1948–1952: Child acting

Tamblyn wanted to be a circus performer and was skilled in acrobatics and dancing as a child. He developed a musical act that involved singing, dancing, juggling and comedy.^[6]

Tamblyn's first professional job came when he was ten years old and was cast by actor Lloyd Bridges in a play Bridges was directing called The Stone Jungle alongside Dickie Moore.^[5] During the play's run Tamblyn was seen by several talent scouts and an agent, who signed him. The agent arranged for Tamblyn to audition for a role in The Boy With Green Hair (1948), and he was given a small part.^[7]

He appeared as young Saul in Cecil B. DeMille's 1949 version of Samson and Delilah. "That was a big break for me", he later said. "After that I worked a lot."^[8]

Tamblyn appeared in Reign of Terror, then was given a role in The Kid from Cleveland (1949), billed third (as "Rusty Tamblyn") after stars George Brent and Lynn Bari,^[4] and in What Happened to Jo Jo? (1950).^[4]

Tamblyn played the younger Bart Tare (played as an adult by John Dall) in the film noir Gun Crazy (1950) and Elizabeth Taylor's younger brother in Father of the Bride (also 1950) and its sequel, Father's Little Dividend (1951) at MGM. He appeared in Captain Carey, U.S.A. (1950), The Gangster We Made (1950), As Young as You Feel (1951), Cave of Outlaws (1951), Retreat, Hell! (1952), and The Winning Team (1952).^[9]

1953–1962: MGM and leading roles

MGM was impressed by Tamblyn's performance in Retreat, Hell! and signed him to a long-term contract.^[10] He called this "the second big break" of his career.^[11]

His first role under the contract was as a young soldier in boot camp in Take the High Ground! (1953), directed by Richard Brooks.^[12] His training as a gymnast in high school, and abilities as an acrobat, prepared him for his breakout role as Gideon, the youngest brother, in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954).^[13] Tamblyn says the director wanted to cast a Broadway dancer but MGM insisted the filmmakers use some contract talent, leading to him and Jeff Richards being used.^[14]

Tamblyn was not a trained dancer and always considered himself an actor who danced rather than the other way around,^[13] but the film was a big success and established him at MGM. Ge said "my career really took off" after the film.^[15]

Tamblyn was one of many studio contract players in the musical Deep in My Heart (1954). He played Eleanor Parker's brother in the Western Many Rivers to Cross (1955), and was one of several young MGM actors (others included Jane Powell and Debbie Reynolds) in the musical Hit the Deck (1955).^[16]

Tamblyn supported older actors in two Westerns: Robert Taylor and Stewart Granger in The Last Hunt (1956), a flop; and Glenn Ford and Broderick Crawford in The Fastest Gun Alive (1956), a big hit, where he performed an extraordinary "shovel" dance at a hoe-down early in the film.^[17][18] He served (uncredited) as a choreographer for Elvis Presley in 1957's Jailhouse Rock. MGM loaned Tamblyn to Allied Artists for his first star role, The Young Guns (1957). Back at MGM he supported Glenn Ford and Gia Scala in Don't Go Near the Water (1957), a comedy set among members of the U.S. Navy.^[3]

20th Century Fox borrowed Tamblyn to play Norman Page in Peyton Place (1957), opposite Lana Turner and Diane Varsi. For his performance he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.^[3] Immediately after filming that, Tamblyn went to England to play the title role in the musical Tom Thumb (1958), made for George Pal. When he returned, MGM immediately cast him as the lead in High School Confidential (1958), which was a solid hit.^[19]

Tamblyn's career momentum was interrupted when he was drafted into the United States Army in 1958.^[20] During his service he was given lead to play a prominent supporting part in Cimarron (1960).

Tamblyn's best-known musical role came as Riff, the leader of the Jets street gang in West Side Story (1961).^[3] He then appeared in two MGM Cinerama movies, The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm, again for Pal, and How the West Was Won (both 1962).

