In Memory 2012: Harry Carey Jr. (May 16, 1921 – December 27, 2012).

Character actor Harry Carey Jr., who performed in many television shows and films including nine with movie director John Ford, has died at age 91 of natural causes. On Thursday morning in Santa Barbara, California, surrounded by family members, said his daughter, Melinda Carey.

Carey's notable big-screen credits include: a co-starring role with John Wayne in the film "3 Godfathers(1948),"(pictured above), She Wore a Yellow Ribbon(1949)," also with Wayne, and decades later in a saloon scene in the 1990 sci-fi comedy "Back to the Future Part III."

Among other Ford-directed films in which Carey performed: "The Searchers" (1956), "Wagon Master" (1950) and "Rio Grande" (1950).

In addition to his movie career, Carey performed many times on television during an era when westerns were popular, in character roles on the shows: "Bonanza," "Gunsmoke" and "Wagon Train" in the 1960s and 1970s.

In the 1950s, he had a recurring role in "The Adventures of Spin and Marty," a series of TV shorts that aired as part of "The Mickey Mouse Club."

Carey was born in 1921, the son of silent film star Harry Carey and his wife, Olive, who also was an actress. The young Carey was raised on his parents' 1,000-acre ranch in California's Santa Clarita Valley, north of Los Angeles.

Carey, also performed with Wayne in the classic Howard Hawks Western movie "Red River(1948)," which also starred the his father although they had no scenes together. Among Carey's last screen performances was as the U.S. marshal in the 1993 film "Tombstone," which starred Val Kilmer and Kurt Russell.

Also, a supporting role in the 1997 TV movie "Last Stand at Saber River," which starred Tom Selleck.

The Carey family ranch, which was visited over the years by Wayne, William S. Hart and Gary Cooper, has been turned into a Los Angeles County historic park called Tesoro Adobe.

This down-to-Earth actor will truly be missed..

In Memory 2012: Charles Durning (February 28, 1923 – December 24, 2012).

Charles Durning (February 28, 1923 – December 24, 2012). Was a character actor with performances in over 100 films died on Christmas Eve, according to his family. Durning's best known roles: police officers in the Oscar-winning The Sting (1973) and crime drama Dog Day Afternoon (1975), along with the comedies Tootsie, To Be Or Not To Be and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, the last two of which earned him Academy Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor.

Durning, left home at age 16 and later enlisted in the Army. Durning landed at Normandy on D-Day and fought in the Battle of the Bulge, receiving the Silver Star and three Purple Hearts. He worked odd jobs that ranged from professional boxing to teaching ballroom dancing to ushering in a burlesque house, where he got his start on stage by filling in for a comic who failed to show up.

He also attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Some of Durning's other best-known roles included his Tony-winning performance as Big Daddy in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", the governor in "Best Little Whorehouse in Texas", a beleaguered police officer in "Dog Day Afternoon" and as Doc Hopper, the owner of a frog leg restaurant in "The Muppet Movie." Durning's family, in a statement issued Tuesday, said, "Not only was Charlie a World War II hero but he was also a hero to his family. Charlie loved Christmas and if he could have chosen a time to pass, he would have chosen this day."

In Memory 2012: Jack Klugman (April 27, 1922 – December 24, 2012).

Jack Klugman (April 27, 1922 – December 24, 2012), was an stage, film and television character actor . He was best known as Felix Unger's sloppy roommate Oscar Madison in the television series, The Odd Couple (1970–1975), for his starring role in Quincy, M.E. (1976–1983), as Juror #5 in 12 Angry Men, and his many performances on The Twilight Zone.

Klugman, died Monday, at the age of 90 in his home with his wife by his side. Klugman, who lost his voice to throat cancer in the 1980s and trained himself to speak again.

Klugman's, hobby was horse racing and he eventually took up raising them, too. A horse Klugman co-owned, Jacklin Klugman, finished third in 1980's Kentucy Derby and fourth in that year's Preakness Stakes.

Klugman's wife, actress-comedian Brett Somers, played his ex-wife, Blanche, in the "Odd Couple" series. The couple, who married in 1953 and had two sons, Adam and David, had been estranged for years at the time of her death in 2007.

In February 2008, at age 85, Klugman married longtime girlfriend Peggy Crosby. Klugman, is also survived by two grandchildren.  Truly one of television's most loved actors, will be missed..

In Memory: Larry Hagman. (September 21, 1931 – November 23, 2012).

Larry Hagman, 81, is best known for his beloved villain character J.R. Ewing on the television show Dallas, died at Medical City Dallas Hospital, November 23, 2012. According to his family, the cause of death was complications from his battle with throat cancer. Larry’s family and closest friends were with him in Dallas to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday.

He made appearances in more than 60 theatrical movies and TV productions. An Air Force veteran himself, one of his best-known roles was as an Air Force officer in the popular television series, I Dream of Jeannie.

Hagman, also starred in two short-lived sitcoms, The Good Life (NBC, 1971-72) and Here We Go Again (ABC, 1973). His film work included: The Group, Harry and Tonto and Primary Colors.

