Jack Oakie
| Jack Oakie | |
|---|---|
 Oakie and actress Tina Louise in an episode of The New Breed, 1961. | |
| Born |
Lewis Delaney Offield November 12, 1903 Sedalia, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died |
January 23, 1978 (aged 74) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1923–1971 |
| Spouse(s) |
Victoria Horne (1950-1978) Venita Varden (1936-1945) |
Jack Oakie (November 12, 1903 – January 23, 1978) was an American actor, starring mostly in films, but also working on stage, radio and television.
Early life
Jack Oakie was born as Lewis Delaney Offield in Sedalia, Missouri. His father was a grain dealer and his mother a psychology teacher.[1] When he was five years old the Offield family moved to Muskogee, Oklahoma, the source of his "Oakie" nickname.[1] His adopted first name, Jack, was the name of the first character he played on stage. Young Lewis/Jack grew up mostly in Oklahoma but also lived for periods of time with his grandmother in Kansas City, Missouri. While there he attended Woodland Elementary and made spending money as a paperboy for The Kansas City Star. He recalled years later that he made especially good money selling "extras" in November, 1916 during the reelection of President Woodrow Wilson.[1]
Early career
Oakie worked as a runner on Wall Street, New York, and narrowly escaped being killed in the Wall Street bombing of 16 September 1920. While in New York, he also started appearing in amateur theatre as a mimic and a comedian, finally making his professional debut on Broadway in 1923 as a chorus boy in a production of Little Nellie Kelly by George M. Cohan.
Oakie worked in various musicals and comedies on Broadway from 1923 to 1927, when he moved to Hollywood to work in movies at the end of the silent film era. Oakie appeared in five silent films during 1927 and 1928. As the age of the "talkies" began, he signed with Paramount Pictures, making his first talking film, The Dummy, in 1929.
Film career
When his contract with Paramount ended in 1934, Oakie decided to freelance. He was remarkably successful, appearing in 87 films, most made in the 1930s and 1940s. In the film Too Much Harmony (1933), the part of Oakie's on-screen mother was played by his real mother Mary Evelyn Offield. During the 1930s he was known as "The World's Oldest Freshman", as a result of appearing in numerous films with a collegiate theme. He was also known for refusing to wear screen make-up of any kind, and the frequent use of double-take in his comedy. Oakie was quoted[2] as saying of his studio career:
| “ | The pictures I made were called the bread and butter pictures of the studio. They cost nothing and made millions, and supported the prestige productions that cost millions and made nothing. | ” |
Oakie is probably most notable for his portrayal of Benzino Napaloni, the boisterous dictator of Bacteria, in Charlie Chaplin's The Great Dictator (1940), for which he received an Oscar nomination for the Best Supporting Actor Award. This role was a broad parody of the fascist dictator of Italy, Benito Mussolini.
Television and radio
Not being limited by a film studio contract, Oakie branched into radio and had his own radio show between 1936 and 1938.
Late in his career he appeared in various episodes of a number of television shows, including The Real McCoys (1963, three times as Uncle Rightly), Breaking Point (Episode #22 A Child of the Center Ring,1964), Daniel Boone (1966), and Bonanza (1966).
Personal life
Oakie was married twice. His first marriage to Venita Varden in 1936 ended in 1938 when Venita got an interlocutory decree of divorce. They reconciled, but ultimately got finally divorced in 1944. (She died in 1948 in the crash of United Airlines Flight 624 at Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania).
Oakie's second marriage was to actress Victoria Horne in 1950, with whom he lived at "Oakridge" until his death in 1978.
Jack Oakie died on 23 January 1978 in Los Angeles, California at the age of 74 from an aortic aneurysm. His remains were interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale (top of the hill, Whispering Pines section), in Los Angeles County.
Oakridge estate
Jack and Victoria Oakie lived their entire married life at "Oakridge", their 11-acre (45,000 m2) estate at 18650 Devonshire Street (just west of Reseda Boulevard) in Northridge, a suburb of Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley. They acquired the former "Marwyck" estate of actress Barbara Stanwyck in 1950. Stanwyck commissioned the original residence designed by Paul Williams. Oakie planted a citrus orchard and bred Afghan Hounds, at one time having up to 100 dogs on the property.
