The charismatic character actor Jack Betts, well-known for his roles in spaghetti Westerns, briefly portrayed Dracula on Broadway and featured in acclaimed films such as Spider-Man and Gods and Monsters, passed away at the age of 96.
Betts passed away peacefully in his sleep at home in Los Osos, California on a Thursday. His nephew, Dean Sullivan, confirmed this to The Hollywood Reporter.
Betts had a close friendship with Doris Roberts, who was famously known for her role on “Everybody Loves Raymond.” Together, they lived as roommates and attended numerous events in Hollywood from the late 80s right up to her passing in April 2016.
Back in the ’70s to the mid-’80s, I was a familiar face on daytime television soap operas. As a member of The Actors Studio, I brought life to Ivan Kipling, the doctor at Llanview Hospital on ABC’s One Life to Live. My small-screen medical career also extended to gigs on shows like General Hospital, The Edge of Night, The Doctors, Another World, All My Children, Search for Tomorrow, Guiding Light, Loving and Generations.
Betts managed to trick his way into playing the main role, the avenging title character, in Franco Giraldi’s Sugar Colt (1966). This was the first time he went by Hunt Powers on screen. The movie marked the beginning of a series of around 15 spaghetti Westerns for him that lasted until 1973. However, unlike some other American actors who made similar Italian films, he didn’t achieve the same level of fame.
He mentioned in a 2021 interview that there was a hotel beside mine where Clint Eastwood stayed. While he would retreat to his mountain for filming Westerns, I did the same. However, unlike his movies which were shown globally, my films were distributed everywhere except in Canada and the United States.
In Sam Raimi’s movie “Spider-Man” (2002), the character played by Jon Favreau, named Henry Balkan, tells Willem Dafoe’s character, Norman Osborn, that he is leaving Oscorp Technologies – “You’re out, Norman” – but eventually, the Green Goblin will transform him and other board members into skeletons during an attack in Times Square.
Jack Betts, who claimed kinship with the 13th U.S. president, Millard Fillmore, was born on April 11, 1929, in Jersey City, New Jersey. At the age of 10, he relocated with his family to Miami, where he developed a passion for acting after witnessing Laurence Olivier in the movie “Wuthering Heights” (1939).
Following his graduation from Miami Senior High School, he proceeded to attend the University of Miami, majoring in theater. During this time, he performed in a production of Moss Hart’s play titled “Light Up the Sky” in Cuba. Subsequently, he shifted base to New York and achieved a spot on Broadway in 1953, starring alongside José Ferrer in the play “Richard III”.
Initially, Betts was employed in a lamp factory. One day, a friend invited him to perform a scene together for her audition at The Actors Studio. This opportunity eventually resulted in Lee Strasberg granting him a three-year scholarship to study there. Subsequently, he secured a position at the esteemed studio, and Elia Kazan cast him in the play “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof“.
He first appeared on the big screen in the movie “The Bloody Brood” (1959), alongside Peter Falk. After that, he teamed up with Anthony George, Sebastian Cabot, and Doug McClure in 1961 to portray detective Chris Devlin during the second and final season of CBS’s show “Checkmate,” which was created by Eric Ambler.
Back in the swingin’ sixties, I found myself gracing CBS’ Perry Mason four times, from 61 to 66. Then, an offer dropped into my lap about starring in Sugar Colt. The director, Giraldi, was convinced of my horse-riding skills and recent victory in a shooting contest – truth be told, I hadn’t even sat on a horse or fired a gun at that point. But, the die was cast, and for the next three action-packed weeks, I honed those talents under the watchful eye of John Wayne at his ranch. After that, it was off to Cinecittà in Rome, ready to prove my mettle on the big screen.
At that very moment, Betts was employed by former actress turned publicist, Helen Ferguson, and it was she who bestowed upon him the stage name of Hunt Powers.
Betts made a comeback on Broadway, working with Kazan, for the 1959-60 rendition of Tennessee Williams’ play “Sweet Bird of Youth“. Later, he was part of the 1977-80 revival of “Dracula“. In this production, he played Dr. Seward, and since Raul Julia had his standby role, Betts got to take over as the count – just once, but it was a significant moment in his career.
Following the same motif, he portrayed Boris Karloff in Bill Condon’s movie “Gods and Monsters” (1998), with Ian McKellen as the leading actor.
Betts made appearances in films like “The Assassination of Trotsky” (1972), “Falling Down” (1993), “Batman Forever” (1995) and its sequel “Batman & Robin” (1997), “8MM” (1999), and “Office Space” (1999). He was also featured on TV shows such as “Gunsmoke”, “The F.B.I.”, “It Takes a Thief”, “Kojak”, “Remington Steele”, “Frasier”, “Everybody Loves Raymond”, “Friends”, “My Name Is Earl”, “The Mentalist”, and “Monk”.
Betts initially encountered Roberts at The Actors Studio in 1954, and later, in 1988, he agreed to relocate from New York to a downstairs flat in her Hollywood Hills residence, which was her invitation. They remained the best of friends until the very end, sharing many enjoyable moments together, as he shared later on.
Roberts additionally took charge of the production of a play penned by Betts, entitled “Screen Test: Take One“, which revolves around a soap opera that was initially developed within a movie set.
Besides his nephew, there are also his nieces, Lynne and Gail, along with his older sister, Joan, who celebrates her 100th birthday in November, among the survivors.
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2025-06-21 01:55