Prolific American character actor of primarily villainous roles. The son of German parents, Cincinnati feed-store manager August Wilke and his wife Rose, Robert Joseph Wilke grew up in Cincinnati. He worked as a lifeguard at a Miami, Florida, hotel, where he made contacts in the film business. He was able to obtain work as a stuntman and continued as such until the mid-'40s, when he began getting actual roles in low-budget westerns and serials. A prominent appearance as one of the heavies in Le train sifflera trois fois (1952) led to work in higher-quality films. He worked extensively in television as well as movies, and became an enormously familiar face, though a fairly anonymous one to the general public. His weathered visage made him a perfect western bad guy, but he occasionally played sympathetic parts as well, as in Les moissons du ciel (1978). An expert golfer, he was said by his friend Claude Akins to have earned more money on the golf course than he ever did in movies. He died in 1989. -
Known For
Spartacus
(1960)
Guard captain
Stripes
(1981)
Gen. Barnicke
The Magnificent Seven
(1960)
Wallace
High Noon
(1952)
Jim Pierce
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
(1954)
First Mate of the Nautilus
Man of the West
(1958)
Ponch
A Gunfight
(1971)
Marshal Tom Cater
From Here to Eternity
(1953)
Sgt. Henderson (uncredited)
Days of Heaven
(1978)
The Farm Foreman
Tony Rome
(1967)
Ralph Turpin
Backlash
(1956)
Jeff Welker
Raw Edge
(1956)
Sile Doty
Night Passage
(1957)
Concho
Written on the Wind
(1956)
Dan Willis
Arrowhead
(1953)
Sgt. Stone
Shotgun
(1955)
Bentley (as Robert Wilke)
Full Filmography
Acting
That Man's Here Again
(1937)
(uncredited)
San Quentin
(1937)
Young Convict in Yard (uncredited)
The Fighting Devil Dogs
(1938)
Marine in Shanghai (uncredited)
Daredevils of the Red Circle
(1939)
G-Man
Star Reporter
(1939)
Reporter
In Old Monterey
(1939)
Man on Wagon
S.O.S Tidal Wave
(1939)
Man in TV Studio
Adventures of Red Ryder
(1940)
Henchman
In Old Missouri
(1940)
Hillbilly
Grand Ole Opry
(1940)
Hillbilly (uncredited)
Sierra Sue
(1941)
Carnival Spectator (uncredited)
Dick Tracy vs. Crime Inc.
(1941)
Cutter Helmsman
Whispering Footsteps
(1943)
Bank Customer
Cowboy and the Senorita
(1944)
Townsman (uncredited)
San Antonio Kid
(1944)
Henchman (as Bob Wilke)
Call of the Rockies
(1944)
Deputy Jim
Bordertown Trail
(1944)
Henchman
Faces in the Fog
(1944)
Photographer
The Fighting Seabees
(1944)
Arriving Construction Worker (uncredited)
Vigilantes of Dodge City
(1944)
Bill
Sheriff of Sundown
(1944)
Bradley - Henchman (as Bob Wilke)
Hidden Valley Outlaws
(1944)
Rancher (uncredited)
Code of the Prairie
(1944)
Bandits of the Badlands
(1945)
Keller
Sheriff of Cimarron
(1945)
Henchman Dobie
Corpus Christi Bandits
(1945)
Henchman Steve
Earl Carroll Vanities
(1945)
Cab Driver
Santa Fe Saddlemates
(1945)
Rawhide
Rough Riders of Cheyenne
(1945)
Smoke - Henchman (as Bob Wilke)
Trail of Kit Carson
(1945)
Dave MacRoy (as Bob Wilke)
Sunset in El Dorado
(1945)
Curley Roberts
Hitchhike to Happiness
(1945)
Stage Hand (uncredited)
The Inner Circle
(1946)
Police Officer Cummings (as Bob Wilke)
The Catman of Paris
(1946)
The Catman
Passkey to Danger
(1946)
Police Sergeant
Traffic in Crime
(1946)
Hogan's Driver
Rendezvous with Annie
(1946)
MP (uncredited)
Badman's Territory
(1946)
