Cat. #0012291: WILLIAM DEMAREST

Nifty vintage 8x10-inch black and white portrait as Uncle Charlie on "My Three Sons" (1965-1972), boldly signed in blue felt-tip marker in his later years. In good condition. Cranky character actor William Demarest headlined on the vaudeville and Broadway stages before making his film debut in 1926, paired with Clyde Cook in a series of "Mutt and Jeff"-style silent comedies and appearing as Buster Billings in The Jazz Singer (1927). He became a staple supporting player during Hollywood's early talkie era and Golden Age, associated with a cold-fish stare, ratchety voice and bone-crushing pratfalls, which always kept audiences laughing. His antics were especially prized by writer/director Preston Sturges, who cast Demarest in virtually all his films: The Great McGinty (1940), Christmas in July (1940), The Lady Eve (1941), Sullivan's Travels (1942), The Palm Beach Story (1942), Hail the Conquering Hero (1944), The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944), and The Great Moment (1944).  He was also