Jack Norton
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Jack Norton (born Mortimer John Naughton; September 2, 1882 – October 15, 1958) was an American stage and film
character actor A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting character (arts), characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrie ...
who appeared in more than 180 films between 1934 and 1948, often playing drunks, although in real life he was a teetotaler.


Career

Norton was born in
Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
, on September 2, 1882. In his early career he had a vaudeville comedy act with his wife Lillian Healy,Erickson, Ha
Biography (Allmovie)
/ref> and toured as half of a comedy team with boxer "Gentleman Jim" Corbett. Norton made his Broadway debut in 1925 in that year's edition of '' Earl Carroll's Vanities'', and also appeared in ''Florida Girl'', which was produced and staged by Carroll. Norton's first film work was for a musical short, ''School for Romance'', in 1934, in which a young
Betty Grable Elizabeth Ruth Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 2, 1973) was an American actress, pin-up girl, dancer, model, and singer. Her 42 films during the 1930s and 1940s grossed more than $100 million, and for 10 consecutive years (1942–1951) she p ...
appeared, but his scenes were deleted. His work survived to reach the screen in his next assignment, ''The Super Snooper'', a comedy short, and in his third film, his first full-length movie, ''Finishing School'', which featured
Frances Dee Frances Marion Dee (November 26, 1909 – March 6, 2004) was an American actress. Her first film was the musical ''Playboy of Paris'' (1930). She starred in the film ''An American Tragedy (film), An American Tragedy'' (1931). She is also known ...
, Billie Burke,
Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...
and
Bruce Cabot Bruce Cabot (born Étienne de Pelissier Bujac Jr.; April 20, 1904 – May 3, 1972) was an American film actor, best remembered as Jack Driscoll (character), Jack Driscoll in ''King Kong (1933 film), King Kong'' (1933) and for his roles in films s ...
, Norton played a drunk, setting the pattern for many of his future performances. Although he also played stone sober characters as well, he was best known for his inebriated characterizations, and he improved his work by following genuine drunks around, picking up behavioral tips. Norton worked continuously and consistently, sometimes appearing in as many as 20 films in one year, although many of his performances went uncredited. One of the few times he was credited as part of the main cast was in 1945 for the film ''A Guy, a Gal and a Pal''. In the 1940s, Norton was part of
Preston Sturges Preston Sturges (; born Edmund Preston Biden; August 29, 1898 – August 6, 1959) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and film director. He is credited as being the first screenwriter to find success as a director. Prior to Sturges, other ...
' unofficial "stock company" of character actors, appearing in five films written and directed by Sturges. He is perhaps best known to modern audiences as A. Pismo Clam, the drunken film director whom W.C. Fields is hired to replace in '' The Bank Dick'' (1940). In 1947, Norton retired from films due to illness, his last appearance being in ''Alias a Gentlemen'', which was released in 1948, although he did make some live television appearances in the early 1950s. Norton's final appearance would have been in the 1956 episode of ''
The Honeymooners ''The Honeymooners'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired from 1955 to 1956, created by and starring Jackie Gleason, and based on a recurring comedy sketch of the same name that had been part of Gleason's variety show. It f ...
'' entitled "Unconventional Behavior", but his illness led to him being written out of the show as it was being filmed, though Jackie Gleason saw to it that Norton was paid fully for the performance he was ready, willing, but unable to give. Norton died on October 15, 1958, in
Saranac Lake, New York Saranac Lake is a village in the state of New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,887, making it the largest community by population in the Adirondack Park.U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Report, Saranac Lake village, New ...
, at the age of 76. He is buried in Sacred Hearts Cemetery in
Southampton, New York Southampton, officially the Town of Southampton, is a town in southeastern Suffolk County, New York, partly on the South Fork of Long Island. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the town had a population of 69,036. Southampton is included in the stre ...
, on
Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...
.''Resting Places''
/ref>


Partial filmography

* ''
Woman Haters ''Woman Haters'' is a 1934 musical short subject directed by Archie Gottler starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges ( Moe Howard, Larry Fine, and Jerry Howard). It is the inaugural entry in the series released by Columbia ...
'' (1934) * '' Don't Bet on Blondes'' (1935) * '' Calling All Cars'' (1935) * '' Going Highbrow'' (1935) * '' Ship Cafe'' (1935) * '' Forgotten Faces'' (1936) * '' The Moon's Our Home'' (1936) * '' Meet the Missus'' (1937) * '' Thanks for the Memory'' (1938) * '' The Roaring Twenties'' (1939) as Drunk (uncredited) * '' Laugh It Off'' (1939) * '' The Bank Dick'' (1940) * '' The Farmer's Daughter'' (1940) * '' Pacific Blackout'' (1941) * '' The Spoilers'' (1942) * '' The Palm Beach Story'' (1942) * '' So's Your Uncle'' (1943) * ''
Gildersleeve on Broadway ''Gildersleeve on Broadway'' is a 1943 American comedy film starring Harold Peary as his radio character The Great Gildersleeve. It is the third of four Gildersleeve features, others were '' The Great Gildersleeve'' (1942), '' Gildersleeve's B ...
'' (1943) (uncredited) * ''
The Story of Dr. Wassell ''The Story of Dr. Wassell'' is a 1944 American World War II film set in the Dutch East Indies, directed by Cecil B. DeMille, and starring Gary Cooper, Laraine Day, Signe Hasso and Dennis O'Keefe. The film was based on a book of the same name by ...
'' (1944) (uncredited) * ''
Going My Way ''Going My Way'' is a 1944 American musical comedy drama film directed by Leo McCarey and starring Bing Crosby and Barry Fitzgerald. Written by Frank Butler and Frank Cavett, based on a story by McCarey, the film is about a new young priest ...
'' (1944) as Mr. Lilley, Music Publisher * '' Prairie Chickens'' (1943) * '' The Big Noise'' (1944) * ''
Wonder Man Wonder Man (Simon Williams) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, he first appeared in '' The Avengers'' #9 (October 1964). The character, wh ...
'' (1945) (uncredited) * '' Man Alive'' (1945) * '' Flame of Barbary Coast'' (1945) * '' Rhythm and Weep'' (1946) * ''
Bringing Up Father ''Bringing Up Father'' is an American comic strip created by cartoonist George McManus. Distributed by King Features Syndicate, it ran for 87 years, from January 2, 1913, to May 28, 2000. The strip was later titled ''Jiggs and Maggie'' (or '' ...
'' (1946) * ''
Shadows Over Chinatown ''Shadows Over Chinatown'' is a 1946 American mystery film directed by Terry O. Morse and starring Sidney Toler, Victor Sen Yung and Tanis Chandler. It is the third-to-last film starring Toler as Charlie Chan. Plot Late one night, Charlie Chan ...
'' (1946)


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Norton, Jack 1882 births 1958 deaths Male actors from New York (state) American male film actors American male stage actors Deaths from respiratory failure American vaudeville performers 20th-century American male actors