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Pierre Watkin | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Watkin in Meet John Doe (1941) | |
| Born | Pierre Frank Watkin December 29, 1887 |
| Died | February 3, 1960 (aged 72) Hollywood, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Valhalla Memorial Park, Burbank, California |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1910–1960 |
| Spouses | Christie E. McLennan
(m. 1909; died 1930)Mary Hart (m. 1932) |
Pierre Frank Watkin (December 29, 1887 – February 3, 1960) was an American character actor best known for playing distinguished authority figures throughout the Golden Age of Hollywood. He is best remembered for his roles of Mr. Skinner the bank president in The Bank Dick (1940); Lou Gehrig's father-in-law Mr. Twitchell in Pride of the Yankees (1942); and the first actor to portray Perry White in the Superman serials Superman (1948) and Atom Man vs. Superman (1950).
Early life
Watkin was born on December 29, 1887, in Afton Township, Iowa, the third of four sons born to Charles Henry Watkin and Elizabeth Jeannette (née Scoles) Watkin.[1][2]
When Watkin was a young child, his family moved to Sioux City, Iowa, where his parents ran a boarding house for actors. This environment influenced Watkin to go into acting. When he was a teenager, the family moved to Kansas City, Missouri, where he began acting in theater.[citation needed]
Career
Watkin began his career touring the Midwest with various theatrical troupes, including with the company of Morgan Wallace.[3] In 1918, he formed his own theatrical troupe, the Pierre Watkin Players, which was first headquartered in Sioux City, before moving to Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1927.[4][5] Among those in his troupe included Lyle Talbot (under his birth name "Lysle Talbot"); Georgia Neese Clark and her first husband George Clark; and Roy Hillard, the father of Harriet Nelson.[6][7] However, the troupe disassembled when Watkin went East to pursue a Broadway career. The next year, Watkin made his made his Broadway debut in the 1928 play Possession.[8]
Following a string of unsuccessful plays on Broadway, and with many actors moving out West, Watkin moved to California in 1935 to pursue a film career. Shortly after arriving, he made his film debut in the Bette Davis film Dangerous, having been offered a role by the film's director Alfred E. Green, an acquaintance of his from Broadway. Over his 25 year career, Watkin became well-known as a freelance actor, often appearing in bit roles — many uncredited — as wealthy distinguished authority figures such as bankers and judges. Watkin was a favorite of Davis and director Frank Capra, who dubbed Watkin his "one-man stock company".[9] Although known as a character actor, he did obtain some major roles, such as bank president Mr. Skinner in The Bank Dick with W.C. Fields, and opposite Gary Cooper and Teresa Wright as Mr. Twitchell in the Lou Gehrig biographical drama film The Pride of the Yankees.
In 1940, Watkin made his first serial, portraying the main antagonist in the Universal film serial The Green Hornet Strikes Again!. Watkin would attain more prominent roles in film serials, such as the role of Uncle Jim Fairfield in the 1947 Columbia serial Jack Armstrong. The following year, the studio cast him in the role of Perry White in their adaption of Superman. The serial was a success, leading to Watkin reprising his role in a follow-up, Atom Man vs. Superman, in 1950. Watkin also received prominent roles from low-budget poverty row studios, appearing in several Western films for Republic Pictures.
At the turn of the decade, Watkin began to segue into television as the medium began gaining popularity. Watkin appeared in several series, such as The Lone Ranger, Cheyenne, The Jack Benny Program, The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, and The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. He also made an appearance on I Love Lucy in 1954, portraying book editor Mr. Dorrance in the episode "Lucy Writes a Novel". Watkin appeared as several minor characters in different episodes of Adventures of Superman. When producers were looking to revive the series after its cancellation in 1958, Watkin was cast in the role of Perry White again, replacing the late John Hamilton. However, these plans never came to fruition after the death of series star George Reeves in June 1959.