He drank heavily for years, and it was reported that a liver transplant in 1995 had saved his life. He and his wife, whom he married in 1954, had two children and lived in California. Hagman, was also the son of the actress Mary Martin. RIP Larry Hagman, I was a big, I Dream of Jeanie fan.

In Memory: Tony Martin (December 25, 1913 – July 27, 2012) was an American actor and singer who was married to performer Cyd Charisse for 60 years.

Tony Martin, who passed peacefully of natural causes, music career began when he received a saxophone on his tenth birthday. In his grammar school glee club, he became an instrumentalist and soprano pop singer. When in high school he then formed his first band called "The Red Peppers", eventually joining a local orchestra leader, Tom Gerun, as a reed instrument specialist, sitting along with a future band leader, Woody Herman. 


In 1937, Martin married Alice Faye. After divorce, he married Cyd Charisse in 1948, their marriage lasted sixty years. As musicals faded from the screen, as did Cyd Charisse career. They became a husband and wife team and performed on television and nightclubs.

Martin performed in the movies: Follow the Fleet (1936), The Farmer in the Dell (1936), Pigskin Parade (1936), The Holy Terror (1937), Ali Baba Goes to Town (1937), The Big Store (1941), Till the Clouds Roll By (1946), Casbah (1948), Clash by Night (1952), and Hit the Deck (1955).

Cyd Charisse in "Party Girl" - Title Sequence- With the theme song sung by her husband Tony Martin. Party Girl is a 1958 film noir directed by Nicholas Ray and starring Robert Taylor and Cyd Charisse.

In Memory: Celeste Holm (April 29, 1917 – July 15, 2012).

Celeste Holm (April 29, 1917 – July 15, 2012) was a stage, film, and television actress, known for her Academy Award-winning performance in, Gentleman's Agreement (1947), as well as for her Oscar-nominated performances in, Come to the Stable (1949) and All About Eve (1950). Celeste, died peacefully in her home in New York on Sunday at the age of 95.


 Video: (1950). How to dump a boyfriend.

 

All About Eve (1950).

She graduated from University High School for Girls in Chicago, where she performed in many school stage productions. She then studied drama at the University of Chicago before becoming a stage actress in the late 1930s.

Holm's first professional theatrical role was in a production of Hamlet starring Leslie Howard. Her first role on Broadway was a small part in 1938 comedy Gloriana. Her first major Broadway part was as Mary L. in, The Time of Your Life(1940) co-starring Gene Kelly. The role that got her the most recognition was Ado Annie, in the Broadway production of Oklahoma! (1943).

After she starred in the Broadway production of Bloomer Girl, 20th Century Fox signed Holm to a movie contract in 1946, and in 1947 she won an Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress in, Gentleman's Agreement. After her performance in, All About Eve, Holm realized she preferred live theater to movies . The most successful of these were the comedy, The Tender Trap (1955) and the musical High Society (1956), both of which co-starred Frank Sinatra. She starred as a professor-turned-reporter in New York City in the CBS television series Honestly, Celeste! (1954) and was thereafter a panelist on Who Pays? (1959). She also appeared several times on ABC's The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom.

In 1958, she starred as a reporter in an unsold television pilot called The Celeste Holm Show, based on the book No Facilities for Women. Holm also starred in the musical The Utter Glory of Morrissey Hall. In 1965, she played the Fairy Godmother alongside Lesley Ann Warren in the CBS production of Cinderella. In 1970-71, she was featured on the NBC sitcom Nancy, with Renne Jarrett, John Fink, and Robert F. Simon. In the story line, Holm played Abby Townsend, the press secretary of the First Lady of the United States and the chaperon of Jarrett's character, Nancy Smith, the President's daughter. During the 1970s and 1980s, Holm did the films: Tom Sawyer and Three Men and a Baby, and in television series: Columbo, The Eleventh Hour, Archie Bunker's Place and Falcon Crest.

In 1979, she played the role of First Lady Florence Harding in the television mini-series, Backstairs at the White House. She was a regular on the ABC soap opera Loving, appearing first in 1986 in the role of Lydia Woodhouse and again as Isabelle Dwyer Alden #2 from 1991-92. She last appeared on television in the CBS television series Promised Land (1996–99).

In Memory: Ernest Borgnine (January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012).

Ernest Borgnine (January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was a film and television actor whose career spanned more than six decades. He played many memorable characters in the films of the 1950s, winning an Oscar in 1955 for Marty. A timeless story is about a couple trying to find their soul-mate.

 

On television, he played Quinton McHale in the 1962–1966 series McHale's Navy and co-starred in the mid-1980s action series Airwolf, in addition to a wide variety of other roles. Borgnine was also known for his role as Mermaid Man in the animated television series SpongeBob SquarePants. Borgnine earned an Emmy Award nomination at age 92 for his work on the series ER.

 

In Memory: Andy Griffith (June 1, 1926 – July 3, 2012).

It is so sad to learn Andy Griffith,  actor, director, producer, Grammy Award-winning Southern-gospel singer and writer, has passed on. A Tony Award nominee for two roles, he gained fame in the starring role in the film, A Face in the Crowd (1957) before he became better known for his television roles, playing the lead characters in the 1960–1968 Television comedy, The Andy Griffith Show and in the 1986–1995 legal drama Matlock. Griffith died on July 3, 2012 at the age of 86.

