Name
Roscoe Karns
Known For
Acting
Birthday
1891-09-06
Deathday
1970-02-06 (79 years old)
Place of Birth
San Bernardino, California, USA
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Roscoe Karns (September 7, 1891 – February 6, 1970) was an American actor who appeared in nearly 150 films between 1915 and 1964. He specialized in cynical, wise-cracking (and often tipsy) characters, and his rapid-fire delivery enlivened many comedies and crime thrillers in the 1930s and 1940s. Though he appeared in numerous silent films, such as Wings and Beggars of Life, his career didn't really take off until sound arrived. Arguably his best-known film role was the annoying bus passenger Oscar Shapeley, who tries to pick up Claudette Colbert in the Oscar-winning comedy It Happened One Night (1934), quickly followed by one of his best performances as the boozy press agent Owen O'Malley in Howard Hawks' Twentieth Century. (Six years later, he co-starred as one of the reporters in another Hawks classic, His Girl Friday.) In 1937, Paramount teamed him with Lynne Overman as a pair of laconic private eyes in two B comedy-mysteries, Murder Goes to College and Partners in Crime. From 1950 to 1954, Karns played the title role in the popular DuMont Television Network series Rocky King, Inside Detective. His son, character actor Todd Karns, also appeared in that series.
From 1959 to 1962, Karns was cast as Admiral Walter Shafer in seventy-three of the ninety-five episodes of the CBS military sitcom/drama series, Hennesey, starring Jackie Cooper in the title role of a United States Navy physician, and Abby Dalton as nurse Martha Hale.
His final film was another Hawks comedy, Man's Favorite Sport?, in 1964.
Karns was born in San Bernardino, California, and died in Los Angeles. Description above from the Wikipedia article Roscoe Karns, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia
Known For
7.386
Walter Burns is an irresistibly conniving newspaper publisher desperate to woo back his pa...
7.823
A runaway heiress makes a deal with the rogue reporter trailing her but the mismatched pai...
6.105
A young Jewish man is torn between tradition and individuality when his old-fashioned fami...
6.953
Rival reporters Sam Craig and Tess Harding fall in love and get married, only to find thei...
6.936
Joe and Paul Fabrini are Wildcat, or independent, truck drivers who have their own small o...
7
Roger Willoughby is a renowned fishing expert, who, unbeknownst to his friends, co-workers...
6.846
A temperamental Broadway producer trains an untutored actress, but when she becomes a star...
7.272
A terminally ill woman and a debonair murderer facing execution meet and fall in love on a...
- 1934 It Happened One Night as Oscar Shapeley
- 1940 His Girl Friday as McCue
- 1920 The Family Honor as Dal Tucker
- 1942 Woman of the Year as Phil Whittaker
- 1934 Twentieth Century as Owen O'Malley
- 1923 The Ten Commandments as The Boy in the Rain (uncredited)
- 1941 Petticoat Politics as Joe Higgins
- 1933 Alice in Wonderland as Tweedledee
- 1942 You Can't Escape Forever as 'Mac' McTurk
- 1928 Moran of the Marines as Swatty
- 1941 Footsteps in the Dark as Monahan
- 1938 You and Me as Cuffy
- 1940 They Drive by Night as Irish McGurn
- 1964 Man's Favorite Sport? as Major Phipps
- 1948 Devil's Cargo as Lt. Hardy
- 1922 Her Own Money as Jerry Woodward
- 1932 Night After Night as Leo
- 1927 Ten Modern Commandments as Benny Burnaway
- 1935 Wings in the Dark as Nick Williams
- 1940 Double Alibi as Jeremiah Jenkins
- 1933 A Lady's Profession as Tony
- 1931 Laughing Sinners as Fred Geer
- 1935 Four Hours to Kill! as Johnson
- 1923 Other Men's Daughters as Hubert
- 1932 If I Had a Million as Private O'Brien
- 1933 Today We Live as McGinnis
- 1929 This Thing Called Love as Harry Bertrand
- 1935 Alibi Ike as Carey
- 1933 One Sunday Afternoon as Snappy Downer
- 1940 Saturday's Children as Willie Sands
- 1935 Front Page Woman as Toots O'Grady
- 1929 New York Nights as Johnny Dolan
- 1932 Week-End Marriage as Jim Davis
- 1928 Win That Girl as Johnny Norton II
- 1942 A Tragedy at Midnight as Cassidy
- 1946 Avalanche as Red Kelly
- 1948 The Inside Story as Eustace Peabody
- 1939 That's Right – You're Wrong as Mal Stamp
- 1936 Cain and Mabel as Reilly
- 1932 Two Against the World as Segall, reporter
