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
- Twenty Plus Two as Newspaper morgue attendant
- The Deadly Companions as Doctor Acton
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
- Mr. Lucky as The Leadville Kid
- Riverboat as J.C. Sickel
- The 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock as Pentagon General
- Alias Jesse James as Titus Queasley
1958
- Lawman
- Bat Masterson as Billy Willow
- The Donna Reed Show as Oliver
- 77 Sunset Strip as Luther Hanks
- Bronco
- Rock-a-Bye Baby as Fire Chief (uncredited)
- The Missouri Traveler as Sheriff Marvin Peavy
- Gunman's Walk as Judge
- Quantrill's Raiders as Judge Wood
1957
- Perry Mason as James Vardon
- Maverick
- Leave It to Beaver as Pete at Firehouse #7
- Sugarfoot as Charlie Cade
- The Real McCoys
- Trackdown
- Johnny Tremain as Ephraim Lapham
- Official Detective
- The Wayward Bus as Van Brunt
- The Iron Sheriff as Judge
- Jeanne Eagels as Marshal (uncredited)
1956
- Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre as King - Newspaper Editor
- Hey, Jeannie! as McClish
- These Wilder Years as Old Cab Driver
1955
- The Millionaire as Grandpa Costello
- The 20th Century Fox Hour as Judge O'Neill
- Atomic Energy as a Force for Good as Tim Summers
- The Kentuckian as John Decker (uncredited)
- The Tall Men as Gus - Bartender (uncredited)
- The Man with the Golden Arm
- The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell as Admiral William S. Sims
- Not as a Stranger as Mr. Roberts (uncredited)
1954
- Lassie as Caleb Brown
- Johnny Guitar as Ned - Bank Teller (uncredited)
- December Bride
- The Raid as Josiah Anderson
- River of No Return as Trader (uncredited)
1953
- Niagara as Boatman
- The Wild One as Art Kleiner
- You Are There
- Letter to Loretta as Father Gourdian
- The Last Posse as Todd Mitchell
- General Electric Theater
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
- Paula as Raymond Bascom
- 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)
- The Happy Time as Family Doctor
- Lure of the Wilderness as Sheriff Brink
- Holiday for Sinners as The Man with a Cigar
- Lydia Bailey as Consul (uncredited)
1951
- I Love Lucy as Mr. Walters
- Dragnet
- The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok
- People Will Talk as Uncle John Higgins (uncredited)
- The Tall Target as Thomas Ogden (uncredited)
- Excuse My Dust as Race judge
- My Forbidden Past as Luther Toplady
- The Living Christ as Annas
- Vengeance Valley as Mr. Willoughby
- Schlitz Playhouse of Stars as Pop
- Never Trust a Gambler as Cap Douglas (uncredited)
1950
- The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show as Judge Kramer
- Dallas as Judge Harper
- No Way Out as Dr. Cheney (uncredited)
- A Ticket to Tomahawk as Marshal Kit Dodge
- House by the River as Inspector Sarten
- Walk Softly, Stranger as Jake, Poker Player (uncredited)
- The Savage Horde as Judge Thomas Cole
- Sunset in the West as Sheriff Tad Osborne
1949
- The Lone Ranger as Uncle Ed
- Little Women as Mr. Grace (uncredited)
- Mrs. Mike as Dr. McIntosh
- Brimstone as Martin Tredwell
- Big Jack as Will Farnsworth
- All the King's Men as Dolph Pillsbury
- Act of Violence as Pop
- Adam's Rib as Judge Marcasson
- They Live by Night as Mobley
- Miss Grant Takes Richmond as Roscoe Johnson (uncredited)
- The Green Promise as Mr. Grenstedt
- Lust for Gold as Parsons (uncredited)
- Grape Nutty as Crow (Voice)
- The Price of Freedom as McTrees
1948
- Disaster as Pop Hansford
- Relentless as Sam - the Horse Dealer
- Whispering Smith as Sheriff McSwiggin
- Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House as Eph Hackett (uncredited)
- Green Grass of Wyoming as Jake Willis
