Jonathan Hale
Born: 1891-03-20 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Died: 1966-02-28
Known For: Acting
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jonathan Hale (born Jonathan Hatley, March 21, 1891 – February 28, 1966) was a Canadian-born film and television actor. Hale was born in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Before his acting career, Hale worked in the Diplomatic Corps. Hale is most well known as Dagwood Bumstead's boss, Julius Caesar Dithers, in the Blondie film series in the 1940s. He is also notable for playing Inspector Fernack in various The Saint films by RKO Pictures. In 1950 he made two appearances in The Cisco Kid as Barry Owens. He also appeared in two different episodes of Adventures of Superman: "The Evil Three", in which he played a murderous "Southern Colonel"-type character, and "Panic in the Sky", one of the most famous episodes, in which he played the lead astronomer at the Metropolis Observatory, actually a California observatory. Among the relatively few television programs on which Hale appeared are the religion anthology series Crossroads, The Loretta Young Show, Brave Eagle, Schlitz Playhouse, The Joey Bishop Show, and Walt Disney Presents: "A Tribute to Joel Chandler Harris". Hale committed suicide on February 28, 1966. He was found dead that evening in his room at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California. Hale had taken his own life with a .38 caliber pistol, which was found near his body. He was 74. Hale was interred at Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery in North Hollywood, California. Sadly, Hale's grave went unmarked for more than four decades, until a proper headstone was erected by donations from the "Dearly Departed" fan-based group in 2013; he is now honored with the inscription, "We Remembered You".
Filmography
1956
- Jaguar as Dr. Powell
- The Three Outlaws as Pinkerton
1955
- MGM Parade
- Screen Director's Playhouse as Mayor
- Crossroads as Governor
- The Night Holds Terror as Bob Henderson
1954
- Lassie
- The Whistler
- Cattle Queen of Montana as Politician (uncredited)
- She Couldn't Say No as John Bentley
- Duffy of San Quentin as Boyd
1953
- City Detective
- Kansas Pacific as Sherman Johnson
- Taxi as Mr. Barker (uncredited)
- The Flaming Urge as Mr. Chalmers
1952
- Adventures of Superman as Professor Roberts
- Cavalcade of America
- Mr. & Mrs. North
- Scandal Sheet as Frank Madison
- The Steel Trap as Tom Bowers
- Son of Paleface as Governor Freeman (uncredited)
- Young Man with Ideas as Stanley Rickson (uncredited)
- Behind Southern Lines as General
1951
- The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok as General
- Strangers on a Train as Mr. Antony
- Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
- The Tall Target as Passenger from Carolina (uncredited)
- Rodeo King and the Senorita as Dr. Sands
- Let's Go Navy! as Captain
- Sunny Side of the Street as Cyrus Pelley
- Insurance Investigator as Russell James
1950
- The Cisco Kid as Barry Owens
- The Baron of Arizona as Governor
- Triple Trouble as The Judge
- Short Grass as Charlie Bissel
- Three Husbands as Edward Wurdeman - Attorney at Law
- Federal Agent at Large as James Goodwin
1949
- The Fountainhead as Guy Francon (uncredited)
- A Dangerous Profession
- State Department: File 649 as Director-General
- The Judge as Judge Allan J. Brooks
- Stampede as Varick
- Rose of the Yukon as Gen. Butler
1948
- Call Northside 777 as Governor's Aide Robert Winston (uncredited)
- Tap Roots as Gen. Johnston (uncredited)
- Johnny Belinda as Dr. Gray (uncredited)
- Silver River as Major Spencer
- Rocky as Kenneth Forrester
- Disaster as Police Commissioner Jerome
- King of the Gamblers as Sam Hyland
1947
- High Wall as Emory Garrison
- Black Gold as Senator Watkins
- The Beginning or the End as Dr. Vannevar Bush
- Her Husband's Affairs as Gov. Fox
- The Vigilantes Return as Judge Holden
