Judson Pratt

Judson Pratt (December 6, 1916 – February 9, 2002)[1] was an American character actor. Pratt began his professional career on stage in the 1940s. From the 1950s to 1980, he appeared in over 100 film and television roles.

Judson Pratt
Judson Pratt in The Fugitive 1964
Born	(1916-12-06)December 6, 1916 Hingham, Massachusetts
Died	February 9, 2002(2002-02-09) (aged 85) Northridge, Los Angeles, California
Nationality	American
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1941–1980
Spouse(s)	Roberta Jonay ( m. 1950⁠–⁠1976) ; her death
Children	2

Pratt retired from acting in 1980.

Early life and career

Pratt was born in Hingham, Massachusetts.[2] In 1941, he made his Broadway debut in the play Popsy. The play closed after two days. In 1950, Pratt made his television debut on Armstrong Circle Theatre. Throughout the rest of the decade, he had guest roles on numerous television shows including Shadow of the Cloak, Have Gun – Will Travel, Kraft Television Theatre, Westinghouse Studio One, Men of Annapolis, The Web, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, General Electric Theater, The Donna Reed Show, and Riverboat.

In 1951, Pratt made his film debut in an uncredited role in the 1953 Alfred Hitchcock film I Confess. In 1956, he co-starred in The Toy Tiger, starring Jeff Chandler, Outside the Law, and Somebody Up There Likes Me. From 1958 to 1959, Pratt had a recurring role as Bill Kincaid on the syndicated Western series Union Pacific.[3]

During the 1960s and 1970s, Pratt became a staple on television with appearances on a variety of series. In 1966 he appeared on the only color episode of Perry Mason, "The Case of the Twice-Told Twist," as theater director Tom Loman. Other television appearances include Father Knows Best, Dennis the Menace, Hotel de Paree, The Man from Blackhawk, Overland Trail, The DuPont Show with June Allyson, Kondike, Bronco, Saints and Sinners, The Iron Horse, That Girl, Circle of Fear, S.W.A.T., Charlie's Angels, and The Quest.

He also made multiple appearances on Western series including This Man Dawson, Cain's Hundred, Laramie, Outlaws, Gunsmoke, Rawhide, Death Valley Days, Slattery's People, Daniel Boone, The Virginian,and Bonanza. Pratt also had multiple roles on dramas and comedies including Bracken's World, Mayberry RFD, Kojak, Disney's Wonderful World, and Police Story.

In addition to his extensive work in television, Pratt also had roles in numerous film during the 1960s including The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond (1960), Kid Galahad (1962), starring Elvis Presley, The Ugly American (1963), with Marlon Brando, Cheyenne Autumn (1964), and The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969). In the 1970s, Pratt had roles in The Barefoot Executive (1971), Futureworld (1976), Vigilante Force, starring Kris Kristofferson and Jan-Michael Vincent. Pratt's final film role was in the 1978 drama film F.I.S.T., starring Sylvester Stallone. In the film, Pratt portrayed Stallone's character's attorney. Pratt made his final on-screen appearance a 1980 episode of Quincy, M.E..

Personal life

On May 21, 1950, Pratt married Broadway actress Roberta Jonay. The couple had two sons. They remained married until Jonay's death from cancer in April 1976.[4][5] On February 9, 2002, Pratt died at the age of 85.[6]

Stage career

Date	Production	Role
February 10–12, 1941	Popsy	Western Union Messenger
February 10 – May 12, 1951	Billy Budd	Payne Talbot (Replacement)
April 29–29, 1952	Hook n' Ladder	Sam Ross
February 10 – August 13, 1955	The Desperate Hours	Tom Winston

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1953	I Confess	Murphy	Uncredited
1956	Outside the Law	Agent Maury Saxton
1956	The Toy Tiger	Mike Wyman
1956	Somebody Up There Likes Me	Johnny Hyland	Uncredited
1956	The Great American Pastime	Ed Ryder
1957	Four Girls in Town	William Purdy	Uncredited
1957	Man Afraid	Wilbur Fletcher
1957	Flood Tide	Maj. Harvey Thornwald - Naval Doctor
1958	Monster on the Campus	Lt. Mike Stevens
1959	The Horse Soldiers	Sgt. Maj. Kirby
1960	The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond	Fats Walsh
1960	Sergeant Rutledge	Lt. Mulqueen
1962	A Public Affair	Hal Green
1962	Kid Galahad	Howie Zimmerman
1963	The Ugly American	Joe Bing
1964	A Distant Trumpet	Capt. Cedric Gray MD
1964	Cheyenne Autumn	Mayor Dog Kelly
1969	Hang Your Hat on the Wind	Father O'Flaherty
1969	The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes	Detective in Gambling Raid	Uncredited
1971	The Barefoot Executive	Policeman #2
1976	Futureworld	Bartender
1976	Vigilante Force	Harry Lee
1978	F.I.S.T.	Kovak's Attorney

