Harry Shannon
Personal Info
Known for
Acting
Gender
Male
Birthday
1890-06-12
Day of Death
1964-07-27 (74 years old)
Place of Birth
Saginaw, Michigan, USA
Harry Shannon
Biography
Born and raised on a farm in Michigan in 1890, Irish-American character actor Harry Shannon had the credentials for becoming a staple player in westerns. He started off his career traveling around with repertory and stock companies and developed his musical abilities in tent shows, burlesque houses and such tuneful Broadway shows as "Oh, Kay!" (1926), "Hold Everything" (1928), "Simple Simon" (1931), and "Pardon My English" (1933). A company member of Joseph Schildkraut's Hollywood Theater Guild, Shannon broke into films at the advent of sound and started things off in comedy film shorts opposite such celebrated players as Bert Lahr, Shemp Howard, and Leon Errol. In the 1940s Shannon established himself in feature-length movies and although he remained a minor, second-string player, he proved himself a durable presence in westerns usually remaining on the good side of the law as sheriffs and bucolic dads. In lighthearted entertainment he could be found as a friendly Irish cop or bartender. He made a slight but memorable impression as Kane's alcoholic father in the classic Citizen Kane (1941), while his last role would be as the grandfather in the musical Gypsy (1962). In between were small parts in such notable films as The Fighting Sullivans (1944), The Jolson Story (1946), High Noon (1952), Touch of Evil (1958), and The Buccaneer (1958). 1950s TV westerns such as Cheyenne (1955), Have Gun - Will Travel (1957), Rawhide (1959), and Gunsmoke (1955) made consistent use of his rustic demeanor. Shannon died in 1964 at age 74.
Known For
Acting
(1984)
The World of Tomorrow
as Pop Middleton (archive footage)
(1962)
Gypsy
as Grandpa
(1961)
Wild in the Country
as Sam Tyler (uncredited)
(1961)
Summer and Smoke
as Dr. Burke (uncredited)
(1959)
Yellowstone Kelly
as Captain of the Far West (uncredited)
(1958)
Touch of Evil
as Chief Gould
(1958)
The Buccaneer
as Tom Carruthers - Captain of the Corinthian
(1958)
Man or Gun
as Justin Corley
(1957)
The Lonely Man
as Dr. Fisher
(1957)
Duel at Apache Wells
as Wayne Shattuck
(1957)
Hell's Crossroads
as Clay Ford
(1956)
Written on the Wind
as Hoak Wayne
(1956)
The Peacemaker
as Drunken Cowpuncher
(1956)
Come Next Spring
as Mr. Totter
(1955)
The Tall Men
as Sam
(1955)
The Violent Men
as Purdue
(1955)
At Gunpoint
as Marshal Pete MacKay
(1955)
The Marauders
as John Rutherford
(1954)
Executive Suite
as Ed Benedeck
(1954)
Witness to Murder
as Captain Donnelly
(1954)
Rails Into Laramie
as Judge Pierce
(1954)
Phantom Stallion
as Michael Reilly
(1953)
Kansas Pacific
as Smokestack the Train Engineer
(1953)
Cry of the Hunted
as Sheriff Brown
(1953)
Roar of the Crowd
as Sam 'Pop' Tracy
(1953)
Jack Slade
as Tom Carter
(1952)
High Noon
as Cooper
(1952)
Lure of the Wilderness
as Pat McGowan
(1952)
Flesh and Fury
as Mike Callan
(1951)
The Scarf
as Asylum Warden Anderson
(1951)
The Lemon Drop Kid
as John (Policeman)
(1951)
Al Jennings of Oklahoma
as Fred Salter
(1951)
Blue Blood
as Mr. Buchanan
(1950)
The Jackie Robinson Story
as Charlie
(1950)
The Gunfighter
as Chuck (uncredited)
(1950)
Three Little Words
as Clanahan
(1950)
The Killer That Stalked New York
as Police Officer Houlihan
(1950)
The Sound of Fury
as Mr. Yaeger
(1950)
Where Danger Lives
