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Paul Ford 1901 - 1976

Paul Ford was born on November 2, 1901 in Baltimore, Maryland United States, and died at age 74 years old on April 12, 1976 in Mineola, Nassau County, NY.

Paul Ford

Paul Ford Weaver

November 2, 1901

Baltimore, Maryland, United States

April 12, 1976

Mineola, Nassau County, New York, United States

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Paul Ford Paul Ford (1901 - 1976)

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Paul Ford's History: 1901 - 1976

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Introduction

Paul Ford Born Paul Ford Weaver November 2, 1901 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. Died April 12, 1976 (aged 74) Mineola, New York, U.S. Occupation Actor Years active 1945–1974 Spouse(s) Nell Weaver (? - 1976, his death) Children 2 sons 2 daughters Paul Ford (November 2, 1901 – April 12, 1976) was an American character actor who came to specialize in authority figures whose ineptitude and pompous demeanor were played for comic effect, notably as Mayor Shinn in The Music Man (1962) and as Colonel John T. Hall in The Phil Silvers Show. Early years Ford was born Paul Ford Weaver in Baltimore, Maryland. His father was described as "a well-to-do businessman" who lost his fortune when his investment in a soft drink company failed. At an early age, he showed an adept talent for performance, but was discouraged when directors thought he was tone-deaf. After attending Dartmouth College for one year, Ford was a salesman before he became an entertainer. He took his middle birth name, which was his mother's maiden name, as his stage last name. The change occurred after he failed an audition as Paul Weaver but was successful when he auditioned again as Paul Ford. Career In later years, Ford made his hollow, reverberating voice one of the most recognized of his era. His success was long in the making, and he did little acting, but instead raised his family during the Great Depression. Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Public Works programs provided Ford with work, and to the day he died, he was a passionate Democrat. He first ventured into entertainment, however, in a puppet theater project that the Works Progress Administration sponsored. Years later, he said of that opportunity: "I got on the puppet project of the W.P.A. and helped write and put on shows for the Federal Theater. We did puppet shows at the World's Fair in 1939 and 1940, and I served as narrator, a kind of Hoosier cornball in beard." Following his experience with puppets, Ford worked as an attendant at a gas staton before turning to acting for a career. His first professional acting job was in an Off-Broadway production in 1939. In 1955, Ford played the bank president in the NBC comedy series Norby. He became an "overnight" success at age 54 when he played Colonel John T. Hall opposite Phil Silvers on Silvers' The Phil Silvers Show TV show (often known as Sergeant Bilko or just Bilko). His signature role may well be the part of Mayor George Shinn, a befuddled politico in the film adaptation of the Broadway show The Music Man. Ford played the role straight and received glowing reviews. The other role he is most identified with is that of Horace Vandergelder opposite Shirley Booth in the 1958 screen version of The Matchmaker. Ford had an active career in both films and television until his retirement in the early 1970's. Despite being a respected Broadway character actor, Ford was notorious for being unable to remember his lines. This would cause difficulty forcing him and those around him to improvise. This became especially notable on The Phil Silvers Show. He appeared in the 1962–1963 season in the CBS anthology The Lloyd Bridges Show. He starred in The Baileys of Balboa, which lasted only one season (1964–1965). His stage credits include Another Part of the Forest (1946), Command Decision (1947), The Teahouse of the August Moon (1953), Whoop-Up (1958), replacing David Burns as Mayor Shinn in The Music Man (1957), A Thurber Carnival (1960), Never Too Late (1962), 3 Bags Full (1966), and What Did We Do Wrong? (1967). Most actors who worked with Ford claimed he was a kindly and very funny man. He was known for his quotes about the Depression in later years, including, "My kids used to think everyone lived on peanut butter sandwiches." Death In 1976, Ford died of a heart attack at Nassau Hospital in Mineola, New York. He was 74. He was buried in Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City, California. He was survived by his wife, two daughters, and two sons. Recognition Ford was nominated for three Emmy Awards: Best Supporting Performance by an Actor (1957), Best Continuing Supporting Performance by an Actor in a Dramatic or Comedy Series (1958) and Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role by an Actor (1963). The first two were for his work on The Phil Silvers Show; the third was for a role on the Hallmark Hall of Fame. Ford was nominated in 1963 for a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play for Never Too Late. Ford's obituary in The New York Times noted, "In 1967 Mr. Ford was cited by the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures as the best supporting actor for his role in The Comedians."
11/2

1901

Birthday

November 2, 1901

Birthdate

Baltimore, Maryland United States

Birthplace

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Professional Career

Partial filmography The House on 92nd Street (1945) - Police Sergeant (uncredited) The Front Page (TV Movie 1945) The Naked City (1948) - Henry Fowler (uncredited) Lust for Gold (1949) - Sheriff Lynn Early All the King's Men (1949) - leader of the opposition in the state Senate (uncredited) The Kid from Texas (1950) - Sheriff Copeland Perfect Strangers (1950) - Judge James Byron The Teahouse of the August Moon (1956) - Col. Wainwright Purdy III The Missouri Traveler (1958) - Finas Daugherty The Matchmaker (1958) - Horace Vandergelder Keep in Step (TV Movie 1959) - Col. John T. Hall The Right Man (TV Movie 1960) - Perfect Candidate Advise and Consent (1962) - Senator Stanley Danta The Teahouse of the August Moon (TV Movie 1962) - Col. Wainwright Purdy III The Music Man (1962) - Mayor George Shinn Who's Got the Action? (1962) - Judge Boatwright It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) - Colonel Wilberforce Never Too Late (1965) - Harry M. Lambert The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming (1966) - Fendall Hawkins A Big Hand for the Little Lady (1966) - C.P. Ballinger The Spy with a Cold Nose (1966) - American General The Comedians (1967) - Smith In Name Only (1969) - Elwy Pertwhistle Twinky aka Lola (1969) - Mr. Wardman, Scott's Father Fair Play (1972) - F. O. McGill Richard (1972) - Washington Doctor Journey Back to Oz (1974) - Uncle Henry (voice) (voice recorded in 1962)
Personal Life & Family

