Willis Bouchey (1907 - 1977)

Willis Bouchey was an American character actor who appeared in almost 150 films and television shows. He was born on  May 24, 1907, in Vernon, Michigan, but reared by his mother and stepfather in Washington State.

Bouchey may be best known for his appearances in The Horse Soldiers, The Long Gray Line, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, The Big Heat, and Suddenly. He also made uncredited appearances in From Here to Eternity, How the West Was Won, A Star is Born.  Bouchey appeared as a sheep trader in the title 1958 episode "Cash Robertson" of the NBC children's western series, Buckskin. In 1960 to 1961, he was cast twice in the ABC sitcom, Harrigan and Son, starring Pat O'Brien and Roger Perry and four times times in the role of Springer in the CBS sitcom, Pete and Gladys.

He guest starred on CBS's Dennis the Menace and played a judge in twenty-three episodes of that same network's Perry Mason. He also worked again with Perry Mason title star Raymond Burr in an episode of NBC's Ironside. He made guest appearances on Sheriff of Cochise, Dragnet, Richard Diamond Private Eye, Stoney Burke, and The Andy Griffith Show. On ABC's Colt .45 television series, Bouchey played Lew Wallace,  the governor of the New Mexico Territory, in the episode "Amnesty".

Throughout his career, Bouchey worked in twelve different productions for director John Ford and was one of the more frequently-used members of the John Ford Stock Company.  In The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance he delivered the line, "Nothing's too good for the man who shot Liberty Valance."

Willis Bouchey died at the age of 70 on September 27, 1977, in Burbank, California.