Walter Burke (1908-1984) is a New York native character actor of stage, film, and television whose career spanned over a half-century. Burke's 5' 5" stature, distinctive stone-grinding voice, and craggy face made him easily recognizable to television audiences no matter the size of the role. Burke's Irish ancestry often arose when being cast as an Irishman or Englishman. He could play anything from a jockey, a thief, a gangster, or a leprechaun.
Burke kept busy in film from the late 1940s to the 1970s in uncredited and minor roles. He debuted in the film, The Naked City, and the following year had a memorable role as Sugar Boy in All the King's Men, 1949. Burke would appear in twenty-two more films and numerous Broadway productions before transitioning to the diminutive screen with more than 103 different chameleon roles in the 1950s and 1960s. As a representative of his multiple television appearances, his versatility cast him on 77 Sunset Strip, The Untouchables, Perry Mason, Death Valley Days, Gunsmoke, Bonanza, and The F.B.I. as well as comedies like Bewitched, The Munsters, or Hogan's Heroes. Burke could not be pigeonholed.
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