Paramount – "Ty Hungerford" , Hardin, and
Anne Helm in 1961 in
Bronco A
Paramount Pictures talent scout discovered Hardin while he was attending a costume party. He had rented revolvers from
Western Costume, a motion-picture costume-rental company. Initially billed as "Ty Hungerford", he made various minor appearances in several Paramount films, such as
The Space Children (1958),
As Young as We Are (1958)
I Married a Monster from Outer Space (1958),
The Buccaneer (1958), and
Last Train from Gun Hill (1959). Wayne introduced him to
Howard Hawks and
William T. Orr at Warner Bros. Television; they bargained for his seven-year contract and he moved to Warner Bros., which changed his stage surname to "Hardin", reminiscent of the Texas
gunfighter John Wesley Hardin. Walker and Warner Bros. came to terms after the season ended, but Hardin had made such a big hit on the show that
Jack L. Warner gave him his own series,
Bronco, under the Cheyenne title.
Bronco alternated weeks with
Sugarfoot, starring
Will Hutchins, and
Cheyenne for four years. The series ran from 1958 to 1962. Hardin guest-starred on other Warner Bros. shows such as
Maverick and
77 Sunset Strip. According to
Filmink "This was a pretty good run of films for Hardin. However, he didn’t really catch fire with film audiences. Hardin was an amiable, handsome TV series actor but that was about it – there was something anonymous about him." He then left Hollywood to seek opportunity overseas as his series aired all over the world. Like many other American actors, Hardin traveled to Europe, where he made several
spaghetti Westerns, including
Man of the Cursed Valley (1964). He appeared in a war film
Battle of the Bulge (1965) shot in Spain, and the Western
Savage Pampas (1966). He had the lead in
Death on the Run (1967). He supported
Joan Crawford in
Berserk! (1967) and played Captain Reno in
Custer of the West (1967) shot in Spain. He had the lead in
Ragan (1968) and
One Step to Hell (1968). in which he played an American running a charter boat company along the eastern seaboard of Australia. During the making of the series he memorably told a journalist, "I'm really a very humble man. Not a day goes by that I don't thank God for my looks, my stature and my talent." He returned to Europe to star in
The Last Rampage (1970),
Quel maledetto giorno della resa dei conti (1971), and
Drummer of Vengeance (1971). He was in a 1970 German television series called
On the Trail of Johnny Hilling, Boor and Billy, shown in the former
West Germany. Hardin was in
The Last Rebel (1971)
Acquasanta Joe (1971), and ''
You're Jinxed, Friend You've Met Sacramento (1972) and a small role in Avanti!'' (1972). In 1974, he was arrested in Spain for drug trafficking and spent time in prison.
Later career Hardin's later appearances included
Rooster: Spurs of Death! (1977),
Fire (1977), and
Image of the Beast (1980) as well as episodes of TV shows such as
The Love Boat. He was in
The Zoo Gang (1985) and
Red River (1988) and had a lead in
Born Killer (1989). Hardin could be seen in
Bad Jim (1992), and
Rescue Me (1992). ==Death==