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1956	The 20th Century-Fox Hour	MacIntyre	Episode: "The Moneymaker"
1957	Gunsmoke	Bill Pense, bartender in The Long Branch Saloon	Episode: "Bad Girl Lost"
1957	Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater	Clay Ramsey	Episode: "No Man Living"
1957	Ford Theatre	Captain Brooks	Episode: "House of Glass"
1958	Suspicion	Police Sergeant	Episode: "Fraction of a Second"
1958	Jefferson Drum	Father Andrew Damon	Episode: "Prison Hill"
1959	The Rough Riders	Jack McCoy	Episode: "The Rifle"
1959	The Lawless Years	Ruditsky's Partner	Episode: "The Big Greeny Story"
1959	Goodyear Television Playhouse	Col. Holt	Episode: "Point of Impact"
1959	The Rough Riders	Jack McCoy	Episode: "The Rifle"
1960	Bourbon Street Beat	Sergeant Bogart	Episode: "Twice Betrayed"
1960	Thriller	Police Lt. Bill Gordon	Episode: "The Mark of the Hand"
1960	Dan Raven	Markin	Episode: "Tinge of Red"
1961	The Americans	Sgt. Willers	Episode: "The Sentry"
1961	Dennis the Menace	Mr. Kowalski	Episode: "The Pioneers"
1961	Adventures in Paradise	Harry Summers	Episode: "The Assassins"
1961-1963	Bonanza	Jim Bronson / Jeb Nelson	2 episodes
1962	Cheyenne	Vince Harper	Episode: "One Way Ticket"
1963	Stoney Burke	Ed Mitchnet	Episode: "Color Him Lucky"
1964	The Fugitive	Bowers	Episode: "Come Watch Me Die"
1965	Death Valley Days	General Bradley	Episode: "Raid on San Francisco Mint", with Ronald W. Reagan as William Chapman Ralston
1966	Mister Ed	Park Policeman	Episode: "Ed and the Motorcycle"
1966	The Donna Reed Show	Metcalfe	Episode: " Is There a Small Hotel?"
1966	Perry Mason	Tom Loman	Episode: "The Case of the Twice Told Twist"
1967	Bewitched	Eastwood	Episode: "No More Mr. Nice Guy"
1967	The Second Hundred Years	Policeman	Episode: "Dear Father Come Home with Me Now"
1967	Lassie	Pat Rockford	Episode: "Inferno"
1969	The Guns of Will Sonnett	John Hardwick	Episode: "On Angry Juror"
1969	The Mod Squad	Dr. Arthur Steelman	Episode: "Never Give the Fuzz an Even Break"
1970	Nanny and the Professor	Mr. Hilder	Episode: "The New Butch"
1970	Ironside	Parrish	Episode: "The Man on the Inside"
1971	Room 222	Policeman	Episode: "I Hate You, Silas Marner"
1972	Cannon	Mike	Episode: "Treasure of San Ignacio"
1972	The Partridge Family	Cab Driver	Episode: "Fellini, Bergman, and Partridge"
1972	Mission: Impossible	Warden Lorimer	Episode: "Hit"
1973	Kung Fu	Cotton	Episode: "An Eye for an Eye"
1973	Runaway!	Bill Travers	Television movie
1973	The Rookies	Allen Mayson	Episode: "A Matter of Justice"
1974	Marcus Welby, M.D.	Fred Blainey	Episode: "The Fatal Challenge"
1975	Barney Miller	Lt. Faraday	Episode: "Escape Artist"
1975	Matt Helm	Guard	Episode: "Death Rods"
1976	The Blue Knight	Cliff	Episode: "The Creeper"
1976	Little House on the Prairie	Sam Wallace	Episode: "The Long Road Home"
1976	Switch	Jarvis	Episode: "Maggie's Hero"
1977	The Streets of San Francisco	Mr. Stewart	Episode: "One Last Trick"
1978	ABC Weekend Special	Sheriff	Episode: "If I'm Lost, How Come I Found You?"
1978	The Incredible Hulk	Guard Samuelson	Episode: "Stop the Presses"
1979-1980	Quincy, M.E.	Various	2 episodes, (final appearance)

References

1. Lentz, Harris M. III. Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2002: Film, Television, Radio, Theatre, Dance, Music, Cartoons and Pop Culture. McFarland. ISBN 9780786452071. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
2. "Judson Pratt". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on 18 April 2019. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
3. Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 1130. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
4. "The Final Curtin: Marriages". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 62 (22): 51. June 3, 1950. ISSN 0006-2510.
5. Theatre World. 32. Crown Publishers. 1977. p. 264.
6. Abbott, Doug; Jackson, Ronald (2009). 50 Years of the Television Western: A Pictorial History. AuthorHouse. p. 46. ISBN 1-434-35925-5.

External links

• Judson Pratt at the Internet Broadway Database
• Judson Pratt on IMDb