Howard Wendell
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
January 2, 1908
Howard Wendell | |
|---|---|
 Wendell in The Big Heat (1953) | |
| Born | Howard David Wendell January 2, 1908 Johnstown, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | August 11, 1975 (aged 67) Oregon City, Oregon, U.S. |
| Education | Ohio University, Cleveland Play House |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1951–1971 |
Howard David Wendell[1] (January 2, 1908[2] – August 11, 1975[1]) was an American actor.
A native of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Wendell was one of two sons born to Irwin Wendell and Clara Heal.[1][3] By 1913, the family had relocated to Elyria, Ohio,[4] where his father found regular employment at Parsch Lumber and Coal Company,[5] first as a truck driver and later as the foreman at the lumber yard.[6][7] Wendell attended Ohio University and later apprenticed at the Cleveland Playhouse.[8][9]
Wendell's Broadway credits include Make a Wish (1951), The Curious Savage (1950), Arms and the Man (1950), The Show Off (1950), and The Great Campaign (1947).[10] He acted in the Santa Barbara Summer Theatre and in theaters in Hollywood, Phoenix, La Jolla, and San Francisco.[11] He received a gold cup in recognition of being named as the actor with the best performance in 1946 at the Newport Casino Theatre in Rhode Island.[12]
Between 1949 and 1970, Wendell made a number of film appearances but worked mostly on TV, in such programs as Dragnet, Perry Mason, Wagon Train, Gunsmoke, The Texan (S1E13), Bonanza, Batman (season 1, episodes 3 and 4), The Munsters, The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet, Leave it to Beaver, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Hazel, and The Big Valley. His final appearance was in Adam-12.
Personal life and death
From September 13, 1937, until their divorce in January 1968, Wendell was married to Harriet Morley,[3][13] whom he had met while apprenticing at the Cleveland Play House, where she was employed as a costumer. The union produced three sons and one daughter.[14]
On August 11, 1975, at age 67, Wendell died of undisclosed causes at his home in Oregon City, survived by his wife, children and brother.[1]
