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Oliver Burgess Meredith (November 16, 1907 – September 9, 1997) was an American actor and filmmaker whose career encompassed radio, theater, film, and television.

Active for more than six decades, Meredith has been called "a virtuosic actor" and "one of the most accomplished actors of the century". A lifetime member of the ,

(1980). 9780025426504, Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc..
(1980). 9780025426504, Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc..
he won a Primetime Emmy Award, was the first male actor to win the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor twice, and was nominated for two .

Meredith established himself as a leading man in Hollywood with critically acclaimed performances as Mio Romagna in Winterset (1936), in Of Mice and Men (1939), and in The Story of G.I. Joe (1945).

Meredith was known later in his career for his appearances on The Twilight Zone and for portraying in the 1960s TV series Batman and trainer in the Rocky film series. For his performances in The Day of the Locust (1975) and (1976), he received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He later appeared in the comedy Foul Play (1978) and the fantasy film Clash of the Titans (1981). He narrated numerous films and documentaries during his long career.

"Although those performances renewed his popularity," observed in The New York Times (referring to the Penguin and Mickey Goldmill roles), "they represented only a small part of a richly varied career in which he played many of the more demanding roles in classical and contemporary theater—in plays by , O'Neill, and others."


Early life
Meredith was born in 1907 in , Ohio, the son of Ida Beth (née Burgess; 1861–1933) and William George Meredith (1861–1938), a Canadian-born physician of English descent. Burgess Meredith genealogy by Robert Battle, hosted at freepages.rootsweb His mother came from a long line of revivalists, a religion to which he adhered throughout his lifetime.

Known informally to his friends as "Buzz", Burgess Meredith graduated from in 1926 and then attended (class of 1931). He left Amherst and became a reporter for the Stamford Advocate. Meredith's Lakewood memories are mostly unhappy Lakewood Sun Post December 7, 1995, by Dan Chabek


Career

Theatre
In 1929, he became a member of Eva Le Gallienne's Civic Repertory Theatre company in New York City. Although best known to the larger world audience for his film and television work, Meredith was an influential actor and director for the stage. He made his debut as Peter in Le Gallienne's production of Romeo and Juliet (1930) and became a star in 's Winterset (1935), which became his film debut the following year. His early life and theatre work were the subject of a New Yorker profile. In 1935, he starred along with at the Martin Beck Theatre in John Van Druten's Flowers of the Forest.
(1996). 9780195090796, Oxford University Press. .

He garnered critical acclaim in the 1935 Broadway revival of The Barretts of Wimpole Street starring Katharine Cornell. She subsequently cast him in several of her later productions. Other Broadway roles included Van van Dorn in High Tor (1937), Liliom in (1940), Christy Mahon in The Playboy of the Western World (1946), and Adolphus Cusins in (1956). He created the role of Erie Smith in the premiere of Eugene O'Neill's at the Theatre Royal in Bath, England in 1963. He played Hamlet in avant garde theatrical and radio productions of the play.

A distinguished theatre director, he earned a nomination for his 1974 Broadway staging of Ulysses in Nighttown, a theatrical adaptation of the "Nighttown" section of 's Ulysses. Meredith also shared a Special Tony Award with for their collaboration on A Thurber Carnival (1960). In the late seventies, he directed Fionnula Flanagan's one-woman multi-role play James Joyce's Women, which toured for several years.


Film
Burgess Meredith's powerful stage performances attracted the attention of Hollywood film producers, who hired him for motion pictures. Unlike most movie actors, Meredith never signed a long-term contract with a single studio, preferring to work on individual film projects. Also, unlike former stage actors, Meredith successfully adjusted his performances to the film medium. Instead of playing to the audience in the balcony, Meredith now played to the camera, with his performances more controlled and intimate. This gave his screen characters great sensitivity, as he demonstrated in three bravura performances for which he is remembered: as Mio Romagna in Winterset (1936); as in Of Mice and Men (1939); and as in The Story of G.I. Joe (1945). He starred only occasionally in pictures, as in San Francisco Docks (1940, as a longshoreman accused of murder) and Street of Chance (1942, as an amnesiac who may have been a killer). Meredith was featured in many 1940s films, including three co-starring his then-wife : (1940), Diary of a Chambermaid (1946), and On Our Merry Way (1948).

