Fred Clark
Encyclopedia
Frederick Leonard Clark (March 19, 1914 – December 5, 1968) was an American
film
character actor
.
, Clark made his film debut in 1947 in The Unsuspected
. His 20-year film career included almost 70 films, and numerous television appearances. As a supporting player, with his gruff voice, intimidating build, bald pate, and small moustache beneath an often scowling visage, he was cast as a testy film producer, crime boss, landlord, employer, doctor, or general.
Among his films are Ride the Pink Horse
(1948), Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid
(1948), Flamingo Road
(1949), White Heat
(1949), Sunset Boulevard
(1950), A Place in the Sun
(1951), How to Marry a Millionaire
(1953), The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell
(1955), How to Be Very, Very Popular
(1955), Daddy Long Legs
(1955), Auntie Mame
(1958), and Visit to a Small Planet
(1960).
Although he continued making films during the 1960s (most notably a large role in Hammer Film Productions
The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb
in 1964 and John Goldfarb, Please Come Home
in 1965) he was more often seen on television, as a regular on Burns and Allen
as their neighbor Harry Morton, and guest roles on The Twilight Zone
, The Beverly Hillbillies
, and I Dream of Jeannie
among his many performances.
from 1952–62, then model Gloria Glaser from 1966 until his death from liver disease
in Santa Monica, California
.
Clark has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
for his work in television, at 1713 Vine Street.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
.
Career
Born in Lincoln, CaliforniaLincoln, California
Lincoln is a city in Placer County, California, United States located in the metropolitan area of Sacramento. The population was 42,819 at the 2010 census, with a growth rate of 282.1 percent since 2000 , making it the fastest growing city in the U.S...
, Clark made his film debut in 1947 in The Unsuspected
The Unsuspected
The Unsuspected is a film noir starring Claude Rains, Audrey Totter, and Joan Caulfield. The black-and-white film was directed by Michael Curtiz, based on the novel written by Charlotte Armstrong, and released by Warner Brothers.- Plot :...
. His 20-year film career included almost 70 films, and numerous television appearances. As a supporting player, with his gruff voice, intimidating build, bald pate, and small moustache beneath an often scowling visage, he was cast as a testy film producer, crime boss, landlord, employer, doctor, or general.
Among his films are Ride the Pink Horse
Ride the Pink Horse
Ride the Pink Horse is a 1947 American crime film noir produced by Universal Studios. It was directed by the actor Robert Montgomery from a screenplay by Ben Hecht, which was based on a novel of the same name by Dorothy B. Hughes. The drama features Robert Montgomery, Wanda Hendrix, Andrea King,...
(1948), Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid
Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid
Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid is a 1948 fantasy film starring William Powell and Ann Blyth in the title roles. Irene Hervey played Mr. Peabody's wife.- Plot :...
(1948), Flamingo Road
Flamingo Road (1949 film)
Flamingo Road is a Warner Bros. feature film starring Joan Crawford, Zachary Scott, Sydney Greenstreet and David Brian in a noir story about small town political corruption. The screenplay by Edmund H. North was based on a play by Robert and Sally Wilder, which was adapted from Robert Wilder's...
(1949), White Heat
White Heat
White Heat may refer to:In film:* White Heat , a British film directed by Thomas Bentley* White Heat , an American film* White Heat, a 1949 film starring James CagneyIn music:...
(1949), Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard (film)
Sunset Boulevard is a 1950 American film noir directed and co-written by Billy Wilder, and produced and co-written by Charles Brackett...
(1950), A Place in the Sun
A Place in the Sun
A Place in the Sun is a 1951 American drama film based on the novel An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser and the play, also titled An American Tragedy, which was adapted by Patrick Kearney from the novel. It tells the story of a working-class young man who is entangled with two women; one who...
