Clarence LeRoy "Lee" Van Cleef Jr. (January 9, 1925 – December 16, 1989) was an American actor best known for his roles in Spaghetti Westerns such as For A Few Dollars More and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Hatchet-faced with piercing eyes, he had declined to have his nose altered to play a sympathetic character in his film debut, High Noon, and was relegated to a non-speaking outlaw as a result. For a decade he was typecast as a minor villain, his sinister features overshadowing his acting skills. After suffering serious injuries in a car crash, Van Cleef began to lose interest in his apparently waning career by the time Sergio Leone gave him a major role in For a Few Dollars More. The film made him a box-office draw, especially in Europe. Despite suffering from heart disease from the late 1970s and having a pacemaker installed in the early 1980s, Van Cleef continued to work in films until his death on December 16, 1989, at age 64. He was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Hollywood Hills, California, with an inscription on his grave marker referring to his many acting performances as a villain: "BEST OF THE BAD".

Filmography

• 2014Peter Baumgartner, Filmkameramann — (archive footage)
• 2000Klaus Kinski: I'm not an actor — Col. Douglas Mortimer (archive footage)
• 1990Thieves of Fortune — Sergio Danielo Christophero
• 1989Speed Zone — Grandfather
• 1988The Commander — Col. Mazzarini
• 1986Armed Response — Burt Roth
• 1985Jungle Raiders — Warren
• 1985The Master Ninja 5 — John Peter McAllister
• 1984Code Name: Wild Geese — Archie 'China' Travers
• 1984Killing Machine — Julot
• 1984Master Ninja — John Peter McAllister
• 1984Master Ninja II — John Peter McAllister
• The Master — John Peter McAllister
• 1981Escape from New York — Police Commissioner Bob Hauk
• 1980The Hard Way — McNeal
• 1980The Octagon — McCarn
• 1978The Squeeze — Chris Gretchko / Ray Sloan
• 1977Nowhere to Hide — Ike Scanlon
• 1977The Perfect Killer — Harry Chapman
• 1976God's Gun — Father John / Lewis
• 1976Kid Vengeance — McClain
• 1975Take a Hard Ride — Kiefer
• 1974The Stranger and the Gunfighter — Dakota
• 1973Mean Frank and Crazy Tony — Frankie
• 1972The Grand Duel — Sheriff Clayton
• 1972The Magnificent Seven Ride! — Marshal Chris Adams
• 1971Bad Man's River — Roy King
• 1971Captain Apache — Capt. Apache
• 1971Return of Sabata — Sabata / Major
• 1970Barquero — Travis
• 1970El Condor — Jaroo
• 1969Sabata — Sabata
• 1968Beyond the Law — Billy Joe Cudlip
• 1968Commandos — MSgt. Sullivan
• 1967Day of Anger — Frank Talby
• 1967Death Rides a Horse — Ryan
• 1967The Big Gundown — Jonathan Corbett
• 1966The Good, the Bad and the Ugly — Sentenza / Angel Eyes
• Branded
• 1965For a Few Dollars More — Col. Douglas Mortimer
• Laredo
• My Mother the Car
• The Dakotas
• 1962How the West Was Won — River Pirate
• 1962The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance — Reese
• 1961Posse from Hell — Leo
• Stagecoach West — Lin Hyatt
• The Andy Griffith Show — Skip
• 1960The Slowest Gun in the West — Sam Bass
• Black Saddle — Frank Sandoe
• Bonanza — Appling
• 1959Guns Girls and Gangsters — Mike Bennett
• Hawaiian Eye
• Law of the Plainsman — Tracey
• Mr. Lucky — Kruger
• Rawhide — Fred Grant, Deck Sommers
• 1959Ride Lonesome — Frank
• Riverboat — Luke Cragg
