Roger Smith (actor)

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Roger LaVerne Smith (born December 18, 1932 in South Gate , California - † June 4, 2017 in Sherman Oaks , California) was an American actor , film producer and screenwriter .

life and career

Roger Smith was born the son of a clothing manufacturer in California. He took singing and dancing lessons as a child, and later won several singing competitions. After graduating from the University of Arizona and serving two and a half years in the United States Navy , he turned to acting and music. An encounter with James Cagney prompted him to embark on a career in Hollywood. He quickly got his first film roles, for example as Cagey's son in The Man with 1000 Faces , a biopic about the life of Lon Chaney senior . In 1959 he played the nephew of Rosalind Russell in Morton DaCosta's comedy The Great Aunt . Perhaps his best-known role was as private detective Jeff Spencer in the classic crime series 77 Sunset Strip . He was seen here between 1958 and 1963 in a total of 136 episodes on the side of Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. and Edd Byrnes . In the mid-1960s, Smith also starred in the short-lived sitcom Mister Roberts .

In his first marriage, Smith was married to actress Victoria Shaw from 1956 to 1965 . He had three children with her. In 1967 he married the actress Ann-Margret , the marriage lasted until his death. Smith retired from acting in 1968 to take care of his wife's successful career as a manager. He also worked as a screenwriter and film producer.

Roger Smith, who later developed myasthenia gravis and Parkinson's , died in 2017 shortly after his golden marriage to Ann-Margret at the age of 84.

Filmography (selection)

As an actor

  • 1956: Over-Exposed
  • 1956, 1958: Father is the best ( Father Knows Best ; TV series, 2 episodes)
  • 1957: The man with 1,000 faces (Man of a Thousand Faces)
  • 1957: Seldom Laughed Like This (Operation Mad Ball)
  • 1958–1963: 77 Sunset Strip (TV series, 136 episodes)
  • 1958: The great aunt (Auntie Mame)
  • 1960, 1961: Hawaiian Eye (TV series, 2 episodes)
  • 1965–1966: Mister Roberts (TV series, 30 episodes)
  • 1968: Rogue's Gallery

As a film producer

  • 1969: Who Wears Rosie's Pajamas? (The First Time) (also screenwriter)
  • 1970: Höllenengel und Company (CC & Company) (also screenwriter)
  • 1975: The Ann Margret Olsson Show ( Ann-Margret Olsson ; TV movie)
  • 1994: Land of Lost Children ( Nobody's Children ; TV movie)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Alexia Fernandez: Roger Smith, Star of '77 Sunset Strip 'and Husband of Ann-Margret, Dead at 84. In: yahoo.com. Yahoo , June 6, 2017, accessed June 6, 2017 .
  2. ↑ a b Roger Smith in the All Movie Guide (English).
  3. ^ Marshall Heyman: What's Ann-Margret Doing at 75? Still Playing the Girl Next Door. In: The New York Times . The New York Times Company, March 25, 2017, accessed June 6, 2017.
personal data
SURNAME Smith, Roger
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Smith, Roger LaVerne
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American actor, film producer and screenwriter
DATE OF BIRTH December 18, 1932
PLACE OF BIRTH South Gate , California , United States
DATE OF DEATH 4th June 2017
Place of death Sherman Oaks , California , United States