Charles Lane (actor)

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Charles Lane
Born Charles Gerstle Levison
January 26, 1905(1905-01-26)
San Francisco, California, United States
Died July 9, 2007 (aged 102)
Santa Monica, California
Spouse(s) Ruth Covell Lane (1931-2002)

Charles Gerstle Levison, better known as Charles Lane (January 26, 1905 – July 9, 2007),[1] was an American character actor seen in many movies and TV shows, and at the time of his death may have been the oldest living professional American actor.[2] Lane appeared in many Frank Capra films, including Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Arsenic and Old Lace and It's a Wonderful Life.

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Career

Lane spent a short time as an insurance salesman before taking to the stage at the Pasadena Playhouse. Actor/director Irving Pichel first suggested that Lane go into acting in 1929, and four years later Lane was a founding member of the Screen Actors Guild. He became a favorite of director Frank Capra, who used him in several films; in It's a Wonderful Life, Lane played a seemingly hard-nosed rent collector for the miserly Henry Potter (Lionel Barrymore), who tried to explain to his employer that many of his tenants were moving out, taking advantage of affordable mortgages provided by the film's protagonist, George Bailey.

Lane also appeared in the 1949 film Mighty Joe Young, as one of the reporters cajoling Max O'Hara (Robert Armstrong) for information about the identity of "Mr. Joseph Young", the persona given featured billing on the front of the building, on opening night.

Among his many roles as a character actor, Lane is perhaps most widely remembered for his portrayal of J. Homer Bedloe on the television situation comedy Petticoat Junction. Bedloe was a mean-spirited railroad executive who visited the Shady Rest Hotel periodically, attempting to find justification for ending the train service of the Hooterville Cannonball, but never succeeding.[1]

He is also remembered for his appearances on I Love Lucy, most notably in the episode "Lucy Goes To the Hospital", where he is seated in the waiting room with Ricky while Lucy gives birth to their son.[1] He also played the title role in the episode "The Business Manager" and appeared twice in the The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour. He later had recurring roles as shopkeeper Mr. Finch on Dennis the Menace and during the first season (1962-63) of Ball's The Lucy Show, playing banker Mr. Barnsdahl. According to The Lucy Book by Geoffrey Fidelman, Lane was turfed because he had trouble reciting his lines correctly. However, Lane was in reality a placeholder for Lucy's original choice, Gale Gordon, who joined the program in 1963 as Mr. Mooney after he was free from other contractual obligations.

In 1963, Lane appeared in the mega-comedy It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World, playing the airport manager. His final acting role was at the age of 101 in 2006's The Night Before Christmas. His last television appearance was at the age of 90, when he appeared in the 1995 Disney TV remake of its 1970 teen comedy The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes, with Kirk Cameron in the role originated by Kurt Russell. In 2005, the TV Land Awards paid tribute to Lane by celebrating his 100th birthday. Seated in a wheelchair in the audience, which had sung Happy Birthday to him, Lane was presented with his award and then announced "If you're interested, I'm still available [for work]!" The audience gave him a standing ovation.

All told, Lane appeared in more than 250 films and hundreds of television shows. On his busiest days, Lane said he sometimes played more than one role, getting into costume and filming his two or three lines, then hurrying off to another set for a different costume and a different role.[1] As for being typecast, Lane described it as "... a pain in the ass. You did something that was pretty good, and the picture was pretty good. But that pedigreed you into that type of part, which I thought was stupid and unfair, too. It didn't give me a chance, but it made the casting easier for the studio".[citation needed]

Lane's persona has been referenced in The Simpsons: on the audio commentary to the episode Marge in Chains, its director Jim Reardon states that Lane's performance in It's a Wonderful Life inspired the character of the snide, humourless Blue-Haired Lawyer who appears in that and other episodes in the series.

[edit] Personal life

Lane was born Charles Gerstle Levison in San Francisco, California to Alice G. and Jacob B. Levison. In 1932, Lane married his sweetheart, Ruth Covell, and they remained together for 70 years until her death in 2002.

In 1990, Lane was rushed to hospital after having difficulty breathing. A doctor asked if he was still smoking, and Lane replied that he had kicked the habit 45 minutes earlier. He never smoked again.

