Robert Gene "Red" West (March 8, 1936 – July 18, 2017) was an American actor, film stuntman and songwriter.[1] He was known for being a close confidant and bodyguard for rock and roll singer Elvis Presley. Upon his firing, West co-wrote the controversial Elvis: What Happened?, a tell all book about Elvis co written with a Rupert Murdoch journalist; the book was published in May 1977 in UK and later in USA (just two weeks before Presley's August 1977 death).[a][2]
West was also known to American film audiences for his role as Red in Road House, alongside Patrick Swayze. West appeared to critical acclaim in the 2008 independent film Goodbye Solo as William.[3]
"That's Someone You Never Forget" is the final track on the 1962 album Pot Luck. The song was released as a 45-rpm B-side single in 1967 and features on the Artist of the Century compilation.[9] "You'll Be Gone" is a bonus track on the Girl Happy soundtrack LP. West co-wrote "If You Think I Don't Need You" with Joey Cooper for the motion picture Viva Las Vegas.[8] He teamed up with Joey Cooper again on "I'm A Fool", which Ricky Nelson recorded,[10] and which was later a hit for Dino, Desi and Billy (the partnership of Dean-Paul "Dino" Martin, Desi Arnaz Jr., and William "Billy" Hinsche).[10]
In 1976, West was criticized in the media for his involvement in a series of heavy-handed incidents with fans in Las Vegas.[7] Elvis's father fired West, his cousin Sonny, and bodyguard David Hebler.[5]
The three subsequently looked for publishers to make money by writing the tell all book Elvis: What Happened?
Acting and stuntman career
When Presley was making films in the 1960s in Hollywood, Red West appeared in small roles in sixteen of the star's films.[13] During this time, West became good friends with actor Nick Adams and his physical abilities got him hired on as a stuntman on Adams' television series, The Rebel.[4]
From there, West went on to do more stunt work in film as well as developing a career as an actor in a number of motion pictures and on television. He frequently served as a stuntman and occasional actor (often playing a henchman) in the CBS TV series The Wild Wild West and was personally friendly with that show's primary star, Robert Conrad. West was one member of a group of stuntmen used frequently by the show. West was credited in S3 E14 "The Night of the Iron Fist" as playing Roy (1967). He played Klaxton in S3 E18 "The Night of the Vipers" (1968). West was severely injured in a stunt gone awry while filming the episode "The Night of the Avaricious Actuary";[14] according to Conrad and the show's stuntman and choreographer Whitey Hughes, West had broken his skull during one incident on the show[15] (but they do not specify during the filming of which episode that this injury occurred). The show was ultimately eventually cancelled because of pressure from President Lyndon B. Johnson, members of Congress, and concerns from the public over violence on television, which all of whom were concerned was causing, or would cause, an increase in violence across the country.[16][17]
Conrad himself also suffered a concussion falling from a chandelier in "The Night of the Fugitives" (and other injuries at various points of the series' production, including a "6-inch fracture of the skull, high temporal concussion, [and] partial paralysis."[15]; after this, CBS insisted that he defer to a stunt double. "[W]hen I came back for the fourth season, I was limited to what I could do for insurance reasons," Conrad explained. "So I agreed and gradually I did all the fights but couldn't do anything five feet off the ground and of course that went out the window."[18][15] After this incident, the show began using a common stunt technique, which filmmakers refer to as "the Texas Switch", in which a stuntman would start the stunt before the main star appeared at its end to continue the show.,[19] was often used by Ross Martin and his double, Bob Herron. Conrad criticized congressional pressure for years afterwards, but in other interviews he admitted that it probably was time to cancel the series because he felt that he and the stuntmen were pushing their luck. He also believed the role had hurt his craft.[20]
West also played the role of Sheriff Tanner of Alcorn County, Mississippi in the 1973 film Walking Tall. He also reprised the role in the 1975 film Walking Tall Part 2.[21]
West played the lead role in the 2008 independent film Goodbye Solo as William, an elderly depressed man who befriends a Senegalese man in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.[3] The film received positive reviews and critic Roger Ebert remarked that "West isn't playing himself, but he evokes his character so fully that he might as well be. West's face is a map of hard living".[3]
West died on July 18, 2017, aged 81, from an aortic aneurysm, at Baptist Memorial Hospital in his native Memphis.[13]
His death occurred less than two months after the death of his cousin, actor Sonny West, in May 2017.[5] His funeral and burial at Memorial Park Cemetery was held on July 24 in Memphis.[25]
In popular culture
In John Carpenter's 1979 film Elvis, West was portrayed by Robert Gray. West was also portrayed by his son John Boyd West in the 2005 Golden Globe winning CBS mini-series Elvis and in the 21st episode of the fifth season of Quantum Leap, Memphis Melody.
^As shown in the complicated history at Elvis Presley#Cause of death, heavy drug use contributed to his life-threatening health problems, but a definitive cause of death is unsettled.
References
^Daily Telegraph Issue no 50,439 dated Friday July 21, 2017- "Long-serving member of Elvis Presley's entourage who wrote a shocking exposé about his boss"
