Leading Men Tristram Coffin
Jungle Jim in Pygmy Island/Novak
King Of The Rocket Men/ Jeff King
The Corpse Vanishes/ Dr. Foster
Mysterious Dr. Satan/ Wells
Tristram Coffin was an American actor that played in many serials and B Western features as well as larger budgeted films.
Tris Coffin was born at Mammoth, UT in 1909.
Coffin grew up in Salt Lake City, and started acting while he was in high school. He also acted with traveling stock companies
Coffin earned a degree in speech from the University of Washington after which he became a sportscaster and a news analyst.
Spotted by a Hollywood talent scout , Coffin started a film career in 1939 with his film debut in The Saint Strikes Back and the second newscaster.
His career lasted from 1939 until 1982 with 257 credits in the mediums of film and television.
Coffin is probably best remembered as Capt. Tom Rynning in the TV series 26 Men which ran from 1956 to 1957. he is also remembered as Jeff King in the 1949 serial King Of The Rocket Men.
He was also the "infamous dead man walking" whereby he had become a corpse and accidentally got up and walked away from the scene on live television.
Coffin liked westerns but he had been given leading men and romance roles. He wanted to do heavies However, he was told that he could not do heavies at Monogram Studios. He had to plead to get heavy roles and his reasoning was that when you go to a prison there were many lawyers, doctors and dignified men that got put in prison. He won the case and then had to opportunity to play villains.
Some of Tristram Coffin's film roles were:
The Saint Strikes Back (1939) as Second Newscaster
Irish Luck (1939) as Mr. Mace - Hotel Desk Clerk
Oklahoma Terror (1939) as Mason
Dick Tracy;s G-Men (1939) as Emissary Zobar
Overland Mail (1939) as Joe Polini
The Fatal Hour (1940) as Desk Clerk
Hidden Enemy (1940) as Newspaper Reporter
Chasing Trouble (1940) as Phillips
Rhythm Of The Rio Grande (1940) as Jim Bannister
Son Of The Navy (1940) as Service Station Attendant
The Cowboy From Sundown (1940) as Ben Varco
On The Spot (1940) as Robert Ames
Doomed To Die (1940) as Mr. Baldwin - Adjuster
Arizona Frontier (1040) as Lt. James
Queen Of The Yukon (1940) as Carson
Up In The Air (1940) as Farrell
Melody And Moonlight (1940) as Sailor
Meet The Wildcat (1940) as Sleepy Policeman at Headquarters
West Of Pinto Basin (1940) as Harvey
Mysterious Dr. Satan (1940) as Wells-Governor's Secretary
You're Out Of Luck (1941) as Roger Whitman/Dick Whitney
A Man Betrayed (1941) as Night Club Patron
Sky Raiders (1941) as Coast Guard Commanders
Blossoms In The Dust (1941) as Teddy Howard
They Met In Bombay (1041) as Captain In Car
Father Steps Out (1941) as Dr. R. G. Stafford
Arizona Bound (1941) as Steve Taggart
King Of Dodge City (1941) as Crooked Gambler
No Greater Sin (1941) as Major Raleigh
Let's Go Collegiate (1941) as Slugger Wilson
Sailors On Leave (1941) as Officer
Tonto Basin Outlaws (1941) as Jeff Miller
Roaring Frontiers (1941) as Bert
Hard Guy (1941) as Tremaine's Assistant
Appointment For Love (1941) as Jennifer's Friend
Holt Of The Secret Service (1941) as Ed Valdin
Tuxedo Junction (1941) as Rose Parade Commentator
Forbidden Trails (1941) as Ed Nelson
Cowboy Serenade (1942) as Dixie Trambeau
A Tragedy At Midnight ( 1942) as Landeck's Secretary
Man With Two Lives (1942) as radio Newscaster
Spy Smasher (1942) as Drake
So's Your Aunt Emma! (1942) as Flower Henderson
The Corpse Vanishes (1942) as Dr. Foster
The Devil's Trail (1942) as Ed Scott
Not A Ladies Man (1942) as Attorney
Perils Of Nyoka (1942) as Benito Torrini
Lure Of The Islands (1942) as Secret Service Chief
Prairie Gunsmoke (1942) as Jim Kelton
Bells Of Capistrano (1942) as Jed Johnson
