Keenan Wynn
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Keenan Wynn (July 27, 1916 – October 14, 1986) was an American character actor and member of a well-known show-business family. His bristling mustache and expressive face were his stock in trade as an actor.
He was born in New York, New York as Francis Xavier Aloysius James Jeremiah Keenan Wynn, the son of Jewish American vaudeville comedian Ed Wynn, and his Irish-American Catholic wife, the former Hilda Keenan, but took his stage name from his maternal grandfather, Frank Keenan, one of the first Broadway actors to star in Hollywood.
Keenan Wynn became an actor after Ed Wynn's encouragement, and the two appeared together in the original television production of Rod Serling's Requiem for a Heavyweight (1956) as well as a subsequent television drama detailing the problems they'd experienced together while working on that show called The Man in the Funny Suit (1960); the Wynns, Serling, and much of the rest of the cast and crew played themselves.
Keenan Wynn appeared in hundreds of movies and television shows between 1934 and 1986. Early notable Wynn performances can be seen in See Here Private Hargrove (1944), Under the Clock (1945), Weekend at the Waldorf (45), The Hucksters (1947) and Annie Get Your Gun (1950). He had a featured role in Kiss Me, Kate (1953) and The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit (1956). His best-known part was as Col. "Bat" Guano in Dr. Strangelove (1964), the same year he starred in the Jerry Lewis comedy, The Patsy. He appeared as the villainous Alonzo P. Hawk in the "flubber" movies, The Absent-Minded Professor (1961) and Son of Flubber (1963), in which his father appeared as well. Wynn took a dramatic turn as the tough as nails Yost in Point Blank (1967) with Lee Marvin. He was the voice of the Winter Warlock in the holiday classic Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town. He appeared with Charles Bronson and Jan-Michael Vincent in The Mechanic. He also appeared in other Disney films, including Herbie Rides Again (1974) (as Alonzo P. Hawk, once again) and The Shaggy D.A. (1974). He had an uncredited role in Touch of Evil. He also appeared in such films as Laserblast, Joe Dante's Piranha, Robert Altman's Nashville, Dino De Laurentiis' Orca, and the cult favorite Parts: The Clonus Horror. He was a regular on Dallas from 1978-1980, playing the part of "Digger Barnes."
In later years, Wynn took time to support various philanthropic groups. He was an active member of Westwood Sertoma, in West Los Angeles, for many years until his death from cancer at the age of 70. (Note: Sertoma is an acronym for Service to Mankind, and is comparable to Rotary International).
One son, actor and writer Ned Wynn (born Edmond Keenan Wynn) wrote the autobiographical memoir We Will Always Live In Beverly Hills. His other son, Tracy Keenan Wynn is a screen writer, whose credits include The Longest Yard and The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman.
He was uncle by marriage to the Hudson Brothers and his daughter Hilda is recently divorced from actor/singer/songwriter Paul Williams.
