Before becoming a professional actor, "he held various odd jobs such as horse trainer, meter reader, bookkeeper, and mail clerk.

"[1] Summer stock theatre at Elitch Gardens in Denver, Colorado, provided Reed's first professional experience with acting.

[1] Reed started his cinema career in Bordertown Gun Fighters, a 1943 western starring Wild Bill Elliott.

In 1960, he appeared twice on Gene Barry's TV Western series Bat Masterson, once playing the "good guy" as stage coach driver and posse member "Alf Hayman" in S2E22's "The Snare", and another time playing the "bad guy" as a murdering outlaw named "Romer" in S3E7's "High Card Loses".

Reed "died of a massive hemorrhage following a brain tumor" April 15, 1980,[1] in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 62.