Deputy Marshal (uncredited)
White Tie and Tails
(1946)
Starter (uncredited)
The Ghost Goes Wild
(1947)
Burglar
Blackmail
(1947)
Policeman
Web of Danger
(1947)
Station Wagon Driver
Twilight on the Rio Grande
(1947)
Henchman
Law of the Canyon
(1947)
Knife-Throwing Henchman (uncredited)
Buck Privates Come Home
(1947)
GI Buddy (uncredited)
Homicide for Three
(1948)
Policeman
Carson City Raiders
(1948)
Ed Noble (as Bob Wilke)
Daredevils of the Clouds
(1948)
Joe
Coyote Canyon
(1949)
Deputy Sheriff Ed (as Bob Wilkie)
The Wyoming Bandit
(1949)
Sam - Henchman (as Bob Wilke)
Laramie
(1949)
Cronin (uncredited)
Flaming Fury
(1949)
Frontier Outpost
(1950)
Krag Benson
Across the Badlands
(1950)
Duke Jackson / Keno Jackson (as Bob Wilke)
Outcasts of Black Mesa
(1950)
Curt - Henchman (as Bob Wilke)
The Desert Hawk
(1950)
Camel Driver
Best of the Badmen
(1951)
Jim Younger
Saddle Legion
(1951)
Henchman Hooker
Gunplay
(1951)
Henchman Winslow
Pistol Harvest
(1951)
Andy Baylor
Hot Lead
(1951)
Stoney Dawson (as Robert Wilke)
Cyclone Fury
(1951)
Henchman Bunco (as Bob Wilke)
Overland Telegraph
(1951)
Bellew - Henchman (as Robert Wilke)
High Noon
(1952)
Jim Pierce
The Las Vegas Story
(1952)
Clayton (as Robert Wilke)
Cattle Town
(1952)
Keeno
Hellgate
(1952)
Sgt. Maj. Kearn
Road Agent
(1952)
Slab Babcock
Wyoming Roundup
(1952)
Wyatt - Henchman
Fargo
(1952)
Link - Henchman
The Maverick
(1952)
Massey
Arrowhead
(1953)
Sgt. Stone
War Paint
(1953)
Trooper Grady
Cow Country
(1953)
Sledge
From Here to Eternity
(1953)
Sgt. Henderson (uncredited)
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
(1954)
First Mate of the Nautilus
The Far Country
(1954)
Madden
Two Guns and a Badge
(1954)
Moore - Outlaw
The Lone Gun
(1954)
Hort Moran (as Robert Wilke)
Strange Lady in Town
(1955)
Karg
Wichita
(1955)
Ben Thompson
Shotgun
(1955)
Bentley (as Robert Wilke)
Smoke Signal
(1955)
First Sergeant Daly (as Robert Wilke)
Backlash
(1956)
Jeff Welker
Written on the Wind
(1956)
Dan Willis
Gun the Man Down
(1956)
Matt Rankin
Canyon River
(1956)
Joe Graycoe
The Lone Ranger
(1956)
Cassidy
The Rawhide Years
(1956)
Neal (as Robert Wilke)
Raw Edge
(1956)
Sile Doty
Night Passage
(1957)
Concho
The Tarnished Angels
(1957)
Hank
Hot Summer Night
(1957)
Tom Ellis (as Robert Wilke)
Man of the West
(1958)
Ponch
Return to Warbow
(1958)
Red
Never Steal Anything Small
(1959)
Lennie
Spartacus
(1960)
Guard captain
The Slowest Gun in the West
(1960)
Billy the Kid Blake
The Magnificent Seven
(1960)
Wallace
The Long Rope
(1961)
Ben Matthews
The Gun Hawk
(1963)
Johnny Flanders
Fate Is the Hunter
(1964)
Stillman
Shock Treatment
(1964)
Technician Mike Newton (as Robert Wilke)
The Hallelujah Trail
(1965)
Chief Five Barrels
Smoky
(1966)
Jeff Nicks
The Magnificent Stranger
(1966)
Sheriff McVey
Tony Rome
(1967)
Ralph Turpin
The Desperate Mission
(1969)
Gant
The Cheyenne Social Club
(1970)
Corey Bannister
A Gunfight
(1971)
Marshal Tom Cater
The Resurrection of Zachary Wheeler
(1971)
Hugh Fielding
They Call It Murder
(1971)
Sheriff Rex Brandon
The Rookies
(1972)
Officer Shaw
The Boy Who Cried Werewolf
(1973)
The Sheriff
Santee
(1973)
Deaks (as Robert Wilke
Days of Heaven
(1978)
The Farm Foreman
Wild and Wooly
(1978)
Demas Scott
The Sweet Creek County War
(1979)
Stripes
(1981)
Gen. Barnicke
James Stewart: A Wonderful Life
(1988)
Self (archive footage)