Early Life and Career
Born in Binghamton, New York, Jim Hutton was performing in live theater in Germany while with the United States Army when he was spotted by American film director Douglas Sirk. One of his earliest screen appearances was in an episode of The Twilight Zone (1959), in which he co-starred with Rod Taylor. In Hollywood, he gained recognition with teen audiences for his role in the college student film Where the Boys Are (1960), where he appeared with Paula Prentiss, an actress he would be teamed with in several of his early films, in part because they were the tallest contract players of their time (Hutton at 6'5" and Prentiss at 5'10"). He appeared with Prentiss in The Honeymoon Machine late in 1960, followed by 1961's Bachelor in Paradise starring Bob Hope and Lana Turner, and finally The Horizontal Lieutenant in 1962. In 1966, Hutton gained a wider audience in Walk, Don't Run with Samantha Eggar and Cary Grant (in Grant's last feature-film appearance). Due to his tall, gangly frame and the absent-minded quality of his delivery, Hutton was viewed as a successor to James Stewart.
In addition to being a gifted comedic actor, Hutton also took on dramatic roles such as Sam Peckinpah's 1965 western Major Dundee, then returning to comedy in 1965 with The Hallelujah Trail and in 1967 starred in Who's Minding the Mint?. In 1968, Hutton appeared in the John Wayne acted/directed war drama, The Green Berets, in which Hutton played a Special Forces sergeant in a mix of comedy and drama, with a memorable booby trap scene. Also in 1968, Hutton appeared with John Wayne in Hellfighters, playing the role of Greg Parker. The movie was loosely based on the career of oil-well firefighter Red Adair.
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