Sheldon Leonard

Sheldon Leonard (February 22 1907 – January 10, 1997) was a pioneering film and television producer, director, writer, and actor. Leonard was an Eagle Scout.

As an actor, Leonard specialized in playing supporting characters, and many times gangsters, in films such as It's A Wonderful Life (1946), To Have and Have Not (1944), and Open Secret (1948). His trademark was his especially thick New York accent.

In radio, Leonard played an eccentric racetrack tout on the Jack Benny program in the late 1940s and early 1950s. His role was to salute Benny out of the blue in railroad stations or on street corners or in department stores ("hey Bud, come here a minute"), ask Benny what he was about to do, and then proceed to try to argue him out of his course of action by resorting to inane and irrelevant racing logic.

But he is better known as the producer of hugely popular television series, including The Danny Thomas Show (1953–64), The Andy Griffith Show (1960–68), The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961–66), and I Spy (1965–68).

One of his last roles was a guest appearance on the TV series Cheers, in which he played the proprietor of "The Hungry Heifer", Norm Peterson's favorite eating establishment.

Leonard died at 89 and was buried at Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery in Culver City, California.

Noted filmography

Producer

Director

Actor

Notes

"Niagra Falls" routine from Bill Cosby's Wonderfulness album is a story about Sheldon Leonard. Bill Cosby starred in I Spy, one of the shows that Leonard produced.

External links