Clifford Williams Lyons, known as "Tex" in Hollywood, was an American movie actor and stuntman, primarily of Western films. Lyons was born in 1901 and was raised in South Dakota and Memphis, Tennessee. He became a rodeo cowboy, touring the nation, by age 21. While on tour, he stopped in Los Angeles where cowboys were in high demand to act in Western films, a popular genre at the time. His career began as an actor, signing on to act in several Western series with Al Hoxie, but as talkie pictures became the norm, Lyons' rising star fell, as he did not have a pleasant speaking voice. Instead, his career as a stuntman took off. Lyons acted as a stunt double for many cowboy stars, including Tom Mix, Ken Maynard, Buck Jones, Johnny Mack Brown, and, eventually, John Wayne. Lyons first doubled for John Wayne in 1936, starting both a successful business relationship and friendship with the actor that would remain strong for several decades. Wayne introduced Lyons to director John Ford, for whom Lyons did some of his most reputable stunt work. Lyons came to be regarded as one of the most impressive stunt coordinators in Hollywood, remembered especially for his elaborate stunt sequences in John Wayne's The Alamo. Lyons was married to actress Beth Marion from 1938 to 1955, and they had two sons. He died in Los Angeles in 1974.