Frank Sutton
| Frank Spencer Sutton | |
|---|---|
|
Sutton (right) as Gunnery Sergeant Vince Carter with Jim Nabors as Gomer Pyle, 1966. | |
| Born |
Frank Spencer Sutton October 23, 1923 Clarksville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died |
June 28, 1974 (aged 50) Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Heart attack |
| Resting place | Greenwood Cemetery in Clarksville, Tennessee |
| Alma mater | Columbia University |
| Spouse(s) | Toby Igler Sutton (married 1949-1974, his death) |
| Children | Joseph and Amanda |
| Parent(s) | Frank Sims and Dorris Thelma Spencer Sutton |
Frank Spencer Sutton (October 23, 1923 – June 28, 1974) was an American actor best remembered for his role as Gunnery Sergeant Vince Carter on the CBS television series Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
Early life
Sutton was born in Clarksville in Montgomery County in northern Tennessee, the only child of Frank Sims Sutton (1885-1938) and the former Dorris Thelma Spencer (1903-1986).[1] When he was eight years old, his father became employed as a Linotype operator at the Nashville Tennessean in Nashville. His father died from a gastrointestinal hemorrhage and left behind his wife and 14-year-old son.
Sutton developed an interest in acting, playing his first role at age nine and also starring in the drama club at East Nashville High School, where he graduated in 1941. He later said, "The first time I walked out on a stage, I had a warm feeling. I knew then I wanted to be an actor."[2]
After high school, Sutton returned to Clarksville to become a radio announcer. He enlisted in the U.S. Army during World War II and served in the South Pacific, taking part in 14 assault landings.[3]
Acting career
Honorably discharged at the war's end as a sergeant, he began acting on stage.[4] He attended the Columbia University School of General Studies, graduating cum laude with a bachelor's degree in drama in 1952.
Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, Sutton played small roles in television shows such as Decoy, Route 66, Naked City, The Greatest Show on Earth, The Fugitive, The Goldbergs, 87th Precinct, Gunsmoke, Target: The Corruptors, Empire, The Twilight Zone, and The Untouchables. He had a continuing role as Cadet Eric Rattison, the great rival of the Polaris Unit manned by the series' heroes, in Tom Corbett, Space Cadet from 1950 to 1955. In 1955, he received his big break in the Academy Award-winning movie Marty, in which he played the title character's friend, Ralph. He also had a role in The Satan Bug, a 1965 spy thriller. He returned to the stage in The Andersonville Trial in the early 1960s.
Having primarily acted in dramas,[5] Sutton's breakthrough role was on "Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.", a 1964 episode of The Andy Griffith Show, in which he played the cynical and easily exasperated Gunnery Sergeant Vince Carter opposite Jim Nabors' character Gomer Pyle. This episode led to a spin-off TV comedy, Gomer Pyle, USMC, where Sutton continued the role for five seasons, until the show ended its run in 1969. He also appeared in public service announcements in the role of Gunnery Sergeant Carter. After Gomer Pyle ceased production, Sutton appeared regularly on Nabors' variety show The Jim Nabors Hour with Gomer Pyle co-star Ronnie Schell. Sutton played the brother-in-law of Nabors' character in comedy sketches.[6][7] Sutton performed in dinner theater, playing, among other roles, the father in Norman, Is That You? and made guest appearances on other television programs.[8]
Personal life and death
In 1949, Sutton married the former Toby Igler, a soap-opera writer, and they had two children, Joseph and Amanda.[2]
On June 28, 1974, while preparing for a performance in the comedy play, Luv, at the Beverly Barn Dinner Playhouse in Shreveport in northwestern Louisiana, Sutton died of a heart attack.[2] He was 50 years old. He is buried in the Greenwood Cemetery in his hometown of Clarksville.
Filmography
| Television | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role(s) | Notes |
| 1950—1955 | Tom Corbett, Space Cadet | Cadet Eric Raddison | |
| 1954 | The Glenn Miller Story | uncredited | |
| 1955 | Marty | Ralph (uncredited) | |
| 1956 | The Edge of Night | Sgt. Fitzsimmons | |
| 1958—1961 | Naked City | Franklin Maquon | |
| 1960—1961 | The Secret Storm | Joe Sullivan #2 | |
| 1961—1962 | Gunsmoke | Charlie (1961) Olie (1962) Billy Marston (1962) | |
| 1962 | Have Gun – Will Travel | Davey Walsh | One time role – The Trap (1962) |
| The Twilight Zone | Frank, Jerry's manager | One time role in episode "The Dummy" | |
| 1960—1961 | The Secret Storm | Joe Sullivan #2 | |
| 1962—1963 | Combat! (TV series) | Corporal Cording | – The Chateau (1963) |
| 1962—1963 | The Untouchables | Benny Stryker (1962) Smiley Barris (1962) Angie Stazak (1963) Sgt. Davey McCain (1963) |
|
| 1963 | The Fugitive | (deputy) Jackson | One time role in episode 3 "The Other Side of the Mountain" |
| 1964 | The Andy Griffith Show | Gunnery Sergeant Vince Carter | One time role in episode "Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C." |
| 1964—1969 | Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. | Gunnery Sergeant Vince Carter | |
| 1969–1971 | The Jim Nabors Hour | Himself | |
| 1970–1973 | Love American Style | Various | Episodes:
|
| Films | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1955 | Marty | Ralph | Uncredited |
| 1957 | Four Boys and a Gun | Ollie Denker | |
| 1961 | Town Without Pity | Sgt. Chuck Snyder | |
| 1965 | The Satan Bug | Donald | |
| 1974 | Hurricane | Bert Pearson | Television movie released posthumously |
References
- ↑ "Frank Spencer Sutton (1923 - 1974) - Find A Grave Memorial". Findagrave.com. Retrieved 2014-03-24.
- 1 2 3 "Gomer's Sgt. Carter, Frank Sutton, Dead". St. Petersburg Times. Times Publishing Company. June 29, 1974. p. 14-A. Retrieved 2008-11-21.
- ↑ Handsaker, Gene (August 21, 1966). "Visiting the Real War". St. Petersburg Times. Times Publishing Company. p. 4. Retrieved 2008-11-22.
- ↑ Kleiner, Dick (March 29, 1997). "Reader asks what preceded 'Gomer Pyle'?". Calhoun Times: 3. Retrieved 2008-12-06.
- ↑ Lowry, Cynthia (1965-07-29). "Gomer Pyle Show Scored Immediately". Ellensburg Daily Record. Associated Press. p. 4. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
- ↑ "Nabors' Production Still Popular". Rome News-Tribune. News Publishing Company. October 16, 1970. pp. 9–A. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
- ↑ "Complete Television Programs for Thursday". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Block Communications. September 17, 1970. p. 48. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
- ↑ Rearden, T. J. (May 18, 1972). "Roaming Around Florida". The Deuniak Springs Herald. p. 10. Retrieved 2008-11-23.
External links
- Several dozen articles about Frank Sutton
- Frank Sutton at the Internet Movie Database
- Frank Spencer Sutton at Find a Grave
- Obituary on National Obituary Archive
- 2009 article from the Clarksville Leaf Chronicle, the newspaper from Sutton's hometown.