Harry Townes
| Harry Rhett Townes | |
|---|---|
| Born |
September 18, 1914 Huntsville, Madison County, Alabama, U.S. |
| Died | May 23, 2001 (aged 86) Huntsville, Alabama, U.S. |
| Resting place | Maple Hill Cemetery (Huntsville, Alabama) |
| Alma mater |
University of Alabama or Columbia University |
| Occupation | Actor Episcopal priest |
| Years active | 1949-1988 |
Harry Rhett Townes (September 18, 1914 – May 23, 2001) was an American television and film actor who later in life became an Episcopalian priest.
Townes was born in Huntsville, the seat of Madison County in northern Alabama. He graduated from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, having developed his acting skills through the university drama club. (Townes' obituary in the Los Angeles Times says, "Townes attended the University of Alabama, but moved to New York in his early 20s to study acting. He graduated from Columbia University after finding acting roles in his undergraduate days.")
Townes performed in several New York and Broadway stage productions, including . His Broadway credits include In the Matter of J. Robert Oppenheimer (1968), Gramercy Ghost (1950), Twelfth Night (1949), Mr. Sycamore (1942), and Tobacco Road (1942).
During World War II, he left the stage to enlist in the United States Army Air Corps. Discharged in 1946, he returned to the stage and then relocated to perform in Hollywood.
As a character actor, Townes was a familiar face to television viewers in the 1950s and 1960s. His expanded range led him to fill a variety of roles, and he avoided being typecast. He made five guest appearances on Perry Mason, including the role of title character Newton Bain in the 1964 episode, "The Case of the Woeful Widower." He also made three appearances on Bonanza and seven on Gunsmoke and in The Fugitive. He made single and double appearances on numerous other television series. Besides appearing in twenty-nine films, he is credited with more than two hundred television roles. He gained a cult following with a younger audience for a guest shot on "The First", a two-part episode of The Incredible Hulk. He played Dell Frye, a man who also had the ability to transform into a Hulk-like creature. "The First" is one of the most popular episodes from the TV series largely because of Townes' performance.
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