Willard Parker
Willard Parker | |
---|---|
Parker in The Fighting Guardsman | |
Born |
Worcester Van Eps February 5, 1912 New York City, New York, U.S. |
Died |
December 4, 1996 84) Rancho Mirage, Riverside County California, U.S. | (aged
Cause of death | Heart attack |
Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Cathedral City) |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1937-1972 |
Spouse(s) |
Marion Pierce (1939-1951) (divorced) (1 child) Virginia Field (1951-1992, her death) |
Children | son (b. 1947)[1] |
Willard Parker (February 5, 1912 – December 4, 1996) was an American film and television actor.
He was born Worster Van Eps in New York City. Prior to becoming an actor, he was a meter reader and a tennis pro. Although he had some stage experience, he mainly appeared as a second lead in films after 1938. Tall and with wavy hair, he was married to the actress Virginia Field.
Parker was cast as Ranger Jace Pearson in the 52-episode CBS television series, Tales of the Texas Rangers, which aired from 1955 to 1958. His co-star was Harry Lauter as Ranger Clay Morgan. The series was rerun thereafter on ABC.
He guest starred in a few other television series, including the CBS anthology series, Schlitz Playhouse (four episodes) and Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse. He also appeared on Lee Marvin's NBC crime drama, M Squad, and ABC's religion drama series, Going My Way, starring Gene Kelly and Leo G. Carroll as Roman Catholic priests in New York City. Parker was cast as Msgr. Joe Giblin in the 1962 episode, "The Crooked Angel."
Parker died of a heart attack at the age of eighty-four in Rancho Mirage in Riverside County, California.
Filmography
- A Slight Case of Murder (1938)
- What a Woman! (1943)
- The Fighting Guardsman (1946)
- The Wreck of the Hesperus (1948)
- The Mating of Millie (1948)
- You Gotta Stay Happy (1948)
- Relentless (1948)
- Slightly French (1949)
- Emergency Wedding (1950)
- Hunt the Man Down (1950)
- Caribbean (1952)
- Sangaree (1953)
- The Great Jesse James Raid (1953)
- Kiss Me Kate (1953)
- Naked Gun (1956)
- Lone Texan (1959)
- Walk Tall (1960)
- The Earth Dies Screaming (1964)
- Waco (1966)
References
- Halliwell's Who's Who in the Movies, published by Harper-Collins, ISBN 0-06-093507-3
- The Film Encyclopedia by Ephraim Katz, published by Collins, ISBN 0-06-074214-3