Wally Brown
Wally Brown (October 9, 1904[2] – November 13, 1961) was an American actor and comedian. In the 1940s he performed as the comic partner of Alan Carney.
Wally Brown | |
---|---|
Born | Wallace Edgar Brown October 9, 1904 |
Died | November 13, 1961 57) Los Angeles, California, U.S. | (aged
Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) |
Occupation | Actor/Comedian |
Years active | 1930s–61 |
Spouse(s) | Mildred Brown (his death) |
Children | 2[1] |
Life and career
Vaudeville stage
Wallace Brown was born in Malden, Massachusetts, the son of Herbert and Lillian (Garnier) Brown. He performed in vaudeville for years before his first appearance in film.
Film
Brown began his film career in 1942 in Hollywood at RKO Radio Pictures with the film Petticoat Larceny. When RKO decided to emulate the comedy team Abbott and Costello, he was paired with Alan Carney, creating "Brown & Carney."
The duo premiered with the military comedies Adventures of a Rookie and its sequel, Rookies in Burma. Out of their eight films together, one of the most notable was Zombies on Broadway co-starring Bela Lugosi, a semi-sequel to Val Lewton's I Walked With a Zombie. Brown and Carney's contracts were terminated in 1946, after which they pursued solo careers. In the 1940s and '50s, both appeared in various roles for Leslie Goodwins films. They reunited in 1961 in Disney's The Absent-Minded Professor.
Brown was later teamed with Tim Ryan in the Columbia Pictures short film French Fried Frolic in 1949. He was also teamed with Jack Kirkwood in four RKO Pictures short films in 1950 and 1951.
Along with Alan Carney, Brown was going to be given a role in It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) but died not long before filming began.[3]
Television
In 1953, Brown had billing over an unknown Paul Newman in the fourth-season premiere episode of The Web, titled "One for the Road."[4]
He made several guest appearances on Perry Mason, including in the role of murderer Harry Mitchell in the 1958 episode "The Case of the Gilded Lily." Wally Brown had also been a regular cast member in television shows like I Married Joan, Cimarron City, and Daniel Boone.
Brown's last years were filled with guest appearances in television, his last one in My Three Sons.
Radio
Brown served as a regular on The Abbott and Costello Show.
Filmography
- Dodge City (1939) - Cattle Auctioneer (uncredited)
- All Through the Night (1942) - 2nd Police Lieutenant (uncredited)
- Radio Runaround (1943, Short) - Harry, Radio Station Announcer
- Mexican Spitfire's Blessed Event (1943) - Sagebrush Inn Desk Clerk (uncredited)
- Petticoat Larceny (1943) - Sam Colfax
- The Adventures of a Rookie (1943, With Alan Carney) - Jerry Miles
- The Seventh Victim (1943) - Durk (uncredited)
- Gangway for Tomorrow (1943) - Sam
- Around the World (1943) - Clipper Pilot
- Rookies in Burma (1943, With Alan Carney) - Jerry Miles
- Seven Days Ashore (1944, With Alan Carney) - Monty Stephens
- Step Lively (1944, With Alan Carney) - Binion
- Girl Rush (1944, With Alan Carney) - Jerry Miles
- Zombies on Broadway (1945, With Alan Carney) - Jerry Miles
- Radio Stars on Broadway (1945, With Alan Carney) - Jerry Miles
- From This Day Forward (1946) - Jake Beesley
- Notorious (1946) - Mr. Hopkins
- Genius at Work (1946, With Alan Carney) - Jerry Miles
- Lady Luck (1946) - Narrator (voice, uncredited)
- Vacation in Reno (1946, With Alan Carney, but not as a team) - Eddie Roberts
- Bachelor Blues (1948, Short) - Dorothy's Boyfriend
- Family Honeymoon (1948) - Tom Roscoe
- Backstage Follies (1948, Short)
- Heart Troubles (1949, Short) - Wally
- Come to the Stable (1949) - Howard Sheldon - Bob's Agent (uncredited)
- French Fried Frolic (1949, Short, With Tim Ryan) - Wally
- Put Some Money in the Pot (1950, Short, With Jack Kirkwood) - Wally
- Photo Phonies (1950, Short) - Wally
- Brooklyn Buckaroos (1950, Short, With Jack Kirkwood) - Wally
- Tinhorn Troubadors (1951, Short, With Jack Kirkwood) - Wally
- As Young as You Feel (1951) - Horace Gallagher
- From Rogues to Riches (1951, Short, With Jack Kirkwood) - Wally
- The High and the Mighty (1954) - Lenny Wilby, navigator
- Untamed (1955) - Secondary Role (uncredited)
- The Wild Dakotas (1956) - McGraw
- Untamed Youth (1957) - Pinky, the cook
- The Joker Is Wild (1957) - Las Vegas Heckler (uncredited)
- The Left Handed Gun (1958) - Deputy Moon
- Wink of an Eye (1958) - Sheriff Cantrick
- Alias Jesse James (1959) - Dirty Dog Bartender (uncredited)
- Westbound (1959) - Stubby
- The Mouse That Roared (1959) - Air Raid Warden (uncredited)
- Holiday for Lovers (1959) - Joe McDougal
- The Best of Everything (1959) - Drunk (uncredited)
- Who Was That Lady? (1960) - Irate Man on Telephone (uncredited)
- The Absent-Minded Professor (1961) - Coach Elkins
- My Darling Judge (1961, TV Movie)
- The George Raft Story (1961) - Mike Jones (uncredited)
See also
Further reading
- Terrace, Vincent. Radio Programs, 1924-1984. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 1999. ISBN 0-7864-0351-9
References
- http://www.nndb.com/people/203/000243471/
- IMDB states his birthday is October 8, while more search results (minus Wikipedia) indicate his birthday as October 9.
- "Trivia / It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World". TV Tropes. redshift. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
- "CTVA - The Classic TV Archive. The Web (1950-54)". Retrieved 27 May 2018.