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Walter Abel 1898 - 1987

Walter Abel was born on June 6, 1898 in Saint Paul, Ramsey County, Minnesota United States, and died at age 88 years old on March 26, 1987 at Connecticut, USA in CT. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Walter Abel.
Walter Abel
June 6, 1898
Saint Paul, Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States
March 26, 1987
Connecticut, USA in Connecticut, United States
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Walter Abel's History: 1898 - 1987

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  • Introduction

    WALTER ABEL, 88, ACTOR IN THEATER AND FILMS By Jeremy Gerard March 28, 1987 Walter Abel, an actor who appeared in the earliest plays of Eugene O'Neill in the 1920s and who continued to work on stage and in films for more than 50 years, died Thursday at Chesterfields Nursing home in Essex, Conn. He was 88 years old. Mr. Abel played major and featured roles in a wide variety of Broadway comedies and melodramas before a role in the George S. Kaufman-Moss Hart play ''Merrily We Roll Along'' won him a contract with RKO in 1934. Known for his rugged looks and husky voice, Mr. Abel appeared in some 60 movies, among them a 1935 screen version of ''The Three Musketeers'' in which he played D'Artagnan, ''Arise My Love'' (1940), ''Hold Back the Dawn'' (1941), ''Holiday Inn'' (1942), ''Mr. Skeffington'' (1944), ''Kiss and Tell'' (1945), ''Dream Girl'' (1948), ''Bernardine'' (1957), ''Mirage'' (1965) and ''Grace Quigley'' (1985). A 1917 graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Mr. Abel made his professional debut in ''Forbidden'' in 1919 and quickly became part of the theater crowd in Greenwich Village, where O'Neill was staging his first works. In November 1924 he played simultaneous roles in O'Neill's ''Bound East for Cardiff'' - one of four one-act plays performed under the collective title ''S.S. Glencairn'' - at the Provincetown Playhouse and in the O'Neill's ''Desire Under the Elms'' at the Greenwich Village Theater. In their biography of O'Neill, Arthur and Barbara Gelb wrote that Mr. Abel ''demonstrated both his acting talent and his sprinting ability by doubling the role of Olson in 'S.S. Glencairn'; he would speak his last line (in Swedish dialect) in 'Bound East for Cardiff' from the stage of the Provincetown -''Nothin' but yust dirty weather all dis voyage. I yust can't sleep when wheestle blow'' - then sprint over to the Greenwich Village Theater, make a few slight changes in his costume, pick up the rifle he carried as his prop, assume the hard-bitten visage of a New Englander and utter three lines, including the curtain speech: 'It's a jim-dandy farm, no denyin.' Wished I owned it!' '' Mr. Abel played Olson a number of times. Brooks Atkinson of The New York Times recalled Mr. Abel's performance as ''deeply sincere.'' Appeared With Top Actors In his many radio and television appearances, the actor was most often cast as prosecutors or crusading district attorneys. Throughout his career, he shared billing with most of the top actors of his time. In 1935, he played opposite Spencer Tracy in Fritz Lang's ''Fury.'' In 1950 he appeared on Broadway with Helen Hayes in Joshua Logan's production of ''The Wisteria Trees.'' His last New York theater appearance was in 1976, in the New York Shakespeare Festival at Lincoln Center production of ''Trelawney of the 'Wells.'' In the 1950s, Mr. Abel served as vice president of the Screen Actors Guild under the union presidency of Ronald Reagan. In the 1960s, Mr. Abel was the president of the American National Theater and Academy during a major expansion of the organization. Mr. Abel is survived by two sons, John, of Alexandria, Va., and Michael, of Ivoryton, Conn. His wife, Marietta Bitter, a harpist, died in 1979. A service will be held at 5 P.M. today at the First Congregational Church of Essex, Conn. A memorial service, to be held at The Little Church Around the Corner in Manhattan, is being planned.
  • 06/6
    1898

    Birthday

    June 6, 1898
    Birthdate
    Saint Paul, Ramsey County, Minnesota United States
    Birthplace
  • Ethnicity & Family History

    Abel was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, the son of Christine (née Becker) and Richard Michael Abel. Abel graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts where he had studied in 1917 and joined a touring company. His brother Alfred died in 1922 from tuberculosis contracted while serving overseas in World War I. Abel was married to concert harpist Marietta Bitter.
  • Nationality & Locations

