Royal Dano

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Royal Dano

Dano in the Trailer of King of Kings
Born November 16, 1922(1922-11-16)
New York City
Died May 15, 1994 (aged 71)
Los Angeles, California

Royal Dano (November 16, 1922 – May 15, 1994) was an American film and television character actor.

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[edit] Biogarphy

[edit] Early life

Dano was born in New York City to Mary J. and Caleb Dano. He left home at the age of twelve and at various intervals, lived in Florida, Texas and California. After reaching an agreement with his father, he agreed to continue his education, on the condition that he be allowed to travel.

[edit] Career

Dano is remembered for his supporting roles in a number of 1950s western and mystery films. He frequently worked with Anthony Mann and James Stewart, usually as a sinister antagonist. He made a strong impression as the doom-predicting Elijah in John Huston's film version of Moby Dick, memorably intoning to Richard Basehart as Ishmael, "A day will come when you'll smell land and there'll be no land, and on that day, Ahab will go to his grave, but he'll rise again within the hour. He will rise and beckon! Then all - all save one - shall follow!"[1] In "The 7 Faces of Dr. Lao" (1964), he portrayed Carey.

Dano was the voice of Abraham Lincoln for Walt Disney's "Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln" program, first presented at the 1964 World's Fair. Disney personally selected Dano, because he felt the actor came closest to the historical descriptions of Lincoln's voice. The "Great Moments" program was moved to Disneyland in 1965, and Dano's vocals continued to be a part of the program until 2001. In 1971, Dano's voice was also used for a revised Lincoln speech in the new "Hall Of Presidents" program at Walt Disney World in Florida, which ran to 1993.

Dano also had a memorable (if short) role as the coroner in "Electra Glide in Blue" (1973), who gets into a loud shouting match with Robert Blake's character. With no spoken dialogue (only one solo song), Dano was unforgettable as the saddened, unnamed preacher in "The Right Stuff" (1983). Dano is remembered fondly by his most ardent fans for his comedic performance as the undead gold prospector, Gramps, in the horror/suspense/comedy/Aztec adventure House II: The Second Story. One of his final roles, the one for which he is best remembered by younger audiences, was as Wrenchmuller in 1990's "Spaced Invaders" (which has become a Halloween classic).

At age 71, Dano died of a heart attack following a car accident.

[edit] Filmography

[edit] References

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Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2008)
  1. ^ Moby Dick (1956) - Memorable quotes

[edit] External links

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