
James MacArthur
Actor · Died October 28, 2010, aged 72 · Los Angeles, California, U.S.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. James Gordon MacArthur (December 8, 1937 – October 28, 2010) was an American actor best known for the role of Danny "Danno" Williams, the reliable second-in-command of the fictional Hawaiian State Police squad Hawaii Five-O. Description above from the Wikipedia article James MacArthur, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- December 8, 1937
- October 28, 2010 (aged 72)
- Los Angeles, California, U.S.
- Actor
- 23 on MovieCove · 50 credits in all
What are James MacArthur's films like?
Across their 14 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Morality.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 13
A split, not a type: Light 4 · Serious 4 · Dark 5
Grounded 10 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 0
A split, not a type: Gentle 4 · Charged 4 · Intense 5
Steady 6 · Shifting 7 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 10 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 0
A split, not a type: Slow burn 7 · Even-paced 6 · Relentless 0
Casual 7 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 1
A split, not a type: Easy watch 6 · Affecting 3 · Heavy 4
Resolved 11 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1
Roles they play
Usually the Hero: 8 of 9 analyzed roles.
Show the 9 rolesHide the roles
- Heroas Hal Ditmar in The Young Stranger (1957)
- Heroas Johnny Butler in The Light in the Forest (1958)
- Heroas Rudi Matt in Third Man on the Mountain (1959)
- Heroas David Balfour in Kidnapped (1960)
- Heroas Fritz Robinson in Swiss Family Robinson (1960)
- Heroas David McVey in Cry of Battle (1963)
- Heroas Clayboy Spencer in Spencer's Mountain (1963)
- Allyas Danny in Hawaii Five-O (1968)
- Heroas Cal Miller in The Night the Bridge Fell Down (1980)
Moods and endings
- Happy5
- Bittersweet6
- Tragic1
- Ambiguous2
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch James MacArthur's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 13 of their 23 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on The Roku Channel (5).
Subscription and free streaming for James MacArthur's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
50 credits, 23 with a MovieCove page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

Swiss Family Robinson: Adventure in the Making (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)
Midcredits score: 3rd percentile of all filmsEmme's Island Moments (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

Murder, She Wrote(1984)
Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all shows
Walking Tall (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films
Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1980)
Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all films
Time Express (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)

Vega$ (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

Fantasy Island(1977)
Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all shows
The Love Boat(1977)
Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all shows
Battle of the Network Stars (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1976)

Hawaii Five-O(1968)
Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all shows
The Angry Breed (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

Hang 'Em High(1968)
Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films
Hondo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

The Love-Ins (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

Mosby's Marauders (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

Tarzan (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

Ride Beyond Vengeance(1966)
Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films
Battle of the Bulge(1965)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films
The Bedford Incident(1965)
Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films
The Truth About Spring(1965)
Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films
Branded (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

12 O'Clock High (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

Cry of Battle(1963)
Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films
The Great Adventure (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

Burke's Law (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

Arrest and Trial (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1963)

Spencer's Mountain(1963)
Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films
Combat!(1962)
Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows
Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all shows
The Virginian (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

Sam Benedict (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

The Interns (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

Bus Stop (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

Swiss Family Robinson(1960)
Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films
Escape to Paradise/Water Birds (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

Kidnapped(1960)
Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films
Bonanza(1959)
Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all shows
The Light in the Forest(1958)
Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films
Wagon Train(1957)
Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all shows
The Young Stranger(1957)
Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films
Gunsmoke (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)

The Wonderful World of Disney (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1954)

Climax! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1954)

General Electric Theater (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1953)

Studio One (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1948)
Career shape
Star power in the 93rd percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 50 titles from 1948 to 2002; peak year 1960.

Biggest box office
Swiss Family Robinson (1960)

Highest rated
The Bedford Incident (1965)

Most popular right now
Hawaii Five-O (1968)
Film career
Peak 1960 · steadily prominent in film for years. Top draw in 1 MovieCove title. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.
- 1959Screen debut· Third Man on the Mountain
- 1969Career best· Hawaii Five-O
Billing
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.
How do James MacArthur's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 69th percentile, the median of all 15; across their 13 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 61st percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up8
- 50th to 74th10
- 25th to 49th1
- Below 25th4
Shape of the crowd
16 of their 23 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved2
- Universally Panned1
- Crowd Pleaser16
- Broadly Agreed1
- Mixed3
Reviewers score the acting 66/100 in their films, across 13 reviewed titles; fans 77, detractors 43. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does James MacArthur work with?
People who share at least 2 of James MacArthur's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Walt Disney shares the most, 4.
Directors
- Ken AnnakinShared titles: Swiss Family Robinson (1960), Third Man on the Mountain (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Ken Annakin

Actors
- Michael RennieShared titles: Ride Beyond Vengeance (1966), Third Man on the Mountain (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Michael Rennie

- John MillsShared titles: The Truth About Spring (1965), Swiss Family Robinson (1960)See all 2 shared titles with John Mills

- Niall MacGinnisShared titles: The Truth About Spring (1965), Kidnapped (1960)See all 2 shared titles with Niall MacGinnis

- Wally CoxShared titles: The Bedford Incident (1965), Spencer's Mountain (1963)See all 2 shared titles with Wally Cox

Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Richard MarkowitzShared titles: Ride Beyond Vengeance (1966), Cry of Battle (1963)See all 2 shared titles with Richard Markowitz
- Harry WaxmanShared titles: Swiss Family Robinson (1960), Third Man on the Mountain (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Harry Waxman
- Peter BoitaShared titles: Swiss Family Robinson (1960), Third Man on the Mountain (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Peter Boita
- William AlwynShared titles: Swiss Family Robinson (1960), Third Man on the Mountain (1959)See all 2 shared titles with William Alwyn

Producers
- Walt DisneyShared titles: Kidnapped (1960), Swiss Family Robinson (1960), Third Man on the Mountain (1959), The Light in the Forest (1958)See all 4 shared titles with Walt Disney

- Bill AndersonShared titles: Swiss Family Robinson (1960), Third Man on the Mountain (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Bill Anderson