    Mr. Abel is survived by two sons, John, of Alexandria, Va., and Michael, of Ivoryton, Conn. His wife, Marietta Bitter, a harpist, died in 1979.
  • Early Life & Education

    Abel graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts where he had studied in 1917 and joined a touring company.
  • Religious Beliefs

    Congregationalist. Chose to be cremated with his ashes mingled with his wife's ashes.
  • Professional Career

    Out of a Clear Sky (1918) (uncredited) The North Wind's Malice (1920) as Tom Liliom (1930) as Carpenter The Three Musketeers (1935) as d'Artagnan Two in the Dark (1936) as Ford 'Jitney' Adams The Lady Consents (1936) as Stanley Ashton The Witness Chair (1936) as James 'Jim' Trent Fury (1936) as Adams, the district attorney We Went to College (1936) as Philip Talbot Second Wife (1936) as Kenneth Carpenter Green Light (1937) as John Stafford Portia on Trial (1937) as Dan Foster Wise Girl (1937) as Karl Stevens Law of the Underworld (1938) as Warren Rogers Racket Busters (1938) as Allison Men with Wings (1938) as Nick Ranson King of the Turf (1939) as Robert Barnes First Offenders (1939) as Gregory Stone Miracle on Main Street (1940) as Jim Foreman Dance, Girl, Dance (1940) as the Judge Arise, My Love (1940) as Mr Phillips Who Killed Aunt Maggie? (1940) as Dr. George Benedict Michael Shayne, Private Detective (1940) as Elliott Thomas Hold Back the Dawn (1941) as Inspector Hammock Skylark (1941) as George Gore Glamour Boy (1941) as Anthony J. Colder Beyond the Blue Horizon (1942) as Professor Thornton Holiday Inn (1942) as Danny Reed Wake Island (1942) as Cmdr. Roberts Star-Spangled Rhythm (1942) as B.G. DeSoto Fired Wife (1943) as Chris McClelland The Last Will and Testament of Tom Smith (1943, Short) as Jack, a flyer, opening narrator So Proudly We Hail! (1943) as the Chaplain Follow the Boys (1944) as Himself (uncredited) The Hitler Gang (1944) as Narrator (voice) Mr. Skeffington (1944) as George Trellis An American Romance (1944) as Howard Clinton The Affairs of Susan (1945) as Richard Aiken Duffy's Tavern (1945) as The Director Kiss and Tell (1945) as Harry Archer The Kid From Brooklyn (1946) as Gabby Sloan 13 Rue Madeleine (1946) as Charles Gibson The Hal Roach Comedy Carnival (1947) as Milo Terkle The Fabulous Joe (1947) as Milo Terkle Variety Girl (1947) as Himself (uncredited) Dream Girl (1948) as George Allerton Neighbor to the North (1948, Short) as The American That Lady in Ermine (1948) as Maj. Horvath Picture in Your Mind (1948, Short) as Narrator So This Is Love (1953) as Col. James Moore Island in the Sky (1953) as Col. Fuller Night People (1954) as Maj. Foster, MD The Indian Fighter (1955) as Capt. Trask The Steel Jungle (1956) as Warden Keller Bernardine (1957) as Mr. Beaumont Raintree County (1957) as T.D. Shawnessy Handle With Care (1958) as Prof. Bowdin Quick, Let's Get Married (1964) as The Thief The Human Duplicators (1965) as Dr. Munson (uncredited) Mirage (1965) as Charles Stewart Calvin NBC Children’s Theater: “Super Plastic Elastic Goggles" (1971) Silent Night, Bloody Night (1972) as Mayor Adams The Man Without a Country (1973, TV Movie) as Col. A. B. Morgan The American Woman: Portraits of Courage (1976, TV documentary) as Judge Grace Quigley (1984) as Homer Morrison (final film role)
  • Personal Life & Family

