Dan White

Dan White (March 25, 1908 – July 7, 1980) was an American actor, well known for appearing in Western films and TV shows.

White was born in 1908 to George and Orpha White about one mile (1.6 km) from the Suwannee River in Falmouth, Florida. He was one of 13 siblings. The family later moved to Lakeland, Florida.

In his youth, White was convicted of robbery and spent time in what is now Union Correctional Institution, in Raiford, Florida.

White acted in a show with Frances Langford in Tampa's Rialto Theatre. During this period, he met Matilda Mae "Tilda" Spivey. They wed on February 25, 1933. Tilda had a two-year-old son from a previous marriage, Arthur Grant Gifford. He still longed for a career in entertainment, resigned from the CCC in 1935, and began his journey to Hollywood with his small family. In January 1936, he stopped in Texarkana, Arkansas, while Tilda awaited the birth of their second child. Her sister, Mary, who was in Texarkana, invited the Whites to stay there for a few months. After the birth of the baby, June Larue White, the Whites continued toward California.

Upon returning in 1938, he got work with Republic Pictures Corporation, making six films in his first year. The first film was Prairie Moon, starring Gene Autry. White made $55 a week during that picture. He claimed to have made about 300 films and 150 television cameos during his years in Hollywood. Around 70 percent were Westerns. His well-known films include The Yearling, Distant Drums, Red River, To Kill a Mockingbird, Giant, Duel in the Sun, Four Faces West, Jailhouse Rock, and Touch of Evil.

During this time, White and his wife had a third child, Donald Curtis White (born November 9, 1941). The films that made White most famous were his numerous appearances in B-Westerns, where he portrayed the antagonist. During the 1950s and 1960s, he started turning to television. He was offered the role of "Sam the Bartender" on Gunsmoke, but he didn't commit to the idea. He asked his best friend, Glenn Strange, to apply for the job instead. White's final movie was Black Sunday, in 1977.

White was posthumously inducted into the Newhall Walk of Western Stars in Santa Clarita, California. His grandson John F. White accepted the honor on his behalf on April 11, 2019.

In 2025, John F. White published a biography of his grandfather, Highway Robbery to Hollywood Fame.

Note: An asterisk (*) means that Dan White had an uncredited role; two asterisks means that he was credited as either Daniel White or Daniel M. White.