- The Ghost Goes Wild as Max Atterbury
1946
- Angel on My Shoulder as Citizens for Better Government Chairman (uncredited)
- Gay Blades as Whittlesey
- Wife Wanted as Philip Conway
- Easy to Wed as Hector Boswell
- Riverboat Rhythm as Col. Edward Beeler
- Blondie Knows Best as J.C. Dithers
- Blondie's Lucky Day as J.C. Dithers
- The Walls Came Tumbling Down as Captain Griffin
- The Cat Creeps as Walter Elliott
- Rolling Home as Henry Kane
1945
- Dakota as Colonel Wordin
- Life with Blondie as J.C. Dithers
- Divorce as Judge
- The Phantom Speaks as Owen McAllister
- Leave It to Blondie as J.C. Dithers
- Man Alive as Osborne
- Allotment Wives as Brig. Gen. H.N. Gilbert
- Watchtower Over Tomorrow as Security Council Chair
- The Strange Mr. Gregory as Defense Attorney Blair
- G.I. Honeymoon as Colonel Hammerhead Smith
1944
- Hollywood Canteen as Mr. Brodel (uncredited)
- Dead Man's Eyes as Dr. Sam Welles
- The Black Parachute as King Stephen
- End of the Road as Gregory McCune
- My Buddy as Senator Henry
- This Is the Life as Dr. Plum
1943
- Hangmen Also Die! as Dedic
- Sweet Rosie O'Grady as Mr. Fox
- It's a Great Life as J.C. Dithers
- The Rear Gunner as Commanding Officer
- The Amazing Mrs. Holliday
- Jack London as Kerwin Maxwell
- There's Something About a Soldier as Gen. Sommerton
- Footlight Glamour as J.C. Dithers
- Nobody's Darling as Jason Rhodes
1942
- Blondie Goes to College as J.C. Dithers
- The Bugle Sounds as Brigadier-General
- Calling Dr. Gillespie as Frank M. Todwell
- Blondie's Blessed Event as J.C. Dithers
- Joe Smith, American as Blake McKettrick
- Blondie for Victory as J.C. Dithers
- Miss Annie Rooney as Mr. Martin White
- Flight Lieutenant as Joseph Sanford
- Lone Star Ranger as Judge Longstreth
1941
- Ringside Maisie as Dr. Kramer
- Strange Alibi as Police Chief Sprague
- The Saint In Palm Springs as Inspector Henry Fernack
- Blondie Goes Latin as J.C. Dithers
- The Pittsburgh Kid as Max Ellison
- Blondie in Society as J.C. Dithers
- Flight from Destiny as Dist. Atty. Johnson
- The Great Swindle as Swann
- Her First Beau as Mr. Harris
1940
- Johnny Apollo as Dr. Brown
- The Saint Takes Over as Inspector Henry Fernack
- Blondie Has Servant Trouble as J.C. Dithers
- We Who Are Young as Braddock
- Dulcy as Homer Patterson
- The Saint's Double Trouble as Inspector Henry Fernack
- Private Affairs as George Gilkin
- Melody and Moonlight as Otis Barnett
- Blondie Plays Cupid as J.C. Dithers
1939
- The Story of Alexander Graham Bell as President of Western Union
- In Name Only as Dr. Gateson
- Blondie Meets the Boss as J.C. Dithars
- The Saint Strikes Back as Inspector Henry Fernack
- Tail Spin as Racing Official Starter (Uncredited)
- The Big Guy as Jack Lane
- Thunder Afloat as Admiral Girard
- Wings of the Navy as Commandant
- The Amazing Mr. Williams as Mayor
- Stand Up and Fight as Colonel Webb
- Blondie Brings Up Baby as J.C. Dithers
- One Against the World as Dr. Ephraim McDowell
- In Old Monterey as Stevenson
- Barricade as Assistant Secretary of State
1938
- Boys Town as John Hargraves
- Blondie as Mr. Dithers
- Tarnished Angel as Detective Sgt. Cramer
- Yellow Jack as Major General Leonard Wood
- Breaking the Ice as Mr. Kane
- The Duke of West Point as Steven's Father
- Over the Wall as Governor James McDonald
- Men with Wings as Long
- The Saint in New York as Inspector Henry Fernack
- The First Hundred Years as Judge Parker
- Arsène Lupin Returns as F.B.I. Special Agent
- Fugitives for a Night as Police Captain
- Letter of Introduction as Lou Woodstock (uncredited)
- There's That Woman Again as Rolfe Davis
- Crime Ring as Bank President
- Gangs of New York as Warden
- Her Jungle Love as J.C. Martin
- Judge Hardy's Children as John Lee
- Wives Under Suspicion as Allison
- Road Demon as Anderson
1937
- A Star Is Born as Judge George J. Parris (uncredited)
- Sea Devils as Court-Martial President (uncredited)
- Madame X as Hugh Fariman Sr.
