Max Showalter

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Max Showalter (born June 2, 1917 in Caldwell , Kansas , † July 30, 2000 in Middletown , Connecticut ), temporary pseudonym Casey Adams , was an American actor and composer .

life and career

Max Showalter went to high school in his small home township of Caldwell and was educated in the second half of the 1930s at the Pasadena Playhouse , California , where he also gained his first acting experience. In November 1939 he reached Broadway , where he made his debut there with the Lowell Pennyfeather in the musical Very Warm for May . Until he switched to film and television at the beginning of 1949, Showalter could be seen in the plays My Sister Eileen, Show Boat, John Loves Mary and Make Mine Manhattan . In later years Showalter played, among other things, a musical version of Truman Capote's Die Grasharfe , which was canceled after only seven performances at the beginning of November 1971 due to its unsuccessfulness, and was four years earlier as Horace Vandergelder (understudy) in the Broadway hit Hello, Dolly! to see what was probably his most important theatrical role. Max Showalter served in World War II and was particularly active in troop entertainment, touring with Irving Berlin's This Is the Army .

Showalter turned to very young television as early as 1949, where he appeared in numerous live television games, among other things. In 1949 he made his cinema debut as a pen salesman in the comedy Tritt When They Laugh with Milton Berle . Between 1952 and 1962 he was mentioned in the credits of many films under the pseudonym Casey Adams : This happened because he had received a studio contract with 20th Century Fox , but those responsible there found his maiden name suitable for a film star. Soon after the end of his contract with Fox, Showalter dropped the pseudonym again.

By 1984 Showalter was seen in over 100 film and television productions, mostly in small to medium supporting roles. He had one of his best known and greatest appearances as the husband of Jean Peters in the film noir classic Niagara from 1952. Marilyn Monroe was also seen in Niagara , with whom Showalter also shot the comedy Bus Stop four years later (here was Showalter's role as a reporter is much smaller). He had another leading role with Lon Chaney Jr. in the cheaply produced horror film Indestructible Man from 1956. In addition to movies, he also took on guest roles in numerous television series such as Twilight Zone , Perry Mason , In Love with a Witch , Kojak - Use in Manhattan and Quincy .

Showalter played his last role as the grandfather of Molly Ringwald's character in the 1984 John Hughes comedy That is only allowed as an adult . From 1984 he spent his retirement in the small town of Chester , Connecticut, where he was involved in local theater and occasionally visited his close friend Katharine Hepburn . At the beginning of 1985 the musical Harrigan 'n Hart was shown on Broadway with the music of Showalter, but the piece proved so unsuccessful that it was removed from the program after only four performances in early February of the same year.

Max Showalter died of cancer in June 2000 at the age of 83.

Filmography (selection)

literature

  • International Motion Picture Almanac 1965, Quigley Publishing Company, New York 1964, p. 265

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The Broadway League: Max Showalter - Broadway Cast & Staff | IBDB. Retrieved September 20, 2018 .
  2. ^ Mel Gussow: Max Showalter, 83, Character Actor for Films, Broadway and TV . ( nytimes.com [accessed September 20, 2018]).
  3. ^ Mel Gussow: Max Showalter, 83, Character Actor for Films, Broadway and TV . ( nytimes.com [accessed September 20, 2018]).
  4. ↑ Max Showalter | Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos | AllMovie. Retrieved September 20, 2018 .
  5. ↑ Max Showalter | Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos | AllMovie. Retrieved September 20, 2018 .
  6. ↑ Casey Adams aka Max Showalter. Retrieved September 20, 2018 .
  7. ↑ Casey Adams aka Max Showalter. Retrieved September 20, 2018 .
personal data
SURNAME Showalter, Max
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Adams, Casey (pseudonym)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American actor and composer
DATE OF BIRTH June 2, 1917
PLACE OF BIRTH Caldwell , Kansas
DATE OF DEATH July 30, 2000
Place of death Middletown , Connecticut