Charles Lane
(1905 - 2007)Not only is he one of the most prolific actors in the history of entertainment, but he is also one of the most recognizable actors ever, yet few people know his name. A lean man with plain but handsome looks, short neatly combed graying hair, most often bespectacled, and a flat, slightly raspy voice, he was most often cast as a mean, skinflint or a stingy tightwad. How he got typecast in that type of role is a mystery, as he is known to be a kind and gentle man. Born Charles Gerstle Levison in San Francisco, California on January 26, 1905 and now over 100, he began in the insurance business but was persuaded by a friend, Irving Pichel, to give acting a try. Pichel saw promise in young Lane and they headed south to Los Angeles and joined up with the Pasadena Playhouse. From there, in the 1930s, Lane began his long movie and television career. He most often played the mean or miserly businessman or characters with a "heart of stone." His long list of over 240 film credits includes: "Smart Money" (1931) in an uncredited role as Desk Clerk, his film debut; "Road to Singapore" (1931) uncredited, again as a Desk Clerk; "Blessed Event" (1932) as Kane; "42nd Street" (1933) as Author of Pretty Lady; "Blondie Johnson" (1933) as Cashier; "Gold Diggers of 1933" (1933) as Society Reporter; "My Woman" (1933) as Agent; "Advice to the Lovelorn" (1933) as Circulation Manager; "Looking for Trouble" (1934) as Switchboard Operator; "I'll Fix It" (1934) as Al Nathan; "Princess O'Hara" (1935) as Morris Goldberg; "Here Comes the Band" (1935) as Mr. Scurry; "Two for Tonight" (1935) as Writer; "The Milky Way" (1936) as Willard; "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town" (1936) as Lawyer Hallor; "Ticket to Paradise" (1936) as Shyster; "The Crime of Dr. Forbes" (1936) as Defense Attorney; "The Bride Walks Out" (1936) as Judge; "Two-Fisted Gentleman" (1936) as Joe Gordon; "Lady Luck" (1936) as Feinberg; "Easy to Take" (1936) as Reporter; "36 Hours to Kill" (1936) as Rickert; "We're on the Jury" (1937) as Horace Smith; "Sea Devils" (1937) as Judge; "Venus Makes Trouble" (1937) as District Attorney; "Fit for a King" (1937) as Spears; "Trapped by G-Men" (1937) as Fingers; "In Old Chicago" (1937) as Booking Agent; "City Girl" (1938) as Dr. Abbott; "Cocoanut Grove" (1938) as Weaver; "Professor Beware" (1938) as Joe/Photographer; "Kentucky" (1938) as Auctioneer; "Blondie" (1938) as Furniture Salesman; "You Can't Take It With You" (1938) as Wilbur G. Henderson, IRS Agent; "Boy Slaves" (1939) as Albee; "Inside Story" (1939) as District Attorney; "Rose of Washington Square" (1939) as Sam Kress; "They All Came Out" (1939) as Psychiatrist; "Golden Boy" (1939) as Reporter Drake; "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" (1939) as Nosey newsman; "Television Spy" (1939) as Adler; "Charlie McCarthy, Detective" (1939) as Charlie's Doctor; "It's a Date" (1940) as Mr. Horner; "Johnny Apollo" (1940) as Assistant D.A.; "Edison, The Man" (1940) as Second Lecturer; "Crooked Road" (1940) as Phil; "Buck Benny Rides Again" (1940) as Charlie Graham; "Queen of the Mob"(1940) as Horace, party guest; "The Great Profile" (1940) as Director; "Rhythm on the River" (1940) as Bernard Schwartz; "The Leather Pushers" (1940) as Mitchell; "Ellery Queen, Master Detective" (1940) as Dr. Prouty; "Back Street" (1941) as Blake; "Repent at Leisure" (1941) as Morgan; "Barnacle Bill" (1941) as Auctioneer; "Sis Hopkins" (1941) as Rollo; "The Big Store" (1941) as Finance Co. Man; "Sing Another Chorus" (1941) as Ryan; "Birth of the Blues" (1941) as Theater Manager; "I Wake Up Screaming" (1941) as Keating, Florist; "Sealed