Max Showalter
(1917 - 2000)There's another category of character actor, rarer than most, called the "look-alikes." These are actors who look so similar, and often are cast in similar roles, that we confuse them with each other. A good example would be the two Dicks: York and Sargent, who were so much alike that they were eventually cast in the exact same role (on TV's "Bewitched"). Such is the case with this great character actor and Del Moore. Max Showalter was a name I saw in many film and TV credits but could not place a face with the name. When I looked up his photo I thought, "oh that's the guy who appeared in all those Jerry Lewis movies and on TV occasionally." In checking further, I learned I was confusing him with "look-alike" Del Moore, who did work with Jerry Lewis. Both played similar, non-descript type roles. Both looked fairly "plain or average" and had similar soothing voices. Sadly, there are very few photos and biographical material on Del Moore. I had planned to do a piece on him but have little to no material. Max Showalter, on the other hand, was more prolific and worked longer. He was a dark-haired fellow, with a roundish face; most often with a genial smile on it and with a smooth, mellow voice. He was born on June 2, 1917 in Caldwell, Kansas. He was exposed to performing at an early age as his mother worked as a piano player in a movie theatre and would bring him along occasionally. Growing up in southern California afforded him many theatrical opportunities and in his teens he began acting at the famed Pasadena Playhouse, a spawning ground for great (character) actors. This led to his debut on Broadway in New York in the early 1940s. He toured with Irving Berlin's "This is the Army" around this time also. He was also an accomplished pianist and composer. For some strange reason he was asked by Darryl Zanuck to change his name to Casey Adams in the 1950s and for a time he showed up in film credits as Casey Adams but he reverted to Max Showalter eventually. His film debut came in "Always Leave Them Laughing" (1949) as Specialty Act. His other film credits include: "With a Song in My Heart" (1952) as Harry Guild; "Stars and Stripes Forever" (1952) with Clifton Webb, as Narrator; "What Price Glory" (1952) [billed as Casey Adams] as Lt. Moore; "My Wife's Best Friend" (1952) as Pete Bentham; "Destination Gobi" (1953) as Walter Landers; "Night People" (1953) [billed as Casey Adams] as Frederick S. Hobart; "Vicki" (1953) [billed as Casey Adams] as Larry Evans; "Dangerous Crossing" (1953) [billed as Casey Adams] as Jim Logan; "Niagara" (1953) [billed as Casey Adams] with Marilyn Monroe, as Ray Cutler; "Down Three Dark Streets" (1954) [billed as Casey Adams] as Dave Milson; "Night People" (1954) [billed as Casey Adams] as Frederick S. Hobart; "Naked Alibi" (1954) [billed as Casey Adams] as Lt. Parks; "The Return of Jack Slade" (1955) [billed as Casey Adams] as Billy Wilcox; "Bus Stop" (1956) [billed as Casey Adams] with Marilyn Monroe, as Life Reporter; "Never Say Goodbye" [billed as Casey Adams] (1956) as Andy Leonard; "Somebody Up There Likes Me" (1956) uncredited as Sam; "Dragoon Wells Massacre" (1957) as Phillip Scott; "The Monster That Challenged the World" (1957) as Dr. Tad Johns; "The Female Animal" (1958) [billed as Casey Adams] as Charlie Grant; "Voice in the Mirror" (1958) as Don Martin; "The Naked and the Dead" (1958) as Dalleson; "It Happened to Jane" (1959) as Selwyn Harris; "Elmer Gantry" (1960) uncredited as Deaf Man; "Return to Peyton Place" (1961) as Nick Parker, Talk Show Host; "Claudelle Inglish" (1961) as Young Parson; "Summer and Smoke" (1961) as Roger Doremus; "Bon Voyage!" (1962) [billed as Casey Adams] as The Tight Suit; "The Music Man" (1962) as Salesman on Train; "My Six Loves" (1963) as B.J. Smith; "Fate is the Hunter" (1964) as Dan Crawford; "Sex and the Single Girl" (1964) as Holmes; "How to Murder Your Wife" (1965) with Jack Lemmon, as Tobey Rawlins; "Lord Love a Duck" (1966) as Howard Greene; "The Moonshine War" (1970) as Mr. Worthman; "The Anderson Tapes" (1971) as Bingham; "Bonnie's Kids" (1973) as Frank; "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (1978); "10" (1979) with Dudley Moore and Bo Derek, as Reverend; "Sixteen Candles" (1984) with Molly Ringwald, as Fred and "Racing with the Moon" (1984) with Sean Penn, as Mr. Arthur, his last film role. On TV he was a regular on the series: "The Swift Show" (1948-49) as a Regular and "The Stockard Channing Show" (1980) as Gus. He acted as musical director on "Hold It Please" (1949). He also guested on such series as: "Gunsmoke"; "The Andy Griffith Show"; "Stagecoach West"; "Empire"; "Perry Mason"; "Bewitched"; "Kojak" and "The Bob Newhart Show." In later years he recorded some children's classic fairy tales, which became very popular. He also dabbled a bit on stage in local theatres in Connecticut. He died of cancer in Middletown, Connecticut on July 30, 2000 at age 83.
From Great Character Actors, Page 7.
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