Francis "Dink" Trout (June 18, 1898 – March 26, 1950) was an American actor, voice artist and radio personality.

Early years

Trout was born in 1898 in Illinois. He attended the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Unive ...

Radio

In 1927, Trout had his own musical program on WOR in Newark, New Jersey. Much of his career involved playing characters in American radio shows. He was heard as Waldo Binney on '' The Life of Riley'', as Mr. Anderson on '' The Dennis Day Show'' and as Luke Spears on ''

Lum and Abner ''Lum and Abner'' was an American network radio comedy program created by Chester Lauck and Norris Goff that was aired from 1931 to 1954. Modeled on life in the small town of Waters, Arkansas, near where Lauck and Goff grew up, the show proved ...

''. He was also heard in ''

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet'' is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from October 3, 1952, to April 23, 1966, and starred the real-life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television, where it ...

'', the ''Cass Daley Show'', ''The Nebbs'',Sies, Luther F. (2014). ''Encyclopedia of American Radio, 1920-1960, 2nd Edition, Volume 1''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 705. and ''The Jim Backus Show''.

Stage

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

, Trout had the role of Zappo in ''The Wild Rose'' (1926).

Music

Trout played marimba and trombone for

Ben Bernie Benjamin Anzelwitz, known professionally as Ben Bernie (May 30, 1891 – October 23, 1943),DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. ...

and his orchestra.

Film

In 1936 Trout made his first (uncredited) film appearance in '' Under Your Spell''. Later in 1941 he appeared in '' Scattergood Baines'' as Plinky Pickett. Trout reprised this role for the next two films in the ''Scattergood Baines'' chronology. He made several other film appearances throughout his life, though he was generally uncredited. In 1947 he voiced the title character in Disney's '' Bootle Beetle'', a character he continued to voice for the next three years. He also played Phink, the pressure cooker salesman in the unaired

Three Stooges The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy team active from 1922 until 1970, best remembered for their 190 short subject films by Columbia Pictures. Their hallmark styles were physical farce and slapstick. Six Stooges appear ...

TV pilot, '' Jerks of All Trades''. His final performance was as the voice of the King of Hearts in ''

Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creature ...

'', which was released over a year after his death.

Death

Trout died March 26, 1950, in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

, after having had major surgery.

Filmography

* '' Under Your Spell'' (1936) - Small Man (uncredited) * '' Scattergood Baines'' (1941) - Pliny Pickett * '' Scattergood Baines Pulls the Strings'' (1941) - Pliny Pickett * '' Miss Polly'' (1941) - Postman Wilbur Boggs * '' Cinderella Swings It'' (1943) - Pliny Pickett * ''

Gildersleeve's Bad Day ''Gildersleeve's Bad Day'' is a 1943 American comedy film directed by Gordon Douglas from a screenplay by Jack Townley. The picture was the second in the Gildersleeve's series produced and distributed by RKO Radio Pictures, based on the popular ...

'' (1943) - Otis (uncredited) * '' It's a Great Life'' (1943) - Little Man (uncredited) * '' Food and Magic'' (1943, Documentary short) - Meek Butcher Customer (uncredited) * ''

Up in Arms ''Up in Arms'' is a 1944 musical film directed by Elliott Nugent and starring Danny Kaye and Dinah Shore. It was nominated for two Academy Awards in 1945. Plot Danny Weems works as an elevator operator in a New York Medical building, so he can ...

'' (1944) - Startled Man in Cable Car (uncredited) * '' The Doughgirls'' (1944) - Young Husband (uncredited) * '' Irish Eyes Are Smiling'' (1944) - Meek Husband (uncredited) * '' A Tree Grows in Brooklyn'' (1945) - Undetermined (uncredited) * '' Sudan'' (1945) - Bedai the Potter (uncredited) * ''

The Horn Blows at Midnight ''The Horn Blows at Midnight'' is a 1945 comedy fantasy film directed by Raoul Walsh, and starring Jack Benny. Following its poor box-office, Benny often exploited the film's failure for laughs over the next 20 years in his radio and television ...

'' (1945) - Trumpet Player (uncredited) * '' Notorious'' (1946) - Court Clerk (uncredited) * '' Bootle Beetle'' (1947, short) - Bootle Beetle (voice) * '' So Dear to My Heart'' (1948) - Bob Peters - Station Agent (uncredited) * '' Sea Salts'' (1949, short) - 'Mac' Bootle Beetle (voice, uncredited) * '' Jerks of All Trades'' (1949, TV pilot) - Mr. Phink * '' The Greener Yard'' (1949, short) - Bootle Beetle (voice) * '' Morris the Midget Moose'' (1950, short) - Old Bootle Beetle / Balsam (voice, uncredited) * ''

'' (1951) - King of Hearts (voice) (final film role)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Trout, Dink 1898 births 1950 deaths American radio personalities American male film actors American male radio actors American male voice actors Male actors from Illinois People from Beardstown, Illinois University of Illinois alumni 20th-century American male actors