A Big Hand for the Little Lady (1966) - C.P. Ballinger I saw the movie today and it was so well acted by Paul and Joanne Woodward and Henry Fonda and Kevin McCarthy and Burgess Meredith and I met all of them too. Try to see this movie because Paul Ford's contribution to it was huge and compelling!
04/12

1976

Death

April 12, 1976

Death date

Unknown
Cause of death

Mineola, Nassau County, New York United States
Death location

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Obituary

Paul Ford, Actor, Dead; Colonel in ‘Bilko’ By C. GERALD FRASER APRIL 14, 1976 Paul Ford, who began acting professionally at 40 and then. became widely known for two roles as colonels—Colonel Ha11 in Phil Silvers's “Sgt. Bilko” show on television and Colonel Purdy in “The Teahouse of the August Moon” on Broadway and in the movie, died Monday in Nassau Hospital in Mineola, L. I. He was 74 years old. Mr. Ford retired about two years ago in January, he was admitted to the United Presbyterian Nursing Home, in Woodbury, L. I. He was taken to Nassau Hospital in “very grave condition” about five and a half hours before his death at 8:30 P.M. An official at the hospital said Mr. Ford's body would be turned over to the medical examiner for determination of the cause of death. The mournful face of Mr. Ford was seen by millions when he played the part of the long‐suffering colonel to Phil Silvers's brash Sergeant Bilko during the show's five‐year run on television. Started on Radio Although Mr. Ford's career sprouted on Broadway, it took root in radio in the early 1940's. Doing politicians, neighbors, sheriffs, and lawyers as well as a few running parts in soap operas, he earned $22.50 for each 15‐minute show. And sometimes he did as many as 10 to 15 shows a week. He came to Broadway in 1944 in “Decision.” He also played in “Flaming Road,” “Command Decision” and “The Brass Ring.” But his success in “The Teahouse of the August Moon” was the beginning of his career's upswing. Playing what was described as “the agitated adjutant” in “Teahouse,” a story of American occupation forces on Okinawa, Mr. Ford gave a performance described by Brooks Atkinson, ‐drama critic for The New York Times, as a “plain, cornfed portrait of the incredulous colonel who cannot believe what he sees . . . immensely funny and immensely winning.” He was the only member of the cast to do the comedy on the stage, in the movies and on television. In ‘Thurber Carnival’ Later he worked in “WhoopUp,” “The Music Man,” “A Thurber Carnival,” ‘Three Men on a Horse,” and “Never Too. Late.” His association with the James Thurber play inspired several critics to liken his appearance to a dog in Thurber's cartoons in The New Yorker. A New Yorker writer said that “Mr. Ford does indeed have the mournful mien, complete with dangling dewlaps, of a Bassett, and his voice sounds appropriately forlorn.” His performance in “Never Too Late” as a middle‐aged father‐to‐be earned him a Tony Award nomination. In 1967 Mr. Ford was cited by the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures as the best supporting actor for his role in “The Comedians.” His other movies include “All the King's Men,” “Advise and Consent,” “It's a Mad, Mad, Mad Mad World” and “The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming.” Mr. Ford was a character actor who said: “I owe my success to my pot belly. If I lose this belly I'll have to learn how to act.” Actually, he had learned to act, and under trying circumstances. Married, with five children under 12 and moving from one inconsequential job to another, he, like millions of other Americans, was weathering the Depression. “I got on the puppet project of the W.P.A.,” Mr. Ford once said, “and helped write and put on shows for the Federal Theater. We did puppet shows at the World's Fair in 1939 and 1940, and 1 served as narrator, a kind of Hoosier cornball in beard.” He was born in Baltimore and was named Paul Ford Weaver. (Later as an aspiring actor, he failed an audition as Paul Weaver, reapplied as Paul Ford, passed, and used that name.) As a youngster, he moved to Philadelphia and his stepmother, whom he described as “a prima donna in a burlesque show,” took him to burlesque shows that had no stripteasers. “A kind of poor man's musical comedy,” he said. Mr. Ford told interviewers that he liked making films in Hollywood, where the money was better if he wasn't away too long from Manhattan and the Broadway stage, where the satisfaction was greater. “Working in a picture is blind acting. The director is the boss land you do as he says and never know until you see the picture if you've given a good or bad performance,” he said. Long runs on the stage, he added, never bored him. Each performance in the theater is ‘like playing a game. If I felt that I hadn't reached the audience on Wednesday evening, on Thursday evening I would play it a little differently. The thrill of acting in the theater is the personal contact with those sitting out there in front.” Mr. Ford dropped out of Dartmouth College after one year in 1921 because of financial difficulties. He is survived by his wife, Nell Weaver, of Greenwich Village; two daughters, Jean Priest of Garden City, L.I., and Lois Goehrig of Merrick, L.1. and two sons, Donald Weaver of Scarsdale, N.Y., and Paul Weaver Jr., of Paris.

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Paul Ford lived 3 years longer than the average family member when died at the age of 74.

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