Victoria Oakie continued to live there after her husband's death and bequeathed the estate to the University of Southern California, which sold it to developers. After two failed attempts to develop the property, Oakridge was acquired by the City of Los Angeles in 2010. Oakridge is considered to be one of the last remnants of the large Northridge equestrian estates, famed for former thoroughbred breeding. The city plans to use the property as a park and community event center. The Paul Williams house and the grounds are Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #484.[3][4][5]
Legacy
In 1981, the "Jack Oakie Lecture on Comedy in Film" was established as an annual event of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. At the inaugural presentation, Oakie was described as "a master of comic timing and a beloved figure in the industry."[6]
Jack Oakie's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is at 6752 Hollywood Boulevard, and his hand and footprints can be found at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood.
A small display celebrating the comedy and fame of Jack Oakie is at Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California. There is a plaque in the ground in front of the home where he was born in Sedalia, Missouri.
Jack Oakie is mentioned in the Coen Brothers film Barton Fink, which is set in Hollywood during the 1940s.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1923 | His Children's Children | ||
| Big Brother | Bit Part (uncredited) | ||
| 1924 | Classmates | Bit Part (uncredited) | |
| His Darker Self | Minor Role (uncredited) | ||
| 1928 | Road House | Sam | |
| Someone to Love | Michael Casey | ||
| Finders Keepers | B.B.Brown | ||
| The Fleet's In | Searchlight Doyle | ||
| 1929 | Chinatown Nights | Johnny | |
| Fast Company | Elmer Kane | ||
| Sweetie | Tap-Tap Thompson | ||
| Hard to Get | Marty Martin | ||
| Street Girl | Joe Spring | (USA title: Barber John's Boy) | |
| The Man I Love | Lew Layton | ||
| Close Harmony | Ben Barney | ||
| The Wild Party | Al | ||
| The Dummy | Dopey Hart | ||
| Sin Town | "Chicken" O'Toole | ||
| 1930 | Sea Legs | Searchlight Doyle | |
| Let's Go Native | Voltaire McGinnis | ||
| The Sap From Syracuse | Littleton Looney | (aka The Sap from Abroad from Abroad) | |
| Paramount on Parade | Himself | (as one of the MC's of the film) | |
| The Social Lion | Marco Perkins | ||
| Hit the Deck | Bilge | ||
| 1931 | Touchdown | Babe Barton | (UK title: Playing the Game) |
| Dude Ranch | Jennifer | ||
| June Moon | Frederick Martin Stevens | ||
| The Gang Buster | "Cyclone" Case | ||
| 1932 | If I Had a Million | Pvt. Mulligan | |
| Uptown New York | Eddie Doyle | ||
| Madison Sq. Garden | Eddie Burke | ||
| Once in a Lifetime | George Lewis | ||
| Million Dollar Legs | Migg Tweeny | ||
| Sky Bride | Alec Dugan | ||
| Dancers in the Dark | Duke Taylor | ||
| 1933 | Alice in Wonderland | Tweedledum | |
| Sitting Pretty | Chick Parker | ||
| Too Much Harmony | Benny Day | ||
| College Humor | Barney Shirrel | ||
| The Eagle and the Hawk | Mike Richards | ||
| Sailor Be Good | Kelsey Jones | ||
| From Hell to Heaven | Charlie Bayne | ||
| 1934 | College Rhythm | Francis J. Finnegan | |
| Shoot the Works | Nicky Nelson | (UK title: Thank Your Stars) | |
| Murder at the Vanities | Jack Ellery | ||
| Looking for Trouble | Casey | ||
| 1935 | King of Burlesque | Joe Cooney | |
| The Big Broadcast of 1936 | Spud Miller | ||
| The Call of the Wild | Shorty Hoolihan | ||
| 1936 | That Girl from Paris | Whammo Lonsdale | |
| The Texas Rangers | Henry B. "Wahoo" Jones | ||
| Florida Special | Bangs Carter | ||
| Colleen | Joe Cork | ||
| Collegiate (UK title: Charm School) | Jerry Craig | ||
