Will Wright
Born: 1894-03-25 in San Francisco, California, USA
Died: 1962-06-19
Known For: Acting
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. William Henry "Will" Wright (March 26, 1894, San Francisco, California - June 19, 1962, Los Angeles, California) was an American character actor. He was frequently cast in westerns and in curmudgeonly roles. Over the course of his career, Wright appeared in more than 200 film and television roles. He started his acting career in vaudeville and later moved to the stage, then on to movies, radio, and television. Among the films in which Wright appeared are Shadow of the Thin Man (1941), The Major and the Minor (1943), So Proudly We Hail! (1943), Road to Utopia (1946), Mother Wore Tights (1947), Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948), Little Women (1949), Walk Softly, Stranger (1950), Sunset in the West (1950), People Will Talk (1951), The Happy Time (1952), River of No Return (1954), The Man with the Golden Arm (1955), Jeanne Eagels (1957), and Gunman's Walk (1958). One of his most famous and memorable film roles was corrupt city official Dolph Pillsbury in the Academy Award-winning All the King's Men (1949). Wright provided the voice of Friend Owl in Walt Disney's animated film Bambi (1942). He guest starred on several television series. Will Wright died of cancer in 1962.
Filmography
1964
- Fail Safe as Bit Part (uncredited)
1962
- Cape Fear as Dr. Pearsall
1961
- The Dick Van Dyke Show as Sam Petrie
- Mister Ed as Mr. Thompson
- The Deadly Companions as Doctor Acton
- Twenty Plus Two as Newspaper morgue attendant
1960
- The Andy Griffith Show as Ben Weaver
- Thriller as Constable Tom Walker
- Outlaws
- The Tall Man
- Pete and Gladys
- Inherit the Wind as Bible Salesman (uncredited)
1959
- Rawhide as Grandfather
- Dennis the Menace as Merrivale
- Riverboat as J.C. Sickel
- Mr. Lucky as The Leadville Kid
- Alias Jesse James as Titus Queasley
- The 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock as Pentagon General
1958
- The Donna Reed Show as Oliver
- Lawman
- Bat Masterson as Billy Willow
- 77 Sunset Strip as Luther Hanks
- Bronco
- Gunman's Walk as Judge
- Rock-a-Bye Baby as Fire Chief (uncredited)
- The Missouri Traveler as Sheriff Marvin Peavy
- Quantrill's Raiders as Judge Wood
1957
- Perry Mason as James Vardon
- Maverick
- Leave It to Beaver as Pete at Firehouse #7
- The Real McCoys
- Sugarfoot as Charlie Cade
- Trackdown
- Official Detective
- The Iron Sheriff as Judge
- Johnny Tremain as Ephraim Lapham
- Jeanne Eagels as Marshal (uncredited)
- The Wayward Bus as Van Brunt
1956
- Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre as King - Newspaper Editor
- Hey, Jeannie! as McClish
- Conflict
- These Wilder Years as Old Cab Driver
1955
- The 20th Century Fox Hour as Judge O'Neill
- The Millionaire as Grandpa Costello
- The Man with the Golden Arm
- The Tall Men as Gus - Bartender (uncredited)
- The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell as Admiral William S. Sims
- Not as a Stranger as Mr. Roberts (uncredited)
- The Kentuckian as John Decker (uncredited)
- Atomic Energy as a Force for Good as Tim Summers
1954
- Lassie as Caleb Brown
- December Bride
- Public Defender as Horace Bascomb
- River of No Return as Trader (uncredited)
- Johnny Guitar as Ned - Bank Teller (uncredited)
- The Raid as Josiah Anderson
1953
- The Danny Thomas Show as Mr. Johnson
- You Are There as Philip Arnold
- Letter to Loretta as Father Gourdian
- General Electric Theater
- The Wild One as Art Kleiner
- Niagara as Boatman
- The Last Posse as Todd Mitchell
1952
- Four Star Playhouse as Willie
- The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet as Mr. Jackson
- The Ford Television Theatre as Mr. Crane
- Cavalcade of America as George's Father
- O. Henry's Full House as Manager (segment "The Clarion Call") (uncredited)
- The Las Vegas Story as Mike Fogarty
- Young Man with Ideas as Party Guest (uncredited)
- Paula as Raymond Bascom
- Lure of the Wilderness as Sheriff Brink
- Holiday for Sinners as The Man with a Cigar
- The Happy Time as Family Doctor
- Lydia Bailey as Consul (uncredited)
1951
- I Love Lucy as Mr. Walters
- Dragnet
- The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok
- The Living Christ as Annas
- Schlitz Playhouse of Stars as Pop
- Vengeance Valley as Mr. Willoughby
- The Tall Target as Thomas Ogden (uncredited)
- People Will Talk as John Higgins (uncredited)
- Never Trust a Gambler as Cap Douglas (uncredited)
- My Forbidden Past as Luther Toplady
- Excuse My Dust as Race judge
1950
- The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show as Judge Kramer
- House by the River as Inspector Sarten
- Dallas as Judge Harper
- A Ticket to Tomahawk as Marshal Kit Dodge
- No Way Out as Dr. Cheney (uncredited)