(1951), How to Marry a Millionaire
How to Marry a Millionaire
How to Marry a Millionaire is a 1953 romantic comedy film made by 20th Century Fox, directed by Jean Negulesco and produced and written by Nunnally Johnson. The screenplay was based on the plays The Greeks Had a Word for It by Zoe Akins and Loco by Dale Eunson and Katherine Albert. The music score...
(1953), The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell
The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell (film)
The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell is a 1955 film directed by Otto Preminger. It stars Gary Cooper as Billy Mitchell, Charles Bickford, Ralph Bellamy, Rod Steiger and Elizabeth Montgomery in her film debut.-Plot:...
(1955), How to Be Very, Very Popular
How to Be Very, Very Popular
How to Be Very, Very Popular is a 1955 comedy film written, produced and directed by Nunnally Johnson and starring Betty Grable in her final film role, and, introduced newcomer, Sheree North to the public.-Plot:...
(1955), Daddy Long Legs
Daddy Long Legs (film)
Daddy Long Legs is a Hollywood musical comedy film set in France, New York City, and the fictional college town of "Walston" in Massachusetts. The film was directed by Jean Negulesco, and stars Fred Astaire, Leslie Caron, Terry Moore, Fred Clark, and Thelma Ritter, with music and lyrics by Johnny...
(1955), Auntie Mame
Auntie Mame
Auntie Mame is a 1955 novel by Patrick Dennis that chronicles the madcap adventures of a boy, Patrick, growing up as the ward of his deceased father's eccentric sister, Mame Dennis. The book is a work of fiction inspired by the author's eccentric aunt, Marion Tanner, whose life and outlook in many...
(1958), and Visit to a Small Planet
Visit to a Small Planet
Visit to a Small Planet is a 1960 Paramount Pictures film starring Jerry Lewis, based on a play by Gore Vidal. It was released on February 4, 1960.-Plot:...
(1960).
Although he continued making films during the 1960s (most notably a large role in Hammer Film Productions
Hammer Film Productions
Hammer Film Productions is a film production company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction, thrillers, film noir and comedies and in later...
The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb
The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb
The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb is a 1964 British horror film by Hammer Film Productions.-Plot:A mummy discovered by three Egyptologists is brought back to London by a showman...
in 1964 and John Goldfarb, Please Come Home
John Goldfarb, Please Come Home
John Goldfarb, Please Come Home is a 1963 novel by William Peter Blatty that was adapted as a film by the same title, released in 1965.-Synopsis:...
in 1965) he was more often seen on television, as a regular on Burns and Allen
Burns and Allen
Burns and Allen, an American comedy duo consisting of George Burns and his wife, Gracie Allen, worked together as a comedy team in vaudeville, films, radio and television and achieved great success over four decades.-Vaudeville:...
as their neighbor Harry Morton, and guest roles on The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone is an American television anthology series created by Rod Serling. Each episode is a mixture of self-contained drama, psychological thriller, fantasy, science fiction, suspense, or horror, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist...
, The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for nine seasons on CBS from 1962 to 1971, starring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer, Jr....
, and I Dream of Jeannie
I Dream of Jeannie
I Dream of Jeannie is a 1960s American sitcom with a fantasy premise. The show starred Barbara Eden as a 2,000-year-old genie, and Larry Hagman as an astronaut who becomes her master, with whom she falls in love and eventually marries...
among his many performances.
Personal life
Clark was married to actress Benay VenutaBenay Venuta
Benay Venuta was an American actress, singer and dancer.Born Benvenuta Rose Crooke in San Francisco, Venuta attended finishing school in Geneva and lived in London where she worked as a dancer before returning to the States. She made her first screen appearance in the silent Trail of '98 in 1928...
from 1952–62, then model Gloria Glaser from 1966 until his death from liver disease
Liver disease
Liver disease is a broad term describing any single number of diseases affecting the liver.-Diseases:* Hepatitis, inflammation of the liver, caused mainly by various viruses but also by some poisons , autoimmunity or hereditary conditions...
in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
.
Clark has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
for his work in television, at 1713 Vine Street.