As a result of the House Committee on Un-American Activities investigation, Meredith was placed on the Hollywood blacklist and was largely absent from film for the next decade, though he remained involved in stage plays and radio during this time.

Meredith was a favorite of director , who cast him in Advise and Consent (1962), (1963), In Harm's Way (1965), Hurry Sundown (1967), Skidoo (1968), and Such Good Friends (1971). He was in Madame X (with , 1966) and Stay Away Joe (1968), appearing as the father of 's character.

(2025). 9781570722325, The Overmountain Press. .
He was acclaimed by critics for his performance as Harry Greener in The Day of the Locust (1975) and received nominations for the , , and for best supporting actor. Meredith then played 's trainer in the first three films (1976, 1979, and 1982). Though his character died in the third Rocky film, he returned briefly in a flashback in the fifth film, (1990). His portrayal in the first film earned him his second consecutive nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Meredith had a role in Foul Play (1978) with and .Maslin, Janet (July 19, 1978). "Screen: Goldie Hawn in 'Foul Play'". The New York Times. He played an old veteran Captain J. G. Williams in The Last Chase (1981) with . He appeared in 's last stop-motion feature Clash of the Titans (also 1981) in a supporting role. Meredith appeared in (1985) and was the voice of Golobulus in (1987). In his last years, he played 's character's sex-crazed 95-year-old father in Grumpy Old Men (1993) and its sequel, Grumpier Old Men (1995).

Meredith directed the movie The Man on the Eiffel Tower (1949) starring , which was produced by . Meredith also was billed in a supporting role in this film. In 1970, he directed (as well as co-wrote and played a supporting role in) The Yin and the Yang of Mr. Go, an espionage caper starring and .

(1999). 9780313284960, . .


Television
Meredith appeared in four starring roles in the anthology TV series The Twilight Zone, tying him with for the most appearances on the show in a starring role.
(2025). 9780786438860, McFarland & Company. .

In his first appearance in 1959, "Time Enough at Last", he portrayed a henpecked bookworm who finds himself the sole survivor of an unspecified apocalypse which leads him to contemplate suicide until he discovers the ruins of the library. In 1961's "Mr. Dingle, the Strong", Meredith played the title character, a timid weakling who receives superhuman strength from an extraterrestrial experiment in human nature. Also that year in "The Obsolete Man", Meredith portrayed a librarian sentenced to death in a totalitarian society. Lastly, in 1963's "Printer's Devil", Meredith portrayed the himself. He later played two additional roles in 's other anthology series, .

(1999). 9780815605355, Syracuse University Press. .
Meredith was the narrator for in 1983.
(2025). 9781550227444, . .

Meredith appeared in various western series, such as Rawhide (four times), The Virginian (twice), , Branded, The Wild Wild West, The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters, Laredo, , and Daniel Boone. In 1963, he appeared as Vincent Marion in a five-part episode of the last season of the Warner Bros. ABC detective series 77 Sunset Strip. He appeared three times in Burke's Law (1963–1964), starring .

Meredith was also well known for his portrayal of in the television series Batman from 1966 to 1968 and in the 1966 film based on the TV series. His role as the Penguin was so well-received that the show's writers always had a script featuring the Penguin ready whenever Meredith was available. Meredith made 21 appearances on the series as the Penguin. He also made a brief cameo appearance as the Penguin in the 1968 episode of The Monkees titled "Monkees Blow Their Minds".

From 1972 to 1973, Meredith played V. C. R. Cameron, director of Probe Control, in the television movie/pilot Probe and then in Search, the subsequent TV series (the name was changed to avoid conflict with a program on ).

Meredith won an as Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama Special for the 1977 television film Tail Gunner Joe, a fictionalized study of U.S. Senator , the anticommunist politician active in the 1950s. He was cast as crusading lawyer .

(2025). 9780735552975, Aspen Publishers.

In 1992, Meredith narrated The Chaplin Puzzle, a television documentary that provides a rare insight into 's work, circa 1914, at and , where Chaplin developed his character.A full copy of the 1992 documentary The Chaplin Puzzle narrated by Burgess Meredith is available for viewing on YouTube. Retrieved April 5, 2017. Coincidentally, Meredith married actress in 1944 following her divorce from Chaplin.


