Bridges had small uncredited roles in the films
Freshman Love (1936) and
Dancing Feet (1936).
Theatre Bridges made his Broadway debut in 1937 in a short-lived production of
Shakespeare's
Othello, starring
Walter Huston and
Brian Aherne; Bridges was in the Ensemble. He appeared on stage in
Suzanna and the Elders (1940). In Hollywood he had an uncredited role in
Northwest Passage (1940).
Columbia Pictures and U.S. Coast Guard In 1940, Bridges joined the stock company at
Columbia Pictures at $75 a week, where he played small roles in features and short subjects. He could be seen in
The Lone Wolf Takes a Chance (1941),
They Dare Not Love (1941), ''
Doctor's Alibi (1941), Blue Clay (1941), Our Wife (1941), and I Was a Prisoner on Devil's Island (1941). In Here Comes Mr. Jordan'' (1941) Bridges is the pilot of the plane in the "heaven" scene. Bridges later reflected, He left Columbia Pictures during World War II to enlist in the
United States Coast Guard. Following his discharge, he returned to acting. In later years, he was a member of the
U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, did several public service announcements for the organization, and was made an honorary commodore. Bridges'
Sea Hunt character Mike Nelson was also portrayed as a member of the Coast Guard Auxiliary and sometimes appeared in uniform. Bridges' sons, actors Beau and Jeff, also served in the Coast Guard and
Coast Guard Reserve.
Post-war career Bridges' first lead role was in the serial
Secret Agent X-9 (1945) made for Universal. That studio kept him on for
Strange Confession (1945), an
Inner Sanctum mystery. Bridges had some supporting roles in independent films,
A Walk in the Sun (1945), and
Abilene Town (1946). He was in Paramount's ''
Miss Susie Slagle's'' (1946) and
Walter Wanger's
Canyon Passage (1947). In 1947 he appeared in a small role in
Cecil B. DeMille's film
Unconquered.
Leading man He returned to lead roles with
Secret Service Investigator (1948) at
Republic Pictures, and
16 Fathoms Deep (1948) for
Monogram Pictures. Bridges had a supporting role in
Frank Borzage's
Moonrise (1948) then was the lead in
Hideout (1949) for Republic. Bridges was in a Western at Universal directed by
George Sherman,
Red Canyon (1949), and a short at MGM,
Mr. Whitney Had a Notion (1949). He had a good role in
Home of the Brave (1949). At Universal he was
Howard Duff's friend in
Calamity Jane and Sam Bass (1949), again for Sherman. '' (1950) Bridges had the star role in
Trapped (1949) directed by
Richard Fleischer for
Eagle Lion and
Rocketship X-M (1950) for
Lippert Pictures. He had supporting roles in
Colt .45 (1951),
The White Tower (1951), and
The Sound of Fury (1950) (directed by
Cy Endfield).
Blacklisting Bridges was
blacklisted briefly in the 1950s after he admitted to the
House Un-American Activities Committee that he had once been a member of the
Actors' Laboratory Theatre, a group found to have had links to the
Communist Party USA. He returned to acting after recanting his membership and serving as a cooperative witness, achieving his greatest success in television. Bridges made his TV debut in 1951 with "Man's First Debt" in
The Bigelow Theatre. He had starring roles in the films
The Fighting Seventh (1951),
Three Steps North (1951), and
Richer Than the Earth (1951). On TV he did "Rise Up and Walk" for
Robert Montgomery Presents (1952) and "International Incident" for
Studio One in Hollywood (1952) (the latter directed by
Franklin J. Schaffner). Bridges had a supporting role in
High Noon (1952). Bridges guest starred on
Suspense ("Her Last Adventure") and
Schlitz Playhouse ("This Plane for Hire"), and had supporting roles in
Plymouth Adventure (1952) and
The Sabre and the Arrow (1953). Bridges returned to leads in
The Tall Texan (1953) for
Lippert Pictures. Bridges was in "The Long Way Home" for
Goodyear Playhouse (1953), and appeared in
The Kid from Left Field (1953) and
City of Bad Men (1953) for Fox. He travelled to the UK to star in
The Limping Man (1953) for
Cy Endfield. He returned to Broadway in
Dead Pigeon (1953–54), which had a short run. He had the lead in a horse movie,
Prince of the Blue Grass (1954) and returned to England to make
Third Party Risk (1954) for
Hammer Films. In Hollywood Bridges supported
Joel McCrea in
Wichita (1955) and had the lead in
Roger Corman's low-budget
Apache Woman (1955).
