James Wainwright (actor)
James Wainwright (March 5, 1938 – December 20, 1999) was an American actor known for many films in the 1970s and 1980s. He was born in Danville, Illinois, and was found as a newborn. He grew up in foster care and was later adopted by Leo Wainwright and Esther Embry. After the adoptive parents separated around 1950, he lived mainly with his adoptive mother. He served in the United States Marines during the Korean War.
His film work includes Joe Kidd (1972), The President's Plane Is Missing (1973), Killdozer (1974), Bridger (1976, playing Jim Bridger), The Private Files of J. Edgar Hoover (1977), Mean Dog Blues (1978), Battletruck (1982), and The Survivors (1983). On television, he appeared in Beyond Westworld and Jigsaw.
Wainwright was married to Janet L. Cook from 1967 to 1978, and they had two daughters. He and his wife also appeared on the game show It's Your Bet on March 26, 1973. He died of lung cancer on December 20, 1999, at age 61, and was survived by his two daughters.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 20:13 (CET).