William Demarest

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

167

Gender

Male

Birthday

1892-02-27

Day of death

1983-12-28 (91 years old)

Place of Birth

Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA

William Demarest

Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Carl William Demarest (February 27, 1892 – December 27, 1983) was an American character actor, known for playing Uncle Charley in My Three Sons. A veteran of World War I, Demarest became a prolific film and television actor, appearing in over 140 films, beginning in 1926 and ending in the 1970s. He frequently played crusty but good-hearted roles. Demarest started in show business working in vaudeville, appearing with his wife Estelle Collette (real name Esther Zychlin) as "Demarest and Colette", then moved on to Broadway. Demarest worked regularly with director Preston Sturges, becoming part of a "stock" troupe of actors that Sturges repeatedly cast in his films. He appeared in ten films written by Sturges, eight of which were under his direction, including The Lady Eve, Sullivan's Travels and The Miracle of Morgan's Creek. Demarest was such a familiar figure at the Paramount studio that just his name was used in the movie Sunset Boulevard as a potential star for William Holden's unsold baseball screenplay. Demarest appeared with veteran western film star Roscoe Ates in the 1958 episode "And the Desert Shall Blossom" of CBS's Alfred Hitchcock Presents. In the story line, Ates and Demarest appear as old timers living in the Nevada desert. The local sheriff, played by Ben Johnson, appears with an eviction notice, but he agrees to let the pair stay on their property if they can make a dead rosebush bloom within the next month. In 1959 Demarest was named the lead actor of the 18-week sitcom Love and Marriage on NBC in the 1959–1960 season. Demarest played William Harris, the owner of a failing music company who refuses to handle popular rock and roll music, which presumably might save the firm from bankruptcy. Joining Demarest on the series were Jeanne Bal, Murray Hamilton and Stubby Kaye. Demarest appeared as Police Chief Aloysius of the Santa Rosita Police Department in the film It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963), as well as on a memorable episode ("What's in the Box") of Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone as a hen-pecked husband driven to the murder of his wife. His most famous television role was in the ABC and then CBS sitcom My Three Sons from 1965 to 1972, playing Uncle Charley O'Casey. He replaced William Frawley, whose failing health had made procuring insurance impossible. Demarest had worked with Fred MacMurray previously in the films Hands Across the Table (1935), Pardon My Past (1945), On Our Merry Way (1948), and The Far Horizons (1955) and was a personal friend of MacMurray. Also, he worked with Irene Dunne in Never a Dull Moment (1950).

Known For

  • The Mike Douglas Show

    The Mike Douglas Show

  • The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

    The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson

  • Bonanza

    Bonanza

  • Bonanza

    Bonanza

  • The Twilight Zone

    The Twilight Zone

  • Dr. Kildare

    Dr. Kildare

  • The Red Skelton Show

    The Red Skelton Show

  • Wagon Train

    Wagon Train

  • Ben Casey

    Ben Casey

  • Burke's Law

    Burke's Law

  • My Three Sons

    My Three Sons

  • Whispering Smith

    Whispering Smith

  • Alfred Hitchcock Presents

    Alfred Hitchcock Presents

  • Sincerely Yours

    Sincerely Yours

  • The Rebel

    The Rebel

  • Tales of Wells Fargo

    Tales of Wells Fargo

  • Johnny Doughboy

    Johnny Doughboy

  • McMillan & Wife

    McMillan & Wife

  • McMillan & Wife

    McMillan & Wife

  • Ellery Queen

    Ellery Queen

  • Little Men

    Little Men

  • Bright Lights

    Bright Lights

  • Twenty Plus Two

    Twenty Plus Two

  • One Wild Night

    One Wild Night

  • Studio 57

    Studio 57

  • That Darn Cat!

    That Darn Cat!

  • The Yellow Mountain

    The Yellow Mountain

  • The Greatest Show on Earth

    The Greatest Show on Earth

  • Sullivan's Travels

    Sullivan's Travels

  • Rosalie

    Rosalie

  • Laugh It Off

    Laugh It Off

  • Big City

    Big City

  • The Far Horizons

    The Far Horizons

  • Excuse My Dust

    Excuse My Dust

  • Jupiter's Darling

    Jupiter's Darling

  • Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm

    Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm

  • Nine Girls

    Nine Girls

  • The Strip

    The Strip

  • What Price Glory

    What Price Glory

  • Going My Way

    Going My Way

  • Fugitive Lady

    Fugitive Lady

  • Along Came Jones

    Along Came Jones

  • A Sailor's Sweetheart

    A Sailor's Sweetheart

  • He's a Cockeyed Wonder

    He's a Cockeyed Wonder

  • My Favorite Spy

    My Favorite Spy

  • Sharp Shooters

    Sharp Shooters

  • The Wonderful World of Disney

    The Wonderful World of Disney

  • Wake Up and Live

    Wake Up and Live

  • It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

    It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

  • The Gay Old Bird

    The Gay Old Bird

  • Oh, Doctor

    Oh, Doctor

  • Lucy Gallant

    Lucy Gallant

  • Diamond Jim

    Diamond Jim

  • Time Out for Romance

    Time Out for Romance

  • Simple Sis

    Simple Sis

  • The Wild McCullochs

    The Wild McCullochs

  • Pepe

    Pepe

  • The First Auto

    The First Auto

  • Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down The Line

    Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down The Line

  • The Lady Wants Mink

    The Lady Wants Mink

  • Salty O'Rourke

    Salty O'Rourke

  • Night Has a Thousand Eyes

    Night Has a Thousand Eyes

  • The Rawhide Years

    The Rawhide Years

  • The Millionaire

    The Millionaire

  • The Night Court

    The Night Court

  • Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

    Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

  • Behave Yourself!