Partial filmography
- The UnsuspectedThe UnsuspectedThe Unsuspected is a film noir starring Claude Rains, Audrey Totter, and Joan Caulfield. The black-and-white film was directed by Michael Curtiz, based on the novel written by Charlotte Armstrong, and released by Warner Brothers.- Plot :...
(1947) - Ride the Pink HorseRide the Pink HorseRide the Pink Horse is a 1947 American crime film noir produced by Universal Studios. It was directed by the actor Robert Montgomery from a screenplay by Ben Hecht, which was based on a novel of the same name by Dorothy B. Hughes. The drama features Robert Montgomery, Wanda Hendrix, Andrea King,...
(1947) - Mr. Peabody and the MermaidMr. Peabody and the MermaidMr. Peabody and the Mermaid is a 1948 fantasy film starring William Powell and Ann Blyth in the title roles. Irene Hervey played Mr. Peabody's wife.- Plot :...
(1948) - Cry of the CityCry of the CityCry of the City is a 1948 black-and-white film noir directed by Robert Siodmak based on the novel by Henry Edward Helseth, The Chair for Martin Rome. Veteran film noir-writer Ben Hecht worked on the film's script, but is not credited...
(1948) - Alias Nick BealAlias Nick BealAlias Nick Beal is a 1949 film retelling of the Faust myth. In this version, a judge sells his soul to the devil.-Critical reaction:...
(1949) - Flamingo RoadFlamingo Road (1949 film)Flamingo Road is a Warner Bros. feature film starring Joan Crawford, Zachary Scott, Sydney Greenstreet and David Brian in a noir story about small town political corruption. The screenplay by Edmund H. North was based on a play by Robert and Sally Wilder, which was adapted from Robert Wilder's...
(1949) - Task ForceTask Force (film)Task Force is a war film filmed in black and white with some Technicolor sequences about the development of U.S. aircraft carriers from the USS Langley to the USS Franklin . The film stars Gary Cooper, Jane Wyatt, Walter Brennan, Wayne Morris, Julie London, and Jack Holt.-Plot:Depicted as a 1917...
(1949) - White HeatWhite HeatWhite Heat may refer to:In film:* White Heat , a British film directed by Thomas Bentley* White Heat , an American film* White Heat, a 1949 film starring James CagneyIn music:...
(1949) - Sunset BoulevardSunset Boulevard (film)Sunset Boulevard is a 1950 American film noir directed and co-written by Billy Wilder, and produced and co-written by Charles Brackett...
(1950) - The JackpotThe JackpotThe Jackpot is a 1950 American comedy film directed by Walter Lang with James Stewart and Barbara Hale in the lead roles. It features a young Natalie Wood....
(1950) - Mrs. O'Malley and Mr. MaloneMrs. O'Malley and Mr. MaloneMrs. O'Malley and Mr. Malone is a 1950 comedy/murder mystery film set on board a train. It stars Marjorie Main and James Whitmore. It is based on the short story "Once Upon a Train " by Stuart Palmer and Craig Rice.-Cast:...
(1950) - The Lemon Drop KidThe Lemon Drop KidThe Lemon Drop Kid is a 1951 comedy film based on the short story of the same name by Damon Runyon, starring Bob Hope and Marilyn Maxwell, and directed by Sidney Lanfield.The song "Silver Bells," sung by Hope and Maxwell, was introduced in the film...
(1951) - A Place in the SunA Place in the SunA Place in the Sun is a 1951 American drama film based on the novel An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser and the play, also titled An American Tragedy, which was adapted by Patrick Kearney from the novel. It tells the story of a working-class young man who is entangled with two women; one who...
(1951) - Three for Bedroom "C" (1952)
- DreamboatDreamboat (film)Dreamboat is a 1952 comedy film starring Clifton Webb as a college professor with a mysterious past.-Plot:The respectable lives of Professor of English literature Thornton Sayre and his daughter Carol are severely disrupted when it is revealed that he was once a matinee idol known as "Dreamboat"...
