Peplum craze began in Italy and his fellow Muscle Beach star Steve Reeves became a huge star. Gordon (along with Reg Park, Mark Forrest, Brad Harris, Mickey Hargitay, and Richard Harrison) similarly jumped on the bandwagon and headed to Italy to find stardom and financially greener pastures. Thanks to his unconventional appearance (small, sharp eyes and craggy face) and enthusiasm for his work, Mitchell found himself one of the most in-demand performers in Italy's Sword & Sandal craze of the early 60's, working with several top directors including Marino Girolami, Alberto De Martino, and Michele Lupo. Unlike most of his peers who left Italy once the genre ran its course, Mitchell stayed on to play villains in numerous Spaghetti Westerns, Giallos, War Films, and Science Fiction movies. He also had a small but key role in the Elizabeth Taylor / Marlon Brandon vehicle "Reflections in a Golden Eye" (1967) during this time though perhaps his most prestigious role would be the rogue who helps the two protagonists kidnap the noble in Fellini's "Satyricon" (1969). Mitchell used his extra cash to buy and build his own movie studio (Cave Studios) which he single-handedly constructed outside of Rome. It went largely unused except by ultra-low budget director Demofilo Fidani who would often cast Mitchell as well. In the late 1980's when the Italian genre film industry had basically self-destructed, unable to compete with American films even for video rentals, Mitchell packed his bags and moved back to California. Once home, he re-teamed with old friend Joe Gold to manage World Gym, at which Mitchell acted as COO and lived at the top floor of its headquarters in Marina Del Rey. Continuing for years to act in low budget films purely for the fun of it, Mitchell passed away in his sleep at age 80 in 2003. Having just won the California recall election the day prior, Arnold Schwarzenegger took time out of his busy schedule to pay his respects at Mitchell's Memorial Service at the World Gym Headquarters along with many other bodybuilders who credit Mitchell with getting them into their careers.
Known for
Credits
Spartacus (1960)
as Gladiator (uncredited)
Rio Bravo (1959)
as Bar Cowboy Watching Fistfight (uncredited)
Around the World in 80 Days (1956)
as Extra (uncredited)
The Enemy Below (1957)
as German Sailor
The Man with the Golden Arm (1955)
Actor
The Spirit of St. Louis (1957)
as (uncredited)
The Young Lions (1958)
as Minor Role (uncredited)
Endgame (1983)
as Col. Morgan
Satyricon (1969)
as Il predone
Emmanuelle: Queen of Sados (1980)
as Robert
Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967)
as Stables Sergeant
Umbrella Coup (1980)
as Moskovitz, le tueur à gages
Beyond the Law (1968)
as Burton
I Am Sartana Your Angel of Death (1969)
as Degueyo
Achtung! The Desert Tigers (1977)
as Kommandant von Stolzen
Adios Compañeros (1971)
as Ironhead
Bikini Drive-In (1995)
as Goliath
Slaughter Day (1972)
as Gordon
The Doctor Prefers Sailors (1981)
as killer russo
The Crazy Westerners (1967)
as Bandit Leader
The Crucified Girls of San Ramon (1972)
as El Kadir
Kino kolossal - Herkules, Maciste & Co (2000)
as Self
Seven Times Seven (1968)
as Big Ben
The Fighting Fist of Shanghai Joe (1973)
as Burying Sam
The Fury of Achilles (1962)
as Achilles
The Giant of Metropolis (1961)
as Obro
Angel's Leap (1971)
as Henry Di Fusco
Star Pilot (1966)
as Murdu
Hercules and the Princess of Troy (1965)
as Pirate Captain
White Fire (1984)
as Olaf
The French Sex Murders (1972)
as Man in Nightclub
Coffin Full of Dollars (1971)
as John Hamilton
Lisa with the Blue Eyes (1969)
as Football player
The Killer Likes Candy (1968)
as Toni
Caesar Against the Pirates (1962)
as Hamar
Dead Men Don't Make Shadows (1970)
as Roger Murdock
Atlas Against the Cyclops (1961)
as Maciste
Vulcan, Son of Giove (1962)
as Pluto
Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks (1974)
as Igor
Kill or Be Killed (1966)
