Hugh O'Brian - Wyatt Earp | Western Hero & Legend

Hugh Charles Krampe was born to Hugh John and Edith Krampe on April 19, 1925 in Rochester, New York. He attended high school in Illinois where he was involved in many sports including football, basketball, wrestling and track. He later attended Kemper Military School in Missouri. In 1942, Krampe enlisted in the Marine Corps and was the youngest drill instructor to have ever served in the Marines.

Hugh O'Brian as Pilford in The Shootist

Following World War II, Krampe moved to Los Angeles and found work on stage and in film, sometimes using the stage name Jaffer Gray, but finally settling for the name Hugh O'Brian.

Hugh O'Brian's big break came when he was chosen to protray the legendary lawman Wyatt Earp on ABC's "The Life And Legend Of Wyatt Earp", which first aired in 1955. "Wyatt Earp" soon became one of the top-rated shows on television and during its seven-year run the show consistently ranked in the top 10.

Hugh O'Brian made a number of motion pictures including "The Lawless Breed", "There's No Business Like Show Business", "White Feather", and "In Harms Way". O'Brian was a featured star in the 1977 premiere of the television series "Fantasy Island".

Hugh O'Brian was a good friend of John Wayne and O'Brian felt that one of his greatest distinctions was that he was the last man killed on screen in John Wayne's final movie, "The Shootist".

O'Brian recreated the Wyatt Earp role for two 1990 projects, "Guns of Paradise" and "The Gambler Returns: Luck Of The Draw".

Hugh O'Brian has dedicated much of his life to his non-profit youth leadership development program known as "Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership", or "HOBY". HOBY was inspired by O'Brian's visit with Dr. Albert Schweitzer in 1958. Dr. Schweitzer believed "the most important thing in education is to teach young people to think for themselves."

Hugh O'Brian as Wyatt Earp in Return to Tombstone - 1994

Here is part of Hugh O'Brian's message to young people in his speech, "Freedom to Choose":

"I do NOT believe we are all born equal. Created equal in the eyes of God, yes, but physical and emotional differences, parental guidelines, varying environments, being in the right place at the right time, all play a role in enhancing or limiting an individual's development. But I DO believe every man and woman, if given the opportunity and encouragement to

recognize their potential, regardless of background, has the freedom to choose in our world.

Will an individual be a taker or a giver in life? Will that person be satisfied merely to exist or seek a meaningful purpose? Will he or she dare to dream the impossible dream?"

"I believe every person is created as the steward of his or her own destiny with great power for a specific purpose, to share with others, through service, a reverence for life in a spirit of love."

Mr. O'Brian continues to concentrate on his youth organization and is still very active in his eighties.