    Behave Yourself!

  • The Lady Eve

    The Lady Eve

  • Dressed to Kill

    Dressed to Kill

  • The Jazz Singer

    The Jazz Singer

  • Finger Prints

    Finger Prints

  • All Through the Night

    All Through the Night

  • Viva Las Vegas

    Viva Las Vegas

  • Escape from Fort Bravo

    Escape from Fort Bravo

  • Don't Be Afraid of the Dark

    Don't Be Afraid of the Dark

  • Rookies on Parade

    Rookies on Parade

  • The Mountain

    The Mountain

  • The Palm Beach Story

    The Palm Beach Story

  • The Great Ziegfeld

    The Great Ziegfeld

  • Hell on Frisco Bay

    Hell on Frisco Bay

  • Son of Flubber

    Son of Flubber

  • Love and Marriage

    Love and Marriage

  • The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek

    The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek

  • Blonde Trouble

    Blonde Trouble

  • Red, Hot and Blue

    Red, Hot and Blue

  • The Private War of Major Benson

    The Private War of Major Benson

  • Romance on the Run

    Romance on the Run

  • Hail the Conquering Hero

    Hail the Conquering Hero

  • The Golden Fleecing

    The Golden Fleecing

  • Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood

    Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood

  • The Devil and Miss Jones

    The Devil and Miss Jones

  • The Jerry Lewis Show

    The Jerry Lewis Show

  • On Our Merry Way

    On Our Merry Way

  • Dangerous When Wet

    Dangerous When Wet

  • Stage Door Canteen

    Stage Door Canteen

  • Television: The First Fifty Years

    Television: The First Fifty Years

  • The Perils of Pauline

    The Perils of Pauline

  • Once Upon a Time

    Once Upon a Time

  • Hollywood Victory Caravan

    Hollywood Victory Caravan

  • Christmas in July

    Christmas in July

  • When Willie Comes Marching Home

    When Willie Comes Marching Home

  • Easy Living

    Easy Living

  • Pardon My Past

    Pardon My Past

  • Never a Dull Moment

    Never a Dull Moment

  • Miracles for Sale

    Miracles for Sale

  • Glamour Boy

    Glamour Boy

  • The Casino Murder Case

    The Casino Murder Case

  • Hands Across the Table

    Hands Across the Table

  • The Jolson Story

    The Jolson Story

  • Comin' Round the Mountain

    Comin' Round the Mountain

  • The Great Moment

    The Great Moment

  • Peck's Bad Boy with the Circus

    Peck's Bad Boy with the Circus

  • True to Life

    True to Life

  • The Sainted Sisters

    The Sainted Sisters

  • Jolson Sings Again

    Jolson Sings Again

  • Gunfight at Black Horses Canyon

    Gunfight at Black Horses Canyon

  • The Gracie Allen Murder Case

    The Gracie Allen Murder Case

  • Riding High

    Riding High

  • Here Come the Girls

    Here Come the Girls

  • Sorrowful Jones

    Sorrowful Jones

  • Dangerous Blondes

    Dangerous Blondes

  • Wedding Present

    Wedding Present

  • The Farmer's Daughter

    The Farmer's Daughter

  • Variety Girl

    Variety Girl

  • The Murder Man

    The Murder Man

  • Duffy's Tavern

    Duffy's Tavern

  • Fog Over Frisco

    Fog Over Frisco

  • Pardon My Sarong

    Pardon My Sarong

  • Charlie Chan at the Opera

    Charlie Chan at the Opera

  • A Girl in Every Port

    A Girl in Every Port

  • After Office Hours

    After Office Hours

  • Our Hearts Were Growing Up

    Our Hearts Were Growing Up

  • While New York Sleeps

    While New York Sleeps

  • The Great McGinty

    The Great McGinty

  • The First Legion

    The First Legion

  • The Great Gambini

    The Great Gambini

  • The Great Man Votes

    The Great Man Votes

  • Josette

    Josette

  • The Cowboy Quarterback

    The Cowboy Quarterback

  • King of the Roaring 20's – The Story of Arnold Rothstein

    King of the Roaring 20's – The Story of Arnold Rothstein

  • The Bush Leaguer

    The Bush Leaguer

  • Wolf of New York

    Wolf of New York

  • Don't Tell the Wife

    Don't Tell the Wife

  • White Lies

    White Lies

  • Ride on Vaquero

    Ride on Vaquero

  • Love on the Run

    Love on the Run

  • A Million Bid

    A Million Bid

  • The Great Hospital Mystery

    The Great Hospital Mystery

  • Five and Ten Cent Annie

    Five and Ten Cent Annie

  • The Crash

    The Crash

  • The Hit Parade

    The Hit Parade

  • Country Fair

    Country Fair

  • Mind Your Own Business

    Mind Your Own Business

  • Many Happy Returns

    Many Happy Returns

  • Behind the Eight Ball

    Behind the Eight Ball

  • The Blazing Forest

    The Blazing Forest

  • Life Begins at Eight-Thirty

    Life Begins at Eight-Thirty

  • The Black Diamond Express

    The Black Diamond Express

  • King of the Turf

    King of the Turf

  • Matinee Ladies

    Matinee Ladies

  • What Happened To Father

    What Happened To Father

  • Pay as You Enter

    Pay as You Enter

  • Don't Tell the Wife

    Don't Tell the Wife

  • The Butter and Egg Man

    The Butter and Egg Man

  • Seeing Things

    Seeing Things

  • True to the Army

    True to the Army

  • A Reno Divorce

    A Reno Divorce