Steve Forrest, a ruggedly handsome action man of the 1960s and 1970s, was born William Forrest Andrews in Huntsville, Texas, as the youngest of thirteen children to Annis (Speed) and Charles Forrest Andrews, a Baptist minister. His brother, Dana Andrews, was also an actor. Forrest began his screen career as a small part contract player with MGM, but his early life took a dramatic turn when he enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1942, rising to the rank of sergeant and seeing action at the Battle of the Bulge.
After his demobilization, Forrest visited his brother in Hollywood and discovered a passion for acting. He went on to study theatre arts at UCLA, graduating in 1950 with a B.A. Honours Degree. He then served a brief apprenticeship as a carpenter, prop boy, and set builder at San Diego's La Jolla Playhouse, where he was discovered by Gregory Peck and given a small part in the summer stock production of "Goodbye Again".
A subsequent screen test led to a contract with MGM, and Forrest soon found himself playing second leads, brothers of the titular star, toughs, and outlaws. His breakthrough role came in 1953, when he was awarded 'New Star of the Year' by the Golden Globe for his performance in "So Big", a drama based on a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Edna Ferber.
From the mid-1950s, Forrest became a sought-after actor on television, appearing in classic early anthology and western series, as well as occasional big-screen roles. He was a regular guest star on shows like "Gunsmoke", "Dallas", and "Murder, She Wrote", and also landed starring roles in series like "The Baron" and "S.W.A.T.".
In the 1960s, Forrest began to pick his assignments more carefully, seeking to shed his image as the perpetual bad guy. He relocated his family to England to star as antique-dealer-cum-undercover intelligence agent John Mannering in the BBC series "The Baron", and later starred as Lieutenant Dan 'Hondo' Harrelson in the short-lived ABC police drama series "S.W.A.T.", a role that remains one of his most memorable.
In his private life, Forrest was known for his skills on the golf course, his love of football, and his dedication to amateur beekeeping. He also had a sense of humor, lampooning his screen persona in the satirical film "Amazon Women on the Moon" in 1987.
