The man died at 80- after serving in World War Two and starring in Hollywood films, including True Grit alongside legend John Wayne
One of the greatest Hollywood character actors off his era was chillingly run through by a bull he rented to breed on his own farm. Today he is buried just a few feet away from the horrific incident.
John Pickard acted in True Grit (1969) starring John Wayne. The Tennessee man came from Lascassas and was one of the greatest character actors to grace the big screen”, according to Rutherford TN History. Pickard attended a normal high school wife, and then began acting in films in 1936. By 1939, he modeled on a war bond poster for the US Navy.
From 1942-1946, Pickard served in the Navy but on his return started to pursue acting seriously, and became a favourite for Western films and dramas. He landed his first role with John Wayne in the late 1940s with The Wake Of The Red Witch (1948). His career spanned a spectacular 40 years in the industry and in 1969, he appeared as Frank Ross in another John Wayne film, True Grit.
Pickard’s role before his brutal death was in a 1987 episode of the CBS detective series, Simon and Simon. Disturbingly, Pickard was killed by a bull at the age of 80 in 1993 at a family picnic on his farm in Lascassas. Pickard had rented a bull to breed on his estate, not knowing it would be the cause of his demise. He was survived by his wife, Ann, son John, and three grandchildren at the time.
One of Pickard’s earliest roles was in the film “Mary of Scotland” in 1936 at the tender age of 23. Then he landed his first recurring character in TV series Boots and Saddles where he appeared in a whopping 38 episodes. The popular series filmed in Utah aired 1957 and 1958. Pickard’s great-great-grandfather was an early settler in Tennessee then known as Davidson County, now Nashville, Rev. James Rucker.
His great-aunt was Willie Betty Newman, a plantation owner before the Civil War. Willie was also a famous artist and owned a thriving studio. True Grit was rife with controversy with Wayne lobbying for the lead role of one-eyed US Marshal Rooster Cogburn after reading Charles Portis’ novel of the same name.
Famously, Elvis Presley couldn’t be secured for the supporting role of the Texan La Boeuf, as the singer’s manager, Colonel Tom Parker, demanded top billing above Wayne himself. Meanwhile, there would be another actor who ended up leaving the Western legend fuming once the shoot had begun.
