Actor Bruce Cabot, born Étienne de Pelissier Bujac, Jr., in Carlsbad on April 20, 1904, was the son of prominent local lawyer and Philippine-American War veteran Major Etienne de Pelissier Bujac, Sr., and Julia Armandine Graves of New York City. His mother, who had come to Carlsbad seeking relief from tuberculosis, died shortly after his birth. Headstrong and adventurous from an early age, young Étienne often clashed with his strict father. After being involved in the city’s first serious auto accident on Christmas Day 1916 and being expelled from Carlsbad public schools, he briefly attended New Mexico Military Institute before running away. Over the next several years, he worked a variety of rugged jobs across the Southwest as a cowpuncher, roughneck, dockworker, bone scavenger, and even a sparring partner for a prizefighter. Restless, he traveled widely, including a voyage aboard a tramp steamer to France in 1924, before eventually returning to New Mexico and briefly attending the University of New Mexico.

Upon marrying Grace Mary Mather-Smith in 1927 and briefly working for her wealthy father’s paper company in Chicago, he grew dissatisfied with domestic life and moved to New York City in 1929. The Great Depression eventually brought him west to Hollywood, where a chance meeting with filmmaker David O. Selznick led to a screen test with RKO and a new stage name: Bruce Cabot. After several supporting roles, he rose to fame in 1933 as Jack Driscoll in the classic film King Kong. Over the next four decades, Cabot appeared in more than 100 films spanning westerns, adventure, noir, romance, war, and comedy. During World War II he served as an OSS intelligence and operations officer in North Africa and Italy. Following the war, Cabot became one of John Wayne’s close friends and regular co-stars, appearing in films such as Angel and the Badman, McLintock!, Chisum, and Big Jake. He also appeared on television programs such as Bonanza and Tales of Tomorrow. His final screen appearance came in the James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever as the villainous Bert Saxby.

Though he became a Hollywood star and traveled the world, Cabot never lost his connection to his hometown. Upon his death on May 3, 1972, in Woodland Hills, California, he was buried in Carlsbad according to his wishes. From a rebellious New Mexico youth to an international film star, Bruce Cabot lived an adventurous life as dramatic as the characters he portrayed on screen.

Researched by Robert C. Sanchez