Edward DeKalb Acuff (June 3, 1903 – December 17, 1956) was an American stage and film actor. He frequently was cast as a droll comic relief, in the support of the star. His best-known recurring role is that of Mr. Beasley, the postman, in the ''
Blondie'' movie series that starred
Penny Singleton
Penny Singleton (born Mariana Dorothy McNulty, September 15, 1908 – November 12, 2003) was an American actress, singer, dancer and labor leader. During her 60-year career on stage, screen, radio and television, Singleton appeared as the ...
and
Arthur Lake.
Early years
Acuff was born in
Caruthersville, Missouri
Caruthersville is a city in and the county seat of Pemiscot County, Missouri, United States, located along the Mississippi River in the Bootheel region of the state's far southeast. The population was 5,562, according to the 2020 census.
Histo ...
.
He was the son of DeKalb Acuff (1880-1916) and his wife Grace (later known as Mrs. H. N. Arnold),.
Career
Before beginning his Hollywood film career in 1934, Acuff performed in
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...
in the early-1930s. His Broadway credits include ''Jayhawker'' (1934), ''Yellow Jack'' (1934), ''John Brown'' (1934), ''Growing Pains'' (1933), ''Heat Lightning'' (1933), and ''The Dark Hours'' (1932).
In 1935,
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
signed Acuff to a long-term contract and scheduled him to debut on film in ''Anchors Aweigh''. He had a recurring role as the postman in the ''
Blondie'' film series. Acuff was seen in three film serials — as Curly in ''Jungle Girl'', as Red Kelly in ''Daredevils of the West'', and as Spud Warner in ''Chick Carter Detective''.
Death
On December 17, 1956, Acuff died of a heart attack
in
Hollywood, California
Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...
. He is buried in
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery is located at 10621 Victory Boulevard in North Hollywood and Burbank, California.
The cemetery has an entrance called the Portal of the Folded Wings Shrine to Aviation that is the final resting place for aviation ...
.
[Resting Places: The Burial Places of 14,000 Famous Persons, by Scott Wilson]
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
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*http://www.acuff.org/
1903 births
1956 deaths
American male film actors
American male stage actors
Male actors from Missouri
20th-century American male actors
Burials at Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
People from Caruthersville, Missouri
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