William Demarest
Personal Info
Known for
Acting
Gender
Male
Birthday
1892-02-27
Day of Death
1983-12-28 (91 years old)
Place of Birth
Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA
William Demarest
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Carl William Demarest (February 27, 1892 – December 27, 1983) was an American character actor, known for playing Uncle Charley in My Three Sons. A veteran of World War I, Demarest became a prolific film and television actor, appearing in over 140 films, beginning in 1926 and ending in the 1970s. He frequently played crusty but good-hearted roles. Demarest started in show business working in vaudeville, appearing with his wife Estelle Collette (real name Esther Zychlin) as "Demarest and Colette", then moved on to Broadway. Demarest worked regularly with director Preston Sturges, becoming part of a "stock" troupe of actors that Sturges repeatedly cast in his films. He appeared in ten films written by Sturges, eight of which were under his direction, including The Lady Eve, Sullivan's Travels and The Miracle of Morgan's Creek. Demarest was such a familiar figure at the Paramount studio that just his name was used in the movie Sunset Boulevard as a potential star for William Holden's unsold baseball screenplay.
Demarest appeared with veteran western film star Roscoe Ates in the 1958 episode "And the Desert Shall Blossom" of CBS's Alfred Hitchcock Presents. In the story line, Ates and Demarest appear as old timers living in the Nevada desert. The local sheriff, played by Ben Johnson, appears with an eviction notice, but he agrees to let the pair stay on their property if they can make a dead rosebush bloom within the next month.
In 1959 Demarest was named the lead actor of the 18-week sitcom Love and Marriage on NBC in the 1959–1960 season. Demarest played William Harris, the owner of a failing music company who refuses to handle popular rock and roll music, which presumably might save the firm from bankruptcy. Joining Demarest on the series were Jeanne Bal, Murray Hamilton and Stubby Kaye.
Demarest appeared as Police Chief Aloysius of the Santa Rosita Police Department in the film It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963), as well as on a memorable episode ("What's in the Box") of Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone as a hen-pecked husband driven to the murder of his wife.
His most famous television role was in the ABC and then CBS sitcom My Three Sons from 1965 to 1972, playing Uncle Charley O'Casey. He replaced William Frawley, whose failing health had made procuring insurance impossible. Demarest had worked with Fred MacMurray previously in the films Hands Across the Table (1935), Pardon My Past (1945), On Our Merry Way (1948), and The Far Horizons (1955) and was a personal friend of MacMurray. Also, he worked with Irene Dunne in Never a Dull Moment (1950).
Known For
Acting
(1999)
Television: The First Fifty Years
as Charlie O'Casey (archive footage)
(1997)
Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down The Line
as Self (archive footage)
(1978)
The Millionaire
as Oscar Pugh
(1976)
Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
as Studio Gatekeeper
(1975)
The Wild McCullochs
as Father Gurkin
(1973)
Don't Be Afraid of the Dark
as Mr. Harris
(1965)
That Darn Cat!
as Mr. MacDougall
(1964)
Viva Las Vegas
as Mr. Martin
(1963)
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
as Police Chief Aloysius
(1963)
Son of Flubber
as Mr. Hummel
(1961)
King of the Roaring 20's – The Story of Arnold Rothstein
as Henry Hecht
(1961)
Twenty Plus Two
as Desmond Slocum
(1961)
(1960)
Pepe
as Movie Studio Gateman
(1956)
The Mountain
as Father Belacchi
(1956)
The Rawhide Years
as Brand Comfort
(1955)
The Far Horizons
as Sgt. Gass
(1955)
Lucy Gallant
as Charles Madden
(1955)
Hell on Frisco Bay
as Dan Bianco
(1955)
Sincerely Yours
as Sam Dunne
(1955)
(1955)
Jupiter's Darling
as Mago
(1954)
The Yellow Mountain
as Jackpot Wray
(1953)
Dangerous When Wet
as Pa Higgins
(1953)
Escape from Fort Bravo
as Campbell
(1953)
The Lady Wants Mink
as Harvey Jones
(1953)
Here Come the Girls
as Dennis Logan
(1952)
The Blazing Forest
as Syd Jessup
(1952)
What Price Glory
as Corporal Kiper
(1951)
The First Legion
as Monsignor Michael Carey
(1951)
Excuse My Dust
as Harvey Bullitt
(1951)
Behave Yourself!