Military service
In 1942, Meredith enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II, reaching the rank of captain. After transferring to the Office of War Information, he made training and education films for the U.S. armed forces. In 1943 he performed in the USAAF's recruiting short The Rear Gunner and the U.S. Army training film A Welcome to Britain for troops heading to the UK in preparation for the liberation of Europe.Archived at Ghostarchive and the Https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltVtnCzg9xw&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Wayback Machine: He was released from duty in 1944 to work on the movie The Story of G.I. Joe, in which he played the war correspondent Ernie Pyle. He was discharged from the USAAF in 1945.


Other work
Meredith also performed work. He provided the narration for the war film A Walk in the Sun (1945). As a nod to his longtime association with the original Twilight Zone series, he served as narrator for the based on the series. He was a TV commercial voice for such clients as , , Pioneer, , , and breakfast cereal. He also produced and narrated Works Of Calder, a 1950 film directed by with a soundtrack by the composer .

He supplied the narration for the 1974–75 ABC Saturday morning series

(2025). 9780786422159, McFarland & Company. .
and was the voice of Puff in the series of animated adaptations of the Peter, Paul, and Mary song Puff, the Magic Dragon. In the mid-1950s, he was one of four narrators of the and syndicated public affairs program, The Big Story (1949–58), which focused on courageous journalists. In 1991, he narrated a track on ' album of traditional Christmas music and , The Bells of Dublin.

He acted in the music video of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", which was released in 1994. He played the main character, a projectionist at a movie theater. In 1994, he published his autobiography, So Far, So Good.

His last role before his death was the portrayal of both the Hamilton Wofford and Covington Wofford characters in the 1996 video game Ripper by Take-Two Interactive. Meredith was considered to play the Penguin's father in the 1992 film , but illness prevented him from appearing and the role was taken by .


Personal life
Meredith was married four times. His first wife, Helen Derby Berrien Meredith—the daughter of American Cyanamid president Harry L. Derby—died by suicide in 1940, nearly five years after their divorce. His next two wives, Margaret Perry (actress) and , were actresses; Goddard suffered a miscarriage in 1944. Meredith's last marriage, to Kaja Sundsten, lasted 46 years and produced two children, Jonathan (a musician) and Tala (a painter).

Meredith was a lifelong Democrat and donor to the party. He wrote in his 1994 autobiography So Far, So Good that he had violent caused by , a form of .

On September 9, 1997, Meredith died at age 89 from complications of Alzheimer's disease and , and his remains were cremated.


Awards and nominations
1975Best Supporting ActorThe Day of the Locust
1976
1975British Academy Film AwardsBest Actor in a Supporting RoleThe Day of the Locust
1985Best Actor in a Theatrical or Dramatic SpecialAnswers
1975Golden Globe AwardsBest Supporting Actor – Motion PictureThe Day of the Locust
1962National Board of Review AwardsBest Supporting ActorAdvise & Consent
1977Primetime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama SpecialTail Gunner Joe
1978The Last Hurrah
1977Best Supporting ActorThe Sentinel

1978Magic
1981Clash of the Titans
1977Sitges Film FestivalBest ActorBurnt Offerings
1960Special Tony AwardA Thurber Carnival
1974Best Direction of a PlayUlysses in Nighttown


Honors
  • For his contributions to the motion picture industry, Meredith has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
  • For his onstage contributions, he was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.
  • A park was named after him in Pomona, New York, and he provided the funding to incorporate the village.
  • In 1977, he received an honorary doctorate degree from Upper Iowa University in Fayette, Iowa.


