Jock Mahoney, one of Hollywood's most impressive stuntmen, was born Jacques Joseph O'Mahoney in Chicago, IL. He was The Range Rider (1951-53), and later Yancy Derringer (1958-59), on television, and Tarzan in two feature films.
Judy Pastorius runs the Jock O'Mahoney Friends Group on Facebook, but her interest in Jock began over sixty years ago. In the 1950s, she became president of his fan club and developed a friendship with him that lasted the rest of his life. But she can tell you about that in her own words. . . .
How did you meet Jock?
I met Jock in 1956 through his fan club. I was a member while living in Illinois, and after I moved to California, the then-president asked me if I'd take over the western division since she wasn't able to correspond with him very successfully. I was only fifteen years old at the time and in "love" with Jock, then known as Jack Mahoney to me. I, of course, jumped at the offer because I knew it would mean getting a chance to meet him at some point. I was given his info, and I called him, hoping he wouldn't answer the phone, because I had no idea what I was going to say. He was my idol, and I was scared to death.
Well, he answered, and I told him the situation and that I had no idea what I was doing. He suggested we meet up at Universal Studios. I felt tongue tied at the sight of him, but he immediately put me at ease and said he'd help in any way he could. From that point, our friendship took off.
You often celebrated each other's birthdays together, didn't you?
Yes, we did.
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| Jock and Judy on his 64th birthday, 1983 |
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| Judy's Birthday, 1983 (All Photos Courtesy of Judy Pastorius) |
What is your favorite memory with him?
Can you tell me what is special about him to you? What do you admire about him, and think other people should know about him?
He was the kindest, most generous and down-to-earth person I ever knew.
If you can't pick a favorite memory with him, can you think of any stories that best describe him and his personality?
One comes to mind: I was going to Hawaii for the first time and he said he'd come down to LAX and we'd have coffee before my flight. When that day arrived, it was pouring rain. I just knew he wouldn't come out on a day like that, and he might not even remember, because it was weeks before when he told me he'd come. I thought he'd probably forget, as he was always busy. But as I sat in the coffee shop, near the window, I saw him coming in, soaking wet, with that big smile on his face when he saw me. I wasn't used to anyone going out of their way for me.
Another time, I was in high school and taking drama class. One of our extra-credit assignments was to get an actor to come to our class and talk. I called Jocko, and he said with his schedule he couldn't do that, but why not bring the class to him? So the entire class loaded up on a school bus and off we went to Desilu Studios where he was filming Yancy Derringer. He met the bus and escorted everyone in, and explained and answered questions between takes and introduced the cast to the class. I was so proud of him I could bust.
Those are wonderful stories! Aside from being so kind to you, Jock seems like he was a knowledgeable, deep-thinking man.
Yes, he was. He was very well-read and could talk about anything. Some things I had no idea about. I got an education just hearing him tell about the places he'd traveled and all sorts of things he'd read. I could remember better what he told me than if my teacher at school told me, and he was available anytime I wanted to talk to him, way back in the beginning.
Do you have a favorite movie of his?
So many. I guess knowing what he went through making Tarzan's Three Challenges (1963), that would have to come in first, though I loved his westerns because he was no phony—he did the stunts himself. He felt if the script called for his character to do something, it should be him doing it. That's how he got deathly sick, swimming in the Klong River for Three Challenges. It was full of human waste, and he swam in there for his Tarzan role.
Do you like Range Rider or Yancy Derringer better?
They are two very different characters. Range Rider was my first introduction to Jack Mahoney, and I fell in love with him there. The stunts and action in Range Rider were great—the story lines not so much, whereas Yancy was short on action, and the stories were better. It seemed a waste of Jocko's talents. Notice I went from "Jack" to "Jocko." When I first met him, he told me, "Everyone calls me Jocko." That sounded very strange to me but now when folks (mostly his family) refer to him as Jack that sounds strange! But Jack or Jocko, he has been such an inspiration to me for over sixty years now
Anything else you would like to add?
Just that he never talked about himself much. He'd save lives, or teach other actors how to ride a horse, or swim, or dance; help with stunt work, work for free on movies where they had very little budget, and he'd never say a word about it. I've learned so much about him since he passed. People have told me how he'd show up for seven days at 7 a.m. to teach them something to help them with a movie role. Got nothing for it except the gratification of helping others. I dearly love him and can't imagine my life without him in it, and I miss him every day.
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| Jock and Judy's first photo together (All Photos Courtesy of Judy Pastorius) |