Biography
With a flattened proboscis that ended just above his upper lip, James Lew Meehan was a highly visible presence in budget Westerns from the very early '20s to at least 1944. A lead villain in silent oaters starring lesser-known cowboys like
Lester Cuneo,
Bill Patton, and
Al Hoxie, Meehan's florid acting style can be enjoyed today in such silents as
Blazing Arrows (1922) and
Red Blood (1926) -- the now veteran actor usually found himself demoted to that of anonymous henchman after the advent of sound. He remained busy, though, clocking in at a total of 121 sound Westerns and 11 serials between 1929 and 1944. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide