Fred Gwynne Biography, Filmography, Pictures

17 October

Fred Gwynne Biography, Filmography, Pictures

Author: Sami / Category: Celebrity Biography

Fred Gwynne Biography, Filmography, Pictures Frederick Hubbard “Fred” Gwynne (10 July 1926 – 2 July 1993) was a highly talented American actor, being famous for his roles in the sitcoms “Car 54, Where Are You?” (1960s) and “The Munsters” (1960s), also appearing in musicals on Broadway.

Gwynne was born in New York City to a wealthy family, attending the Groton School and graduating from Harvard University in 1951. At Harvard, he was on staff of the “Harvard Crimson” newspaper and performed in the dining club’s several theatricals. He served in the US Navy as a radioman during World War II. After graduation, Gwynne acted in the Brattle Theatre Repertory Company in Cambridge, Massachusetts acting in Shakespeare. Later on, he moved to New Work working as a musician and copywriter; he also worked as a book illustrator and commercial artist, and had his first book, “The Best in Show” published in 1958.

Gwynne debuted on Broadway with the role of Stinker in the comedy “Mrs. McThing”. In 1955, he had a remarkable appearance on “The Phil Silvers Show” in the episode “The Eating Contest”. From 1956-1963, Gwynne appeared in several TV dramatic showcases – The Kaiser Aluminum Hour (1956), The DuPont Show of the Month (1957) or The United States Steel Hour (1953), but he gained fame in situation comedies. He was cast by producer-writer Nat Hiken in a lead role in the situation comedy, Car 45, Where Are You” (1961), as officer “Francis Muldoon”, sitcom that lasted for two seasons. During these two seasons of the sitcom he became longtime friends with co-star Al Lewis. Gwynne was cast as Herman Munster in the sitcom, The Munsters (1964) that also lasted for two seasons. For the role, Gwynne had to wear 40-50 lbs of padding, makeup and heavy 4 inch elevator shoes. He made a couple of guest appearances as “Herman Munster” on The Red Skelton Show and in a “Freddie the Freeloader” comedy sketch.

Gwynne displayed his voice in a Hallmark Hall of Fame musical, The Littlest Angel (1969), appearing in various roles on stage and on screen. His most notable performance on Broadway was the role of Big Daddy in the revival of Cat on a Hot Ton Roof. A year later, he appeared as the Stage Manager in Our Town at the American Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford, Connecticut. He came back to Broadway in 1976, in a memorable role in first two parts of The Texas Trilogy.

Fred Gwynne Biography, Filmography, Pictures He played the role of Jud Crandall in Pet Sematary (1989 based on the author Stephen King. The Jud Crandall character had returning appearances in some episodes of South Park. Gwynne also had favorable reviewed roles in several movies such as The Cotton Club (1984), Ironweed (1987), and Disorganized Crime (1989). His last role was in the comedy My Cousin Vinny (1992) as Judge Chamberlain Haller.

Besides acting, Gwynne sang professionally, painted and wrote and illustrated children’s book, including The King Who Rained, A Chocolate Moose for Dinner or the A Little Pigeon Toad, books published by the house Simon&Schuster. His voice appeared in commercials and radio shows, being known for his contribution to CBSRMT’s success.

Gwynne married his first wife Foxy in 1952, having five children and got divorced in 1980. Gwynne and his second wife Deb lived in a farmhouse in Taneytown, Maryland.

Gwynne past away in July, 1993 at the age of 66, in Taneytown, Maryland, suffering from cancer of the pancreas.

Filmography

1. Lincoln (1992) (TV) (voice) …. Edwin Stanton
2. My Cousin Vinny (1992) …. Judge Chamberlain Haller
3. Shadows and Fog (1991) …. Hacker’s Follower
4. Murder in Black and White (1990) (TV) …. Brannigan
5. Earthday Birthday (1990) …. Fred the Moose
6. Pet Sematary (1989) …. Jud Crandall
7. Disorganized Crime (1989) …. Max Green
8. Ironweed (1987) …. Oscar Reo
9. Fatal Attraction (1987) …. Arthur
10. The Secret of My Succe$s (1987) …. Donald Davenport
11. Murder by the Book (1987) (TV) …. Victor Greville
12. Jake’s M.O. (1987) …. Jake Tekulve
13. The Christmas Star (1986) (TV) …. Waters
14. The Boy Who Could Fly (1986) …. Uncle Hugo Gibb
15. Vanishing Act (1986) (TV) …. Father Macklin
16. Off Beat (1986) …. The Commissioner
17. “Kane & Abel” (1985) TV mini-series …. Davis LeRoy
18. Water (1985/I) …. Franklin Spender
19. The Cotton Club (1984) …. Frenchy Demange

Fred Gwynne Biography, Filmography, Pictures

20. The Mysterious Stranger (1982) (TV) …. Balthasar Hoffman
21. “American Playhouse” …. Charles Dickens (1 episode, 1982)
22. So Fine (1981) …. Chairman Lincoln
23. The Munsters’ Revenge (1981) (TV) …. Herman Munster
24. The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg (1980) (TV) …. Rev. Burgess
25. Simon (1980) …. Maj. Gen. Korey
26. A Day with Conrad Green (1980) (TV) …. Conrad Green
27. Jack-a-boy (1980)
28. La luna (1979) …. Douglas Winter
29. Sanctuary of Fear (1979) (TV) …. Judge Potter
30. Captains Courageous (1977) (TV) …. Long Jack
31. “Captains and the Kings” (1976) TV mini-series
32. Paradise Lost (1974) (TV) …. Pike
33. “Hallmark Hall of Fame” …. Cab Driver (2 episodes, 1969-1972)
34. Harvey (1972) (TV) …. E.J. Lofgren
35. Dames at Sea (1971) (TV) …. Hennesy
36. The Police (1971) (TV) …. Sergeant
37. The Littlest Angel (1969) (TV) …. Patience
38. Anderson and Company (1969) (TV) …. Marshall Anderson
39. Arsenic and Old Lace (1969) (TV) …. Jonathan Brewster
40. Mad Mad Scientist (1968) (TV) …. Warren Springer
41. “NET Playhouse” …. Officer Avonzino (1 episode, 1967)
42. Antkeeper (1966) …. Narrator

Fred Gwynne Biography, Filmography, Pictures

43. Munster, Go Home! (1966) …. Herman Munster
44. “The Munsters” …. Herman Munster (72 episodes, 1964-1966)
45. “The Red Skelton Show” …. Herman Munster (1 episode, 1965)
46. “Brenner” …. Francis X. Fish (1 episode, 1964)
47. “The United States Steel Hour” …. Willie Botsford (1 episode, 1963)
48. “Car 54, Where Are You?” …. Officer Francis Muldoon (60 episodes, 1961-1963)
49. “The DuPont Show of the Week” …. William Hallowell Magee (1 episode, 1962)
50. “Play of the Week” (1 episode, 1961)
51. “The DuPont Show of the Month” …. Wilson (2 episodes, 1958)
52. “The Steve Allen Show” …. Comedian-Regular (1 episode, 1958)
53. “Kraft Television Theatre” (2 episodes, 1957)
54. “The Kaiser Aluminum Hour” …. Egghead (1 episode, 1957)
55. “Studio One” …. Little Dude (1 episode, 1956)
56. “The Phil Silvers Show” …. Pvt. Honergan / … (2 episodes, 1955-1956)
57. On the Waterfront (1954) …. Slim