American actor
Louis Quinn
|
---|
|
Born
| Louis Frackt
(
1915-03-23
)
March 23, 1915
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
|
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Died
| September 14, 1988
(1988-09-14)
(aged 73)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
|
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Occupation
| Actor
|
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Years active
| 1957–1987
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Spouse
| Christine Nelson
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Louis Quinn
(born
Louis Frackt
; March 23, 1915 – September 14, 1988) was an American television and film actor, best known for his role as Roscoe, the comic relief racetrack tout, from 1958 to 1963 in the
ABC
/
Warner Bros.
detective
television series,
77 Sunset Strip
.
[1]
Early years
[
edit
]
Born in Chicago, Quinn went to Los Angeles when he was a boy; he was raised by his brother. He sold newspapers on street corners
[2]
and graduated from
Los Angeles High School
.
[1]
He went on to study journalism at the University of New Mexico.
[2]
Military service
[
edit
]
Quinn was a member of the
U.S. Army Signal Corps
during World War II. His duties included writing dialogue for training films.
[3]
Radio
[
edit
]
Quinn began his career as a radio personality, hosting variety shows and writing comedy for
Milton Berle
and
Don McNeill's Breakfast Club
.
[4]
Early in 1953,
WINS
in New York City carried
The Louis Quinn Show
from midnight to 1 a.m., with the program originating in its studios.
[5]
On December 30, 1953, Quinn began broadcasting his program over KCMJ, Palm Springs, California. The program originated in the Fireside Room of the La Paz Hotel in Palm Springs.
[6]
Film
[
edit
]
Quinn's writing career began at
Warner Bros.
, where director Bryan Foy signed him as a writer in August 1940. He was the writer for seven feature films before he went into the military during World War II.
[3]
On the big screen, Quinn played mostly supporting roles in such films as
Al Capone
(1959),
The Crowded Sky
(1960),
Gypsy
(1962),
For Those Who Think Young
(1964),
Birds Do It
(1966),
Unholy Rollers
(1972),
Superchick
(1973),
Linda Lovelace for President
(1975), and
All the President's Men
(1976).
[7]
He was also the emcee for the premiere of
Mary Poppins
at
Grauman's Chinese Theatre
on August 27, 1964, though he did not appear in the film itself.
Television
[
edit
]
Quinn continued writing for Berle when the comedian made the transition to television in
Texaco Star Theatre
.
[1]
His first television role was as a city council member in the 1956 episode "The Bachelor Party' of
Jackie Cooper
's
NBC
sitcom,
The People's Choice
.
[7]
In 1958 Quinn appeared (uncredited) as the First Hotel Clerk on the TV western
Cheyenne
in the episode titled "Dead to Rights."
Quinn began his role of "Roscoe" on
77 Sunset Strip
when he was brought in as a
script doctor
that led to him delivering his own jokes. He admitted that he made more money as a joke writer than he did as an actor.
[3]
He appeared regularly on television though not in major or recurring roles apart from
77 Sunset Strip.
He guest starred on the ABC/WB
western
series,
The Alaskans
. He appeared in three episodes of ABC's
Batman
(55, 56 and 111), once on NBC's
The Virginian
, in the 1977 film
Raid on Entebbe
, and the sitcoms,
Please Don't Eat the Daisies
,
The Donna Reed Show
, Barney Miller and
Gilligan's Island
.
Personal life
[
edit
]
Quinn was married to Christine Nelson, an actress and entertainer in television, film and night clubs.
[8]
She made guest appearances on
77 Sunset Strip
four times during its run, and joined Quinn in appearing as lighthouse keepers "Mr. and Mrs. Keeper" in the
Batman
TV episode
The Joke's on Catwoman
(1968). They died a month apart in 1988.
Death
[
edit
]
Quinn died of lung cancer at
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
in Los Angeles, California. He was 73. His survivors included a daughter, a brother, and four sisters.
[1]
Filmography
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Louis Quinn, gag writer turned character actor"
.
Chicago Tribune
. Illinois, Chicago. Associated Press. September 18, 1988. p. Section 2, Page 7
. Retrieved
11 February
2017
.
- ^
a
b
"Louis Quinn, Gag Writer, Comedian"
.
The Oneonta Star
. New York, Oneonta. December 12, 1951. p. 7
. Retrieved
February 10,
2017
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
a
b
c
"77 Sunset Strip's 'Roscoe' a Man of Many Talents"
.
Standard-Speaker
. Pennsylvania, Hazleton. March 10, 1962. p. 19
. Retrieved
February 10,
2017
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
Associated Press
(1988-09-19).
"Louis Quinn, Character Actor, 73 (Obituary)"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
2009-06-13
.
- ^
"Hot Flashes"
.
Broadcasting
. February 14, 1953. p. 34
. Retrieved
11 February
2017
.
- ^
"Louis Quinn Show Opens Wednesday at La Paz Hotel"
.
Desert Sun
. California, Palm Springs. December 28, 1953
. Retrieved
11 February
2017
.
- ^
a
b
"Louis Quinn"
.
Internet Movie Database
. Retrieved
March 6,
2013
.
- ^
"TV Key Mailbag"
.
The Salina Journal
. Kansas, Salina. December 22, 1959. p. 5.
External links
[
edit
]