(1952) - The CaddyThe CaddyThe Caddy is a 1953 American film starring the comedy team of Martin and Lewis. It was filmed from November 24, 1952 through February 23, 1953. It was released by Paramount Pictures on August 10, 1953...
(1953) - How to Marry a MillionaireHow to Marry a MillionaireHow to Marry a Millionaire is a 1953 romantic comedy film made by 20th Century Fox, directed by Jean Negulesco and produced and written by Nunnally Johnson. The screenplay was based on the plays The Greeks Had a Word for It by Zoe Akins and Loco by Dale Eunson and Katherine Albert. The music score...
(1953) - Living It UpLiving It UpLiving It Up is a 1954 film comedy starring the team of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis and released by Paramount Pictures.The film was directed by Norman Taurog and produced by Paul Jones. The screenplay by Jack Rose and Melville Shavelson was based on the 1953 musical Hazel Flagg by Ben Hecht, in...
(1954) - Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone KopsAbbott and Costello Meet the Keystone KopsAbbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops is a 1955 film starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello.After the film was completed, Universal wanted to rename it Abbott and Costello in the Stunt Men, because they did not consider the "Keystone Kops" to be relevant anymore...
(1955) - Daddy Long LegsDaddy Long Legs (film)Daddy Long Legs is a Hollywood musical comedy film set in France, New York City, and the fictional college town of "Walston" in Massachusetts. The film was directed by Jean Negulesco, and stars Fred Astaire, Leslie Caron, Terry Moore, Fred Clark, and Thelma Ritter, with music and lyrics by Johnny...
(1955) - The Court-Martial of Billy MitchellThe Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell (film)The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell is a 1955 film directed by Otto Preminger. It stars Gary Cooper as Billy Mitchell, Charles Bickford, Ralph Bellamy, Rod Steiger and Elizabeth Montgomery in her film debut.-Plot:...
(1955) - How to Be Very, Very PopularHow to Be Very, Very PopularHow to Be Very, Very Popular is a 1955 comedy film written, produced and directed by Nunnally Johnson and starring Betty Grable in her final film role, and, introduced newcomer, Sheree North to the public.-Plot:...
(1955)
- Miracle in the RainMiracle in the RainMiracle in the Rain is a novella by American writer Ben Hecht, published in The Saturday Evening Post bimonthly magazine on April 3, 1943 and adapted by him into a feature film released on March 31, 1956.-Film version:...
(1956) - The Birds and the BeesThe Birds and the Bees (film)The Birds and the Bees is a 1956 screwball comedy film with songs, starring George Gobel, Mitzi Gaynor and David Niven. A remake of Preston Sturges' 1941 film The Lady Eve, which was based on a story by Monckton Hoffe, the film was directed by Norman Taurog and written by Sidney...
(1956) - The Solid Gold CadillacThe Solid Gold CadillacThe Solid Gold Cadillac is a 1956 film directed by Richard Quine and written by Abe Burrows, Howard Teichmann and George S. Kaufman. It was adapted from the hit Broadway play of the same name by Teichmann and Kaufman, in which they pillory big business and corrupt businessmen...
(1956) - Back from EternityBack from EternityBack from Eternity is a 1956 drama film about a planeload of people stranded in the South American jungle and subsequently menaced by headhunters. It is a remake of an earlier 1939 film, Five Came Back, starred Chester Morris and Lucille Ball, also directed and produced by John Farrow...
(1956) - The Fuzzy Pink NightgownThe Fuzzy Pink NightgownThe Fuzzy Pink Nightgown is an American comedy film made by Russ-Field Productions and released by United Artists. It was directed by Norman Taurog from a screenplay by Richard Alan Simmons, based on a novel by Sylvia Tate....
(1957) - Don't Go Near the WaterDon't Go Near the Water (film)Don't Go Near the Water is a 1957 comedy film about a U.S. Navy public relations unit stationed on an island in the Pacific Ocean during World War II. It is an adaptation of the 1956 novel of the same name by William Brinkley. Glenn Ford and Gia Scala starred...
