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.
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)
Come Next Spring
as Mr. Totter
(1956)
The Peacemaker
as Drunken Cowpuncher
(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)
Jack Slade
as Tom Carter
(1953)
Cry of the Hunted
as Sheriff Brown
(1953)
Roar of the Crowd
as Sam 'Pop' Tracy
(1952)
High Noon
as Cooper
(1952)
Flesh and Fury
as Mike Callan
(1952)
Lure of the Wilderness
as Pat McGowan
(1951)
The Lemon Drop Kid
as John (Policeman)
(1951)
The Scarf
as Asylum Warden Anderson
(1951)
Al Jennings of Oklahoma
as Fred Salter
(1951)
Blue Blood
as Mr. Buchanan
(1950)
The Gunfighter
as Chuck (uncredited)
(1950)
The Jackie Robinson Story
as Charlie
(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)
Three Little Words
as Clanahan
(1950)
Singing Guns
as Judge Waller
(1950)
Hunt the Man Down
as Wallace Bennett
(1950)
The Flying Missile
as Vice Admiral Williams
(1950)
Tarnished
as Kelsey Bunker
(1950)
Cow Town
as Sandy Reeves
(1950)
The Underworld Story
as George Parker
(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)
Big Town Scandal
as Police Captain Henry (uncredited)
(1948)
Fighting Father Dunne
as Thomas Lee
(1948)
Feudin', Fussin' and A-Fightin'
as Chauncey
(1947)
The Lady from Shanghai
as Cab Driver
(1947)
The Red House
as Dr. Jonathan Byrne
(1947)
Exposed
as Severance
(1947)
The Farmer's Daughter
as Mr. Holstrom
(1947)
Nora Prentiss
as Police Lieutenant
(1947)
Dangerous Years
as Judge Raymond
(1947)
The Invisible Wall
as Det. Capt. R.W. Davis
(1947)
Time Out of Mind
as Capt. Rogers
(1947)
The Devil Thumbs a Ride
as Detective Owens, San Diego Police
(1946)
Canyon Passage
as Henry McLane (uncredited)
(1946)
Crack-Up
as Cop (Uncredited)
(1946)
San Quentin
as Warden Kelly
(1946)
Night Editor
as Capt. Lawrence
(1946)
The Last Crooked Mile
as Police Lieutenant Blake
(1946)
I Ring Doorbells
as Shannon
(1945)
Crime, Inc.
as Police Commissioner Collins
(1945)
Pride of the Marines
as Uncle Ralph
(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)
Idaho
as Judge John Grey
(1943)
In Old Oklahoma
as Charlie Witherspoon
(1943)
Alaska Highway
as John 'Pop' Ormsby
(1943)
True to Life
as Mr. Mason
(1943)
Song of Texas
as Sam Bennett
(1943)
The Powers Girl
as Mr. Hendricks
(1943)
Someone to Remember
as Tom Gibbons
(1943)
Headin' for God's Country
as Albert Ness
(1942)
This Gun for Hire
as Steve Finnerty
(1942)
The Big Street
as Florida Doctor (Uncredited)
(1942)
The Falcon Takes Over
as Detective Grimes (Uncredited)
(1942)
In Old California
as Mr. Carlin
(1942)
Once Upon a Honeymoon
as Ed Cumberland
(1942)
The Lady Is Willing
as Barnes
(1942)
The Mad Martindales
as Policeman
(1942)
The Affairs of Jimmy Valentine
as Pinky Dolan
(1942)
Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch
as Mr. Tim Wiggs
(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)
Parole Fixer
as Randall
(1940)
Too Many Girls
as Mr. Casey
(1940)
Young Tom Edison
as Army Captain Brackett
(1940)
City of Chance
as Passline
(1940)
Tear Gas Squad
as Lieutenant Sullivan
(1940)
Sailor's Lady
as Father McGann
(1940)
Gambling on the High Seas
as Ed, Chief of Police
(1940)
Tugboat Annie Sails Again
as Capt. Mahoney
(1940)
One Crowded Night
as McDermott
(1940)
The Girl from Avenue A
as Timson
(1939)
(1937)
Alibi Mark
as Railroad Detective
(1936)
Shake, Mr. Shakespeare
as Macbeth
(1934)
No More West
as Bank Robber
(1934)
(1934)
Smoked Hams
as The Landlord
(1933)
Close Relations
as Harry Wart
(1933)
(1933)
Wrongorilla
as Grogan
(1933)
Take a Chance
as Bartender
(1930)
Heads Up
as Capt. Denny
(1929)
Sympathy
as Larry
(1929)
Faint Heart
as Dynamite Dan