Bert Wheeler
| Bert Wheeler | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 7, 1895 Paterson, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. New York City, U.S. |
| Nationality | United States |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1929-1962 |
| Known for | Wheeler & Woolsey |
| Spouse(s) | Margaret Grae (1915-1926) (divorced) Bernice Wheeler (1928-1936) (divorced) (1 child) Sally Haines (1937-1939) (divorced) Patsy Orr (1952-1956) (divorced) Olga Desmondae Rieman (1951-1966) (her death) |
| Children | Patricia Anne Wheeler (1936-1968) |
Albert Jerome "Bert" Wheeler (April 7, 1895 – January 18, 1968) was an American comedian who performed in Broadway theatre, American comedy feature films, and vaudeville acts. He was the comedy partner of Robert Woolsey, and together they formed a successful double act called Wheeler & Woolsey.[1]
Biography
Wheeler was born in Paterson, New Jersey on April 7, 1895.[1]
He worked with Robert Woolsey on Broadway until their film debut in 1929, Rio Rita, established them in the Hollywood film industry.[1][2]
In the early 1940s, after Robert Woolsey had died, Bert Wheeler struggled to restart his career. Their friend and former film costar Dorothy Lee agreed to tour with him in a vaudeville act. He also worked on radio on programs starring Frank Sinatra.[3]
He continued to work off and on through the 1960s. His later appearances were mostly on American television; his last theatrical films were two slapstick short films for Columbia Pictures, filmed in 1950 and produced by Jules White. In 1955 Wheeler co-starred with Keith Larsen in the CBS western series Brave Eagle; Wheeler played the "half-breed" Smokey Joe, known for his tall tales and tribal wisdom.
Bert Wheeler died of emphysema in New York City on January 18, 1968.[1]
Filmography
(As per the AFI database)[4]
| Film title | Year | Character |
|---|---|---|
| Captain Fly-by-Night | 1922 | Governor |
| Rio Rita | 1929 | Chick |
| Dixiana | 1930 | Peewee |
| The Cuckoos | 1930 | Sparrow |
| Half Shot at Sunrise | 1930 | Tommy Turner |
| Hook, Line and Sinker | 1930 | Wilbur Boswell |
| Caught Plastered | 1931 | Tommy Tanner |
| Too Many Cooks | 1931 | Albert Bennett |
| Peach-O-Reno | 1931 | Wattles |
| Cracked Nuts | 1931 | Wendell Graham |
| Hold 'Em Jail | 1932 | Curly Harris |
| Girl Crazy | 1932 | Jimmy Deegan |
| Diplomaniacs | 1933 | Willy Nilly |
| So This Is Africa | 1933 | Wilbur Wheeler |
| Kentucky Kernels | 1934 | Willie Doyle |
| Hips, Hips, Hooray! | 1934 | Andy Williams |
| Cockeyed Cavaliers | 1934 | Bert |
| The Nitwits | 1935 | Johnny |
| The Rainmakers | 1935 | Billy |
| Silly Billies | 1936 | Roy Banks |
| Mummy's Boys | 1936 | Stanley Wright |
| On Again-Off Again | 1937 | William "Willy" Hobbs |
| High Flyers | 1937 | Jerry Lane |
| The Cowboy Quarterback | 1939 | Harry Lynn |
| Las Vegas Nights | 1941 | Stu Grant |
Marriages
Wheeler was married five times, his longest marriage was with Olga Desmondae Rieman, a former vaudevillian singer.[5] His only child, with Speer, was Patricia Anne Wheeler, who died of cancer, the same year as her father.[6]
- Margaret Grae (m. 27 April 1915 to 15 November 1926) divorced.
- Bernice Speer (m. 15 April 1928 to 19 February 1936) divorced, they had 1 child.[7]
- Sally Haines (m. 26 February 1937 to 1939) divorced.[8]
- Patsy Orr (c1940 to c1950) divorced.
- Olga Desmondae Rieman (m. 1951 - 8 August 1966) to her death.
Dvd Releases
Nine of Wheeler's 21 movies were released in a DVD collection entitled "Wheeler & Woolsey: RKO Comedy Classics Collection" in March 2013 by Warner Archive.[9]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Bert Wheeler at the Internet Movie Database
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External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bert Wheeler. |