Filmography

Film
1935The ScoundrelFlop House BumUncredited
1936WintersetMio Romagna
1937There Goes the GroomDick Matthews
1938The Lippencott
1939Idiot's DelightQuillery
Of Mice and MenGeorge Milton
1940Castle on the HudsonSteven Rockford
Hank Taylor
The San Francisco DocksJohnny Barnes
1941That Uncertain FeelingAlexander Sebastian
Tom, Dick and HarryHarry
The Forgotten VillageNarratorVoice
1942Street of ChanceFrank Thompson / Danny Nearing
1943A Welcome to BritainHimselfArmy Service Forces training film, 1943; uncredited
The Rear GunnerPvt. L.A. Pee Wee Williams
1944Our CountryHimself
Hymn of the NationsNarratorVoice, uncredited
Salute to Francethe American soldier
American soldierVoice
Attack! Battle of New BritainNarratorVoice
1945The Story of G.I. Joe
A Walk in the SunNarratorVoice, uncredited
1946The Diary of a ChambermaidCaptain Mauger
James Madison
1947Mine Own ExecutionerFelix Milne
1948On Our Merry WayOliver M Pease
1949JigsawJack / BartenderUncredited
A Yank Comes BackUnknown roleAlso writer
Golden ArrowDick
The Man on the Eiffel TowerJoseph Heurtin
1950Works of CalderNarratorVoice
1954Screen Snapshots: Hollywood's Invisible ManHimself
1957Joe Butterfly
Albert SchweitzerNarratorVoice
1958Louis Halliburton
Sorcerer's VillageNarratorVoice
1959America Pauses for SpringtimeHimself
America Pauses for the Merry Month of MayHimself
1962Advise and ConsentHerbert Gelman
1963Father Ned Halley
1965In Harm's WayCommander Egan Powell
1966Madame XDan Sullivan
BatmanOswald Cobblepot / The Penguin
The Crazy QuiltNarratorVoice
A Big Hand for the Little LadyDoc ScullyAs Burgess Meridith
1967Torture GardenDr. Diablo
Hurry SundownJudge PurcellFramework Story
1968Stay Away, JoeCharlie Lightcloud
SkidooThe Warden
Dear Mr. GableNarratorVoice
NarratorVoice
1969The FatherCaptain Ned
Mackenna's GoldThe Store Keeper
Ramsey Williams
The ReiversLucious / NarratorVoice
1970There Was a Crooked Man...The Missouri Kid
The Yin and the Yang of Mr. GoThe DolphinAlso director
1971Clay PigeonFreedom Lovelace
Such Good FriendsKalman
1972A Fan's NotesMr. Blue
Beware! The BlobOld HoboUncredited
Mineral KingNarratorVoice
The ManSenator Watson
1974Hay que matar a B.Hector
Winters
1975The Day of the LocustHarry Greener
92 in the ShadeGoldsboro
The Master GunfighterNarratorVoice
The HindenburgEmilio Pajetta
1976CircasiaClown
Burnt OfferingsArnold Allardyce
1977The SentinelCharles Chazen
Golden RendezvousVan Heurden
1978Dr. Snow
1978Foul PlayMr. Hennessey
The Great Bank HoaxJack Stutz
MagicBen Greene
1979Mickey Goldmill
1980When Time Ran OutRene Valdez
Zak
1981The Last ChaseCaptain J.G. Williams
Clash of the TitansAmmon
True ConfessionsMsgr. Seamus Fargo
1982Mickey Goldmill
1983NarratorVoice, uncredited
1984SampsonMade for TV
1985Ancient Elf
Mickey GoldmillArchival footage, uncredited
1987Voice
King LearDon LearoUncredited
1988Hot to TrotDon's DadVoice, uncredited
Full Moon in Blue WaterThe General
1990Ingersol
State of GraceFinn
Mickey GoldmillFlashback (new footage)
1993Grumpy Old MenGrandpa Gustafson
1994Fein
1995Tall TaleOld ManUncredited
Across the MoonBarney
Grumpier Old MenGrandpa GustafsonLast role
2006Rocky BalboaMickey GoldmillArchival footage, uncredited
2020Mickey GoldmillArchival footage


