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Max Showalter 1917 - 2000

Max Gordon Showalter of Chester, Middlesex County, CT was born on June 2, 1917 in Caldwell, Sumner County, Kansas United States, and died at age 83 years old on July 30, 2000 in CT.

Max Gordon Showalter

Casey Adams

Chester, Middlesex County, CT 06412

June 2, 1917

Caldwell, Sumner County, Kansas, 67022, United States

July 30, 2000

Connecticut, United States

Male

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Max Gordon Showalter's History: 1917 - 2000

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06/2

1917

Birthday

June 2, 1917

Birthdate

Caldwell, Sumner County, Kansas 67022, United States

Birthplace

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Ethnicity & Family History

Early life Showalter was born in Caldwell, Kansas, the son of Elma Roxanna (Dodson) Showalter (1889–1953), a music teacher, and Ira Edward Showalter (1887–1953), who worked in the oil industry and was also a banker and farmer. As a toddler, he developed a desire for acting while accompanying his mother to local theatres where she played piano for silent movies.
Military Service

He served in the Army in World War II as an entertainer. He was a composer, pianist, and singer. When he was in the Army during World War II, he performed in ''This Is the Army.'' While that show was on tour, Irving Berlin wrote a song for him, ''Kick in the Pants.''
Professional Career

MAX SHOWALTER - Character Actor. Born Max Gordon Showalter June 2, 1917, Caldwell, Kansas, U.S. Died July 30, 2000 (aged 83), Middletown, Connecticut, U.S. Other names Casey Adams Occupations Actor, composer, pianist, singer, and very successful impressionist painter. Years active 1935–1984 Max Gordon Showalter (June 2, 1917 – July 30, 2000), sometimes credited as Casey Adams, was an American film, television, and stage actor, as well as a composer, pianist, and singer. He appeared on more than 1,000 television programs. One of Showalter's memorable roles was as the husband of Jean Peters' character in the 1953 film Niagara. Early life Showalter was born in Caldwell, Kansas, the son of Elma Roxanna (Dodson) Showalter (1889–1953), a music teacher, and Ira Edward Showalter (1887–1953), who worked in the oil industry and was also a banker and farmer. As a toddler, he developed a desire for acting while accompanying his mother to local theatres where she played piano for silent movies. He served in the Army in World War II as an entertainer. Stage By the late 1930s, Showalter had multiple stage roles under his belt, including acting in productions of the Pasadena Playhouse. He soon made his Broadway debut in Knights of Song. Showalter also appeared in the traveling musical This Is the Army for two years and in other notable Broadway productions like Make Mine Manhattan and The Grass Harp. His most memorable stage role was as Horace Vandergelder in the Broadway hit show, Hello Dolly!. Showalter performed the role more than 3,000 times opposite Carol Channing, Betty Grable, and Ethel Merman. Motion pictures and television In the late 1940s, Showalter was signed to 20th Century Fox as a featured contract player. His name was changed by Fox's founder, Darryl F. Zanuck, to the more "bankable" Casey Adams. He made his feature film debut in Always Leave Them Laughing (1949). He first appeared on live television in the short-lived musical variety series The Swift Show (1948–49), 1045 also known as The Lanny Ross Show. Showalter's second film was the biopic With a Song in My Heart (1952), where he had a small role as a vaudeville performer. In the film, Showalter, along with David Wayne, sang the song "Hoe that Corn", which he also wrote. He appeared in Niagara (1953) alongside Marilyn Monroe and Joseph Cotten. He made a cameo as a Life magazine photographer in another Monroe movie, Bus Stop, in 1956. During the 1950s, Showalter appeared in television shows like The Loretta Young Show and Navy Log, in addition to films like Vicki (1953), Down Three Dark Streets (1954), Naked Alibi (1954), Indestructible Man (1956), and Gunsmoke (1957) as "Barney Wales", the new husband of the title character "Mavis McCloud" The following year, billed as Casey Adams, he appeared as Ward Cleaver in "It's a Small World", the original pilot for the 1950s sitcom Leave It to Beaver. The pilot was broadcast as an episode of the Studio 57 anthology series. He was replaced by Hugh Beaumont for the television series. Casey Adams also appeared in The Andy Griffith Show as antique dealer Ralph Mason in the episode titled "The Horse Trader." In the 1960s, Showalter using his original name, continued to land roles in such big-budget films as Elmer Gantry (1960), The Music Man (1962), and How to Murder Your Wife (1965). He worked through the 1960s and 1970s. He made six appearances on Perry Mason, as murderer Carl Reynolds in the 1958 episode, "The Case of the Curious Bride," murder victim Burt Stokes in "The Case of the Wandering Widow" in 1960, and murderer Talbot Sparr in the 1964 episode, "The Case of the Ugly Duckling." He made appearances in other television series like The Twilight Zone (the iconic episode "It's a Good Life"), The Lucy Show, Gunsmoke, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, The New Phil Silvers Show, Bewitched, Dr. Kildare, Surfside 6, The Doris Day Show, Kojak, Police Story, The Bob Newhart Show, as well as in cult films, Lord Love a Duck, The Anderson Tapes and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. In the 1979 film 10, he famously played a pastor whose hobby was writing (bad) songs. He was also a regular cast member in the short-lived 1980 TV series, The Stockard Channing Show. Showalter made his last onscreen appearance in the John Hughes film Sixteen Candles (1984). Composing Showalter composed the music for Little Boy Blue, which opened