 

Andy Griffith (right) as Sheriff AndyTaylor and Don Knotts (left) as Deputy Barney Fife, in a scene from
 "The Andy Griffith Show".

In Memory: Don Agrati (June 8, 1944 – June 27, 2012).

He grew up in Lafayette, California and attended Stanley Junior High, where he spent only a few months before being signed by Disney. His acting credits included several Western series: The Restless Gun, Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater, Wagon Train and The Rifleman, where he played a young man whose vocal cords were severed by Indians. He also had a role in the NBC medical drama, The Eleventh Hour.

He also played the middle brother on My Three Sons, he became the older brother with the departure of Mike, Tim Considine, who had earlier performed with Grady in The New Adventures of Spin and Marty, and the adoption of Ernie (Barry Livingston), who became the new "third son." During production of My Three Sons, Grady both performed with his own band The Greefs on the series, and was the drummer for The Yellow Balloon, whose self-titled song became a minor hit during 1967.

After My Three Sons ended in 1972, Grady pursued a musical career. His works included music for the Blake Edwards comedy film Switch, the theme song for The Phil Donahue Show and for EFX, a Las Vegas multimedia stage show which starred Michael Crawford, David Cassidy, Tommy Tune, and Rick Springfield. In the fall of 2008, Grady released Boomer: JazRokPop, a collection of songs written for and about the baby boomer generation. Boomer was his first original album as an artist since Homegrown was released by Elektra Records in 1973.

Grady married Virginia "Ginny" Lewsader in 1985, having met her at Disneyland. The couple were married until his death. They had two children, Joey and Tessa. Grady died of cancer June 27, 2012, in Thousand Oaks, California, just 19 days after his 68th birthday.

In Memory: Ann Rutherford. (November 2, 1917 – June 11, 2012).

Ann Rutherford's parents were, John Rutherford, a former New York Metropolitan Opera tenor, and Lucille Mansfield, a silent film actress.  After moving to San Francisco, her parents separated and Lucille Mansfield moved to Los Angeles with Ann Rutherford and her sister Judith. While roller skating home from middle school in Hollywood, Rutherford would stop by the radio studios to listen to voice actors perform. After being criticized by her English teacher, Rutherford falsified an acting history and applied for work at radio station KFAC. Where she landed, a part in a radio serial drama.

Rutherford was married twice. On December 31, 1942, she married David May II, the grandson of the founder of the May Company department stores.  They had a girl, Gloria May, in 1943. On June 6, 1953, Rutherford and May were divorced in a court in Juarez, Mexico. On October 7, 1953, in New York City, Rutherford married actor/producer William Dozier, the creator of the Batman (1966-68) TV series. Dozier died in Santa Monica of a stroke on April 23, 1991.

In 1935, Rutherford began her Hollywood film career in the starring role of Joan O'Brien in the dramatic film, Waterfront Lady. Rutherford, soon established herself as a popular leading lady of Western films, costarring with actors Gene Autry and John Wayne.

In 1937, Rutherford left Republic and signed a film contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios. At MGM, Rutherford performed as the Spirit of Christmas Past in, A Christmas Carol (1938) and Lydia Bennet, in Pride and Prejudice (1940) .

In 1938, MGM loaned Rutherford to Selznick International Pictures to appear as Carreen O'Hara, the sister of Scarlet O'Hara, in the film Gone with the Wind (1939). MGM boss Louis Mayer, originally refused to  loan her out because, he considered the role too minor, but Rutherford really wanted the part and changed his mind.

From 1937 until 1942, Rutherford portrayed Polly Benedict, in the MGM Andy Hardy comedy film series with actor Mickey Rooney. Her first film in this series was You're Only Young Once (1937) and the last was Andy Hardy's Double Life (1942).

Rutherford also played Carol Lambert, comedian Red Skelton's screen girlfriend, for MGM in a series of mystery/comedies; Whistling in the Dark (1941), Whistling in Dixie (1942), and Whistling in Brooklyn (1943). In the early 1940s, Rutherford left MGM to perform in films: Orchestra Wives (1942) with 20th Century Fox. Movie clip below.



Also the films, Two O'Clock Courage (1945) with RKO Radio Pictures, and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947), also with RKO.

In 1950, Rutherford was the heroine of a novel, Ann Rutherford and the Key to Nightmare Hall, where "the heroine has the same name and appearance as the actress but there was no connection .

In 1972, Rutherford returned to MGM to make the film They Only Kill Their Masters. The film was shot on the old Andy Hardy set.

In the 1970s, Rutherford made two guest appearances on television as Aggie Harrison, the mother of Suzanne Pleshette's character Emily Hartley on The Bob Newhart Show.

Rutherford died on June 11, 2012 at her home in Beverly Hills, California, following declining health due to heart problems.  She is survived by her daughter, Gloria May, her companion of twenty years, Al Morley, a stepdaughter, Deborah Dozier Potter, and two grandsons.