Ned Sparks (November 19, 1883 – April 3, 1957) was a Canadian-born character actor of the American stage and screen. Sparks was known for his deadpan expression and deep, gravelly voice.
Life and career
Born Edward Arthur Sparkman in Guelph, Ontario, Sparks left home at age 16 and attempted to work as a gold prospector on the Klondike Gold Rush. After running out of money, he won a spot as a singer on a traveling musical company's tour. At age 19, he returned to Canada and briefly attended a Toronto seminary. After leaving the seminary, he worked for the railroad and worked in theater in Toronto. In 1907, he left Toronto for New York City to try his hand in the Broadway theatre, where he appeared in his first show in 1912.
While working on Broadway, Sparks developed his trademark deadpan expression while portraying the role of a desk clerk in the play Little Miss Brown. His success on the stage soon caught the attention of MGM's Louis B. Mayer who signed Sparks to a six picture deal. Sparks began appearing in numerous silent films before finally making his "talkie" debut in the 1928 film The Big Noise.
In the 1930s, Sparks became known for portraying dour-faced, sarcastic, cigar-chomping characters. He became so associated with the type that, in 1936, The New York Times reported that Sparks had his face insured for USD$100,000 with Lloyd's of London. The market agreed to pay the sum to any photographer who could capture Sparks smiling (Sparks later admitted that the story was a publicity stunt and he was only insured for $10,000). Sparks was also caricatured in cartoons including the Jack-in-the-Box character in the Disney short Broken Toys (1935), and the jester in Mother Goose Goes Hollywood (1938), a hermit crab in both Tex Avery's Fresh Fish (1939) Bob Clampett's Goofy Groceries (1941), a chicken in Bob Clampett's Slap Happy Pappy (1940) and brief unnamed appearances as himself in Friz Freleng's Warner Brothers cartoon Malibu Beach Party (1940), and Tex Avery's Hollywood Steps Out (1940).
Sparks appeared in ten stage productions on Broadway and over 80 films. He retired from films in 1947.
On April 3, 1957, Sparks died of an intestinal blockage in Victorville, California.
Actor
1958
The Heckle and Jeckle Show (TV Series) - Episode dated 25 January 1958 (1958) - (voice)
1950
King Tut's Tomb (Short) as
Heckle / Jeckle / Sphinx / ... (uncredited)
1946
Heckle and Jeckle - The Talking Magpies (TV Series)(voice)
1943
Stage Door Canteen as
Ned Sparks
1941
For Beauty's Sake as
Jonathan B. Sweet
1939
The Star Maker as
'Speed' King
1937
This Way Please as
Inky Wells
1937
Wake Up and Live as
Steve Cluskey
1936
One in a Million as
Danny Simpson
1936
The Bride Walks Out as
Paul Dodson
1936
Collegiate as
'Scoop' Oakland
1935
George White's 1935 Scandals as
Elmer
1935
Sweet Music as
'Ten Percent' Nelson
1934
Sweet Adeline as
Dan Herzig
1934
Imitation of Life as
Elmer Smith
1934
Servants' Entrance as
Hjalmar Gnu
1934
Down to Their Last Yacht as
Captain 'Sunny Jim' Roberts
1934
Private Scandal as
Inspector Riordan
1934
Sing and Like It as
Toots McGuire
1933
Going Hollywood as
Conroy
1933
Alice in Wonderland as
Caterpillar
1933
Too Much Harmony as
Lem Spawn
1933
Gold Diggers of 1933 as
Barney Hopkins
1933
42nd Street as
Thomas Barry
1932
The Crusader as
Eddie Crane
1932
Big City Blues as
Mr. 'Stacky' Stackhouse
1932
Blessed Event as
George Moxley
1932
The Miracle Man as
Harry Evans (as Ned A. Sparks)
1932
Big Dame Hunting (Short) as
Ned
1931
The Wide Open Spaces (Short) as
Sheriff Jack Rancid
1931
Strife of the Party (Short)
1931
The Way of All Fish (Short) as
Ned
1931
The Secret Call as
Bert Benedict
1931
Kept Husbands as
Hughie Hanready
1930
Conspiracy as
Winthrop 'Little Nemo' Clavering
1930
The Fall Guy as
Danny Walsh
1930
The Devil's Holiday as
Charlie Thorne
1930
Double Cross Roads as
Happy Max
1930
Love Comes Along as
Happy
1929
Street Girl as
Happy Winter
1929
Nothing But the Truth as
Clarence van Dyke
1929
Strange Cargo as
Yacht First Mate
1929
The Canary Murder Case as
Tony Skeel (as Ned A. Sparks)
1928
The Magnificent Flirt as
Tim
1928
The Big Noise as
William Howard
1927
On to Reno as
Herbert Holmes
1927
The Small Bachelor as
J. Hamilton Beamish
1927
Alias the Lone Wolf as
Phinuit
1927
Alias the Deacon as
'Slim' Sullivan
1927
The Secret Studio as
The Plumber
1926
Twinkletoes as
Unknown Role
1926
Oh, What a Night! as
'Slickry' Benton
1926
Love's Blindness as
Valet
1926
When the Wife's Away as
Chicago Dan
1926
The Hidden Way as
Mulligan
1926
Money Talks as
Lucius Fenton
1926
The Auction Block as
Nat Saluson
1925
Soul Mates as
Tancred's Chauffeur
1925
Bright Lights as
Barney Gallagher
1925
Seven Keys to Baldpate as
Bland
1925
Faint Perfume as
Orrin Crumb
1925
Courageous Fool as
Jimmie Lee
1925
His Supreme Moment as
Adrian
1925
The Boomerang as
Bert Hanks
1924
The Law Forbids as
Clyde Vernon
1924
One Night It Rained (Short) as
Ned the Wife's cousin
1923
Easter Bonnets (Short)
1922
The Bond Boy as
Cyrus Morgan
1922
A Wide Open Town as
Si Ryan
1920
Good References as
Peter Stearns
1920
The Perfect Woman as
Grimes, the Anarchist
1920
The Love Expert as
Reverend David Vale
1920
In Search of a Sinner as
Waiter
1920
Nothing But the Truth as
The Monocle Man (as Ned A. Sparks)
1919
A Virtuous Vamp as
Mr. Bell
1919
A Temperamental Wife as
The Hotel Clerk
1919
The Social Pirate as
Harry Barnes
1915
The Little Miss Brown as
Night Clerk
Writer
1931
Strife of the Party (Short)
Soundtrack
1934
Sing and Like It (performer: "Your Mother", "Liebestraum No. 3" (1850))
1933
Lady for a Day ("The Prisoner's Song (If I Had the Wings of an Angel)" (1924), uncredited)
1929
Street Girl (performer: "Lovable and Sweet" (1929) - uncredited)
Archive Footage
2006
Gold Diggers: FDR's New Deal... Broadway Bound (Video short)
1938
Personality Parade (Documentary short) as
Self (uncredited)
