Kenneth MacDonald (American actor)
Kenneth MacDonald | |
---|---|
MacDonald in Cadets on Parade (1942) | |
Born |
Kenneth Dollins September 8, 1901 Portland, Indiana, U.S. |
Died |
May 5, 1972 70) Woodland Hills, California, U.S. | (aged
Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) |
Years active | 1931-1970 |
Kenneth MacDonald (born Kenneth Dollins, September 8, 1901 – May 5, 1972)[1] was an American film actor. Born in Portland, Indiana, MacDonald made more than 220 film and television appearances between 1931 and 1970. His name is sometimes seen as Kenneth McDonald.[2]
Career
MacDonald began his career as a stage actor, and came to Hollywood in the early 1930s.
Film
MacDonald found a few bit parts at first, finally finding steady work in westerns and serials at Columbia Pictures. In 1923 he first appeared in a feature film, Slow as Lightning.[2]
MacDonald perfected a cool, debonair demeanor, which usually masked an evil side as a con man, outlaw, or thief. His speaking voice was rich and well modulated, often being gentle and ominous at the same time, in the Boris Karloff manner. Actors in Columbia's stock company almost always worked in the studio's two-reel comedy shorts as well as features and serials, but Kenneth MacDonald did not join the short-subject fraternity until 1945, when he appeared opposite comedy stars Gus Schilling and Richard Lane. He is probably best known today for his work with The Three Stooges.
MacDonald developed a flair for comedy, and he made memorable appearances in Stooge comedies including Monkey Businessmen, Hold That Lion!, Crime on Their Hands, Punchy Cowpunchers, and Loose Loot. Beginning in 1953, the comedy in the Columbia shorts became even more physical under producer-director Jules White, and MacDonald obligingly got plastered with pies, fruit, and other missiles. He also returned to Columbia's serial unit, which was then filming low-budget remakes of his older serials using much of the original footage; MacDonald appeared in new scenes to match his old ones. He left the Columbia shorts department in 1955.
Television
MacDonald was a frequent guest star from 1951 to 1953, mostly as a sheriff, in the syndicate television series, The Range Rider, with Jock Mahoney and Dick Jones. He appeared in a 1949 episode (8) and a 1955 episode (173) of The Lone Ranger. He had a recurring role (32 episodes) as Judge Carter on CBS's Perry Mason between 1957 and 1966. He appeared six times as Colonel Parker in the ABC western series Colt .45. MacDonald still appeared occasionally in motion pictures, including a bit role as Jerry Lewis's father in the 1961 feature, The Ladies' Man, and as a member of the court martial board in The Caine Mutiny (1954).
Death
MacDonald died of brain and lung cancer at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California[3] at the age of 70.[4]
He was buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood Hills.[1]
Partial filmography
- The Last Mile (1932)
- Cocktail Hour (1933)
- The Wildcat of Tucson (1940)[5]
- Confessions of Boston Blackie (1941)
- The Phantom (serial) (1943)
- West of the Rio Grande (1944)
- Monkey Businessmen (1946)
- Crossfire (1947) as Major (uncredited)
- Hold That Lion! (1947)
- Dark Passage (1947) as Humphrey Bogart character before facial surgery (uncredited)
- Shivering Sherlocks (1948)
- Crime on Their Hands (1948)
- Vagabond Loafers (1949)
- Punchy Cowpunchers (1950)
- Studio Stoops (1950)
- Hula-La-La (1951)
- Three Dark Horses (1952)
- Booty and the Beast (1953)
- Loose Loot (1953)
- The Caine Mutiny (1954) as a Court-Martial Board Member (uncredited)
- Of Cash and Hash (1955)
- Hot Ice (1955)
- Blunder Boys (1955)
- Scheming Schemers (1956)
- 40 Guns to Apache Pass (1967)
References
- 1 2 Wilson, Scott (2016). Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed. (2 volume set). McFarland. p. 464. ISBN 9781476625997. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
- 1 2 Katchmer, George A. (2002). A Biographical Dictionary of Silent Film Western Actors and Actresses. McFarland. p. 246. ISBN 9780786446933. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
- ↑ Mayer, Geoff (2017). Encyclopedia of American Film Serials. McFarland. p. 198. ISBN 9780786477623. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
- ↑ Okuda, Ted; Watz, Edward (1986, rev. 1998). The Columbia Comedy Shorts. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. ISBN 0-89950-181-8. Check date values in:
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(help) - ↑ Blottner, Gene (2011). "The Wildcat of Tucson". Wild Bill Elliott: A Complete Filmography. McFarland & Company. pp. 150–151. Retrieved 2017-10-09.
Bill Elliott's presence, with a matching performance by Kenneth MacDonald, brings this western saga satisfactorily to the screen. [...] An interesting subplot has heroine Evelyn Young momentarily switching her affection from Stanley Brown to his brother, Eliott. Lambert Hillyer's direction is first rate.