| Robert Phillips | |
| Birth Name: | Robert R. Phillips[1] |
| Birth Date: | 10 April 1925 |
| Birth Place: | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Occupation: | Film and television actor |
| Years Active: | 1950s–1997 |
Robert R. Phillips (April 10, 1925 – November 5, 2018) was an American film and television actor.
Phillips was born in Chicago, Illinois.[2] He was a self-defense instructor while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II[3] and later played football for the Chicago Bears and the Washington Redskins. Phillips was also a police officer in the Los Angeles Police Department and Illinois State Police. He was a personal bodyguard for the 31st Governor of Illinois, Adlai Stevenson II.[4] [5] Phillips began his film and television career in the 1950s, when a film producer suggested he should become an actor, and gave him a role in a film, and the TV series Tightrope! was based on aspects of his life.
Phillips retired as a police officer after being injured while working undercover, and attended acting school in the early 1950s. Phillips was hired by studios as a minder for Lee Marvin, to prevent him getting into fights after hours. He appeared in two films with actor Richard Jaeckel: The Gun Runners (1958) and The Dirty Dozen (1967). His other film roles included appearances in The Killers (1964) and Cat Ballou (1965), Dimension 5 (1966), Hour of the Gun (1967), Mackenna's Gold (1969), Slaughter (1972), The Slams (1973), I Escaped from Devil's Island (1973), The Dion Brothers (1974), Capone (1975, as Bugs Moran), Mitchell (1975), Mean Johnny Barrows (1975), The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976) and (1977). Phillips also guest-starred in numerous television programs including (in the episode "The Cage"), Gunsmoke, The Rockford Files, Bonanza, The Dukes of Hazzard, The Wild Wild West, Rawhide, Mission: Impossible, The High Chaparral, Mannix, The Fall Guy and Planet of the Apes. His last credit was for the western television series Bordertown.
Phillips died November 5, 2018, at the age of 93.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | Code Two | Henchman | Uncredited | |
| 1956 | UFO (1956 film) | Edward J. Ruppelt | ||
| 1958 | The Gun Runners | Outlaw | Uncredited | |
| 1962 | Hell Is for Heroes | Jeep driver | ||
| 1964 | The Killers | George Fleming | ||
| 1965 | Cat Ballou | Klem | Uncredited | |
| 1966 | The Silencers | 1st Armed Man | ||
| 1966 | Dimension 5 | George | ||
| 1967 | The Dirty Dozen | Corporal Morgan | ||
| 1967 | Hour of the Gun | Frank Stilwell | ||
| 1969 | Mackenna's Gold | Monkey | ||
| 1970 | Darker than Amber | Griff | ||
| 1972 | Slaughter | Frank | ||
| 1973 | The Student Teachers | |||
| 1973 | Detroit 9000 | Captain Chalmers | ||
| 1973 | The Slams | Cohalt | ||
| 1973 | I Escaped from Devil's Island | Blassier | ||
| 1974 | The Dion Brothers | Gino | ||
| 1975 | Capone | Bugs Moran | ||
| 1975 | Mitchell | Chief Albert Pallin | ||
| 1975 | Mean Johnny Barrows | Ben | ||
| 1975 | Adios Amigo | Notary | ||
| 1976 | The Killing of a Chinese Bookie | Phil | ||
| 1977 | The Car | Metcalf | ||
| 1977 | Johnny | |||
| 1977 | Telefon | Highway Patrolman #1 | ||
| 1984 | Delta Pi | Pud | ||
| 1987 | Cry Freedom | Speaker at Funeral | ||
| 1997 | A Time to Revenge | Billy Two Feathers | (final film role) |