Arthur Bent Balinger (February 1, 1915 – June 10, 2011) was an American

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

known for television roles throughout the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Specifically, Balinger was cast in numerous productions created by

Jack Webb John Randolph Webb (April 2, 1920 – December 23, 1982) was an American actor, television producer, Television director, director, and screenwriter, most famous for his role as Joe Friday in the Dragnet (franchise), ''Dragnet'' franchise ...

and his production company,

Mark VII Limited Mark VII Limited (formerly Mark VII Productions, pronounced "Mark 7") was the production company of actor and filmmaker Jack Webb, and was active from 1951 until his death in 1982. Many of its series were produced in association with Universal Tel ...

. Balinger was born to parents Sheldon and Ellen Bent Balinger in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. He was raised in the

Los Angeles metropolitan area Greater Los Angeles is the most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. state of California, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino County and Riverside County in the east, ...

. Balinger began his career as a radio announcer, before transitioning to television as an actor. His credits included '' Dragnet'' and ''

Emergency! ''Emergency!'' is an American Action fiction, action-adventure medical drama television series jointly produced by Mark VII Limited and Universal Television. Debuting on NBC as a midseason replacement on January 15, 1972, replacing two situatio ...

'' (as "Battalion Chief Conrad"). He largely retired from television after the 1970s. One of his last memorable parts in film was that of the dedication ceremony announcer in the blockbuster hit ''

The Towering Inferno ''The Towering Inferno'' is a 1974 American disaster film directed by John Guillermin and produced by Irwin Allen, featuring an ensemble cast led by Paul Newman and Steve McQueen. It was adapted by Stirling Silliphant from the novels '' The ...

''. Balinger also worked for the McDonnell Douglas Aircraft company in the 1970s performing several on-camera appearances as well as voice-only narration of multiple McDonnell Douglas promotional films (See Periscope Films available on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

.) Balinger died at the Terwilliger Plaza Nursing Home in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, at the age of 96.

Filmography

References

External links

* 1915 births 2011 deaths Male actors from Los Angeles American male film actors American male television actors 20th-century American male actors American radio personalities {{US-tv-actor-1910s-stub