Frank McGrath said that his Wagon Train co-star Ward Bond ''made me what I am today''
"Becoming an actor was more than just a starry-eyed dream," said the actor.

With the right friends at your side, even the toughest of times don't seem quite so harsh. For Frank McGrath, having a friend like Ward Bond at his side made all the difference in his career.
Before he starred as Charlie B. Wooster in the hit series Wagon Train, McGrath primarily worked as a stuntman, performing difficult maneuvers in various Western films. McGrath had previously worked with his Wagon Train co-star, Ward Bond, and during an interview, actually credited the actor for his rise to fame.
"It was really Ward Bond who made me what I am today," said McGrath during an interview with the Herald and Review. "It was Bond's insistence, when he first signed the Wagon Train contract, that I and Terry Wilson be given speaking roles."
This kind gesture meant more to McGrath than was imaginable. While McGrath was a talented stuntman, it wasn't a sustainable career. Transitioning into acting full-time allowed McGrath to leave stunt work behind for a safer, more profitable profession.
"I want to tell you what it meant to me to become an actor," said McGrath. "At first, I was like any kid. It was a natural impulse. But as the years went by, with no one wanting me as an actor and progressively breaking almost every bone in my body to become one as a stuntman, becoming an actor was more than just a starry-eyed dream. It was salvation, the only salvation for a man whose years as a stunt man were numbered, who would be relegated to the ash pile when he could no longer ply his dangerous trade."


