“Beady-Eyed Sneer”

Lee Van Cleef (9 January 1925 – 16 December, 1989)

In The Fifty Worst Films of All Time (1978), the authors, citing Return of Sabata (1972), quote Van Cleef as stating: “being born with a beady-eyed sneer was the luckiest thing that ever happened to me.”

 

 

 

 

 

His was not a filmography to commend itself to posterity.  However, we respectfully suggest the following to the canon:

In bit parts: High Noon (1952), Gunfight at OK Corral (1957), The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962):

As a spaghetti anti-hero / villain: For a Few Dollars More (1965), The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), The Big Gundown (1966):

But especially as a key figure in Lesley’s favourite “B”, Escape From New York (1981).