Walter Woolf King (November 2, 1899 – October 24, 1984) was an American film, television and stage actor and singer. Born in

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

in 1899, King started singing for a living at a young age and performed mostly in churches. He made his Broadway debut in 1919, and became a well-known

baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...

in operettas and musical comedies. King billed himself as Walter Woolf and Walter King early in his career, eventually settling on a combination of all three names in the mid-1930s. In 1936, King was host of the ''Flying Red Horse Tavern'' on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

radio.Sies, Luther F. (2014). ''Encyclopedia of American Radio, 1920-1960, 2nd Edition''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 234. King began his film career in

musicals Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

but quickly moved into supporting roles. He is probably best remembered today for his villainous roles in two films starring the

Marx Brothers The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act known for their anarchic humor, rapid-fire wordplay, and visual gags. They achieved success in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in 14 motion pictures. The core group consisted of brothers Chi ...

: '' A Night at the Opera'' (1935) and '' Go West'' (1940). He also appeared with Laurel & Hardy in '' Swiss Miss'' (1938). King made several appearances on radio and later became an actors' agent. During the 1950s and 1960s, he was seen in several often uncredited bit parts and smaller roles in television and films. One credited TV role was as “Major Clinton” in the 1958 S1E38 offering, “The Monty Britton Story” on ''

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western television series that aired for eight seasons, first on the NBC television network (1957–1962) and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and reached the top of the ...

''. In the first episode of ''

The Munsters ''The Munsters'' is an American sitcom about the home life of a family of benign monsters that aired from 1964 to 1966 on CBS. The series stars Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster (Frankenstein's monster),Episodes referring to the fact that Herman is ...

'' he is credited for his role as

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

. His final appearance was in the 1977 TV movie '' One in a Million: The Ron LeFlore Story''. King died in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hills ...

in 1984.

Filmography

References

External links

* * 1899 births 1984 deaths 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American singers American male film actors American male stage actors American male television actors Male actors from San Francisco Singers from San Francisco American baritones 20th-century American male singers {{US-theat-actor-1890s-stub