as Baltimore Joe/Ringo
The Mines of Kilimanjaro (1986)
as Rolf
Invasion 1700 (1962)
as Ulrich
Django and Sartana Are Coming... It's the End (1970)
as Black Burt Keller / Burt Kelly
The Yellow Panther (1982)
as killer
The Revenge of the Gladiators (1964)
as Arminio
Cross of the Seven Jewels (1987)
as Black Mass Leader
My Darling Slave (1973)
as Von Thirac
An Enraged New World (2002)
as General Murchison
Brennus, Enemy of Rome (1963)
as Brenno
Day of Judgment (1971)
as Deputy
Natascha - Todesgrüsse aus Moskau (1977)
as Gooming
Ora X Pattuglia Suicida (1969)
Actor
The Centurion (1961)
as General Metellus
His Name Was Pot, but They Called Him Allegria (1971)
as Ray Potter
Io non spezzo... rompo (1971)
as Joe il Rosso
Seven Slaves Against the World (1964)
as Balisten
Dead for a Dollar (1968)
as Roy Fulton
Three Bullets for Ringo (1966)
as Frank
Lady Morgan's Vengeance (1965)
as Roger
SFX Retaliator (1988)
as Morgan
Tutto Totò - Totò Ciak (1967)
as Ringo
Strategy for a Mission of Death (1979)
as Paul
Kerim, Son of the Sheik (1962)
as Yussuf
Operation Orient (1978)
as Haine
Santa Lucia (1979)
as Amerikaner
Frankenstein '80 (1972)
as Dr. Otto Frankenstein
The Stone Forest (1965)
as Hunding
È mezzanotte... butta giù il cadavere (1966)
as Van Himst
The Sewer Rats (1974)
as Gordon
Kopfschuß (1981)
as Maserati
Cobra Mission (1986)
as Col. Mortimer
Down with Your Hands... You Scum! (1971)
as Buck/Butch Bradley
The Tiger From the River Kwai (1975)
as Jack Mason
Three Men on Fire (1986)
as Dr. Andrew Milhench
Go Away! Trinity Has Arrived in Eldorado (1972)
as Jonathan Duke
She (1984)
as Hector
The Commissioner (1983)
as (uncredited)
Let's Go And Kill Sartana (1971)
as Greg "The Crazy Person"
Four for All (1975)
as Margherito
Cry of Death (1968)
as Donkey / Morgan Pitt
Holocaust II (1980)
as Felix Oppenheimer
Seven Savage Men (1975)
as Cooper
Secret Force (1983)
Actor
Savage Guns (1971)
as Gordon Mitchell
Overdose (1989)
as Costa
Blood Delirium (1988)
as Hermann
Radhapura – Endstation der Verdammten (1968)
as Alfredo
The Iron Hand of the Mafia (1980)
as Don Nicola
White Fang and the Kid (1978)
as Morgan
Anything for a Friend (1973)
as Miller
Fenomenal and the Treasure of Tutankamen (1968)
as Gregory Falco
From the Archives of the Criminal Police (1973)
as Peter Wilcox
A Gunman Called Dakota (1972)
as Dakota
Once Upon a Time in the Wild, Wild West (1973)
as Mike
Anasının Gözü (1975)
Actor
Little Godfather from Hong Kong (1974)
Actor
If All Goes Well We Are Ruined (1983)
as Jack Volpetti
Fists, Dollars and Spinach (1978)
as Frank Stilo
John the Bastard (1967)
as Danite
Death on the Run (1967)
as The Albanian
The Skin Under the Claws (1975)
as Professor Helmut
The Household (1974)
as General Von Werner
Ali Baba and the Seven Saracens (1964)
as Omar
Faida (1988)
Actor
I'll Die for Vengeance (1968)
as Clayton
Thompson 1880 (1966)
as Glenn Sheppard
Finders Killers (1971)
as Chris Forest
Commando Invasion (1987)
Actor
Two .38 Magnums for a City of Carrion (1975)
as Renato Proietti
Fever of 40! (1980)
as Mr. Temple
Trois filles dans le vent (1981)
as Gordon Mitchell
His Colt, Himself, His Revenge (1973)
as Martin
Tre nel mille (1971)
Actor
Oil (1977)
as Joe
Born to Kill (1967)
as Rod Gordon
Porno erotico western (1979)
as (as Charles Pendleton)
Erik the Viking (1965)
as Sven
Special Squad Shoots on Sight (1976)
as David
The Wings of War (1969)
Actor
The Man from Chicago (1975)
as Mike
Rush (1983)
as Yor
My Name Is Texas Bill (1972)
as Martin
The Arizona Kid (1970)
as Coyote
L'Estate (1966)
as Self
The Alien Within (1990)
as Dan Thorn
Dr. Jekyll Likes Them Hot (1979)
as Pretorius
Malevolence (2004)
as Don Fabrizio De Martino
The Slayers (1977)
as Pablo
Cheers... Cyanide! (1968)
as Al Rubino
All on the Red (1968)
as Erikson
Treasure of the Lost Desert (1971)
Actor
Curse of the Red Butterfly (1982)
as Brado
Diamond Connection (1982)
as Abdul Pascha
A Very Special Woman (1979)
as Gordon