as Dr. Maynard
(1950)
Singing Guns
as Judge Waller
(1950)
Hunt the Man Down
as Wallace Bennett
(1950)
The Flying Missile
as Vice Admiral Williams
(1950)
The Underworld Story
as George Parker
(1950)
Tarnished
as Kelsey Bunker
(1950)
Cow Town
as Sandy Reeves
(1950)
Curtain Call at Cactus Creek
as Clay
(1949)
Tulsa
as Nelse Lansing
(1949)
Champion
as Lew
(1949)
Mr. Soft Touch
as Police Sergeant Garrett
(1949)
Rustlers
as Sheriff Harmon
(1949)
Mary Ryan, Detective
as Sawyer
(1948)
Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House
as Tesander
(1948)
(1948)
Feudin', Fussin' and A-Fightin'
as Chauncey
(1948)
Big Town Scandal
as Police Captain Henry (uncredited)
(1948)
Fighting Father Dunne
as Thomas Lee
(1947)
The Lady from Shanghai
as Cab Driver
(1947)
The Red House
as Dr. Jonathan Byrne
(1947)
The Devil Thumbs a Ride
as Detective Owens, San Diego Police
(1947)
Exposed
as Severance
(1947)
Nora Prentiss
as Police Lieutenant
(1947)
The Invisible Wall
as Det. Capt. R.W. Davis
(1947)
Dangerous Years
as Judge Raymond
(1947)
The Farmer's Daughter
as Mr. Holstrom
(1947)
Time Out of Mind
as Capt. Rogers
(1946)
Crack-Up
as Cop (Uncredited)
(1946)
Canyon Passage
as Henry McLane (uncredited)
(1946)
San Quentin
as Warden Kelly
(1946)
The Last Crooked Mile
as Police Lieutenant Blake
(1946)
Night Editor
as Capt. Lawrence
(1946)
I Ring Doorbells
as Shannon
(1945)
Pride of the Marines
as Uncle Ralph
(1945)
Crime, Inc.
as Police Commissioner Collins
(1945)
Captain Eddie
as Simmons
(1944)
The Mummy's Ghost
as Sheriff Elwood
(1944)
The Yellow Rose of Texas
as Sam Weston
(1944)
When the Lights Go On Again
as Tom Cary
(1943)
In Old Oklahoma
as Charlie Witherspoon
(1943)
True to Life
as Mr. Mason
(1943)
Alaska Highway
as John 'Pop' Ormsby
(1943)
Idaho
as Judge John Grey
(1943)
Song of Texas
as Sam Bennett
(1943)
Someone to Remember
as Tom Gibbons
(1943)
The Powers Girl
as Mr. Hendricks
(1943)
Headin' for God's Country
as Albert Ness
(1942)
This Gun for Hire
as Steve Finnerty
(1942)
In Old California
as Mr. Carlin
(1942)
Once Upon a Honeymoon
as Ed Cumberland
(1942)
The Big Street
as Florida Doctor (Uncredited)
(1942)
The Falcon Takes Over
as Detective Grimes (Uncredited)
(1942)
The Lady Is Willing
as Barnes
(1942)
The Affairs of Jimmy Valentine
as Pinky Dolan
(1942)
Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch
as Mr. Tim Wiggs
(1942)
The Mad Martindales
as Policeman
(1941)
Citizen Kane
as Jim Kane
(1941)
Hold Back the Dawn
as American Immigration Official (uncredited)
(1941)
The Saint In Palm Springs
as Chief R.L. Graves
(1940)
Young Tom Edison
as Army Captain Brackett
(1940)
Parole Fixer
as Randall
(1940)
Tear Gas Squad
as Lieutenant Sullivan
(1940)
City of Chance
as Passline
(1940)
The Girl from Avenue A
as Timson
(1940)
Gambling on the High Seas
as Ed, Chief of Police
(1940)
Too Many Girls
as Mr. Casey
(1940)
Tugboat Annie Sails Again
as Capt. Mahoney
(1940)
Sailor's Lady
as Father McGann
(1940)
One Crowded Night
as McDermott
(1939)
(1937)
Alibi Mark
as Railroad Detective
(1936)
Shake, Mr. Shakespeare
as Macbeth
(1934)
Smoked Hams
as The Landlord
(1934)
No More West
as Bank Robber
(1934)
(1933)
Close Relations
as Harry Wart
(1933)
Take a Chance
as Bartender
(1933)
(1933)
Wrongorilla
as Grogan
(1932)
The Campus Mystery
as Police Sergeant
(1930)
Heads Up
as Capt. Denny
(1929)
Faint Heart
as Dynamite Dan
(1929)
Sympathy
as Larry