R.G. Armstrong

Robert Golden Armstrong Jr., known as R.G. Armstrong, (April 7, 1917 – July 27, 2012) was an American character actor and playwright. Born and raised in Pleasant Grove, Alabama, Armstrong shifted his interest to acting from a pastoral career anticipated by his family, while enrolled in Howard College of Samford University. Later, he transferred to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he began acting on stage. On Broadway, he portrayed notable roles in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1955), Orpheus Descending (1957), and The Miracle Worker (1959). With over 47 years of active career and innumerable appearances in Western series in the '50s and '60s, he worked closely with director Sam Peckinpah and played a significant role in movies like Ride the High Country (1962), Major Dundee (1965), and Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (1973). Despite cataracts-induced near-blindness, Armstrong continued to act until 2005.

In addition to acting, Armstrong was also a passionate writer and left a legacy of nine full-length plays, four unpublished novels, and 50 unpublished poems. Some of his memorable roles include a sympathetic farmer in El Dorado (1966), The Car (1977), Children of the Corn (1984), Red Headed Stranger (1986) with Willie Nelson, and as General Phillips in Predator (1987). He also portrayed the title character in the heavy metal band Metallica's music video for "Enter Sandman" that won the 1992 MTV Video Music award. Armstrong died of natural causes at the age of 95 on July 27, 2012, at his home in Studio City, California.