Arthur O'Connell

Arthur O'Connell

Arthur O'Connell (March 29, 1908 – May 18, 1981) was an American stage and film actor. He appeared in films (starting with a small role in Citizen Kane) in 1941 and television programs (mostly guest appearances). Among his screen appearances were Picnic, Anatomy of a Murder, and as the watch-maker who hides Jews during WWII in The Hiding Place. A veteran vaudevillian, O'Connell, from New York City, made his legitimate stage debut in the mid 1930s, at which time he fell within the orbit of Orson Welles' Mercury Theatre. Welles cast O'Connell in the tiny role of a reporter in the closing scenes of Citizen Kane (1941), a film often referred to as O'Connell's film debut, though in fact he had already appeared in Freshman Year (1939) and had costarred in two Leon Errol short subjects as Leon's conniving brother-in-law. After numerous small movie parts, O'Connell returned to Broadway, where he appeared as the erstwhile middle-aged swain of a spinsterish schoolteacher in Picnic - a role he'd recreate in the 1956 film version, earning an Oscar nomination in the process. Later the jaded looking O'Connell was frequently cast as fortyish losers and alcoholics; in the latter capacity he appeared as James Stewart's boozy attorney mentor in Anatomy of a Murder (1959), and the result was another Oscar nomination. In 1962 O'Connell portrayed the father of Elvis Presley's character in the motion picture Follow That Dream, and in 1964 in the Presley-picture Kissin' Cousins. O'Connell continued appearing in choice character parts on both TV and films during the 1960s, but avoided a regular television series, holding out until he could be assured top billing. He appeared as Joseph Baylor in the 1964 episode "A Little Anger Is a Good Thing" on the ABC medical drama about psychiatry, Breaking Point. The actor accepted the part of a man who discovers that his 99-year-old father has been frozen in an iceberg on the 1967 sitcom The Second Hundred Years, assuming he'd be billed first per the producers' agreement. Instead, top billing went to newcomer Monte Markham in the dual role of O'Connell's father and his son. O'Connell accepted the demotion to second billing as well as could be expected, but he never again trusted the word of any Hollywood executive. Ill health forced O'Connell to significantly reduce his acting appearances in the mid '70s, but the actor stayed busy as a commercial spokesman, a friendly pharmacist who was a spokesperson for Crest toothpaste. At the time of his death from Alzheimer's disease in California in May 1981, O'Connell was appearing solely in these commercials, by his own choice. O'Connell was buried in Calvary Cemetery, Queens, New York. Description above from the Wikipedia article Arthur O'Connell, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.    
    Known for
    Acting
    Place of birth
    New York City, New York, U.S.
    Birthday
    3/29/1908
The Violators
The Violators
8
Misty
Misty
5.8
Kissin' Cousins
Kissin' Cousins
4.879
Follow That Dream
Follow That Dream
6.1
Bus Stop
Bus Stop
6.149
7 Faces of Dr. Lao
7 Faces of Dr. Lao
6.9
Ben
Ben
5.9
The Hiding Place
The Hiding Place
6.522
Nightmare in the Sun
Nightmare in the Sun
2.5
The Monte Carlo Story
The Monte Carlo Story
6
April Love
April Love
6.357
Birds Do It
Birds Do It
5
Anatomy of a Murder
Anatomy of a Murder
7.842
Pocketful of Miracles
Pocketful of Miracles
7.2
Man of the West
Man of the West
6.497
Gidget
Gidget
6.182
The Great Impostor
The Great Impostor
6.974
Cimarron
Cimarron
6.3
Your Cheatin' Heart
Your Cheatin' Heart
6.3
A Thunder of Drums
A Thunder of Drums
5.275
The Third Day
The Third Day
5.7
The Monkey's Uncle
The Monkey's Uncle
6.278
Law of the Jungle
Law of the Jungle
5.1
Hound-Dog Man
Hound-Dog Man
4.6
'Taint Legal
'Taint Legal
0
Shootout in a One-Dog Town
Shootout in a One-Dog Town
0
Bested by a Beard
Bested by a Beard
0
Operation Mad Ball
Operation Mad Ball
6.9
Pericles on 31st Street
Pericles on 31st Street
0
Fantastic Voyage
Fantastic Voyage
6.671
The Silencers
The Silencers
6.3
Huckleberry Finn
Huckleberry Finn
5.9
A Taste of Evil
A Taste of Evil
6.5
If He Hollers, Let Him Go!
If He Hollers, Let Him Go!
5.2
Seven in Darkness
Seven in Darkness
6.9
The Great Race
The Great Race
7.2
The Proud Ones
The Proud Ones
6.5
A Covenant with Death
A Covenant with Death
5.3
The Reluctant Astronaut
The Reluctant Astronaut
6.014
Picnic
Picnic
6.362
There Was a Crooked Man...
There Was a Crooked Man...
6.767
Open Secret
Open Secret
6.6
Murder in Soho
Murder in Soho
5
Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came?
Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came?
5
Wicked, Wicked
Wicked, Wicked
5.143
The Solid Gold Cadillac
The Solid Gold Cadillac
6.534
The Countess of Monte Cristo
The Countess of Monte Cristo
5
They Only Kill Their Masters
They Only Kill Their Masters
5.1
The Power
The Power
6.4
Ride Beyond Vengeance
Ride Beyond Vengeance
5.8
The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit
The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit
6.8
Man From Headquarters
Man From Headquarters
6
Force of Evil
Force of Evil
6.548
The Last Valley
The Last Valley
6.523
The Poseidon Adventure
The Poseidon Adventure
7.096
The Whistle at Eaton Falls
The Whistle at Eaton Falls
6.2
Voice in the Mirror
Voice in the Mirror
5.8
Blondie's Blessed Event
Blondie's Blessed Event
7.3
One Touch of Venus
One Touch of Venus
7
State of the Union
State of the Union
6.6
Homecoming
Homecoming
7.1
I Take This Oath
I Take This Oath
4
Marilyn
Marilyn
0
Dr. Kildare Goes Home
Dr. Kildare Goes Home
6.8
Operation Petticoat
Operation Petticoat
7.173
Hello, Annapolis
Hello, Annapolis
10
Hullabaloo
Hullabaloo
4
And One Was Beautiful
And One Was Beautiful
6.2
Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend
Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend
8
Two Girls on Broadway
Two Girls on Broadway
7.5
The Golden Fleecing
The Golden Fleecing
5.2
Fingers at the Window
Fingers at the Window
5.364
Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker
Preminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker
8
The Naked City
The Naked City
7.2
Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane
8.016
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