Who was Andy Devine?

[Mark F. Jenkins]

RE the recent trivia question... I know perfectly well who James Harmon Ward was, of course (and I even have an original printing of his book, Steam for the Million, that he published just before the war)... but who was Andy Devine?

 

[donna]

He was an actor in early days, 30s thru 50s. Maybe a little more. He appeared with actors like Roy Rogers. He was in many westerns. He is on Wikipedia.

 

[jgoodguy]

Only one I know.

 

[MajGenl.Meade]

From iMDb: Andy Devine (1905–1977).
Rotund comic character actor of American films. Born Andrew Vabre Devine in Flagstaff, Arizona, the later-to-be Rotund comic character actor was raised in nearby Kingman, Arizona, the son of Irish-American hotel operator Thomas Devine and his wife Amy. Devine was an able athlete as a student and actually played semi-pro football under a phony name (Jeremiah Schwartz, often erroneously presumed to be his real name). Devine used the false name in order to remain eligible for college football.

A successful football player at St. Mary & St. Benedict College, Arizona State Teacher's College, and Santa Clara University, Devine went to Hollywood with dreams of becoming an actor. After a number of small roles in silent films, he was given a good part in the talkie The Spirit of Notre Dame (1931) in part due to his fine record as a football player.

His sound-film career seemed at risk due to his severely raspy voice, the result of a childhood injury. His voice, however, soon became his trademark, and he spent the next forty-five years becoming an increasingly popular and beloved comic figure in a wide variety of films. In the 1950s, his fame grew enormously with his co-starring role as Jingles opposite Guy Madison's Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok (1951), on television and radio simultaneously.

In 1955, before the Hickok series ended, Devine took over the hosting job on a children's show retitled Andy's Gang (1955), in which he gained new fans among the very young. He continued active in films until his death in 1977. He was survived by his wife and two sons.

 

[MajGenl.Meade]

Heh heh! He was "The Cheerful Soldier" in the Red Badge of Courage with Audie Murphy.

Another War of the Rebellion connection!

 

[donna]

Some more on Andy Devine. He was born in 1905 in Arizona. he died in 1977. He was active as an actor from 1926 to 1977.

Besides being sidekick to Roy Rogers in 10 films, he was sidekick named Jingles in the TV show Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok. He appeared with John Wayne in "Stagecoach.

He had a very distinctive voice so if you heard him you would know him. He was quite heavy too.

I guess us old timers are the ones who know him. Since I was big Roy Rogers fan, I guess I have seen about every Roy Rogers movie plus always watched his show on TV.

Do others remember him? I bet Ole does?

 

[donna]

I believe I was posting more when the other posts came in.

 

[AndyHall]

Opposite Jimmy Stewart in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. A good example of his typical character-actor role:

 

[jgoodguy]

Someone I saw on TV in the 50s and 60s.

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

Heh. I did a quick Web lookup and saw that there was an actor of that name, but I figured, "no, there must be some Civil War connection..."

I saw "Man Who Shot Liberty Valence" once, but I don't watch a whole lot of movies.

 

[diane]

Opposite Jimmy Stewart in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. A good example of his typical character-actor role:

That's my favorite role for him! He was scared to death of Liberty Valance, played to a 't' by Lee Marvin...who had CW ancestors - Robert E Lee. Jimmy Stewart's grandfather, Col Samuel Jackson, was with the 11th Pennsylvania - one of the most active of the Federal units. John Wayne's grandfather, for whom he was named, was also a Civil War veteran.

 

[Tom Elmore]

Rulandus Pitts, with the 76th New York, was twice wounded (knee and shoulder) at Gettysburg and had his right leg amputated above the knee, later losing use of his right hand. His daughter, ZaSu (1894-1963), appeared in over 140 movies in Hollywood. She was named after Rulandus's sisters, Eliza and Susan. ( and http://www.bpmlegal.com/76NY/76pittsr.html)

 

[donna]

It is interesting about the different actors and actresses who had ancestors who fought in the war. Probably there are many more.

 

[rhettbutler1865]

RE the recent trivia question... I know perfectly well who James Harmon Ward was, of course (and I even have an original printing of his book, Steam for the Million, that he published just before the war)... but who was Andy Devine?

He was even in "How the West Was Won"--comical scene..."I'm CORPORAL Peterson now...Uughh, 'buttermilk.'"

 

[DR_Hanna]

I first heard of him from Jimmy Buffett:

I wish I had a pencil thin mustache
The "Boston Blackie" kind
A two toned Ricky Ricardo jacket
And an autographed picture of Andy Devine

 

[7th Mississippi Infantry]

I first heard of him from Jimmy Buffett:

Same here.

 

[jackt62]

Another bit of trivia about Andy Devine is that he lived in Kingman, Arizona. After his passing the section of historic Route 66 that passes through downtown was renamed "Andy Devine Boulevard" in his honor.

 

[James N.]

Don't fail to forget his late-career appearance on a 1950's children's TV show opposite a rubber frog: "Filing your magic twanger, Froggy!"

 

[ole]

Don't fail to forget his late-career appearance on a 1950's children's TV show opposite a rubber frog: "Filing your magic twanger, Froggy!"

"Let's Pretend." It was earlier a very popular radio show featuring also Midnight, the cat. And, if my memory hasn't totally failed, the words were "Plunk your magic twanger, Froggy."

 

[nitrofd]

I watched him on andy ' s gang.he always sat in a big chair and yes his words were " pluck your magic tangerine frogy".