- The Walls of Jericho as Dr. Patterson (uncredited)
- An Act of Murder as Judge Jim Wilder
- The Inside Story as J. J. Johnson
- So This Is New York as Uncle Fergus (uncredited)
- Black Eagle as Sheriff Clancy
- Jingle, Jangle, Jingle as Pop Williams
- California's Golden Beginning
- Speaking of Animals: Home Sweet Home as Babirusa / Pig (voice)
1947
- California as Chairman (uncredited)
- Cynthia as Gus Wood, Thatcher's Real Estate Rep
- Wild Harvest as Mike Alperson
- Danger Street as Police Chief Bullward
- Keeper of the Bees as Dr. Grayson
- Mother Wore Tights as Withers (uncredited)
- The Long Night as Mr. Tully - the Janitor (uncredited)
- The Trouble with Women as Commissioner (uncredited)
- Blaze of Noon as Mr. Thomas
- Uncle Tom's Cabana as Uncle Tom (uncredited)
- Along the Oregon Trail as Jim Bridger
1946
- Hot Cargo as Tim Chapman
- Apple Andy as Devil
- Without Reservations as Pullman Conductor (uncredited)
- Big Town as Station Agent (uncredited)
- Blue Skies as Dan - Stage Manager (uncredited)
- Down Missouri Way as Prof. Morris
- The Hoodlum Saint as Allan 'Knucklehead' Smith - Times Editor (uncredited)
- Road to Utopia as Mr. Latimer (uncredited)
- The Jolson Story as Sourpuss Movie Patron (uncredited)
- Johnny Comes Flying Home as Foreman (uncredited)
- The Inner Circle as Henry Boggs
- Rendezvous with Annie as Elmer Snodgrass
- The Blue Dahlia as "Dad" Newell
- Fair Weather Fiends as Wolfie Wolf (voice)
- The Reckless Driver as Wally Walrus (voice)
- The Madonna's Secret as The Riverman
- One Exciting Week as Otis Piper
- They Made Me a Killer as Henry, the Blacksmith
- Prospecting for Petroleum as The Professor (voice)
- Who's Cookin Who? as Wolfie Wolf (voice)
1945
- High Powered as Jeff Hines
- Scarlet Street as Globe Loan Office Manager (uncredited)
- State Fair as Hog Judge (uncredited)
- Fall Guy as Mr. Nedsen, Parkson's Attorney (uncredited)
- Rhapsody in Blue as Rachmaninoff
- The Strange Affair of Uncle Harry as Mr. Nelson
- Salome, Where She Danced as Sheriff
- The Loose Nut as Construction Worker (voice)
- You Came Along as Col. Dale V. Armstrong (uncredited)
- Grissly's Millions as John Frey
- Bewitched as Mr. Herkheimer
1944
- Practically Yours as Sen. Cowling (uncredited)
- Wilson as Hughes Campaign Orator in Maine (uncredited)
- You Can't Ration Love as Judge Cary - Justice of the Peace
- The Town Went Wild as Judge Harry Schrank (uncredited)
- Dangerous Passage as Postal Clerk (uncredited)
- The Navy Way as Baldy - Triangle A Ranch Hand (uncredited)
- Take It Big as Rodeo Judge (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)
- The Good Fellows as Brother from Danville (uncredited)
- Here Comes Elmer as Horace Parrot
- Cowboy in Manhattan as Higgins
- Sleepy Lagoon as Cyrus Coates
1942
- Bambi as Friend Owl (voice) (uncredited)
- Tennessee Johnson as Alderman (uncredited)
- Wildcat as John 'Paw' Smithers
- The Major and the Minor as Ticket Agent #1 (uncredited)
- Tales of Manhattan as Old Concertgoer (uncredited)
- Shut My Big Mouth as Jim Long
- USS VD: Ship of Shame as Commandant (uncredited)
- Saboteur as J.C. Lormans - Company Official (uncredited)
- The Postman Didn't Ring as Mr. Slade
- A Letter From Bataan as Mr. Limpert
1941
- Shadow of the Thin Man as Maguire - Nervous Ticket Seller (uncredited)
- Cracked Nuts as Sylvanus Boogle
- Mob Town as Pawnbroker (uncredited)
- Nothing But the Truth as Mr. Bart Prichard (uncredited)
- Blossoms in the Dust as Senator
- The Richest Man in Town as Frederick Johnson
- The Tell-Tale Heart as Second Deputy Sheriff (uncredited)
- Honky Tonk as Townsman at Meeting House (uncredited)
- Maisie Was a Lady as Judge Thatcher (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)