Eugene Barton "Gene" Evans

 Eugene Barton "Gene" Evans (July 11, 1922 – April 1, 1998)

He was an actor who appeared in numerous television series, made-for-television movies, and feature films between 1947 and 1989. Evans portrayed the authoritarian but wise father, Rob McLaughlin, on the 1956-1957 CBS television series My Friend Flicka. He next co-starred, in 1958, as Major Al Arthur in Damn Citizen, a film based on the life of crusading State Police superintendent Francis Grevemberg of Louisiana, played by Keith Andes. In 1960, Evans was cast as Otis Stockert in "The Frontiersman" on the NBC Western series Wichita Town, with Joel McCrea. That same year, he was cast as Boone Hackett in the episode "Die Twice" of the CBS Western series Johnny Ringo, with Don Durant. In 1961, Evans guest-starred as Sheriff Tom Wilson in "Incident on the Road Back" in the Rawhide series on CBS. He then was cast as Walter Kopek, an undercover agent of the United States Treasury Department, in the 1963 episode "The Moonshiners" on the CBS anthology series GE True, hosted by Jack Webb. In 1966, Evans appeared on the CBS courtroom drama series Perry Mason as Sheriff "Moose" Dalton in "The Case of the Scarlet Scandal". In January 1979, Evans appeared as Garrison Southworth in one episode of CBS's Dallas. He guest-starred in 10 episodes of CBS's Gunsmoke with James Arness, including several of the best-remembered segments, including "The Snow Train", "Tatum", and "Thirty a Month and Found". In 1965, Evans guest-starred as Jake Burnett in the episode "Vendetta" of ABC's western series The Legend of Jesse James starring Christopher Jones. In January 1982, Evans performed in the role of war reporter Clayton Kibbee in an episode of CBS's M*A*S*H titled "Blood and Guts". He also appeared on stage in the late 1980s as the gruesome Papa in the stage production Papa is All, directed by playwright Tommy F. Scott in Jackson, Tennessee and including Melissa Hill, William Morgan and Jamie Boyd in the cast.

Evans retired to a farm in Tennessee following his role in the original film version of Walking Tall. Evans died at age 75 of heart failure at Jackson-Madison County General Hospital in Jackson, Tennessee, on April 1, 1998. He is interred at Highland Memorial Gardens, also located in Jackson.