Personal life
Watkin first married Christie E. McLennan on August 21, 1909, in Ottawa, Kansas; the two had met while they were a part of a troupe together.[10] They remained married until her death on April 4, 1930.[11] Watkin remarried Mary Hart in Reading, Pennsylvania on September 25, 1932.[12]
Watkin died on February 3, 1960, at age 72, at his home in Hollywood, California, from pneumonia and complications of diabetes. He was buried in Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery, Burbank, California.[12]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1924 | He Who Gets Slapped | Spectator | |
| 1935 | Dangerous | George Sheffield | |
| If You Could Only Cook | Mr. Balderson | Uncredited | |
| 1936 | Two in the Dark | City Editor | Uncredited |
| You May Be Next | Bernard Pine | Uncredited | |
| It Had to Happen | District Attorney | ||
| Mr. Deeds Goes to Town | Arthur Cedar | Uncredited | |
| Forgotten Faces | Mr. McBride | ||
| Counterfeit | Matt McDonald | ||
| Nobody's Fool | George Baxter | ||
| Bunker Bean | Mr. Barnes | Uncredited | |
| China Clipper | Secretary of State | Uncredited | |
| The Gentleman from Louisiana | Roger Leland | ||
| Swing Time | Al Simpson | Uncredited | |
| Sitting on the Moon | Tucker | ||
| The Big Game | College Chancellor | Uncredited | |
| Under Your Spell | Allen's Lawyer | Uncredited | |
| Love Letters of a Star | Hobbs | ||
| Country Gentlemen | Mr. Grayson | ||
| Wanted! Jane Turner | Andrew Norris | Uncredited | |
| King of Hockey | Thomas A. White | Uncredited | |
| 1937 | Larceny on the Air | Kennedy | |
| Dangerous Number | Mr. Stark | Uncredited | |
| The Devil's Playground | Submarine Commander | ||
| She's Dangerous | H.J. Conrad | Uncredited | |
| Breezing Home | Steward | Uncredited | |
| Green Light | Dr. Booth | ||
| Sea Devils | USS Taroe Commander | ||
| History Is Made at Night | Commodore Eldridge | Uncredited | |
| Bill Cracks Down | William "Bill" Reardon, Sr. | ||
| Waikiki Wedding | John Durkin | Uncredited | |
| Racketeers in Exile | Chief G-Man | Uncredited | |
| Marked Woman | Judge at 2nd trial | Uncredited | |
| Internes Can't Take Money | Dr. Fearson | ||
| Mountain Justice | The Governor | Uncredited | |
| The Hit Parade | J.B. Hawley | ||
| Michael O'Halloran | Mark Grave | ||
| The Go Getter | Browne | ||
| Married Before Breakfast | Mr. Potter | Uncredited | |
| Ever Since Eve | Barton | ||
| The Singing Marine | General | ||
| The Californian | Miller | ||
| Paradise Isle | Steinmeyer | ||
| The Life of Emile Zola | Prefect of Police | Uncredited | |
| Reported Missing | Reynolds | Uncredited | |
| Confession | Lawyer Stagoff | Uncredited | |
| The Man Who Cried Wolf | The Governor | Uncredited | |
| Stage Door | Richard Carmichael | ||
| Breakfast for Two | Gordon Faraday | ||
| Thoroughbreds Don't Cry | Judge Dobson | Uncredited | |
| Daughter of Shanghai | Mr. Yorkland | Uncredited | |
| Rosalie | Academy Superintendent | Uncredited | |
| 1938 | Midnight Intruder | Peter Winslow | |
| Arsène Lupin Returns | Mr. Carter | Uncredited | |
| Dangerous to Know | Senator Carson | Uncredited | |
| State Police | Colonel C.B. Clarke | ||
| Mr. Moto's Gamble | District Attorney | ||
| Tip-Off Girls | George Murkil | ||
| There's Always a Woman | Mr. Ketterling | ||
| A Trip to Paris | Baxter | Uncredited | |
| The Chaser | Mr. Beaumont | ||
| Smashing the Rackets | John Nelson Davis | Uncredited | |
| Boy Meets Girl | B.K. Whitacre | Uncredited | |
| You Can't Take It with You | Kirby's Attorney | Uncredited | |
| Valley of the Giants | Banker #2 | Uncredited | |
| Mr. Doodle Kicks Off | Mr. Wondel | Uncredited | |
| King of Alcatraz | Ship Doctor | Uncredited | |
| Girls' School | Mr. Simpson | ||
| The Mad Miss Manton | Mr. Fenton | Uncredited | |
| The Lady Objects | Mr. Harper | ||
| Young Dr. Kildare | Robert Candler | ||
| Girls on Probation | Mr. Storm | Uncredited | |
| Illegal Traffic | Jigger | ||
| There's That Woman Again | Mr. Nacelle | ||
| 1939 | King of the Underworld | District Attorney | |
| The Mysterious Miss X | Winslow | ||
| Risky Business | Abernathy | ||
| Off the Record | Barton | ||
| Wings of the Navy | Captain March | ||
| Fast and Loose | Victor Stockton | Uncredited | |
| Secret Service of the Air | Chief Morrow | Uncredited | |
| The Spirit of Culver | Captain Wharton | ||
| King of Chinatown | District Attorney Philips | Uncredited | |
| The Adventures of Jane Arden | Albert Thayer | ||
| Society Lawyer | Henry V. Adams | ||
| They Made Her a Spy | Colonel Wilson | ||
| First Offenders | Mr. Blakeley | ||
| Outside These Walls | Hewitt Bronson | ||
| The Jones Family in Hollywood | Producer | ||
| Wall Street Cowboy | Roger Hammond | ||
| Death of a Champion | Albert Deacon | ||
| Everything's on Ice | Hotel Manager | ||
| Mr. Smith Goes to Washington | Senate Minority Leader (Senator Barnes) | ||
| Rulers of the Sea | Mr. Caldwell | Uncredited | |
| The Covered Trailer | Horace Cartwright | ||
| Geronimo | Colonel White | ||
| The Great Victor Herbert | Albert Martin | ||
| 1940 | The Earl of Chicago | Warden | Uncredited |
| Road to Singapore | Morgan Wycott | Uncredited | |
| Gangs of Chicago | Shady Businessman | Uncredited | |
| The Saint Takes Over | Ben Eagan | ||
| Earthbound | President of the Court | Uncredited | |
| Queen of the Mob | Torey | Uncredited | |
| Out West with the Peppers | Zdroj:https://en.wikipedia.org?pojem=Pierre_Watkin