Despite his stern, hardhearted demeanor in films and television, friends and acquaintances seem to unanimously describe Lane as a warm, funny and kind person. On January 26, 2007, Lane celebrated his 102nd birthday. A documentary about his life and career, entitled You Know the Face, is currently in production. He continued to live in the Brentwood home he bought with Ruth for $46,000 in 1964 and lived in until his death on July 9, 2007.[3]

[edit] Filmography

[edit] 2000s

  • The Night Before Christmas (2006)

[edit] 1990s

[edit] 1980s

[edit] 1970s

[edit] 1960s

[edit] 1950s

[edit] 1940s

  • Ride 'Em Cowboy (1942) (uncredited)
  • Obliging Young Lady (1942)
  • A Close Call for Ellery Queen (1942)
  • A Gentleman at Heart (1942)
  • Ball of Fire (1941)
  • Look Who's Laughing (1941) (uncredited)
  • I Wake Up Screaming (1941)
  • Appointment for Love (1941) (uncredited)
  • Birth of Blues (1941) (uncredited)
  • New York Town (1941) (uncredited)
  • Three Girls About Town (1941) (uncredited)
  • Buy Me That Town (1941)
  • Sing Another Chorus (1941)
  • Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime (1941)
  • Sealed Lips (1941)
  • The Big Store (1941) (uncredited)
  • Blondie in Society (1941) (uncredited)
  • Sis Hopkins (1941)
  • Barnacle Bill (1941) (uncredited)
  • Repent at Leisure (1941)
  • Ellery Queen's Penthouse Mystery (1941)
  • Footlight Fever (1941)
  • You're the One (1941)
  • Back Street (1941) (uncredited)
  • The Invisible Woman (1940)
  • The Texas Ranger Rides Again (1940)
  • Ellery Queen, Master Detective (1940)
  • Dancing on a Dime (1940)
  • Blondie Plays Cupid (1940) (uncredited)
  • A Little Bit of Heaven (1940) (uncredited)
  • City For Conquest (1940) (uncredited)
  • The Leather Pushers (1940)
  • The Great Profile (1940)
  • Rhythm on the River (1940)
  • We Who Are Young (1940)
  • Queen of the Mob (1940) (uncredited)
  • The Doctor Takes a Wife (1940) (uncredited)
  • I Can't Give Anything But Love, Baby (1940) (uncredited)
  • You Can't Fool Your Wife (1940) (scenes deleted}
  • On Your Own (1940) (uncredited)
  • Edison, the Man (1940) (uncredited)
  • The Crooked Road (1940)
  • Buck Benny Rides Again (1940)
  • Johnny Apollo (1940)
  • Primrose Path (1940) (uncredited)
  • It's a Date (1940) (uncredited)

[edit] 1930s

  • Come Closer, Folks (1936) (uncredited)
  • Easy to Take (1936)
  • Lady Luck (1936)
  • Two-Fisted Gentleman (1936)
  • 36 Hours to Kill (1936)
  • The Bride Walks Out (1936) (uncredited)
  • The Crime of Dr. Forbes (1936)
  • Ticket to Paradise (1936) (uncredited)
  • Neighborhood House (1936) (uncredited)
  • Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) (uncredited)
  • It Had Happened (1936) (uncredited)
  • The Milky Way (1936)
  • Two for Tonight (1935)
  • Here Comes the Band (1935)
  • Woman Wanted (1935) (uncredited)
  • Ginger (1935) (uncredited)
  • Princess O'Hara (1935) (uncredited)
  • One More Spring (1935) (uncredited)
  • The Band Plays On (1934) (uncredited)
  • A Wicked Woman (1934) (uncredited)
  • Broadway Bill (1934) (uncredited)
  • I'll Fix It (1934)
  • Let's Talk It Over (1934)
  • Twentieth Century(1934)
  • Twenty Million Sweethearts (1934) (uncredited)
  • Looking for Trouble (1934)
  • The Show Off (1934) (uncredited)
  • Mr. Skitch (1933) (uncredited)
  • Advice to the Lovelorn (1933)
  • Broadway Through a Keyhole (1933) (uncredited)
  • The Bowery (1933) (uncredited)
  • My Woman (1933)
  • She Had to Say Yes (1933) (uncredited)
  • Private Detective 62 (1933)
  • Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933) (uncredited)
  • Central Airport (1933) (uncredited)
  • Blondie Johnson (1933)
  • Grand Slam (1933) (uncredited)
  • 42nd Street (1933) (uncredited)
  • Employees' Entrance (1933) (uncredited)
  • Blessed Event (1932) (uncredited)
  • The Mouthpiece (1932) (uncredited)
  • Manhattan Parade (1932) (uncredited)
  • Union Depot (1932) (uncredited)
  • Blonde Crazy (1931) (uncredited)
  • The Road to Singapore (1931) (uncredited)
  • Smart Money (1931) (uncredited)


[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d AP Via Fox News "Character Actor Charles Lane Dies at 102" July 10, 2007
  2. ^ Dead or Alive
  3. ^ Associated Press obituary

[edit] External links

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