- Walk Softly, Stranger as Jake - Poker Player (uncredited)
- Sunset in the West as Sheriff Tad Osborne
- The Savage Horde as Judge Thomas Cole
1949
- The Lone Ranger as Uncle Ed
- Little Women as Mr. Grace (uncredited)
- All the King's Men as Dolph Pillsbury
- They Live by Night as Mobley
- Adam's Rib as Judge Marcasson
- Act of Violence as Pop
- Miss Grant Takes Richmond as Roscoe Johnson (uncredited)
- Lust for Gold as Parsons (uncredited)
- Big Jack as Will Farnsworth
- Mrs. Mike as Dr. McIntosh
- Brimstone as Martin Tredwell
- The Price of Freedom as McTrees
- The Green Promise as Mr. Grenstedt
- Grape Nutty as Crow (Voice)
1948
- Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House as Eph Hackett (uncredited)
- So This Is New York as Uncle Fergus (uncredited)
- Whispering Smith as Sheriff McSwiggin
- The Walls of Jericho as Dr. Patterson (uncredited)
- Green Grass of Wyoming as Jake Willis
- An Act of Murder as Judge Jim Wilder
- Relentless as Sam - the Horse Dealer
- The Inside Story as J. J. Johnson
- California's Golden Beginning
- Speaking of Animals: Home Sweet Home as Babirusa / Pig (voice)
- Jingle, Jangle, Jingle as Pop Williams
- Disaster as Pop Hansford
- Black Eagle as Sheriff Clancy
1947
- The Long Night as Mr. Tully - the Janitor (uncredited)
- Uncle Tom's Cabaña as Uncle Tom (uncredited)
- Along the Oregon Trail as Jim Bridger
- California as Chairman (uncredited)
- The Trouble with Women as Commissioner (uncredited)
- Mother Wore Tights as Withers (uncredited)
- Keeper of the Bees as Dr. Grayson
- Blaze of Noon as Mr. Thomas
- Danger Street as Police Chief Bullward
- Cynthia as Gus Wood, Thatcher's Real Estate Rep
- Wild Harvest as Mike Alperson
1946
- The Blue Dahlia as "Dad" Newell
- Without Reservations as Pullman Conductor (uncredited)
- Blue Skies as Dan - Stage Manager (uncredited)
- Road to Utopia as Mr. Latimer (uncredited)
- The Madonna's Secret as The Riverman
- Who's Cookin Who? as Wolfie Wolf (voice)
- They Made Me a Killer as Henry, the Blacksmith
- The Inner Circle as Henry Boggs
- Johnny Comes Flying Home as Foreman (uncredited)
- One Exciting Week as Otis Piper
- The Hoodlum Saint as Allan 'Knucklehead' Smith - Times Editor (uncredited)
- The Jolson Story as Sourpuss Movie Patron (uncredited)
- Big Town as Station Agent (uncredited)
- The Reckless Driver as Wally Walrus (voice)
- Rendezvous with Annie as Elmer Snodgrass
- Down Missouri Way as Prof. Morris
- Fair Weather Fiends as Wolfie Wolf (voice)
- Apple Andy as Devil
- Hot Cargo as Tim Chapman
- Prospecting for Petroleum as The Professor (voice)
1945
- Scarlet Street as Globe Loan Office Manager (uncredited)
- The Strange Affair of Uncle Harry as Mr. Nelson
- Salome, Where She Danced as Sheriff
- Rhapsody in Blue as Rachmaninoff
- Fall Guy as Mr. Nedsen, Parkson's Attorney (uncredited)
- Grissly's Millions as John Frey
- State Fair as Hog Judge (uncredited)
- You Came Along as Col. Dale V. Armstrong (uncredited)
- Bewitched as Mr. Herkheimer
- High Powered as Jeff Hines
- The Loose Nut as Construction Worker (voice)
1944
- The Town Went Wild as Judge Harry Schrank (uncredited)
- Wilson as Hughes Campaign Orator in Maine (uncredited)
- Practically Yours as Sen. Cowling (uncredited)
- You Can't Ration Love as Judge Cary - Justice of the Peace
- Take It Big as Rodeo Judge (uncredited)
- The Navy Way as Baldy - Triangle A Ranch Hand (uncredited)
- Dangerous Passage as Postal Clerk (uncredited)
1943
- In Old Oklahoma as Doctor
- So Proudly We Hail as Colonel Clark (Uncredited)
- The Meanest Man in the World as Pawn Shop Owner (uncredited)
- Here Comes Elmer as Horace Parrot
- The Good Fellows as Brother from Danville (uncredited)
- Sleepy Lagoon as Cyrus Coates
- Cowboy in Manhattan as Higgins
1942
- Bambi as Friend Owl (voice) (uncredited)
- Saboteur as J.C. Lormans - Company Official (uncredited)
- The Major and the Minor as Ticket Agent #1 (uncredited)
- Shut My Big Mouth as Jim Long
- Tales of Manhattan as Old Concertgoer (uncredited)
- The Postman Didn't Ring as Mr. Slade
- Tennessee Johnson as Alderman (uncredited)
- USS VD: Ship of Shame as Commandant (uncredited)
- A Letter From Bataan as Mr. Limpert
- Wildcat as John 'Paw' Smithers
1941
- Shadow of the Thin Man as Maguire (uncredited)
- Nothing but the Truth as Mr. Bart Prichard (uncredited)
- Blossoms in the Dust as Senator
- Honky Tonk as Townsman at Meeting House (uncredited)
- The Tell-Tale Heart as Second Deputy Sheriff (uncredited)
- Maisie Was a Lady as Judge Thatcher (Uncredited)
- The Richest Man in Town as Frederick Johnson
- Cracked Nuts as Sylvanus Boogle
- Mob Town as Pawnbroker (uncredited)
1940
- You, the People as Mr. Roberts
- Blondie Plays Cupid as Mr. Tucker
1935
- It's A Small World as Courtroom spectator (uncredited)
1934
- Pure Feud as Lem (uncredited)