as O'Ryan
(1951)
The Strip
as Fluff
(1950)
Never a Dull Moment
as Mears
(1950)
Riding High
as Happy
(1950)
When Willie Comes Marching Home
as Herman Kluggs
(1950)
He's a Cockeyed Wonder
as Bob Sears
(1949)
Jolson Sings Again
as Steve Martin
(1949)
Sorrowful Jones
as Regret
(1949)
Red, Hot and Blue
as Charlie Baxter
(1948)
Night Has a Thousand Eyes
as Lt. Shawn
(1948)
On Our Merry Way
as Floyd
(1948)
Whispering Smith
as Bill Dansing
(1948)
The Sainted Sisters
as Vern Tewilliger
(1947)
The Perils of Pauline
as George 'Mac' McGuire
(1947)
Variety Girl
as Barker
(1946)
The Jolson Story
as Steve Martin
(1946)
Our Hearts Were Growing Up
as Peanuts Schultz
(1945)
Duffy's Tavern
as William Demarest
(1945)
Along Came Jones
as George Fury
(1945)
Salty O'Rourke
as Smitty
(1945)
Hollywood Victory Caravan
as Bill, the Security Guard
(1945)
Pardon My Past
as Chuck Gibson
(1944)
Hail the Conquering Hero
as Sgt. Heppelfinger
(1944)
Once Upon a Time
as Brandt
(1944)
The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek
as Constable Edmund Kockenlocker
(1944)
The Great Moment
as Eben Frost
(1944)
Nine Girls
as Walter Cummings
(1943)
True to Life
as Uncle Jake
(1943)
Stage Door Canteen
as William Demarest
(1943)
Dangerous Blondes
as Detective Gatling
(1942)
Life Begins at Eight-Thirty
as Police Officer
(1942)
True to the Army
as Sgt. Butts
(1942)
My Favorite Spy
as Flower Pot Policeman
(1942)
The Palm Beach Story
as First Member Ale and Quail Club
(1942)
All Through the Night
as Sunshine
(1942)
Pardon My Sarong
as Detective Kendall
(1942)
Johnny Doughboy
as Harry Fabian
(1942)
Behind the Eight Ball
as McKenzie
(1941)
Sullivan's Travels
as Mr. Jones
(1941)
Ride on Vaquero
as Bartender Barney
(1941)
Rookies on Parade
as Mike Brady
(1941)
Glamour Boy
as Papa Doran
(1941)
The Lady Eve
as Muggsy
(1941)
The Devil and Miss Jones
as First Detective
(1941)
Dressed to Kill
as Inspector Pierson
(1941)
Country Fair
as Stogie McPhee
(1940)
Christmas in July
as Mr. Bildocker
(1940)
The Great McGinty
as Skeeters - The Politician
(1940)
Comin' Round the Mountain
as Gutsy Mann
(1940)
The Farmer's Daughter
as Victor Walsh
(1940)
Wolf of New York
as Bill Ennis
(1940)
Little Men
as Constable Tom Thorpe
(1940)
The Golden Fleecing
as Swallow
(1939)
The Gracie Allen Murder Case
as Police Sgt. Ernest Heath
(1939)
The Cowboy Quarterback
as Rusty Walker
(1939)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
as Bill Griffith
(1939)
Miracles for Sale
as Quinn
(1939)
The Great Man Votes
as Charles Dole
(1939)
King of the Turf
as Arnold
(1939)
Laugh It Off
as Barney 'Gimpy' Cole
(1938)
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
as Harry Kipper
(1938)
Josette
as Joe, Diner Owner
(1938)
Romance on the Run
as Police Lt. Eckhardt
(1938)
While New York Sleeps
as Red Miller
(1938)
One Wild Night
as Collins
(1938)
(1937)
The Great Gambini
as Sergeant Kirby
(1937)
Big City
as Mr. Beecher
(1937)
Easy Living
as Wallace Whistling
(1937)
The Great Hospital Mystery
as Mr. Beatty
(1937)
The Hit Parade
as Parole Officer
(1937)
Rosalie
as Army Coach
(1937)
Time Out for Romance
as Willoughby Sproggs
(1937)
Oh, Doctor
as Marty Short
(1937)
Wake Up and Live
as Radio Center Tour Guide
(1937)
Blonde Trouble
as Paul Sears
(1937)
Don't Tell the Wife
as Larry 'Horace' Tucker
(1936)
Mind Your Own Business
as Droopy
(1936)
Love on the Run
as Editor
(1936)
Wedding Present
as 'Smiles' Benson
(1936)
The Great Ziegfeld
as Gene Buck (uncredited)
(1936)
Charlie Chan at the Opera
as Sergeant Kelly
(1935)
White Lies
as Roberts
(1935)
Bright Lights
as Detective
(1935)
Diamond Jim
as Harry Hill
(1935)
The Murder Man
as 'Red' Maguire
(1935)
Hands Across the Table
as Regi's Date Natty (uncredited)
(1935)
After Office Hours
as Police Detective (uncredited)
(1935)
The Casino Murder Case
as Auctioneer (uncredited)
(1934)
Fog Over Frisco
as Spike Smith
(1934)
Fugitive Lady
as Steve Rogers
(1934)
Many Happy Returns
as Brinker
(1930)
Seeing Things
as The Heir
(1928)
Pay as You Enter
as 'Terrible Bill' McGovern
(1928)
The Crash
as Louie
(1928)
The Butter and Egg Man
as Jack McLure
(1928)
A Girl in Every Port
as Man in Bombay (uncredited)
(1928)
Five and Ten Cent Annie
as Briggs
(1928)
Sharp Shooters
as 'Hi Jack' Murdock
(1927)
The Bush Leaguer
as John Gilroy
(1927)
A Reno Divorce
as James, the chauffeur
(1927)
A Million Bid
as George Lamont
(1927)
The Jazz Singer
as Buster Billings (uncredited)
(1927)
Matinee Ladies
as Man About Town
(1927)
The Gay Old Bird
as Mr. Fixit
(1927)
The Black Diamond Express
as Train Engine Fireman
(1927)
The First Auto
as The Village Cut-Up
(1927)
The Night Court
as Defense Counsel
(1927)
A Sailor's Sweetheart
as Detective
(1927)
Finger Prints
as Cuffs Egan
(1927)
What Happened To Father
as Detective Dibbin
(1927)
(1927)
Don't Tell the Wife
as Ray Valerian