at the El Capitan Theater in Hollywood, California, on September 11, 1950. He also wrote the musical Go for Your Gun, which premiered in Manchester, England, in 1963. Recording In 1956, Showalter (as Casey Adams) recorded an album of his own music, Casey Adams Plays and Sings Max Showalter Songs (Foremost Records FML-1004). He was one of the artists featured on The Secret Garden, a 1988 CBS Special Products album containing performances of music from the musical of that title that "played the repertory circuit in England." Painting Show business columnist Hedda Hopper reported in a 1963 newspaper column that Showalter had sold 139 paintings and would have his first one-man show. Later years In 1984, Showalter retired from acting and moved to an 18th-century farmhouse in Chester, Connecticut, near the area where he acted in the film, It Happened to Jane (1959). Showalter became involved in local musical theatre, including the Ivoryton Playhouse, and went on to produce, direct, write, and narrate the Christmas musical Touch of a Child. He spent much of his free time painting oil miniatures. Showalter was a good friend of actress Katharine Hepburn, who lived in nearby Old Saybrook, Connecticut. Personal life In the 1950s, Showalter took a hiatus from his work in Hollywood, returning to Caldwell, Kansas, to care for his 15-year-old sister who was orphaned by the death of their parents in an automobile accident. Their deaths followed the death of Showalter's brother, Robert, in a car wreck two years earlier. After a few years, he returned to Hollywood and resumed his career. Death On July 30, 2000, Max Showalter died of cancer in Middletown, Connecticut. He was 83 years old. Filmography Always Leave Them Laughing (1949) as Comet Pen Salesman With a Song in My Heart (1952) as Harry Guild What Price Glory? (1952) as Lt. Moore My Wife's Best Friend (1952) as Pete Bentham Stars and Stripes Forever (1952) as Narrator (voice, uncredited) Niagara (1953) as Ray Cutler Destination Gobi (1953) as Walter Landers Vicki (1953) as Larry Evans Dangerous Crossing (1953) as Jim Logan Night People (1954) as Frederick S. Hobart Down Three Dark Streets (1954) as Dave Millson Naked Alibi (1954) as Det. Lt. Fred Parks The Return of Jack Slade (1955) as Billy Wilcox Never Say Goodbye (1956) as Andy Leonard Indestructible Man (1956) as Police Lt. Dick Chasen Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956) (uncredited) Bus Stop (1956) as Life Magazine Reporter Dragoon Wells Massacre (1957) as Phillip Scott Designing Woman (1957) as musical director (uncredited) The Monster That Challenged the World (1957) as Dr. Tad Johns Hellcats of the Navy (1957) (uncredited) The Female Animal (1958) as Charlie Grant The Naked and the Dead (1958) as Col. Dalleson Voice in the Mirror (1958) as Don Martin It Happened to Jane (1959) as Selwyn Harris Elmer Gantry (1960) as Deaf Man (uncredited) Return to Peyton Place (1961) as Nick Parker (uncredited) Claudelle Inglish (1961) as Young Parson (uncredited) Summer and Smoke (1961) as Roger Doremus Bon Voyage! (1962) as The Tight Suit The Music Man (1962) as Salesman on the Train (uncredited) Smog (1962) as Paul Prescott My Six Loves (1963) as B.J. Smith Move Over, Darling (1963) as Hotel Desk Clerk Mr. and Mrs. (1964) as Walter Fate Is the Hunter (1964) as Dan Crawford Sex and the Single Girl (1964) as Holmes How to Murder Your Wife (1965) as Tobey Rawlins Lord Love a Duck (1966) as Howard Greene A Talent for Loving (1969) as Franklin The Moonshine War (1970) as Mr. Worthman The Anderson Tapes (1971) as Bingham Bonnie's Kids (1973) as Frank Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978) as Ernest Shears 10 (1979) as Reverend Racing with the Moon (1984) as Mr. Arthur, Piano Teacher Sixteen Candles (1984) as Fred (final film role) Television The Swift Show (1948–1949) as Regular (1949) TV Reader's Digest (1 episode, 1954) The Loretta Young Show (4 episodes, 1954–1955) The Return of Jack Slade (1955) The 20th Century Fox Hour (1 episode, 1956) as Barry Navy Log (1 episode, 1956) as Lieutenant Sloane Matinee Theatre (1 episode, 1956) Star Stage (1 episode, 1956) as Pete The Gale Storm Show (1956) as Orchestra Leader Crossroads (1 episode, 1956) as Deavers / Bannister Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans (1 episode, 1957) as Capt. John West Leave It to Beaver (1 episode, 1957) as Ward Cleaver Code 3 (1 episode, 1957) Gunsmoke (1 episode, 1957) as Barney Wales Mr. Adams and Eve (1 episode, 1958) as Dovey General Electric Theater (2 episode, 1959–1962) as Joe Malone / Will Henderson The Thin Man (1 episode, 1959) as Paul Cameron The David Niven Show (1 episode, 1959) as Big Guy The Andy Griffith Show (1 episode, 1961) as Ralph Mason Stagecoach West (1 episode, 1961) as David Harkness Follow the Sun (1 episode, 1961) as Don Hinkley The Twilight Zone (1 episode, 1961) as Pat Riley Surfside 6 (1 episode, 1962) as Ned Martin Sam Benedict (1 episode, 1963) as John Buchanan Dr. Kildare (2 episodes, 1962–1964) as Rulon Murphy / Ben Ballard Hazel (1 episode, 1963) as Mr. Blackpool The New Phil Silvers Show (1 episode, 1963) as Frank The Lucy Show (1 episode, 1964) as Vinnie / Vinnie Meyers Perry Mason (6 episodes, 1958–1965) as Charles Judd, Talbot Sparr, Clarence Henry, Frank Logan, Burt Stokes, Carl Reynolds. Bewitched (1 episode, 1965) as Charles Barlow The Doris Day Show (1 episode, 1969) as Greg Fletcher Police Story (1 episode, 1975) as Attorney John Barron How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1975) as J. B. Biggley Kojak (1 episode, 1975) as Quinlan The Bob Newhart Show (1 episode, 1977) as Dr. Morgan Quincy M.E. (1 episode, 1978) as Dr. Milton Gold The Stockard Channing Show (11 episodes, 1980) as Gus Clyde The Incredible Hulk (1 episode, 1980) as Walter Gamble The Love Boat (2 episodes, 1982–1983) as Jarvis Holden / Herman Baker
07/30