| 1937 | Hitting a New High | Corny Davis | |
| Fight for Your Lady | Ham Hamilton | ||
| The Toast of New York | Luke | ||
| Super-Sleuth | Willard "Bill" Martin | ||
| Champagne Waltz | Happy Gallagher | ||
| 1938 | Thanks for Everything | Brady | |
| Annabel Takes a Tour | Lanny Morgan | (aka Annabel Takes a Trip Takes a Trip) | |
| The Affairs of Annabel | Lanny Morgan | ||
| Radio City Revels | Harry Miller | ||
| 1940 | Little Men | Willie the Fox | |
| Tin Pan Alley | Harry Calhoun | ||
| The Great Dictator | Benzino Napaloni | Nominated — Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor | |
| Young People | Joe Ballantine | ||
| 1941 | Rise and Shine | Boley Bolenciecwcz | |
| Navy Blues | Cake O'Hara | ||
| The Great American Broadcast | Chuck Hadley | ||
| 1942 | Iceland | Slip Riggs | (UK title: Katina) |
| Song of the Islands | Rusty Smith | ||
| 1943 | Wintertime | Skip Hutton | |
| Hello Frisco, Hello | Dan Daley | ||
| Something to Shout About | Larry Martin | ||
| 1944 | Bowery to Broadway | Michael O'Rourke | |
| The Merry Monahans | Pete Monahan | ||
| Sweet and Low-Down | Popsy | ||
| It Happened Tomorrow | Uncle Oscar Smith aka Gigolini | ||
| 1945 | On Stage Everybody | Michael Sullivan | |
| That's the Spirit | Steve "Slim" Gogarty | ||
| 1946 | She Wrote the Book | Jerry Marlowe | |
| 1948 | When My Baby Smiles at Me | Bozo | |
| Northwest Stampede | Mike Kirby (Clem) | ||
| 1949 | Thieves' Highway | Slob | |
| 1950 | Last of the Buccaneers | Sgt. Dominick | |
| 1951 | Tomahawk | Sol Beckworth | (UK title: Battle of Powder River) |
| 1956 | Around the World in Eighty Days | Captain of the Henrietta | |
| 1959 | The Wonderful Country | Travis Hyte | |
| 1960 | The Rat Race | Mac, Owner of Macs Bar | |
| 1961 | Lover Come Back | J. Paxton Miller |
Bibliography
- Jack Oakie (1980). Jack Oakie's Double Takes. Strawberry Hill Press. ISBN 0-89407-019-3. Autobiography published posthumously by Oakie's widow on 1 January 1980. 240 pages.
- Victoria Horne Oakie (1994). "Dear Jack": Hollywood birthday reminiscences to Jack Oakie. Strawberry Hill Press. ISBN 978-0-89407-113-3. Letters of congratulation and reminiscence sent from almost 150 celebrities to Jack Oakie in celebration of his 70th birthday. Compiled & edited by Mrs Oakie to commemorate his 90th birthday. 140 pages.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Christensen, Lawrence O.; Foley, William E., Kremer, Gary R. (1999). Dictionary of Missouri Biography. Columbia, Missouri: University of Missouri Press. p. 578.
- ↑ Jack Oakie biography at the Internet Movie Database website. Accessed 16 June 2007.
- ↑ Book description for Jack Oakie's Oakridge at Amazon.com. Accessed 16 June 2007.
- ↑ "City of Los Angeles Acquires Historic Oakridge Estate" (PDF). City of Los Angeles, Department of City Planning, Office of Historic Resources. July 2010. p. 5. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ↑ "Historic-Cultural Monument (HCM) List" (PDF). City of Los Angeles, Department of City Planning, Office of Historic Resources. August 9, 2010. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
- ↑ "The Jack Oakie Lecture on Comedy in Film" at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences website. Accessed 16 June 2007.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jack Oakie. |
- Jack Oakie at the Internet Movie Database
- Jack Oakie at the Internet Broadway Database
- Jack Oakie Lecture on Comedy in Film (official website)
- Biography of Jack Oakie
- NY Times Biography of Jack Oakie
- Jack Oakie at Find a Grave
- Overhead shot of Jack Oakie's estate (circa 2006-07, prior to redevelopment)
- Photographs of Jack Oakie
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