(1957) - Auntie MameAuntie Mame (film)Auntie Mame is a 1958 film based on the novel by Patrick Dennis and its theatrical adaptation by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee. This film version stars Rosalind Russell and was directed by Morton DaCosta...
(1958) - The Mating GameThe Mating Game (film)The Mating Game is an MGM color film made in 1959 and starring Debbie Reynolds, Tony Randall and Paul Douglas in his final screen appearance. Reynolds sings the title song during the opening credits....
(1959) - It Started with a Kiss (1959)
- Risate di gioia (1960)
- Visit to a Small PlanetVisit to a Small PlanetVisit to a Small Planet is a 1960 Paramount Pictures film starring Jerry Lewis, based on a play by Gore Vidal. It was released on February 4, 1960.-Plot:...
(1960) - Bells Are RingingBells Are Ringing (film)Bells Are Ringing is a 1960 romantic comedy-musical film directed by Vincente Minnelli. It stars Judy Holliday and Dean Martin.-Synopsis:Based on the successful 1956 Broadway production of the same name by Betty Comden, Adolph Green, and Jule Styne, the film focuses on Ella Peterson, who works in...
(1960) - Risate di gioiaRisate di gioiaRisate di gioia is a 1960 Italian comedy film directed by Mario Monicelli, starring Anna Magnani and Totò.-Cast:* Anna Magnani as Gioia Fabbricotti* Totò as Umberto 'Infortunio' Pennazzuto* Ben Gazzara as Lello* Fred Clark as The American...
(1962) - Boys' Night OutBoys' Night Out (film)Boys' Night Out is an American comedy film released in 1962, starring Kim Novak, James Garner, and Tony Randall, and directed by Michael Gordon...
(1962) - Zotz!Zotz!Zotz! is a 1962 fantasy/comedy film produced and directed by William Castle, about a man obtaining magical powers from a god of an ancient civilization. The film is based on the 1947 novel of the same name by Walter Karig.-Plot:...
(1962) - Move Over, DarlingMove Over, DarlingMove Over, Darling is a 1963 remake of the 1940 screwball comedy My Favorite Wife that starred Irene Dunne, Cary Grant and Gail Patrick. The remake stars Doris Day, James Garner, and Polly Bergen.-Plot:...
(1963) - The Curse of the Mummy's TombThe Curse of the Mummy's TombThe Curse of the Mummy's Tomb is a 1964 British horror film by Hammer Film Productions.-Plot:A mummy discovered by three Egyptologists is brought back to London by a showman...
(1964) - John Goldfarb, Please Come HomeJohn Goldfarb, Please Come HomeJohn Goldfarb, Please Come Home is a 1963 novel by William Peter Blatty that was adapted as a film by the same title, released in 1965.-Synopsis:...
(1965) - Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini MachineDr. Goldfoot and the Bikini MachineDr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine is a 1965 American International Pictures film directed by Norman Taurog and starring Vincent Price, Frankie Avalon, Dwayne Hickman, Susan Hart and Deborah Walley...
(1965) - When the Boys Meet the GirlsWhen the Boys Meet the GirlsWhen the Boys Meet the Girls is a 1965 American musical film, directed by Alvin Ganzer and starring Connie Francis and Harve Presnell. Guy Bolton and Jack McGowan were both uncredited in their roles as the writers for the play the film is based on.-Cast:...
(1965) - SkidooSkidoo (film)Skidoo is an American comedy film directed by Otto Preminger, starring Jackie Gleason and Carol Channing, written by Doran William Cannon and released by Paramount Pictures on December 19, 1968...
(1968) - The Horse in the Gray Flannel SuitThe Horse in the Gray Flannel SuitThe Horse in the Gray Flannel Suit is a 1968 film directed by Norman Tokar....
(1968) - I Sailed to Tahiti with an all girl crew (1968)