Lips" (1942) as Attorney Emanuel 'Manny' T. Dixon; "Obliging Lady" (1942) as Private Detective; "Tarzan's New York Adventure" (1942) as Gould Beaton; "The Mad Martindales" (1942) as Virgil Hickling; "Thru Different Eyes" (1942) as Mott; "Arsenic and Old Lace" (1944) as Reporter at Marriage License Office; "Just Before Dawn" (1946) as Dr. Steiner; Mysterious Intruder" (1946) as Det. Burns; "Swell Guy" (1946) as Ben Tilwell; "It's a Wonderful Life" (1946) as Rent Collector in Potter's Office; "The Farmer's Daughter" (1947) as Campaign Reporter; "It Happened on 5th Avenue" (1947) as Landlord; "Louisiana" (1947) as McCormack; "Roses Are Red" (1947) as Lipton; "Apartment for Peggy" (1948) as Prof. Collins; "State of the Union" (1948) as Blink Moran; "Out of the Storm" (1948) as Mr. Evans; "Moonrise" (1948) as Man in Black; "You're My Everything" (1949) as Mr. Eddie Pflum; "Mighty Joe Young" (1949) uncredited as Guy at the Bar; "Backfire" (1950) as Dr. Nolan; "Borderline" (1950) as Peterson; "Love That Brute" (1950) as Joe; "Criminal Lawyer" (1951) as Frederick Waterman; "The Sniper" (1952) as Drunk; "The Juggler" (1953) as Rosenberg; "The Affairs of Dobie Gillis" (1953) as Prof. Obispo; "Francis Joins the WACS" (1954) as Reporter; "The Birds and the Bees" (1956) as Jenkins; "Top Secret Affair" (1957) as Bill Hadley; "God Is My Partner" (1957) as Judge Warner; "No Time for Sergeants" (1958) as Dave; "The Mating Game" (1959) as Bigelow; "The 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock" (1959) as Standard Bates; "The Music Man" (1962) as Constable Locke; "Papa's Delicate Condition" (1963) as Mr. Cosgrove; "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" (1963) as Airport Manager; "The Wheeler Dealers" (1963) as Judge; "The Carpetbaggers" (1964) as Denby; "The New Interns" (1964) as Connors; "Good Neighbor Sam" (1964) as Jack Bailey; "John Goldfarb, Please Come Home" (1965) as Strife Magazine Editor; "Billie" (1965) as Coach Jones; "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken" (1966) as Whitlow; "The Gnome-Mobile" (1967) as Dr. Scoggins; "What's So Bad About Feeling Good?" (1968) as Dr. Shapiro; "Did You Hear the One About the Traveling Saleslady?" (1968) as Mr. Duckworth; "Get to Know Your Rabbit" (1972) as Mr. Beeman; "Movie Movie" (1978) as Judge/Mr. Pennington; "Little Dragons" (1980) as J.J.; "Strange Behavior" (1981) as Donovan; "Strange Invaders" (1983) as Prof. Hollister; "Murphy's Romance" (1985) as Amos Abbott and "Date with an Angel" (1987) as Father O'Shea, his final theatrical film. He appeared on almost every series on TV including: "The Beverly Hillbillies"; "The Andy Griffith Show" and "Bewitched." He was a regular on "Dear Phoebe" (1954-55) as Mr. Fosdick; "The Lucy Show" (1962-63) as Mr. Barnsdahl; "Petticoat Junction" (1963-68) as Homer Bedloe; "The Pruitts of Southampton" (1966-67) as Maxwell and "Karen" (1975) as Dale Busch. He appeared in many TV movies including: "Sybil" (1976) as Dr. Quinoness; "When the Bough Breaks" (1986) and "War and Remembrance" (1989) a mini-series. His most recent work was "Dark Shadows" (1991) as Collinsport Apothecary and the TV Movie "The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes" (1995) as Regent Yarborough. He has played many attorneys, desk clerks and judges over the years. In his early years he was sometimes billed as Charles Levison or Levinson. He appeared via satellite on the 2005 SAG awards proudly announcing, "Hello, I'm Charles Lane, I'm an actor and I'm 100 years old!" He received a rousing ovation from his peers. He died on July 9, 2007 at age 102 in Brentwood, California.
From Great Character Actors, Page 2.
|
