Joseph Kearns
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Joseph Kearns (February 12, 1907 - February 17, 1962) was an American actor, who is best remembered for his role as Mr. Wilson in the popular 1960s television series Dennis the Menace.
Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, his family moved to California when he was very young. He went to college at the University of Utah, where he earned his tuition by teaching a course in theatrical makeup. Kearns started out in radio and theatre as a pipe organist; years later, he even built his Hollywood home around a Wurlitzer theater pipe organ.
He began his acting career in radio in the 1930s (playing the Crazyquilt Dragon in the serial "The Cinnamon Bear"), becoming especially active during the 1940s, with appearances on the shows The Adventures of Sam Spade, Burns and Allen, and Silver Theater, amongst many others. On Suspense, he was almost a mainstay, heard regularly as the host "The Man in Black" in the early years, announcing many episodes in the later run, and playing supporting and occasional lead roles in hundreds of shows throughout the series' tenure in Hollywood, from judges to kindly old-timers to cowards.
His best remembered regular role was that of Ed, the security guard for Jack Benny's underground vault, on The Jack Benny Program. The 'running gag' was that Benny had kept Ed on duty at the vault's door so long that the guard was not up to speed on current events; when Benny informed him that "The War (World War II) had ended," Ed asked whether the "North" or the "South" had won, assuming that the American Civil War was the one Benny was referring to.
Joseph Kearns made his onscreen film debut in Hard, Fast and Beautiful (1951). He was the voice of the Doorknob in Disney's animated Alice in Wonderland (1951). Kearns appeared in several other movies, making his final film appearance as the crime photographer in Anatomy of a Murder (1959).
On television, Kearns reprised his radio roles on Jack Benny's TV series, and also appeared on Our Miss Brooks (1953-55) as Superintendent Stone (a role he had also played on radio). But he is best remembered as the long-suffering neighbor Mr. George Wilson in Dennis the Menace (1959-62), which was based on the popular comic strip by Hank Ketcham.
Kearns died in the middle of the third season of Dennis from a cerebral hemorrhage, only five days after his 55th birthday. He was replaced by fellow radio veteran Gale Gordon, who played George Wilson's brother John. In the show's storyline, it was explained that George and Martha Wilson were taking a cruise trip and John Wilson was caring for their home while they were away. Audiences were not receptive to the sudden change in storyline, and now that Dennis (played by Jay North) was getting older, he had lost much of his childlike charm. The show was cancelled later that year.
[edit] Selected filmography
- Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
- The Gift of Love (1958)
- Our Miss Brooks (1956)
- Alice in Wonderland (voice) (1951)
- Hard, Fast and Beautiful (1951)