Police Bullets (1942) as Slater, The Mouthpiece
A Tornado In The Saddle (1942) as Hutch Dalton
Down On The Great Divide (1942) as matt Rand
You Can't Beat The Law (1943) as Gang Lawyer
Cosmo Jones In The Crime Smasher (1943) as Jake Pelotti
Silver Skates (1943) as Stage Manager
Idaho (1943) as Blackie
Destroyer (1943) as Doctor #1
The Vigilantes Ride (1943) as Anse Rankin
Lady In The dark (1944) as Man
Wyoming Hurricane (1944) as Steve Kirby
The Gay Cavalier (1946) as Lawton
Under Arizona Skies (1946) as Blackie Evans
The Gentleman From Texas (1946) as Steve Corbin
Rendezvous With Annie (1946) as Clerk
Two Guys From Milwaukee (1946) as Polly's Customer
G I War Brides (1946) as Officer
The Invisible Informer (1946) as David Baylor
Under Nevada Skies (1946) as Dan Adams
The Mysterious Mr. Valentine (1946) as John Armstrong
Rio Grande Raiders (1946) as Marc Redmond
The Brute Man (1946) as Police Lieutenant
Dangerous Money (1946) as Scott Pearson
Sioux City Sue (1946) as Rhodes Assistant
Trail To San Antone (1947) as Cal Young
The Unfaithful (1947) as Party Guest
Valley Of Fear (1947) as Henry Stevens
Land Of The Lawless (1947) as cameo Carson
Possessed (1947) as Tom
Swing The Western Way (1947) as Martin
Blackmail (1947) as Pinky
Jesse James Rides Again (1947) as James Clark
Louisiana (1947) as Tomlins
The Fabulous Texas (1947) as Vigilante
The Voice Of The Turtle (1947) as Theater Party Patron
California Firebrand (1948) as Jim Requa aka Jud Babbit
The Hunted (1948) as Detective
Romance on The High Seas ( 1948) as Head Waiter On Ship
The Shanghai Chest (1948) as Edward Seward
Desperadoes Of Dodge City (1948) as Ace Durant
The Gallant Blade (1948) as Prison Governor's Aide
Crashing Thru (1949) as Cliff Devlin
Federal Agents Vs Underworld, Inc. (1949) as Frank Chambers
Bruce Gentry (1949) as Krendon
Duke Of Chicago (1949) as Dr.Kendall
Homicide (1949) as Telephone Company Rep
Desert Vigilante (1949) as Thomas Hadley
My Dream Is Yours (1949) as Head Waiter
Flamingo Road (1949) as Ed Parker
King Of The Rocket Men (1949) as Jeffrey King
The Fountainhead (1949) as Toohey's Secretary
Range Justice (1949) as Ed Dutton
Angels In Disguise (1949) as Machine Works Bookkeeper
Riders Of The Dusk (1949) as J J Hall
Radar Patrol Vs. Sky King (1949) as Franklyn Lord
Lawless Code (1949) as Judge Harmon Steele
Radar Secret Service,(1950) as Michael
The Baron Of Arizona (1950) as McCleary
Square Dance Katy (1950) as Frzanklin
The Damned Don't Cry (1950) as George The Maitre'd
The Big Hangover (1950) as Jenkins
The Old Frontier (1950) as John Wagner
Outrage (1950) as Judge McKenzie
Undercover Girl (1950) as Robbie
Pirates Of The High Seas (1950) as Walter Castell
Jungle Jim In Pygmy Island (1950) as Novak
Short Grass (1950) as John Devore
Buckaroo Sheriff Of Texas (1951) as Jim Tulane
The Fat Man (1951) as Missing Persons Officer
According To Mrs. Hoyle (1951) as pat Dennison
Strocco (1951) as Guard
Mask Of The Avenger (1951) as Noncommissioned Off icer
Queen For A Day (1951) as Doctor
Rodeo King And The Senorita (1951) as Jack Foster
Rhubarb (1951) as Dr. Henry Stillman
Painting The Clouds With Sunshine (1951) as Manager
On The Loose (1951) as Judge
Disc Jockey (1951) as Announcer
The Lady Pays Off (1951) as carl
Flight To Mars (1951) as Commentator
I'll See You In My Dreams (1951) as Nightclub Maitre 'd
Northwest Territory (1951) as Kincaid
Capt. Video, Master Of The Stratosphere (1951) as Prof. Anton Dean
Indian Uprising (1952) as Major Kirby
The Cimarron Kid (1952) as Silk Conrad
Smoky Canyon (1952) as Carl Buckley
At Sword's Point (1952) as Regent Guardsman
The Kid From Broken Gun (1952) as martin Donohugh
The Man And I (1952) as Fingerprint Expert In Courtroom