- You Only Live Once as District Attorney (uncredited)
- Outcast
- Saratoga as Frank Clayton
- Charlie Chan at the Olympics as Mr. Hopkins
- This Is My Affair as Judge
- Big Town Girl as Hershell
- Man Of The People as Carter Spetner
- Danger – Love at Work as Parsons, an attorney
- The League of Frightened Men as Alexander Drummond
- The Man Who Found Himself as Dr. Tom Smythe
- Midnight Madonna as Stuart Kirkland
- She's Dangerous as Charles Fitzgerald
- Exiled to Shanghai as J.B. Willet
- You Can't Buy Luck as Prosecutor (uncredited)
- John Meade's Woman as Mr. Melton
- Wings Over Honolulu as Judge Advocate
- Racketeers in Exile as Alden Parker
1936
- Fury as Defense Attorney
- The Singing Kid as Dr. Brown (uncredited)
- Sutter's Gold as Prosecuting Attorney
- China Clipper as State Department Official (uncredited)
- The Voice of Bugle Ann as District Attorney
- 36 Hours to Kill as Mac - Train Conductor
- Charlie Chan at the Race Track as Warren Fenton
- The Devil Is a Sissy as Judge Holmes
- Charlie Chan's Secret as Warren T. Phelps
- Sinner Take All as Dr. Harrison (uncredited)
- The Case Against Mrs. Ames as First trial judge
- You May Be Next! as Army Officer (uncredited)
- Happy Go Lucky as J. Lansing Bennett
- Spendthrift as Attorney
- Educating Father as Fred Humphrey
- The Accusing Finger as Special Prosecutor
- Panic on the Air as Johnson
- Too Many Parents as Judge
- Three Live Ghosts as Detective Bolton
- Flying Hostess as Kendall
1935
- 'G' Men as Congressman (uncredited)
- The Raven as Bedside Dr. at Jerry's Right (uncredited)
- A Night at the Opera as The Stage Manager (uncredited)
- Alice Adams as Mr. Palmer
- Public Hero Number 1 as Prison Board Member (uncredited)
- If You Could Only Cook as Henry Brown - Member of Board of Directors (uncredited)
- The Calling of Dan Matthews as Club Owner (uncredited)
- 3 Kids and a Queen as Gangster
- One New York Night as Mr. Stokes
- Navy Wife as Norton
- Page Miss Glory as Husband at Train Station (uncredited)
- Too Tough to Kill as Chairman of the Board
- Let 'em Have It as Microscopic Expert
- Hit-and-Run Driver as Captain James (uncredited)
- A Night at the Ritz as Director (uncredited)
1934
- Housewife as Doctor
- A Lost Lady as (uncredited)
- The Case of the Howling Dog as Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
- Gentlemen Are Born as Second Broker
- Lightning Strikes Twice as Capt. Nelson