Charles Lane (actor)

Charles Lane (born January 26, 1905 in San Francisco, California as Charles Gerstle Levison) is an American character actor, seen on countless movies and TV shows.

He appeared in most Frank Capra films, including Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Arsenic and Old Lace, and It's a Wonderful Life.

Among his many roles as a character actor, Lane is perhaps most widely remembered for his portrayal of J. Homer Bedloe on Petticoat Junction. Bedloe was a mean-spirited railroad executive who visited the Shady Rest Hotel periodically, attempting to find justification for ending the train service of the Hooterville Cannonball (and never succeeding). He is also widely remembered for his appearance in the "I Love Lucy" episode dealing with the birth of Little Ricky. In the waiting room, he tells Ricky he has six girls, and is hoping for a boy. Upon hearing that his wife has given birth to triplet girls, he turns to Ricky and brings the house down with his grim utterance of the two words: "Nine girls!"

Despite his stern, hardhearted demeanor in films and television, friends and acquaintances seem to unanimously describe Lane as warm, funny, and kind. He has never been arrested, never been fodder for the Hollywood press. He was a founding member of the Screen Actors Guild in 1933.

In 1990, Lane was rushed to the hospital, having difficulty breathing. A doctor asked if he was still smoking, and Lane replied that he had kicked the habit 45 minutes earlier. He never smoked again.

Concurrent with his big break into movies as an extra, Lane married his sweetheart Ruth Covell in 1931. They remained together until her death in 2002. Lane still lives in the Brentwood home he bought with her, for $46,000, in 1964. He walks with a cane, but remains healthy, and says he is still available for work.

As for being typecast, Lane described it as "... a pain in the ass. You did something that was pretty good, and the picture was pretty good. But that pedigreed you into that type of part, which I thought was stupid and unfair, too. It didn't give me a chance, but it made the casting easier for the studio".

All told, Lane appeared in more than 150 films and hundreds of television shows. On his busiest days, Lane said he sometimes played more than one role—getting into costume and filming his two or three lines, then hurrying off to another set for a different costume and a different role.

His most recent appearance on the movie screen was in 1987's Date With an Angel with Phoebe Cates and Emmanuelle Béart, but he continued to act on TV until the age of 90 when he appeared in the 1995 Disney TV remake of its 1970 teen comedy The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes with Kirk Cameron in the role originated by Kurt Russell.

In 2005, the TV Land Awards paid tribute to Lane by celebrating his 100th birthday. Seated in a wheelchair in the audience which had sung Happy Birthday to him, Lane was presented with his award and then announced "If you're interested, I'm still available work!" The audience gave him a standing ovation.

Irving Pichel, the actor/director who in 1929 first suggested that Lane go into acting, made the same suggestion in 1943 to the parents of five-year-old Natalie Wood.

Filmography

1980s

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Filmography

1980s

1970s

1960s

1950s

1940s

1930s

External links