Walter Burke
| Walter Burke | |
|---|---|
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| Born |
Walter Lawrence Burke August 25, 1908 Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
| Died | August 4, 1984 (aged 75) Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California , U.S. |
| Resting place | Laurelwood Cemetery in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1925–1981 |
Walter Lawrence Burke (August 25, 1908 – August 4, 1984) was an American character actor, of stage, film, and television of Irish descent. Usually cast as an Irishman or Englishman, his small stature, distinctive voice and face made him easily recognizable in even the most minor of roles.
Burke was born in the Brooklyn borough of New York City to Irish immigrant parents Thomas Burke and Bedelia McNamara Burke. He had one brother and two sisters.
Walter Burke began acting on stage as a teenager, making his Broadway debut in Dearest Enemy at the Knickerbocker Theatre during 1925–1926. The following year he performed in a musical revue, Padlocks of 1927 at the Shubert Theatre. He joined the American Opera Company's troupe in January 1928, performing a non-singing role in an English-language adaption of Faust. He continued with that company through January 1930, taking part in adaptions of Madame Butterfly and Yolanda of Cyprus at the Casino Theatre. He next appeared on Broadway with Help Yourself in 1936, and over the next ten years appeared in as many plays.
Burke debuted in Hollywood films in 1948, with The Naked City, and the following year had a memorable role in the Oscar-winning film All the King's Men. Burke would appear in twenty-two more films, and three more Broadway productions, but both film and the stage would soon take a backseat to his television work.
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