James Garner's Real Name: James Scott Bumgarner

Quick answer: James Garner's documented birth name is James Scott Bumgarner. Encyclopaedia Britannica records that form and gives his birth date as April 7, 1928, in Norman, Oklahoma. The Associated Press also gives James Scott Bumgarner, while noting that some references say Baumgarner, and places the birth in Norman (Encyclopaedia Britannica; Associated Press).

Real name and early life

Britannica lists James Scott Bumgarner and the April 7, 1928, Norman birth date. The AP records the same birth name, flags the Baumgarner spelling found in some references, and says his mother died when he was 5, after which friends and relatives cared for him and his two brothers for a time. After serving in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, Britannica says, he pursued acting, made television commercials, and made his film debut in 1956.

Career highlights

In 1957 he began playing gambler Bret Maverick on the television Western Maverick, a humorous take that brought him national attention; he left the series in 1960 after a dispute with the studio, Britannica says, a departure the AP also describes as an escape from his contract. The Associated Press says his first film after Maverick was William Wyler's The Children's Hour. Films that followed included The Great Escape (1963), which the AP calls a 1963 blockbuster, and The Americanization of Emily (1964). In 1974 he starred as an easygoing private investigator in The Rockford Files, winning an Emmy in 1977; the show ended in 1980, owing in part to injuries he sustained performing his own stunts, and he later reprised the role in television movies. He received an Academy Award nomination for Murphy's Romance (1985) and appeared in the 1994 film Maverick. Later work included Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood (2002) and a recurring role on 8 Simple Rules (2003-05).

Death

He died on July 19, 2014, in Brentwood, California, Britannica records. The Associated Press, citing Los Angeles police, said he was found dead of natural causes at his Brentwood home that Saturday evening, at age 86, with no more specific cause immediately available. The AP noted that he had suffered a stroke in May 2008.

Name notes for searchers

James Scott Bumgarner is the documented birth name; he was known professionally as James Garner. The Associated Press notes that some references spell the surname Baumgarner. Searchers looking for Bret Maverick or Jim Rockford are usually aiming at the same person.