Television
1950Texaco Star TheatreHimself1 episode
1950Perry Como's Kraft Music HallHimself1 episode
1950Your Show of ShowsHimself2 episodes
1950Robert Montgomery PresentsHimself/Frank HugoEpisode: "Ride the Pink Horse"
1952The Name's the SameHimself1 episode
1952Tales of TomorrowPaulEpisode: "The Great Silence"
1953–1954Himself3 episodes
1956What's My LineHimself1 episode
1955–1958The Big StoryNarrator (voice)38 episodes
1958The Ben Hecht ShowHimself1 episode
1959The Jack Paar Tonight ShowHimself1 episode
1959The Arthur Murray PartyHimself2 episodes
1959–1963The Twilight ZoneHenry Bemis, Luther Dingle, Romney Wordsworth, Mr. Smith4 episodes
1961The Play of the WeekVladimirEpisode: "Waiting for Godot"
S4:E9, "The Little Fishes"
1962Naked CityDuncan KleistEpisode: "Hold for Gloria Christmas"
S6:E5, "Incident at Paradise"
S6:26, "Incident at Deadhorse: Part I"
S6:27, "Incident at Deadhorse: Part II"
1964Grover AllenEpisode: "The Grover Allen Story"
1965Mr. NovakPrincipal Martin Woodridge15 episodes
1965LaredoGrubby SullyEpisode: "Lazyfoot, Where Are You?"
1965The LonerSiedryEpisode: "Hunt the Man Down"
1965The Wild Wild WestOrkney CadwalladerEpisode: "The Night of the Human Trigger"
1965The Trials of O'BrienJudge Benjamin VincentEpisode: "No Justice for the Judge"
1966–1968BatmanThe Penguin21 episodes
1966Twelve O'Clock HighRadar ExpertEpisode: "Back to the Drawing Board"
1967Theodore BoothEpisode: "Wall of Crystal"
1968–1971IronsideHarry Grenadine, Alfred Carney2 episodes
1967Owney DugganEpisode: "Six Black Horses"
1968The MonkeesThe PenguinUncredited
Episode: "Monkees Blow Their Minds"
1968The VirginianTim Bradbury2 episodes
1969Daniel BooneAlex HemmingEpisode: "Three Score and Ten"
1970–1972Charlie Finnegan, Dr. William Fall2 episodes
1971The VirginianMuleyEpisode: "Flight From Memory"
1971The Bill Cosby SpecialHimselfTelevision special
1971George P. MallonEpisode: "Power Play"
1971Room 222Morris HenryEpisode: "KWWH"
1971Walt Disney's Wonderful World of ColorHenry Meade2 episodes
1972Noah OtwayEpisode: "The Crimson Halo"
1972McCloudMarvin SloanEpisode: "A Little Plot at Tranquil Valley"
1972–1973SearchV. C. R. Cameron23 episodes
1974–1975Narrator (voice)19 episodes
1975The Time Of ApolloNarrator (voice)Documentary by NASA
1976Dinah!Himself1 episode
1976The 48th Annual Academy AwardsHimself
1977Willy BassetTelevision film
1977Tail Gunner JoeJoseph N. WelchTelevision film
1977The 49th Annual Academy AwardsHimself
1978The Return of Captain NemoProf. Waldo CunninghamTelevision film
1978–1979, 1982Puff the Magic DragonPuff (voice)Television special
1980–1981Those Amazing AnimalsHimself/co-host2 episodes
1982–1983GloriaDr. Adams, Gloria Bunker Stivic's boss22 episodes
1984Faerie Tale TheatreMr. Mortimer Mole (voice)Episode: "Thumbelina"
1987Mister Corbett's GhostMad TomTelevision film
1991Night of the HunterBirdyTelevision film
1992LincolnWinfield Scott (voice)Television film
1993In the Heat of the NightJudge Cully3 episodes
1994The Great Battles of the Civil WarGettysburg Star, Banner Columnist (voice)Television series documentary


Video games
1996RipperHamilton Wofford, Covington Wofford


Theatre
1930Romeo and JulietPeter
1930The Green CockatooGrain
1930SiegfriedOlderly
1931People on the HillPacky Davis
1932Young Hollunder
1932Alice in WonderlandDuck, Dormouse, Tweedledee
1933The Threepenny OperaCook-Finger Jack
1933Little Ol' BoyRed Barry
1933She Loves Me NotBuzz Jones
1934Hipper's HolidayJim Hipper
1935Battieship GertieSeaman Jones
1935The Barretts of Wimpole StreetOctavius Moulton-Barrett
1935Flowers of the ForestLeonard Dobie
1935WintersetMilo
1936High TorVan Van Dorn
1937Stephen Minch
1940Liliom
1946The Playboy of the Western WorldChristy Mahon
1950Happy as LarryLarry
1951The Little Blue LightGandersheim
1951Michael
1953The Teahouse of the August MoonSakini
1953The Remarkable Mr. PennypackerPa Pennypacker
1956Major BarbraAdolphus Cusins
1961Kicks and Co.Mr. Kicks
1964I Was DancingPerformer
1967Of Love RememberedPerformer
1974Ulysses in NighttownPerformer


Radio appearances
Maureen O'Sullivan co-starred.
Madeleine Carroll co-starred


Book


External links

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