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Though not widely recognized today, this handsome, firm-jawed, and serious-looking actor enjoyed a brief but notable moment in the spotlight during the 1960s on both television and film.
Ralph Adolph Taeger was born to German-speaking parents on July 30, 1936, in Richmond Hill, New York. A naturally shy child, he took up public speaking to overcome his social anxiety and pursued acting roles in college plays and summer stock productions. Initially aspiring to a professional baseball career, he played for a Dodgers farm team, but knee injuries forced him to reconsider his path.
He then enrolled at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, attending classes while secretly working as a male model. Moving to the West Coast, a stage performance at the Beverly Hills Playhouse caught the attention of an MGM talent scout. Signed briefly, he made an uncredited appearance in It Started with a Kiss (1959) before being released.
Freelancing on television, he found the medium more fruitful, often portraying strong, silent, clean-cut, adventurous characters in crime and western series such as Highway Patrol, Manhunt, Tombstone Territory, and Sea Hunt. His first lead role came as the rugged Mike Halliday in Klondike (1960), set during the 1897 Alaskan gold rush. The show, which co-starred James Coburn, lasted less than half a season. Due to their chemistry, the setting was changed to present-day Mexico, and the series was rebranded as Acapulco (1961). Playing Patrick Malone, a former Korean War veteran turned beachcomber protecting a criminal lawyer from gangsters, the series failed quickly, ending after two months.
Taeger’s final shot at TV stardom was the title role in Hondo (1967), based on the 1953 John Wayne western. Portraying cavalry scout Hondo Lane, a lonely, embittered man whose Indian bride was killed in an army massacre, the series showed promise but failed to attract a large audience and was canceled after three months.
Although he starred in the feature film X-15 (1961) alongside Mary Tyler Moore and had supporting roles in Stage to Thunder Rock (1964), A House Is Not a Home (1964), and the George Peppard/Carroll Baker film The Carpetbaggers (1964), his Hollywood career waned. His reputation for being difficult on set did not help. After guest appearances on shows like Quincy (1982) and Father Murphy (1983), he left acting altogether.
He later sold cars and worked as a tennis pro. Taeger married Linda Jarrett in 1967, and they had one son, Richard. The family ran Taeger’s Firewood Company in northern Placerville, California, and occasionally participated in local theater. Ralph Taeger passed away at age 78 on March 11, 2015, after a prolonged illness.