Television On TV Bridges performed in "Broadway Trust" for
Crossroads (1955), "The Dark Fleece" and "Edge of Terror" for
Climax! (1955) (the latter directed by
John Frankenheimer), "The Ainsley Case" for
Front Row Center (1956), "Across the Dust" and "Prairie Dog Court" for
Chevron Hall of Stars (1956), and "The Silent Gun" and "American Primitive" for
Studio One in Hollywood (1956). He had the lead in the low budget
Wetbacks (1956) and a supporting role in
The Rainmaker (1956). Bridges gained attention in 1956 for his emotional performance on the live anthology program
The Alcoa Hour, in an episode titled "
Tragedy in a Temporary Town" written by
Reginald Rose and directed by
Sidney Lumet. During the performance, Bridges inadvertently used profanity while
ad-libbing. Although the slip of the tongue generated hundreds of complaints, the episode won a
Robert E. Sherwood Television Award, with Bridges' slip being defended even by some members of the clergy. Bridges received an
Emmy Award nomination for the role. Bridges did "The Regulators" for
Studio 57 (1956), "They Never Forget" for
The United States Steel Hour (1957), "Ride the Wild Mare" for
The Alcoa Hour (1957), "Man on the Outside" for
Studio 57 (1957), "The Sound of Silence", "Figures in Clay" and "The Disappearance of Amanda Hale" for
Climax!, "Heritage of Anger" (1956) and "
Clash by Night" (1957) for
Playhouse 90, the latter with
Kim Stanley. Bridges also made several episodes of
Zane Grey Theatre including "Time of Decision" (1957) and "Wire" (1958). He supported
Rory Calhoun in
Ride Out for Revenge (1957) and did "A Time to Cry" on
The Frank Sinatra Show (1958) and had one of his best ever cinema roles in
The Goddess (1958) based on a script by
Paddy Chayefsky based on the life of
Marilyn Monroe; Bridges played a sportsman based on
Joe di Maggio opposite
Kim Stanley. He directed "Piano to Thunder Springs" for
Target (1958).
Sea Hunt (1958–1961) Bridges gained wide recognition as Mike Nelson, the main character in the television series
Sea Hunt, created by
Ivan Tors, which ran in
syndication from 1958 to 1961. He also wrote a book with a co-author about skin-diving entitled
Mask and Flippers. , "Who Killed Julie Greer?". Standing, from left:
Ronald Reagan,
Nick Adams, Lloyd Bridges,
Mickey Rooney,
Edgar Bergen,
Jack Carson,
Ralph Bellamy,
Kay Thompson,
Dean Jones. Seated, from left,
Carolyn Jones and
Dick Powell. Bridges did "Lepke" (1959) for
Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse (1960), "Ransom" (1960) (directed by
Budd Boetticher) and "Image of a Drawn Sword" (1961) for
Zane Grey Theatre. He did a TV movie
The Valley of Decision (1960), "Death of the Temple Bay" for
The DuPont Show with June Allyson (1961), "Who Killed Julie Greer?" (1961) for
The Dick Powell Theatre, "The Fortress" (1961) for
Alcoa Premiere (with
Fred Astaire), and "The Two of Us" (1962) for
Checkmate. He also did a special
Marineland Carnival (1962).
The Lloyd Bridges Show (1962–1963) Bridges starred in the eponymous
CBS anthology series The Lloyd Bridges Show (1962–1963) (produced by
Aaron Spelling) which included appearances by his sons
Beau and
Jeff. Bridges followed it with "A Hero for Our Times" for
Kraft Suspense Theatre (1963), "Wild Bill Hickok – the Legend and the Man" for
The Great Adventure (1964), "Cannibal Plants, They Eat You Alive" for
The Eleventh Hour (1964) and "Exit from a Plane in Flight" for
Theater of Stars (1965). Producer
Gene Roddenberry offered Bridges a starring role on what became
Star Trek. Bridges declined, saying he got along well with Roddenberry on a personal level but had no desire to work in
science fiction. The part went to
Jeffrey Hunter for the pilot episode
The Cage and ultimately to
William Shatner for the first incarnation of the television series.
The Loner Bridges starred in the
western series
The Loner, which lasted one season from 1965 to 1966 and was created and often written by
Rod Serling.
The Loner earned solid reviews but was cancelled due to low ratings and a perception the show was too realistic or mature for audiences who expected escapist action from westerns. Bridges returned to features with
Around the World Under the Sea (1966). He guest starred in "Fakeout" for
Mission Impossible (1966), and did a TV movie
A Case of Libel (1968). Bridges starred in some action films,
Daring Game (1968) and
Attack on the Iron Coast (1968), the latter for
Ivan Tors. He did "The People Next Door" for
CBS Playhouse (1968). Bridges starred in some TV movies,
The Silent Gun (1969), and
Silent Night, Lonely Night (1969). He had a supporting role in
The Happy Ending (1969) directed by
Richard Brooks. Bridges returned to Broadway as a replacement for the lead in
Cactus Flower (1967).
