Wilford Brimley
Wilford Brimley was actually a real-life cowboy and blacksmith that had been living on a ranch at the time he was "discovered." Directors were looking for a guy who couldn't just pull off being a cowboy, they were looking for the real deal. Since Brimley knew how to ride a horse and actually acted and looked like a cowboy, he got cast in a ton of Westerns.
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