Don McGuire (born Don Rose; February 28, 1919 – April 13, 1999) was an American actor,

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

, and producer known for his roles such as playing

Congo Bill Congorilla, originally a human character known as Congo Bill, is a superhero appearing in comic books published by DC Comics and Vertigo Comics. Originally co-created by writer Whitney Ellsworth and artist George Papp, he was later transformed int ...

from

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

in the 1948 ''Congo Bill'' serial.

Early years

The son of Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin C. Rose, McGuire graduated from Senn High School, where he participated in four sports. Following studies at the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

, he played semi-pro baseball in

Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in ...

, for a year, after which he began working at a newspaper as a

copy boy A copy boy is a typically young and junior worker on a newspaper. The job involves taking typed stories from one section of a newspaper to another. According to Bruce Guthrie, the former editor-in-chief of the ''Herald Sun'' who began work there ...

. He progressed from that job to become a photographer and a reporter.

Career

McGuire worked at a newspaper in Chicago but left that job to enlist in the Army in 1941. He was a

military police Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. In wartime operations, the military police may support the main fighting force with force protection, convoy security, screening, rear recon ...

first sergeant, serving in the

Aleutian Islands The Aleutian Islands (; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin,”Land of the Aleuts", possibly from Chukchi language, Chukchi ''aliat'', "island"), also called the Aleut Islands or Aleutic Islands and known before 1867 as the Catherine Archipelago, are a cha ...

until 1944. Back injuries ended his military service, and when he returned to civilian life, he worked in public relations in Hollywood, eventually opening his own business. While he was trying to secure a film role for his girlfriend, the director offered him a job instead. McGuire's acting debut came in ''

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

''. He went on to act in ''

The Fuller Brush Man ''The Fuller Brush Man'' is a 1948 American comedy film starring Red Skelton as a door-to-door salesman for the Fuller Brush Company who becomes a murder suspect. Plot Success doesn't exactly stare the unfortunate street cleaner Red Jones (Red Sk ...

'' and ''

Armored Car Robbery ''Armored Car Robbery'' is a 1950 American film noir starring Charles McGraw, Adele Jergens, and William Talman. Directed by Richard Fleischer, ''Armored Car Robbery'' is a heist movie, a subgenre of crime-based films. It tells the story of a ...

'', among other films. While acting, he also worked on several screenplays including ''

Meet Danny Wilson ''Meet Danny Wilson'' is the debut album by Scottish pop group Danny Wilson. It became a significant hit in America on the strength of the summer of 1987 hit single "Mary's Prayer". Track listing All tracks composed by Gary Clark. # "Davy ...

'' and '' Bad Day at Black Rock''. In the early 1960s, he created, produced or co-produced, directed, and wrote scripts for the television series ''

Hennesey ''Hennesey'' is an American military comedy-drama television series that aired on CBS from 1959 to 1962, starring Jackie Cooper and Abby Dalton. Cooper played a United States Navy physician, Lt. Charles W. "Chick" Hennesey, with Abby Dalton ...

'' (1959–1962) and ''

Don't Call Me Charlie! ''Don't Call Me Charlie!'' is an American sitcom that aired on NBC during the 1962-1963 television season on Friday nights from 9:30 pm to 10:00 pm Eastern Time. Created by Don McGuire, the 18-episode series starred Josh Peine, Linda Lawson, ...

'' (1962–1963), and he guest-starred as

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

Nuxhall in the 1962 episode "Play It, Sam" of the latter show. Towards the end of his career, he directed three films: ''

Johnny Concho ''Johnny Concho'' is a 1956 American Western film directed by Don McGuire starring Frank Sinatra, Keenan Wynn, William Conrad and Phyllis Kirk. This was Sinatra's first serious Western and the role allowed him to play against type in his portra ...

'', ''

The Delicate Delinquent ''The Delicate Delinquent'' is an American VistaVision comedy film starring Jerry Lewis, released on June 6, 1957 by Paramount Pictures. It was the first film to star Lewis without his longtime partner Dean Martin and marked Lewis' debut as a pro ...

'', and ''

Hear Me Good ''Hear Me Good'' is a 1957 American comedy film written and directed by Don McGuire. The film stars Hal March, Joe E. Ross, Merry Anders, Jean Willes, Milton Frome and Joey Faye. The film was released in October 1957, by Paramount Pictures. Plo ...

''.

Personal life

McGuire married Karen X. Gaylord on August 15, 1948.

Death

Don McGuire died on April 13, 1999, aged 80, of complications from an unspecified illness, in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

Recognition

McGuire was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Awards, Academy Award for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best Story. Be ...

for co-writing ''

Tootsie ''Tootsie'' is a 1982 American satirical romantic comedy-drama film directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Dustin Hoffman. Its supporting cast includes Pollack, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman, Bill Murray, Charles Durning, George Ga ...

''. He won Screenwriters Guild Awards for his work on that film and on ''Bad Day at Black Rock''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McGuire, Don 1919 births 1999 deaths American film directors American male screenwriters 20th-century American male actors American male film actors Male actors from Chicago 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters