Leonard Stone

Leonard Stone

Cast of The Jean Arthur Show: Leonard Stone (right) with Ron Harper (left) and Jean Arthur (center)
Born Leonard Steinbock
(1923-11-03)November 3, 1923
Salem, Oregon, U.S
Died November 2, 2011(2011-11-02) (aged 87)
Encinitas, California, U.S
Cause of death Cancer
Nationality American
Occupation Actor
Years active 1964–2006
Spouse(s) Carole Kleinman
(m. 1964; his death 2011)
Children 4

Leonard Stone (November 3, 1923 – November 2, 2011) was an American character actor who played supporting roles in over 120 television shows and 35 films.

Early years

Stone was born Leonard Steinbock in Salem, Oregon.[1] The son of Mr. and Mrs. Mike Steinbock, he was a graduate of Salem High School.[2] He majored in speech and drama at Willamette University, graduating cum laude.[3]

Military service

Stone was a midshipman in the U.S. Navy, serving as "skipper on a minesweeper in Japanese waters."[4]

Stage

Stone started his career as a young actor studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London[3] He performed in the West End, on Broadway, and toured the world. He traveled for eight years in Australia and New Zealand with the musical South Pacific.

He was nominated for a Tony Award in 1959 for Best Supporting Actor in Redhead,[5] a Bob Fosse musical. He also was in the Tony Award-nominated cast of Look Homeward, Angel in 1957, which premiered at the Ethel Barrymore Theater in New York. Based on the Thomas Wolfe novel, it won a Pulitzer Prize.

Television and film

In 1961 and 1962, he was twice cast in different roles on ABC's The Real McCoys in the episodes "Money from Heaven" and "You Can't Beat the Army". Also, in 1962, he appeared in "The Rifleman" (S4 e22). Between 1962 and 1966, Stone made four guest appearances on CBS's Perry Mason, including his season 6, 1962 role as murderer Jerel Leland in "The Case of the Hateful Hero."

Stone played Farnum the Great on Lost in Space (1965-1968).[6]:624 In 1966, he had a supporting role as Morton on the short-lived CBS sitcom The Jean Arthur Show starring Jean Arthur and Ron Harper.[6]:527 He played characters on The Outer Limits and M*A*S*H. He appeared twice on ABC's The Donna Reed Show, as Mr. Trestle in "The Good Guys and the Bad Guys" (1961) and as Harlan Carmody, Jr., in "Joe College" (1965).

In the 1965-1966 season, he appeared as Doc Joslyn in Camp Runamuck on NBC.[6] In 1967, he had the role of Judge Gilroy in Cimarron Strip on CBS.[6]:188

One of his most notable roles came in 1971, when he played Sam Beauregarde, the father of Golden Ticket winner Violet Beauregarde, in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.[7] He was the last surviving adult character who toured the factory in the movie; however, Diana Sowle, who played Mrs. Bucket, is still alive as of 2015.[8]

In 1981, he appeared on Barney Miller in the episode "The Rainmaker".

Between 1988 and 1994, he was cast as Judge Paul Hansen in 10 episodes of the NBC legal drama L.A. Law.

Stone's final role came in 2006 at the age of 83, when he played a minor character in Surrender Dorothy.

Death

Stone died on November 2, 2011, in Encinitas, California,[9] after suffering a brief bout with cancer, only one day short of what would have been his 88th birthday.[10]

Personal

Stone married Carole Kleinman in 1964, and together they raised four children and had eight grandchildren. In 1983, Stone moved to San Diego from his longtime home in Los Angeles, but continued to commute for work.

In 1996, he and his wife moved to a new, gated community in Carlsbad (35 miles closer to LA), located on a bluff overlooking the Four Seasons (now Grand Hyatt) Resort Aviara Hotel & Golf Course. In the early 2000s, he and his wife moved to Encinitas.

Stone was a contestant on an episode of Wheel of Fortune which aired September 22, 2000. He placed second, winning $4,250 in cash and a trip to Bermuda valued at $5,310.[11]

In the early 1950s, Stone began writing a children's story about a kangaroo who never grew. In 2011, Keepy was published on Kindle and Nook.

Filmography

References

  1. ↑ Wilson, Scott. Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons (3d (2 volume set) ed.). McFarland. p. 719. ISBN 9781476625997. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  2. ↑ "Salem Actor Headed for Australia". Statesman Journal. Salem, Oregon. July 29, 1952. p. 6. Retrieved December 30, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 Ross, Eileen Scott (May 17, 1950). "Young Salem Actor Sails for London to Be in 'Mr. Roberts'". Daily Capital Journal. Salem, Oregon. p. 2. Retrieved December 30, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Steinbock to Attend English Drama School". Statesman Journal. Salem, Oregon. April 10, 1947. p. 3. Retrieved December 30, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "("Leonard Stone" search results)". Tony Awards. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010. McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7. P. 155.
  7. ↑ Jones, Stephen (2012). The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror 23. Little, Brown Book Group. ISBN 978-0-7624-4597-4. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  8. ↑ Jedra, Christina (December 5, 2015). "Wonka's Mrs. Bucket to appear at Annapolis chocolate festival". Capital Gazette. Retrieved April 16, 2017.
  9. ↑ Jones, Kenneth (4 November 2011). "Tony Nominee Leonard Stone, Character Actor of "Willy Wonka," Dies at 87". Playbill. Retrieved 4 November 2011.
  10. ↑ "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory actor Leonard Stone dies aged 87". Daily Mail. 3 November 2011. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
  11. ↑ "Leonard Stone 'Willy Wonka' Actor -- Dead at 87". TMZ. 3 November 2011. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.