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Greene as Ben Cartwright 1959 NBC Television-photo by Elmer Holloway –

Top 10 Interesting Facts about Lorne Greene

Lorne Greene was born on February 12^th, 1915 in Ottawa Canada. His parents were Jewish immigrants from the Russian empire.

He was an actor, a radio personality, and a singer. He gained fame for singing the popular hit single Ringo which topped the US Billboard and easy listening chart.

Lorne Greene married twice and a short while before his death underwent an ulcer surgery in Santa Monica in California in the U.S.

Greene died on the 11^th day of September 1987 from complications from Pneumonia

Discussed below are the top 10 interesting facts about Lorne Greene.

1. Lorne Greene was like a father to those who grew up in the 1960s and 1970s

Lorne Greene was like another father to those who grew up in the 1960s and 1970s.

In the hit series Bonanza and Battlestar Galactica his calm, commanding presence was an essential part of each film series.

In hosting family-friendly events or playing patriarchs, his booming but soothing voice made a perfect match that could be imitated by fans.

His voice was the kind that could be used to cast for presidential roles or bourbon commercials by Hollywood.  

2. He was a Canadian who acted as an American cowboy

Lorne Greene . Photo by Ronny Jaques / National Film Board of Canada / Library and Archives Canada / PA-116178.

Greene was a Canadian who at an event on 4^th June 1967 was pictured speaking to salute the Southern California Canadian community in Los Angeles California.

  However, he portrayed the perfect iconic American cowboy in some of his performances.

In the 1970s television special Swing Out, Sweet Land, he portrayed George Washington alongside John Wayne.

3. Greene was known as “The Voice of Doom” at one time

Lorne Greene. Photo by TV studio. .

During World War II in the early 1940s, Greene worked as a radio presenter where he carried the official nickname of 鈥淭he Voice of Canada鈥�.

However, his role in delivering news that was considered stressful about the ongoing war then led listeners to christen him 鈥淭he Voice of Doom鈥�.

This nickname was exacerbated by his booming voice which sounded across the airwaves.

4. He co-hosted the Macy鈥檚 Thanksgiving Day

Lorne Greene . Photo by Larry Bessel, Los Angeles Times. .

Alongside Betty White, Greene helped kick off the holiday season on NBC where alongside Betty White he hosted Macy鈥檚 Thanksgiving Day Parade from 1963 to 1972.

The show was so popular that listeners wished they could watch it for eternity. Betty White who passed away in 2021 is considered an American treasure. She and Greene pioneered early television with a career spanning several decades.

5. Greene played a role in the Miss International Beauty Contest as the Emcee

Greene played the role of host in most important events in the mid-1960s. One of the most renowned events was the Miss International Beauty Contest of 1963 in which Greene played the role of the Emcee.

During the extravaganza, Greene gave a quick lesson on Western marksmanship to the previous year鈥檚 winner who visited the event, Tania Verstak of Australia which was noted by many viewers.

6. Greene recorded a pop song that become a number one hit song

Greene started making albums specifically to capitalize on his television fame unlike Western actors Sheb Wooley and Johnny Crawford whose careers in music developed as their acting roles developed alongside as well.

From 1963 to 1968, Greene鈥檚 music fans rewarded his musical career by drinking up his stream of music releases.

In 1964 Greene released 鈥淩ingo鈥� which was a spoken-word western ballad that on 5^th December 1964 topped the Billboard Hot 100 becoming the number one hit song at the time.

7. He appeared in all episodes of notable a sci-fi series

Lorne Greene. Photo by NBC Television.

Greene acted as a man of the Ponderosa and as a man of outer space in notable Sci-fi series which premiered during the time.

On the Sci-fi series Battlestar Galactica, for two seasons, he portrayed Commander Adama. 

Greene was a steady presence in the second season of the show Galactica after the original show was retooled and set in the modern-day at the time.

Only a few of the original actors featured in the new retooled show and Greene was among those few.

  Greene adorned a stylish beard in every episode of the show which registered his commanding presence throughout every episode of the show.

8. Lorne is the father-in-law of a famous movie director

In 1993, Sam Raimi married Lorne Greene鈥檚 daughter Gillian Greene thereby becoming Lorne Greene鈥檚 son-in-law and Lorne Greene becoming his father鈥搃n鈥搇aw. 

Sam Raimi is a renowned movie director having directed the blockbuster film Spider-Man trilogy.

Raimi is also the creator of the renowned movie Evil Dead.

Greene鈥檚 daughter together with her husband has been blessed with five children and has named one of the children Lorne in honor of his famous grandfather, Lorne Greene.

9. Greene鈥檚 documentary received an Oscar Award

Greene narrated several documentaries during his early days as a CBC newscaster.

The National Film Board of Canada was established in 1938 by the Canadian government as a propaganda vehicle to produce the documentaries that were handed over to Greene to narrate on television.

John Grierson, the visionary widely hailed as the father of British and Canadian documentary film produced many of the outstanding shorts and features which were narrated on television by Lorne Greene.

The short documentary Churchill Island which was a National Film Board short film depicting the defense of Great Britain received an Academy award which was the very first in the Documentary Short Subject category which was narrated by Lorne Greene.  

10. Lorne Greene trained renowned actors of the time

Lorne Greene launched the Academy of Radio Arts following his service with the Canadian military.

Established in 1945 in Toronto, the school was aimed at training film production personnel, writers, actors, and directors. 

Some of the well-known directors, actors, and writers trained at the school include James Doohan who went on to become famous for his role as Scotty on Star Trek.

Others include Leslie Nielsen who later became an invaluable advisor to Greene and also became a versatile TV and film actor.

 In conclusion, Lorne Greene is a Canadian Icon Cherished by fans across the world. He was a pioneer in his field that numerous actors and actresses look upon. 

 On a personal level, he married  Rita Hands first with whom they had two children born in 1945.

Greene married his second wife, Nancy Deale, after divorcing his first wife in 1961 and they had one daughter named Gillian.