The Only Major Actors Still Alive From A Time For Killing
"A Time For Killing" (also called "The Long Ride Home") isn't one of the best Westerns of all time, nor is it the most memorable, but the 1967 film still comes up in conversation thanks to its unique status as the very first movie role Harrison Ford was ever credited in. Ford played a young, sideburn-wearing Union soldier in the film, which followed the exploits of a group of captured Confederate soldiers on a mad dash for Mexico — none of whom realize the war has officially ended.
Aside from Ford's debut as Lieutenant Shaffer (for which he was credited as Harrison J. Ford), "A Time For Killing" is most noteworthy for its status as an abandoned Roger Corman flick. Corman started making "A Time For Killing" after already churning out cult classics like "A Bucket of Blood" and "The Little Shop of Horrors," but the low-budget filmmaker was replaced by "99 River Street" filmmaker Phil Karlson a few weeks into production for unknown reasons, according to C. Courtney Joyner's book "The Westerners."
Corman is still with us at the age of 98, but several stars of "A Time For Killing," including Glenn Ford, Inger Stevens, and Harry Dean Stanton, have since passed away. Ford went on to have the highest-profile career of any cast member, but each of the actors involved in the film has led interesting lives both within and without Hollywood in the decades since its release.
George Hamilton (Capt. Dorrit Bentley)
The actor who The Hollywood Reporter once called "Hollywood's greatest showman" is by now as famous for being famous (and for his oft-referenced tan) as he is for his work, but back in the '60s, he was a rising star with a prolific onscreen presence, including in several MGM films. Columbia-distributed "A Time For Killing" saw Hamilton play Capt. Dorrit Bentley, but it was just a blip on the radar of the popular actor.
Much of Hamilton's work came in the '60s and '70s (including a starring role in 1971's "Evil Knievel"), but by late 1979, the actor was still firmly in the zeitgeist thanks to his starring role in the hit horror comedy "Love at First Bite," which he also executive produced. His major movie roles in the decades to follow include the title character (and his twin brother) in the campy action movie "Zorro, The Gay Blade," the Corleone family attorney in "The Godfather: Part III," and a villainous warlock in "Casper Meets Wendy." He appeared as himself in movies like "Rumor Has It..." and "Bullworth," produced "Zorro" and 1973's "Medusa," spent a season on "Dynasty," and had a supporting role in the Jenny McCarthy-led sitcom "Jenny."
Hamilton's last on-screen role was in ABC's comedy "American Housewife," in which he played a billionaire investor and white-collar criminal. He's also appeared on reality shows like "Dancing with the Stars" and "I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here." A character in his own right, Hamilton has been the face of brands like Ritz crackers, KFC, and his own products, including Hamilton House cigars and, of course, the George Hamilton Sun Care System.
Paul Petersen (Blue Lake)
A former child star who eventually became a supportive force for kids in the industry, Paul Petersen was hot off his multi-season run on "The Donna Reed Show" when he appeared in "A Time For Killing." The actor, who was in his early 20s when the movie debuted, played a man named Blue Lake. Petersen appeared in the movie musical "The Happiest Millionaire" the same year this Western hit theaters, and popped up in movies including "Journey To Shiloh" and "In the Year 2889" in the years that followed.
Mostly, though, Petersen has taken the occasional TV guest spot while focusing much of his time on A Minor Consideration, the organization he founded (along with support from his wife) to support fellow child stars after a string of former kid actor suicides rocked Hollywood in the late '80s and early '90s. A Minor Consideration acts as an educational, legal, financial, and emotional support group for kids in the industry (or those transitioning out of it) who may need help; as its website says, it "works much like A.A., but with a significant difference; [members] do not pretend to be 'anonymous.'"
According to his surprisingly detailed IMDb biography penned by Gary Brumburgh, Petersen's career faded out quickly as Hollywood refused to see him as anyone besides Donna Stone's son, and he eventually went to college and wrote several adventure novels. "His biggest accomplishment to date, however, has been to give back, selflessly, to an industry that unceremoniously dumped him," Brumburgh writes, noting that Petersen fights for child stars' rights to better education and a limited work week.
Harrison Ford (Lt. Shaffer)
The Oscar-nominated man who played young Union officer Shaffer in "A Time For Killing" needs no introduction, but his career is always worth diving into. Corman and Karlson's film was the first for which Ford received an on-screen credit, though he appeared in uncredited cameos in two films ("Luv" and "Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round") in the year before the Western hit flick theaters. "A Time For Killing" didn't exactly launch Ford into the big time, but it was a line on his resume that helped move him towards his real breakout role, in 1973's "American Graffiti."
The movie was a smash hit and cultural phenomenon, and when its director George Lucas started working on a little project called "Star Wars," he brought Ford along for the ride. Since then, the actor has racked up hit after hit while building what might be one of the most entertaining filmographies of all time. When he wasn't playing Han Solo or Indiana Jones, Ford was delivering great performances in groundbreaking films like "Blade Runner," "Apocalypse Now," and "The Conversation" and headlining '90s crowd-pleasers like "Air Force One" and "The Fugitive."
Ford's body of work is so indelible that even titles that come up less in discussions of his filmography — from "Witness" to "Presumed Innocent" to "Working Girl" — were typically box office hits. Now in his 80s, Ford is still stealing scenes, including in the first TV shows he's ever had a recurring role in, Paramount+ historical drama "1923" and Apple TV+ comedy "Shrinking." Outside of acting, Ford is an avid environmentalist who spoke at the United Nations' Climate Action Summit in 2019 and still serves as Vice Chair of the Executive Committee for Conservation International.