James Coburn-Early Life

 

 

 

Coburn was born in Laurel, Nebraska, to Mylet S. (née Johnson) and James Harrison Coburn, Jr.

 

Coburn was of Scotch-Irish and Swedish descent. He was raised in Compton, California, attended Compton Junior College. Coburn enlisted in the United States Army in 1950, serving as a truck driver and an occasional disc jockey on an Army radio station in Texas.

 

Coburn also narrated Army training films in Mainz, Germany. He attended Los Angeles City College, where he studied acting alongside Jeff Corey and Stella Adler. Coburn made his stage debut at the La Jolla Playhouse in Billy Budd.

 

Coburn was selected for a Remington Products razor commercial in which he was able to shave off 11 days of beard growth in less than 60 seconds  joking that he had more teeth to show on camera than the other 12 candidates for the part.