Person Lookup
Putnam, James Dixon
Born:
5/1/1933
Location:
Hollywood, California
Story:
James Dixon Putnam was the only child of entertainment pioneer, Oliver Putnam and his wife, Hildegaard Forester.
James grew up in the entertainment industry. His father was a pioneer in the film industry both silent and talkies while his mother starred in many of his father’s early films. James even made a few appearances in his father’s films as a child. As the film industry matured, Putnam Studios became synonymous with good quality entertainment and motion pictures.
James graduated from UCLA with a degree in Business Management. He went to work for his father’s studio and rapidly took the business from being a small profit-making venture into one of the top money making studios in Hollywood.
James was visiting Las Vegas in January 1951, when he took a drive north into the mountains. The hustle and bustle of LA and Vegas had gotten to him and he just wanted to get away for a while. The rain shower was unexpected and the top not going up on the convertible was a major nuisance. Then when the soldiers blocking the road told him to turn around and go back to Las Vegas, it was the 'perfect' ending to a 'perfect' drive in the country.
The Red Arrow was Oliver's special project. He was a radio theater and comic book character that was going to be brought to the silver screen. The problem was finding the right actor to play the part. When James walked into his father's office, Oliver realized his problem was solved. James argued with his father telling him that he was no actor but his father would not take no for an answer. James was stuck with the part. After the movie was shot, James was to make a personal appearance at its opening dressed as Red Arrow. On the way to the theatre, James came upon a car accident. Although he was dressed in the silly Red Arrow costume, James did not hesitate to jump from his car and pull a mother and her child from their burning car. Realizing he was going to be late for the appearance, James jumped in his car and hurried off just as the police were arriving on the scene. The next day there were several stories in the newspaper about Red Arrow saving the mother and child. Some said it was a publicity stunt, but the mother insisted that it was not a stunt. Reporters' and others' calls to Putnam Studios were answered with "no comment."
James liked being the hero, even if he could not tell anyone. His father edited the movie credits before release so that no actor was listed for the part of Red Arrow. Several reporters tried to get members of the crew to tell them who was Red Arrow but no one wanted to lose their job with Putnam Studios. Eventually, word leaked that James was Red Arrow but the studios and James would not comment on the matter. As the pressure grew to identify Red Arrow reports began coming in that Red Arrow had been spotted in New York, then in San Francisco, then in Boston. Each time Red Arrow performed some sort of heroic act and each time James Putnam was present at a public event in Los Angeles. Soon the furor over Red Arrow was over but the heroic desire it had kindle in James could not be extinguished.
James became the hero to many of the children organizations in the Los Angeles area. He would make personal appearances as Red Arrow. James also began making large donations to many of the children's charities in the area.
As the entertainment industry evolved, James and Putnam Studios were at the forefront of the changes. When James started branching out into the television and print media businesses, he changed the company's name to Putnam Entertainment. The company has remained a force in the entertainment industry throughout James' tenure as President.
James and Putnam Entertainment are one of the chief sponsors of the Putnam Foundation. The funding and support foundation for the Sentinels-LA, a Los Angeles based Radley-Gold hero group.
Paranormal Community - Secrets:
After saving the mother and her child as Red Arrow, James started working out. He realized that he was lifting weights that others struggled with, with ease. When James got in the boxing ring, he was able to slip his opponent's punches and land his own punches without really trying. Soon he started working out in his own private gym. He found that he could lift close to half a ton and had a high resistance to damage. James decided that he was going to be Los Angeles' hero and created the identity of Guardsman.
Guardsman quickly became a fixture in all of the Los Angeles newspapers and television news reports. He brought criminals to justice, stopped plots by the Grand Empire and even stopped one of Professor von Kaylon's plots single-handedly.
When the menaces became more than he could handle by himself, Guardsman organized the Sentinels. Through the years from 1965 to 1994, when others were coming and going Guardsman remained a constant within the Sentinels.
When the Radley-Gold Act of 1979 went into effect, James organized the Sentinel Foundation to provide funding and support for the Sentinels.
In 1994, when legal proceeding by Oberonto Faust tied up his personal funds and the funds of the Sentinel Foundation, James worked with the Radley Foundation to form the Putnam Foundation and reorganize the Sentinels as the Sentinels-LA. This reorganization stopped Faust's attempt to take control of the Sentinels.
With his career starting in 1960, Guardsman has the longest active career of any advocate paranormal.
Cross References:
Putnam Entertainment.
Putnam Foundation.
Sentinels-LA.
Record Last Changed Date: 10/24/2009
Home
All Entries Index
Persons Index
|
