Occupation Actor Years active 1926–1953 | Name Porter Hall Role Character actor | |
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Full Name Clifford Porter Hall Born September 19, 1888 ( 1888-09-19 ) Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. Died October 6, 1953, Los Angeles, California, United States Spouse Geraldine Hall (m. 1927–1953) Children Sarah Jane Hall, David Hall Movies Double Indemnity, Ace in the Hole, Miracle on 34th Street, His Girl Friday, Sullivan's Travels Similar People Gene Lockhart, Jerome Cowan, Preston Sturges, George Seaton, John F Seitz | ||
Porter Hall - Actor
Porter Hall (September 19, 1888 – October 6, 1953) was an American character actor known for appearing in a number of films in the 1930s and 1940s. Hall played movie villains or comedic incompetent characters.
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Career
Born Clifford Porter Hall in Cincinnati, Ohio, he began his career touring as a stage actor with roles in productions of The Great Gatsby and Naked in 1926. Hall made his film debut in the 1931 drama Secrets of a Secretary. He made his last onscreen appearance in the 1954 film Return to Treasure Island, which was released after his death.
He was probably best remembered for four roles: a senator in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, an atheist in Going My Way, the nervous, ill-tempered Granville Sawyer, who administers psychological tests to Macy's employees (including Kris Kringle), in Miracle on 34th Street, and a train passenger who encounters a man (Fred MacMurray) who has just committed a murder in Double Indemnity.
On October 6, 1953, Hall died of a heart attack in Los Angeles, California at the age of 65. His interment was at Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery. Hall had two children, David and Sarah Jane.
In popular culture
Director Russ Meyer named one of the characters in the 1970 cult film Beyond the Valley of the Dolls after Hall.