2000

Death

July 30, 2000

Death date

Cancer

Cause of death

Connecticut United States
Death location

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Obituary

Max Showalter, 83, Character Actor for Films, Broadway, and TV By Mel Gussow Aug. 2, 2000 Max Showalter, a prolific character actor in movies and theater and on television, died on Sunday in Middletown, Conn. He was 83 and lived in Chester, Conn. In his long and varied career, Mr. Showalter acted in two movies with Marilyn Monroe (''Niagara'' and ''Bus Stop'') and also worked with Mary Martin, Susan Hayward, Lucille Ball, and Bo Derek (in ''10,'' starring Dudley Moore). He had his longest run as Horace Vandergelder in ''Hello, Dolly!,'' on tour and on Broadway, playing opposite Martha Raye, Betty Grable, Betsy Palmer, Marilyn Maye, and Carol Channing. During his days in Hollywood in the 1950s, he acted under the name Casey Adams. He appeared in more than 1,000 television shows and on Broadway in ''Make Mine Manhattan'' with Sid Caesar. In 1976 he played Captain Andy in ''Showboat'' at the Jones Beach Theater in Wantagh, N.Y. He also toured with a one-man show in which he played the piano and reminisced about his life in the theater. Mr. Showalter composed scores for seven musicals, including ''Harrigan 'n' Hart,'' on Broadway in 1985, and the Christmas musical ''Touch of the Child,'' performed at various theaters in Connecticut. He also wrote special material for nightclub acts. He painted as well and had several successful one-man shows. Mr. Showalter was born in Caldwell, Kan. After appearing in many plays at the Pasadena Playhouse, he made his Broadway debut in 1938 in ''Knights of Song,'' directed by Oscar Hammerstein II. His second musical, Jerome Kern's ''Very Warm for May,'' was directed by Hammerstein and Vincente Minnelli. When he was in the Army during World War II, he performed in ''This Is the Army.'' While that show was on tour, Irving Berlin wrote a song for him, ''Kick in the Pants.'' His first film was ''Always Leave Them Laughing'' in 1949 (with Milton Berle and Bert Lahr). That was followed by dozens more, including ''With a Song in My Heart,'' ''What Price Glory'' (with James Cagney), ''Night People,'' ''Summer and Smoke,'' ''The Music Man,'' ''Sex and the Single Girl,'' ''Fate Is the Hunter,'' ' 'Lord Love a Duck,'' ''Sixteen Candles'' and, in 1984, ''Racing with the Moon.'' In 1958, as Casey Adams, he acted with Doris Day and Jack Lemmon in ''It Happened to Jane'' on location in Chester, and became attached to the area. Many years later, he decided to move there and bought an 1830's farmhouse. He was active in local theaters in Connecticut, including the Goodspeed Opera House and the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center. He left his collection of letters and memorabilia to the Goodspeed Library of Musical Theater. He is survived by a sister, Ann Philpott of Fresno, Calif.

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