Tamblyn played Luke Sannerson in The Haunting for Robert Wise, who had made West Side Story. Tamblyn said he originally turned down the role as he disliked the part but agreed to do it when MGM threatened to put him on suspension. He then played "Smitty" Smith in MGM's Follow the Boys (both 1963).^[21]

1963–1976: Television and independent films

Tamblyn was unable to consolidate his position as a leading man, and later said he "dropped out" after his West Side Story success and devoted himself to art, refusing movie roles, as well as the role of Gilligan in the TV series Gilligan's Island.^[22]

In the 1960s he appeared in the TV series The Greatest Show on Earth ("Silent Love, Secret Love"; 1963), and Channing ("The Last Testament of Buddy Crown"; 1963). Tamblyn played a Viking alongside Richard Widmark and Sidney Poitier in The Long Ships (1965). Also in 1965 he appeared in Burke's Law ("Who Killed Rosie Sunset?") and Days of Our Lives.^[23]

Tamblyn had the starring role in the low-budget MGM Western Son of a Gunfighter (1965) and starred in the 1966 Japanese kaiju film War of the Gargantuas. He guest starred on Tarzan ("Leopard on the Loose", 1966), and Iron Horse ("Decision at Sundown", 1967). Tamblyn later said he became "bored" with acting around this time and more interested in art.^[13]

Tamblyn starred in the notorious biker movie Satan's Sadists (1969) for Al Adamson. He followed it with Scream Free! (1969), The Last Movie (1971), The Female Bunch (1971), and Dracula vs. Frankenstein (1971) for Adamson.^{[citation needed]}

He appeared on TV in Cade's County ("Ragged Edge", 1972), Win, Place or Steal (1973), The World Through the Eyes of Children (1975), The Quest ("The Captive", 1976), The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams ("The Skyrider", 1978), and Nero Wolfe ("Before I Die", 1981). He was also in Black Heat (1976).^{[citation needed]}

At the same time he worked in exploitation, Tamblyn also worked in the construction industry and computer software.^[13]

1978–1989: Choreography and film

Tamblyn played the supporting role in Neil Young's 1982 Human Highway while also credited for screenplay and choreography. Tamblyn is credited as director, choreographer and actor for Young's Greendale concert tour.^[24] He choreographed a play, Man with Bags, in 1983.^[25]

Tamblyn appeared in Fame, Commando Squad (1987) for Fred Olen Ray, The Phantom Empire (1988), Necromancer (1988), B.O.R.N. (1988), The Bloody Monks (1988), and an episode of Quantum Leap. He was in Aftershock (1990) and Wizards of the Demon Sword (1991) for Fred Olen Ray.

1990–2004: Twin Peaks and other work

In 1990–91, Tamblyn starred as Dr. Lawrence Jacoby on the David Lynch-created series Twin Peaks (alongside his West Side Story co-star Richard Beymer, who played Ben Horne);^[26] his scenes in the 1992 prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me were cut.

He appeared in Running Mates (1992), Little Devils: The Birth (1993), Cabin Boy (1994), Desert Steel (1995), and Babylon 5. He appeared on stage in Los Angeles in Zastrozzi.^[27] His work drifted back to straight to video: Starstruck (1995), Rebellious (1995), Attack of the 60 Foot Centerfold (1995) and Invisible Mom (1996) for Fred Olen Ray, Johnny Mysto: Boy Wizard (1997), My Ghost Dog (1997), and Little Miss Magic (1998) for Ray.

Tamblyn appeared on another soap opera, General Hospital, alongside his daughter Amber in 1997 and 2000. In 2004, he appeared with Amber again, playing God in the form of a man walking dogs, in three episodes of Joan of Arcadia.^[28] The two also worked together in the films Rebellious, Johnny Mysto: Boy Wizard, and The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret. In Quentin Tarantino's film Django Unchained, they were billed respectively as "Son of a Gunfighter" and "Daughter of a Son of a Gunfighter", alluding to his leading role in the 1965 western Son of a Gunfighter.

In 2004, the Academy Film Archive preserved the mid-1960s works First Film and Rio Reel by Tamblyn.^[29]

2005–present: Later roles

Tamblyn had supporting roles in Drive (2011), Django Unchained (2012), and Hits (2014). He appeared several times in The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret,^[30] and in the revival of Twin Peaks (2017).^[31]

Film

Television