• The Alaskans
• The Deputy — Cherokee Kid
• The DuPont Show with June Allyson — Peak
• The Twilight Zone — Steinhart
• The Untouchables — Frank Diamond
• 77 Sunset Strip — Majeski
• Bronco — Shanghai Williams
• 1958Day of the Badman — Jake Hayes
• Lawman — Deputy Clyde Wilson, Ned Scott
• 1958Machete — Miguel
• 1958The Bravados — Alfonso Parral
• The Rifleman
• 1958The Young Lions — 1st Sgt. Rickett
• Wanted: Dead or Alive — Jumbo Kane
• Yancy Derringer — Ike Milton
• Casey Jones — Mort Clio
• 1957China Gate — Maj. Cham
• 1957Gun Battle at Monterey — Kirby
• 1957Gunfight at the O.K. Corral — Ed Bailey
• Have Gun, Will Travel — Golias, Corbin
• 1957Joe Dakota — Adam Grant
• 1957Last Stagecoach West — Steve Margolies
• Maverick
• Perry Mason — Edward Doyle
• 1957Raiders of Old California — Damon Pardee
• Richard Diamond, Private Detective — Ed Murdock
• 1957The Badge of Marshal Brennan — Shad Donaphin
• 1957The Lonely Man — Faro
• 1957The Quiet Gun — Doug Sadler
• 1957The Tin Star — Ed McGaffey
• Tombstone Territory — Sam Carver
• Trackdown — Ben Fraser
• Wagon Train — Rufe Beal
• Zorro
• 1956Accused of Murder — Police Sgt. Emmett Lackey
• 1956It Conquered the World — Dr. Tom Anderson
• 1956Pardners — Gus
• State Trooper — Frank Parnessa
• 1956The Conqueror — Chepei
• 1956Tribute to a Bad Man — Fat Jones
• Wire Service — Al Sanders
• 1955A Man Alone — Clanton
• Buffalo Bill Jr.
• Cheyenne — Braden, Harry Bittercreek Bartender
• Gunsmoke — Rad, John Hooker, Ike Jeffords
• 1955I Cover the Underworld — Flash Logan
• 1955Ten Wanted Men — Al Drucker
• The Adventures of Champion — Frank
• 1955The Big Combo — Fante
• 1955The Naked Street — Harry Goldish (uncredited)
• 1955The Road to Denver — Pecos Larry
• 1955The Vanishing American — Jay Lord
• 1955Treasure of Ruby Hills — Frank Emmett
• Annie Oakley — Amos Belcher, Tim Brennan
• 1954Arrow In The Dust — Tillotson Henchman
• 1954Dawn at Socorro — Earl Ferris
• 1954Gypsy Colt — Hank
• 1954Princess of the Nile — Hakar (uncredited)
• 1954Rails Into Laramie — Ace Winton
• Stories of the Century — Jesse James
• Studio 57 — Tommy
• 1954The Desperado — Paul Clayton/Buck Clayton
• 1954The Yellow Tomahawk — Fire Knife
• 1953Arena — Smitty
• City Detective
• General Electric Theater — Dave Rudabaugh
• 1953Jack Slade — Bolt Mackay
• 1953The Bandits of Corsica — Nerva
• 1953The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms — Corp. Stone
• 1953The Nebraskan — Pvt. Reno Benton
• 1953Tumbleweed — Marv
• 1953Vice Squad — Pete Monty
• 1953White Lightning — Brutus Allen
• Cavalcade of America — 1st Mate Hawl Finch
• Four Star Playhouse — Bob Wheeler aka Sonora Kid
• 1952High Noon — Jack Colby
• 1952Kansas City Confidential — Tony Romano
• The Ford Television Theatre — Stanley Perrin
• 1952The Lawless Breed — Dirk Hanley
• 1952Untamed Frontier — Dave Chittun
• Boston Blackie — Captain Jansen, Lou
• Schlitz Playhouse of Stars — Dallas Clancy, Sheriff, Larkin, Wink, Cowboy
• The Adventures of Kit Carson
• Space Patrol — Ward
• The Gene Autry Show — Hod - Henchman, Henchman Ray
• The Lone Ranger — Bull Harper, Jango

Appearances as themselves (3)

• 2024The Conqueror: Hollywood Fallout — Self (archive footage)
• 1990The Best of the Martial Arts Films — Self
• 1979When the West Was Fun: A Western Reunion — Self