Red West

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?, in which he exposed the singer's dangerous drug dependence in an attempt to save him; the book was published just two weeks before Presley's August 1977 drug-related death.[lower-alpha 1][2]

Red West
Born
Robert Gene West

(1936-03-08)March 8, 1936
Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.
DiedJuly 18, 2017(2017-07-18) (aged 81)
Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.
Alma materJones County Junior College
Occupation(s)Actor, stunt performer, songwriter, author
Years active1959–2015
Spouse
Pat Boyd
​
(m. 1961)​
Children2
RelativesSonny West (cousin)

West was probably best 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]

Early life

West was born in Memphis, Tennessee, to Lois and Newton Thomas West.[4] West was the cousin of actor 'Sonny' West.[5] While attending high school in Tennessee, West and Sonny met Elvis Presley.[6]

An excellent athlete and U.S. Marine, West played football for his high school and junior college at Jones County Junior College teams and was a boxer in the Golden Gloves championships.[7]

In 1961, West married his wife Pat Boyd.[6] Together, they had two children.[7]

West and Presley

Songwriting career

West collaborated with Elvis Presley on two songs in 1961 and 1962,[7] which Elvis got a token credit on, "That's Someone You Never Forget" and "You'll Be Gone".[8]

"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]

West cowrote the song "Separate Ways" with Richard Mainegra for Elvis in 1972,[11] and "If You Talk in Your Sleep" with Johnny Christopher for Presley's 1975 album Promised Land.[12] Red wrote "If Every Day Was Like Christmas", recorded by Presley in 1966.[7]

In addition to writing for Elvis, Red had songs recorded by Pat Boone, Rick Nelson, Johnny Burnette, Johnny Rivers, Dino, Desi & Billy, Petula Clark, Gary Puckett & The Union Gap, Andre Kostelanetz and His Orchestra, and Little Milton, among others.

Elvis' entourage and firing

In 1976, West was criticized in the media for his involvement in a series of heavy-handed incidents with aggressive fans in Las Vegas.[7] He was also becoming vocal about Presley needing help for his drug problem. Elvis's father, Vernon Presley, who hated the members of his son's entourage, fired West, his cousin Sonny, and bodyguard David Hebler.[5]

The three subsequently wrote the book Elvis: What Happened?, claiming to be an attempt to warn and obtain help for Elvis. Some suspected it was a retaliatory money-making exercise, but with Elvis' death within weeks of publication, the book's claims proved accurate.[11] An offer by Presley to have the book stopped had been turned down.[2]

Acting 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 was often on screen as a henchman in the television series THE WILD WILD WEST, where he also served as a stuntman. Red West was severely injured (cracked skull) during the filming of "The Night of the Avaricious Actuary" episode of that series. 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.[14]

West also played the ornery, sometimes violent Master Sergeant Andy Micklin on Black Sheep Squadron.[15] He guest starred twice on the CBS hit detective series Magnum, P.I. as different characters, as five different ones on The A-Team, the Knight Rider pilot episode "Knight of the Phoenix", on The Fall Guy, Simon & Simon and in "The Once and Future King", an episode of The Twilight Zone which concerned Presley.[6][16] In 1989, West appeared in the action film Road House with Patrick Swayze as Red Webster, the auto parts store owner.[2]. Red West frequently served as a stuntman and occasional actor in "The Wild Wild West" and was personally friendly with that show's primary star, Robert Conrad. Indeed Red was severely injured in a stunt gone awry while filming the episode "The Night of the Avaricious Actuary." [17]


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]

His last film role was in the 2013 film Safe Haven as Roger, an elderly store clerk in Southport, North Carolina.[18]

Death

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.[19]

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.

Selected filmography

Notes
  1. 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
  1. Daily Telegraph Issue no 50,439 dated Friday 21 July 2017- "Long-serving member of Elvis Presley's entourage who wrote a shocking exposé about his boss"
  2. "Red West, Longtime Elvis Confidant, Dies at 81". Chicago Tribune. July 20, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  3. Roger Ebert (March 25, 2009). "Goodbye Solo Movie Review". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  4. "Red West profile". Filmreference.com. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  5. "Sonny West of Elvis' Memphis Mafia dies at 79". WMCActionNews5.com. May 31, 2017.
  6. "Red West, Longtime Elvis Confidant, Dies at 81". Fox News. July 20, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  7. "Red West, Songwriter and Actor Who Was Elvis Presley's Confidant, Dies At 81". The Hollywood Reporter. July 20, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  8. "Red West Dies: 'Road House' Actor, Stuntman & Songwriter Was 81". Deadline. July 20, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  9. Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 892. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
  10. "I'm A Fool Facts". SongFacts. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  11. "Interview with Red West". Elvis.com. May 29, 2008. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  12. "If You Talk in Your Sleep - Elvis Presley". AllMusic. Retrieved July 21, 2017.
  13. Beifuss, John (July 19, 2017). "Red West, Elvis friend and actor, is dead". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
  14. Barnes, Mike (July 19, 2017). "Red West, Actor, Songwriter & Longtime Elvis Presley Confidant, Dies at 81". Billboard. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  15. Ken Sharp (June 24, 2017). "Red West Remembers Writing For The King". Elvis.com. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  16. ""The Twilight Zone" The Once and Future King/A Saucer of Loneliness (TV Episode 1986)". IMDb.com. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
  17. https://www.imdb.com/seen/nm0922307
  18. Roeper, Richard (February 12, 2013). "Safe Haven". Rogerebert.com. Retrieved February 15, 2015.
  19. John Beifuss (July 20, 2017). "Red West: Services set for Elvis friend, actor". Commercial Appeal. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
  20. Kate Feldman (July 20, 2017). "Red West, actor and longtime friend of Elvis Presley, dead at 81". The New York Daily News. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  21. Tony Scott (November 9, 1995). "Review: 'Nbc Sunday Night at the Movies Her Hidden Truth Sun.'". Variety. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  22. "'The Black Dove' film premiered at AMC Newport Sunday". WTOL. Retrieved September 24, 2017.
  23. David Rooney (August 30, 2012). "At Any Price: Venice Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
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