| Eddie Laughton | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 20, 1903 Sheffield, England, UK |
| Died | March 21, 1952 (aged 48) Hollywood, California, USA |
| Years active | 1934-1947 |
| Spouse | Mary Eaton (?-1948) |
Eddie Laughton (June 20, 1903 – March 21, 1952) was a British-born American film actor. Born in Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire, England, Laughton appeared in over 200 films between 1935 and 1952.
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Laughton left his native England to pursue a Hollywood film career. He started in vaudeville, and, according to a biography of Larry Fine of the Three Stooges, managed a vaudeville theatre where Fine once played.[1]
The pencil-mustached Laughton was placed under contract by Columbia Pictures in 1935. He appeared in many Columbia features, short subjects, and serials throughout the 1930s and 1940s.[2]
Modern viewers will remember Laughton for his role as "Percy Pomeroy, convict 41144" in the Stooge comedies So Long Mr. Chumps and Beer Barrel Polecats, or as the happy drunk in Loco Boy Makes Good. Laughton was an excellent utility player, useful in good-guy and bad-guy roles alike. (He and Columbia actor John Tyrrell shared many scenes.) Laughton was also a convincing dialect comedian, playing a French nobleman in Buster Keaton's She's Oil Mine, and an English big-game hunter plastered with pies in the Stooges' In the Sweet Pie and Pie.[3]
In addition to his roles in the Stooge shorts, Laughton joined the team during their personal appearances between filming schedules, acting as their straight man.[2]
Laughton died of pneumonia on March 21, 1952, two months after Stooge co-star Curly Howard succumbed to a stroke. Both Laughton and Howard were 48 years of age. Laughton was married to actress Mary Eaton until her death in 1948 from liver failure.[4]