Telemovies Bridges was in heavy demand for TV movies such as
The Love War (1970),
Lost Flight (1970),
Do You Take This Stranger? (1971),
A Tattered Web (1971), and
The Deadly Dream (1971). He starred in a short lived series
San Francisco International Airport (1970/71) and had a supporting role in a feature,
To Find a Man (1972). Bridges had a (then) rare comedy role on ''
Here's Lucy'' with "Lucy's Big Break" (1972). He continued in TV movies:
Haunts of the Very Rich (1972),
Trouble Comes to Town (1973),
Crime Club (1973),
Running Wild (1973),
Death Race (1973),
The Whirlwind (1974, with son Beau), and
Stowaway to the Moon (1975).
Joe Forrester Bridges starred in a short-lived
Police Story spin-off
Joe Forrester (1975–76). Bridges played significant roles in several mini-series, including
Roots, and
How the West Was Won. He returned to TV movies:
The Force of Evil (1978),
Telethon (1978),
The Great Wallendas (1978) and
The Critical List (1978). Bridges had a guest part in "
The Living Legend" for
Battlestar Galactica (1978) and went to Australia to make
Shimmering Light (1978) with Beau. He had a supporting part in
The Fifth Musketeer (1979) starring Beau and was in
Disaster on the Coastliner (1979),
Bear Island (1979) and ''
This Year's Blonde'' (1980) (as
Johnny Hyde)
Airplane! and 1980s in 1989 Bridges took on a memorable comedy role as air traffic controller Steve McCroskey in
Airplane! (1980), a critically and commercially successful spoof of disaster films. Having been specifically recruited by the directors based on his straight-arrow screen image, Bridges took the role on the advice and encouragement of his children, and later reprised the role in the less well-received follow-up
Airplane II: The Sequel (1982). He was also featured in a pair of comedies,
Weekend Warriors (1986), and
The Wild Pair, (1987) the latter of which he co-starred with and was directed by his son Beau. The following year, Bridges appeared with son Jeff in an uncredited role as
U.S. Senator Homer S. Ferguson in
Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988), directed by
Francis Ford Coppola. Bridges had other notable supporting roles in the romantic drama
Winter People (1989) and the romantic comedy
Cousins (1989). On television, Bridges appeared in a number of popular
miniseries such as
East of Eden (1981),
The Blue and the Gray (1982),
George Washington (1984),
Alice in Wonderland (1985),
Dress Gray (1986), and
North and South, Book II (1986). He also continued to make TV movies like
Life of the Party: The Story of Beatrice (1982),
Grace Kelly (1983),
Grandpa, Will You Run with Me? (1983)
The Thanksgiving Promise (1986),
She Was Marked for Murder (1988), and
Cross of Fire (1989). Bridges also starred in a short-lived
ABC TV series
Paper Dolls (1984), and guest starred on other ABC network shows such as
The Love Boat (1981), the
soap opera Loving (1983), and
Matt Houston (1983).
1990s Bridges starred in a short-lived series,
Capital News (1990), for
ABC. In 1990, he had a supporting role in
Joe Versus the Volcano, and portrayed
Harry Helmsley in the made-for-television movie,
Leona Helmsley: The Queen of Mean. Bridges was in ''
Shining Time Station: 'Tis a Gift (1990) then reprised his comedy career with a supporting role in Hot Shots! (1991). He starred in a TV movie In the Nick of Time (1992) and was in Honey, I Blew Up the Kid (1992), Devlin
(1992), and Mr. Bluesman
(1993) before reprising his old role in Hot Shots! Part Deux'' (1993). Bridges did
Secret Sins of the Father (1994) with son Beau (who directed), and
Cinderella ... Frozen in Time (1994). His last regular TV series was
Harts of the West (1993–1994). Bridges supported son Jeff in a big budget action film
Blown Away (1994). He did "Sandkings" (1995) for
The Outer Limits (1995) with Beau,
The Other Woman (1995),
Nothing Lasts Forever (1995), and
The Deliverance of Elaine (1996) and did voice work on
Peter and the Wolf (1995). He had a semi-regular part on
Second Noah (1996). He received a second Emmy Award nomination four decades after the first when he was nominated in 1998 for his role as
Izzy Mandelbaum on
Seinfeld. Bridges served on the advisory board of the
Los Angeles Student Film Institute. Bridges also guest starred on
Ned and Stacey. Bridges' last roles were in
Mafia! (1998) and
Meeting Daddy (2000). ==Personal life==