- 1930 Safety in Numbers as Bertram Shapiro
- 1943 My Son, The Hero as Big-Time Morgan
- 1938 Thanks for the Memory as George Kent
- 1931 Pleasure as Arnie
- 1934 Shoot the Works as Sailor Burke
- 1948 Speed to Spare as Kangaroo
- 1943 Riding High as Shorty
- 1935 Two-Fisted as Chick Moran
- 1935 The Woman in Red as Man in court room (uncredited)
- 1937 On Such a Night as Joe Flynn
- 1937 Night of Mystery as Sergeant Heath
- 1940 Ladies Must Live as Pete Larrabee
- 1936 Three Married Men as Peter Cary
- 1948 Texas, Brooklyn & Heaven as Officer Carmody
- 1938 Tip-Off Girls as Tom Benson aka Tommy Logan
- 1934 I Sell Anything as Monk
- 1937 Partners in Crime as Sim Perkins
- 1930 Troopers Three as Bugs
- 1932 Lawyer Man as Merritt - Reporter (uncredited)
- 1932 The Crooked Circle as Harry Carter
- 1928 The Shopworn Angel as Dance Director
- 1947 That's My Man as Toby Gleeton
- 1937 Murder Goes to College as Sim Perkins
- 1939 King of Chinatown as Rip Harrigan
- 1938 Dangerous to Know as Duncan
- 1946 One Way to Love as Hobie Simmons
- 1930 Man Trouble as Scott
- 1933 The Women in His Life as Aloysius Lester
- 1932 One Way Passage as S.S. Maloa Bartender (uncredited)
- 1947 Vigilantes of Boomtown as Bill Delaney
- 1929 Copy as City Editor John Mack
- 1944 Hi, Good Lookin'! as Archie
- 1935 Red Hot Tires as Bud Keene
- 1929 The Flying Fleet as Shipwrecked Radio Operator (uncredited)
- 1930 The Gorilla as Simmons
- 1920 The Life of the Party as Sam Perkins
- 1943 Old Acquaintance as Charlie Archer
- 1939 Dancing Co-Ed as Joe Drews
- 1946 I Ring Doorbells as Stubby
- 1931 Dirigible as Sock McGuire
- 1939 Everything's on Ice as Felix Miller
- 1932 Under-Cover Man as Dannie
- 1941 The Gay Vagabond as Arthur Dixon / Jerry Dixon
- 1942 Yokel Boy as Al Devers
- 1927 The Jazz Singer as Agent (uncredited)
- 1928 The Trail of '98 as Man on Ship (uncredited)
- 1932 The Roadhouse Murder as Dale
- 1926 You'd Be Surprised as Party Guest (uncredited)
- 1936 Woman Trap as Mopsy
- 1937 Clarence as Clarence Smith
- 1943 Stage Door Canteen as Roscoe Karns
- 1944 Minstrel Man as Lasses White
- 1944 The Navy Way as Frankie Gimble
- 1941 Road to Happiness as Charley Grady
- 1927 Wings as Lieutenant Cameron
- 1931 Ladies of the Big House as Frank - Twenty Questions player (uncredited)
- 1958 Onionhead as 'Windy' Woods
- 1933 Gambling Ship as Blooey
- 1932 They Call It Sin as Brad - Rehearsal Director (uncredited)
- 1932 Stowaway as Insp. Redding
- 1928 Jazz Mad as Sol Levy
- 1933 Grand Slam as Contest Radio Announcer
- 1932 Play Girl as Gambler (uncredited)
- 1928 The Vanishing Pioneer as Ray Hearn
- 1934 Come On, Marines! as Spud McGurke
- 1943 His Butler's Sister as Fields
- 1936 Border Flight as Calico Smith
- 1941 Black Eyes and Blues as Alfred Harmon
- 1941 Half Shot at Sunrise as Henry Warren
- 1931 Left Over Ladies as 'Scoop'
- 1928 Warming Up as Hippo
- 1940 Meet the Missus as Joe Higgins
- 1930 Little Accident as Gilbert
- 1930 The Costello Case as Blair
- 1928 Beau Sabreur as Buddy
- 1924 The Midnight Express as Switch Hogan
- 1938 Scandal Street as Austin Brown
- 1928 The Desert Bride as Pvt. Terry
- 1922 The Trouper
- 1928 Beggars of Life as Lame Hoppy
- 1931 Many a Slip as Stan Price
- 1915 A Western Governor's Humanity as The Sheriff
- 1915 A Species of Mexican Man
- 1915 From Champion to Tramp as The Girl's Father
- 1915 Mr. Carlson of Arizona
- 1928 Something Always Happens as George
- 1919 Poor Relations as Henry
- 1925 The Overland Limited as Patrick Henry Madden
- 1921 The Man Tamer as Bradley P. Caldwell Jr
- 1927 Ritzy as Smith's Valet
- 1922 Conquering the Woman as Shorty Thompson
- 1928 Object: Alimony as Al Bryant
- 1924 Bluff as Jack Hallowell
- 1932 High Pressure as Telephone Salesman (uncredited)
- 1925 Dollar Down as Gene Meadows
- 1924 The Foolish Virgin as Chuck Brady
- 1934 Elmer and Elsie as Rocky Cott
- 1936 Three Cheers for Love as Doc 'Short Circuit' Wilson
- 1954 December Bride ( 1 episode )
- 1962 The Lucy Show ( 1 episode ) as Mr. Foley
- 1959 Hennesey ( 96 episodes ) as Capt. Walter Shafer
- 1957 Richard Diamond, Private Detective ( 1 episode ) as Ed Church
- 1950 Inside Detective ( 4 episodes ) as Police Inspector Rocky King
- 1950 Rocky King, Detective ( 248 episodes ) as Police Inspector Rocky King
- 1954 December Bride ( 1 episode ) as Charley Allen
