They always say “good guys finish last.” In Hollywood, bad guys finish last too; that is, if they’re bad enough to make it to the last reel. Pierce Lyden rarely finished any picture he ever started. He was either taken out right away by the good guy, or just cut out at the end by the editor. Seldom the first “heavy” to walk through the door of even the second, this is one bad guy who was just happy to come through the door at all.
Western fans have seen him countless times, probably without ever realizing it. From 1932 through 1962, Lyden was a Hollywood fixture. A veteran of some 400 movies and television shows, he was once part of an elite group of actors who never worried about getting “bad” reviews, only good ones. Their artistic reward was knowing they always had a audience that hated them. With his pencil moustache and characteristic villainous start, Lyden, even while performing his own stunts, was more than thankful for his share of boo’s and hisses…………………