Robert Middleton
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Robert Middleton, born Samuel G. Messer (May 13, 1911 – June 14, 1977), was an American film and television actor known for his large size and beetle-like brow. With a deep, booming voice, Middleton trained for a musical career at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and Carnegie Tech in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He worked steadily as a radio announcer and actor. One of his early works was as the narrator of the educational film "Duck and Cover". After appearing on the Broadway stage and live television, Middleton began appearing in films in 1954. He's also remembered on television as the boss Mr. Marshall on The Jackie Gleason Show and in film opposite Humphrey Bogart in The Desperate Hours (1955), Gary Cooper in Friendly Persuasion (1956), Richard Egan and Elvis Presley in Love Me Tender (1956), Dorothy Malone and Robert Stack in The Tarnished Angels (1958), and Dean Martin in Career (1959). A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Middleton appeared in many television programs in the 1950s and 1960s, including the CBS anthology series Appointment with Adventure. He was cast as "The Tichborne Claimant" in the NBC anthology series The Joseph Cotten Show. He appeared in ten episodes of ABC's family Western The Monroes, with costars Michael Anderson, Jr., and Barbara Hershey. Among his several appearances in the long-running Alfred Hitchcock Presents, he portrayed a gangster in high places, Mr. Koster, in the 1956 episode "The Better Bargain". In 1958, he played the villain in the first episode of Bat Masterson. In 1961, he appeared in the episode "Accidental Tourist" on the James Whitmore ABC legal drama The Law and Mr. Jones. That same year, he portrayed the highly sympathetic but fiercely dedicated state executioner in an episode of Thriller (U.S. TV series) entitled "Guillotine". He also appeared in at least one episode of Bonanza (1964). In the early 1950s, Middleton appeared on Broadway in Ondine. Other significant film roles include The Court Jester (1956) as a grim and determined knight who jousts with Danny Kaye in the famous "pellet with the poison" sequence, and as a sinister politician in The Lincoln Conspiracy (1977). Betwixt and between were an array of brutish mountain daddies, corrupt, cigar-chomping town bosses and lynch mob leaders. Occasionally he showed a bit of levity, as in his recurring role as Jackie Gleason's boss on The Honeymooners (1955) sketches. Middleton died of congestive heart failure in Hollywood at the age of sixty-six. Description above from the Wikipedia article Robert Middleton, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
The Lincoln Conspiracy
as Edwin M. Stanton
The Lincoln Conspiracy
as Edwin M. Stanton
The Mark of Zorro
as Don Luis Quintero
The Mark of Zorro
as Don Luis Quintero
Remember When
as Kraus, the butcher
Remember When
as Kraus, the butcher
The Harrad Experiment
as Sidney Bower
The Harrad Experiment
as Sidney Bower
Even Angels Eat Beans
as Angelo
Even Angels Eat Beans
as Angelo
Fair Play
as Jova Purvis
Fair Play
as Jova Purvis
Which Way to the Front?
as Colonico
Which Way to the Front?
as Colonico
Company of Killers
as Owen Brady
Company of Killers
as Owen Brady
The Cheyenne Social Club
as Barkeeper - Great Plains Saloon
The Cheyenne Social Club
as Barkeeper - Great Plains Saloon
A Big Hand for the Little Lady
as Dennis Wilcox
A Big Hand for the Little Lady
as Dennis Wilcox
For Those Who Think Young
as Burford Sanford Cronin
For Those Who Think Young
as Burford Sanford Cronin
Cattle King
as Clay Mathews
Cattle King
as Clay Mathews
Gold of the Seven Saints
as Amos Gondora
Gold of the Seven Saints
as Amos Gondora
Witchcraft: The Doll in Brambles
as Martin Plomb
Witchcraft: The Doll in Brambles
as Martin Plomb
The Great Impostor
as R.C. Brown
The Great Impostor
as R.C. Brown
The Gun of Zangara
as Mayor Anton J. Cermak
The Gun of Zangara
as Mayor Anton J. Cermak
Hell Bent for Leather
as Ambrose
Hell Bent for Leather
as Ambrose
Career
as Robert Kensington
Career
as Robert Kensington
Don't Give Up the Ship
as Vice Adm. Philo Tecumseh Bludde
Don't Give Up the Ship
as Vice Adm. Philo Tecumseh Bludde
No Place to Land
as Buck LaVonne
No Place to Land
as Buck LaVonne
Bitter Heritage
as Luke Crocker
Bitter Heritage
as Luke Crocker
The Law and Jake Wade
as Ortero
The Law and Jake Wade
as Ortero
Nightmare at Ground Zero
as Narrator
Nightmare at Ground Zero
as Narrator
Day of the Badman
as Charlie Hayes
Day of the Badman
as Charlie Hayes
The Tarnished Angels
as Matt Ord
The Tarnished Angels
as Matt Ord
So Lovely, So Deadly
as Eddie Rocco
So Lovely, So Deadly
as Eddie Rocco
The Death of Manolete
as Perea
The Death of Manolete
as Perea
The Lonely Man
as Ben Ryerson
The Lonely Man
as Ben Ryerson
Love Me Tender
as Mr. Siringo
Love Me Tender
as Mr. Siringo
Friendly Persuasion
as Sam Jordan
Friendly Persuasion
as Sam Jordan
The Proud Ones
as Honest John Barrett
The Proud Ones
as Honest John Barrett
Red Sundown
as Rufus Henshaw
Red Sundown
as Rufus Henshaw
The Court Jester
as Sir Griswold
The Court Jester
as Sir Griswold
Trial
as A.A. "Fats" Sanders
Trial
as A.A. "Fats" Sanders
The Desperate Hours
as Sam Kobish
The Desperate Hours
as Sam Kobish
The Big Combo
as Police Capt. Peterson
The Big Combo
as Police Capt. Peterson
The Silver Chalice
as Idbash
The Silver Chalice
as Idbash
Confessions of a Nervous Man
as The Manager
Confessions of a Nervous Man
as The Manager
Something For An Empty Briefcase
as Sloane
Something For An Empty Briefcase
as Sloane
Duck and Cover
as Narrator
Duck and Cover
as Narrator