Stanley Clements
| Stanley Clements | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Stanislaw Klimowicz July 16, 1926 Long Island, New York, U.S. |
| Died | October 16, 1981 (aged 55) Pasadena, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | emphysema |
| Occupation | Actor/Comedian |
| Years active | 1941–1978 |
| Spouse(s) | Maria Walek (1951-1974) (divorced) Gloria Grahame (1945-1948) (divorced) |
Stanley Clements (born Stanislaw Klimowicz; July 16, 1926 – October 16, 1981) was an American actor and comedian, best known for portraying "Stash" in the East End Kids film series, and group leader Stanislaus "Duke" Coveleskie in The Bowery Boys film series that featured a substantially identical cast.
Stanley Clements was born in Long Island, New York. Young Stan realized that he wanted a show-business career while he was in grammar school, and after he graduated from Brooklyn's PS 49 in 1938, for the next two years he toured in vaudeville and found work in radio. He then joined the touring company of the Major Bowes Amateur Hour. His career stalled in 1940, and Clements was reduced to panhandling for a time to survive. In 1941, he was signed to a contract by 20th Century Fox and appeared in juvenile/teen roles in several B films for the studio.
In 1942 he was loaned to Monogram Pictures and landed a recurring role as "Stash" in the ensemble cast film series, the East Side Kids. He appeared as an East Side Kid in Smart Alecks, 'Neath Brooklyn Bridge, and Ghosts on the Loose. Interestingly, Clements also appeared as a character named Stash in a few films unrelated to the East Side Kids, such as Right to the Heart, 1950's Military Academy with That Tenth Avenue Gang, and Boots Malone.
In August 1945, Clements married actress Gloria Grahame, who played bad girl Violet Bick in It's a Wonderful Life, and who later won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for The Bad and The Beautiful. The marriage was a stormy one, with Grahame objecting to Clements's drinking and gambling, and Clements being jealous of her dalliances with other men, and it ended in 1948.
...
Wikipedia