The Legend Of The Lone Ranger (1952) as Reid
Salome (1953) as Guard
I Love Melvin (1953) as Board Member
Law And Order (1953) as Parker
Hannah Lee: An American Primitive (1953) as Paulson, Bartender
So This Is Love (1953) as Frank Boland
Latin Lovers (1953) as Paul's Business Associate
Clipped Wings (19530 as Air Show Radio Announcer
City Of Bad Men (1953) as Easterner Wanting Hotel Room
Combat Squad (1953) as Capt. Johnson
Wicked Woman (19530 as mr. Cutler
The Eddie Cantor Story (1953) as Director
Fireman Save My Child (1954) as Tucker
Dawn At Socorro (1954) as Saloon Patron At Table
Patrick Henry (1955-TV) as Peyton Randolph
The Man Who Tore Down The Wall (1955-TV) as Dr. Parsons
Creature With The Atom Brain (1955) as District Attorney MacGraw
The Scarlet Coat (1955) as Col. Varick
The Maverick Queen (1956) as Card Player
Three For Jamie Dawn (1956) as Granville Dixon
The First Traveling Saleslady (1956) as Day Hotel Clerk
Back From Eternity (1956) as Paul
The Night The World Exploded (1957) as Dr. Ellis Morton
The Last Stagecoach West (1957) as Gibson
Escape From San Quentin (1957) as Police Lieutenant
Cool And Lam (1958-TV) as Thatcher
Kathy O (1958) as Director
Ma Barker's Killer Brood (1960) as Arthur Dunlop
The Silent Witness (1962) as Lt. Williams
The Crawling Hand (1963) as Security Chiek Miedel
Iron Angel (1964) as Captain
Good Neighbor Sam (1964) as Sonny Blatchford
Zebra In The Kitchen (1965) as Councilman Lawrence
The Barefoot Executive (1971) as Sponsor
The Resurrection Of Zachary Wheeler (1971) as Dr. Keating
Night Call Nurses (1972) as Miles Bailey
Deadly Alliance (1982) as Doctor
Mr. Coffin appeared on television in such programs as Washington Report, Boston Blackie, Gang Busters, Big Town, Terry And The Pirates, The Abbott and Costello Show, Chevron Theater, The Files Of Jeffrey Jones, Cowboy G-Men, Meet Corliss Archer, City Detective, Your Favorite Story, Mr & Mrs North, Lux Video Theater, The Adventures Of Kit Carson, Waterfront, The George Burns And Gracie Allen Show, The Red Skelton Hour, Adventures Of The Falcon, My Little Margie, lassie, The Eddie Comedy Theater, Front Row Center, The Ford Television Theater, The Star And The Story, The Man Behind The Badge, The Cisco Kid, The Adventures Of Champion, Screen Directors Playhouse, Climax!, Judge Roy Bean, Chevron Hall Of Stars, The 20th Century Fox Hour, Father Knows Best, Celebrity Playhouse, Four Star Playhouse, Science Fiction Theater, Adventures Of Wild Bill Hickok, Ethel Barrymore Theater, Broken Arrow, The Life And Legend Of Wyatt Earp, Hey Jeannie!, The Loretta Young Show, Schlitz Playhouse Of Stars, I Love Lucy, The Lone Ranger, Yiou Are There, Adventures Of Superman, West Point, The George Sanders Mystery Theater, Date With The Angels, Navy Log, Bourbon Street Beat, Colt 45, Bat Masterson, The Alaskans, Sugarfoot, Maverick, Bronco, Wagon Train, Stagecoach West, 77 Sunset Strip, Hawaiian Eye, The Real McCoys, Bonanza, The Bill Dana Show, The Legend Of Jesse James, Batman, Gomer Pyle USMC, The Time Tunnel, It Takes A Thief, , The Beverly Hillbillies, Death Valley Days and The Name Of The Game.
Mr. Coffin was married twice. His first wife was Dorothy. His second wife was Vera and the marriage lasted until his death in 1990.
Tristram Coffin passed away in 1990 from lung cancer. His second wife survived him.
I enjoyed this actor in the serial King Of The Rocket men as well as the films The Corpse vanishes, Charlie Chan In Dangerous Money, Charlie Chan In The Shanghai Chest, Jungle Jim in Pygmy Island, Combat Squad and Creature With The Atom Brain.
I also enjoyed Mr. Coffin in the TV series 26 Men as well as several appearences on Death Valley Days, The Lone Ranger And The Cisco Kid.
Louie The Movie Buff