    Walter Abel (June 6, 1898 – March 26, 1987) was an American film, stage' and radio actor. Abel was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, the son of Christine (née Becker) and Richard Michael Abel. Abel graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts where he had studied in 1917 and joined a touring company. His brother Alfred died in 1922 from tuberculosis contracted while serving overseas in World War I. Abel was married to concert harpist Marietta Bitter. Walter Abel was D'Artagnan, with Heather Angel in The Three Musketeers Abel made his film debut in 1918 with a small part in Out of a Clear Sky. He made his Broadway debut in Forbidden in 1919. In 1924 he appeared in two Eugene O'Neill plays simultaneously: Bound East for Cardiff at the Provincetown Playhouse and Desire Under the Elms at the Greenwich Village Theater. His many theatre credits include As You Like It (1923), William Congreve's Love for Love (1925), Anton Chekhov's The Seagull (1929-1930), Mourning Becomes Electra (1929), Kaufman and Hart's Merrily We Roll Along (1934), and Trelawny of the 'Wells' (1975). He also appeared in Channing Pollock's play The Enemy (1926) with Fay Bainter. The play was adapted to film as The Enemy (1927) with Lillian Gish and Ralph Forbes. He made his stage debut in London in the 1929 Coquette. His first major film role was as D'Artagnan in RKO Pictures' 1935 The Three Musketeers. Abel went on to play in more than sixty films. Abel was a vice president of the Screen Actors' Guild. Abel played a major role in the 1942 musical comedy Holiday Inn, portraying hyperactive agent Danny Reed. Abel also appeared as a concert narrator or reader with Eugene Ormandy and The Philadelphia Orchestra in Aaron Copland's Lincoln Portrait in 1951, and in Dylan Thomas's Under Milk Wood in 1953. Death Abel died March 26, 1987, of a myocardial infarction at a nursing home in Essex, Connecticut. He was cremated and a memorial service was held at the Little Church Around the Corner in Manhattan. His ashes were combined with those of his wife and scattered in Long Island Sound.
  • 03/26
    1987

    Death

    March 26, 1987
    Death date
    Heart problems.
    Cause of death
    Connecticut, USA in Connecticut United States
    Death location
  • Obituary

    Veteran Stage, Screen Actor Walter Abel Dies at 88 LAT ARCHIVES MARCH 29, 1987 12 AM PT ASSOCIATED PRESS CHESTER, Conn. — Walter Abel, a veteran actor who appeared on Broadway and in more than 80 films, is dead at 88. Abel, who died Thursday at the Chesterfields Home, moved to Connecticut 1 1/2 years ago from New York City, where he made his professional debut in 1919 in the play “Forbidden.” He acted in Eugene O’Neill’s plays when they were first performed at the Provincetown Playhouse in New York in the 1920s, and went on to Hollywood where his first major role was the lead in the 1931 version of “The Three Musketeers.” Abel went on to make about 60 movies in Hollywood. He was vice president of the Screen Actors Guild in the 1950s when Ronald Reagan was the guild’s president. “However, his great love was the stage in New York, where he returned to live full time in 1944,” said his son, John Abel of Alexandria, Va. He appeared with Helen Hayes in “The Wisteria Trees,” with Cyril Ritchard in “The Pleasure of His Company,” and in numerous other productions including “Saturday, Sunday, Monday” in 1974 and “Trelawny of the Wells” in 1976. His film credits include “The Kid From Brooklyn,” “Wake Island,” “Island in the Sky,” “13 Rue Madeleine” and “Man Without a Country.” Abel made numerous radio and television appearances, among them “The American Woman: Portraits in Courage” in 1976. A funeral service was held in Essex, Conn., on Saturday, and a memorial service will be held later in New York. Besides his son John, Abel is survived by another son, Michael. Walter Abel passed away on March 26, 1987, in Connecticut, USA, Connecticut at age 88. He was born on June 6, 1898.
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10 Memories, Stories & Photos about Walter

Spanking Shirley temple.
Spanking Shirley temple.
Cute shot for a comedy.
Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.
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Walter Abel in Sepia.
Walter Abel in Sepia.
Charming, cheerful and friendly, and fun to meet.
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Movie Publicity Photo.
Movie Publicity Photo.
He was strictly a suit and tie guy.
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Walter Abel
Walter Abel
In a uniform for the movies.
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Walter Abel
Walter Abel
He always looked good in a uniform.
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Three Musketeers.
Three Musketeers.
Publicity Still.
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Walter Abel.
Walter Abel.
Publicity shot.
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Steve Cochran and Lionel Stander with Walter Abel.
Steve Cochran and Lionel Stander with Walter Abel.
He is obviously the Manager of the Boxer and the Trainer.
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Jackie Cooper with Walter Abel.
Jackie Cooper with Walter Abel.
Publicity shot.
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Walter Abel
Walter Abel
Handsome Character Actor Walter Abel.
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Walter Abel's Family Tree & Friends

Walter Abel's Family Tree

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