Kelton Bradford Garwood, also known and credited as Jonathan Harper, and John Harper, (May 21, 1928 – July 28, 1991) was an American actor on stage, film and television, perhaps best known as undertaker Percy Crump on the western television show '' Gunsmoke''.

Career

Garwood received a degree in Theatrical Arts from the

Ohio University Ohio University is a public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confederation and subseq ...

, after which he performed on stage as a leading man. Director

Blake Edwards Blake Edwards (born William Blake Crump; July 26, 1922 – December 15, 2010) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Edwards began his career in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon began writing screenplays and radio s ...

was so impressed that he arranged for Garwood to begin a film career, with a supporting role of Magician in the 1959 episode "Murder on the Midway" of the television series ''

Peter Gunn ''Peter Gunn'' is an American private eye television series, starring Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn with Lola Albright as his girlfriend, Edie Hart. The series aired on NBC from September 22, 1958, to 1960 and on ABC in 1960–1961. The seri ...

''. Afterwards, he became a notable supporting character actor in over 45 features, often portraying husbands, fathers, eccentrics, aristocrats, cowboys, sheriffs, policemen, reporters, detectives, clerks, and in his later years, patriarchs. His film career including roles in '' The Miracle of the Hills'' (1959), ''

The Story of Ruth ''The Story of Ruth'' is a 1960 American historical romance film directed by Henry Koster, shot in CinemaScope and DeLuxe Color, and released by 20th Century Fox. The screenplay, written by Norman Corwin, is an adaptation of the biblical Book o ...

'' (1960), ''

The Wizard of Baghdad ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'' (1961), ''

Move Over, Darling ''Move Over, Darling'' is a 1963 American comedy film starring Doris Day, James Garner, and Polly Bergen and directed by Michael Gordon filmed in DeLuxe Color and CinemaScope released by 20th Century Fox. The film is a remake of a 1940 screw ...

'' (1963), ''

The Sandpiper ''The Sandpiper'' is a 1965 American drama film directed by Vincente Minnelli and starring Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. Plot Laura Reynolds is a free-spirited, unwed single mother living with her young son Danny in an isolated beach house ...

'' (1965), '' A Covenant with Death'' (1967), '' Big Daddy'' (1969), and '' Return to Snowy River'' (1988). On television, he was a familiar face in the guest cast of '' Bachelor Father'', '' The Big Valley'', ''

Captain Nice ''Captain Nice'' is an American comedy TV series that ran from 9 January 1967 to 28 August 1967, Monday nights at 8:30 pm EST on NBC, opposite ABC's ''The Rat Patrol'' and CBS's '' The Lucy Show''. The show was an unsuccessful attempt to cash ...

'', ''

The Danny Kaye Show ''The Danny Kaye Show'' was an American variety show, hosted by the stage and screen star Danny Kaye, which aired on Wednesday nights from September 25, 1963, to June 7, 1967, on the CBS television network. Directed by Robert Scheerer, it premi ...

'', '' Destry'', '' I Dream of Jeannie'', ''Empire'', ''

Get Smart ''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s, with the release of the ''James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, an ...

'', '' The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.'', ''

Have Gun – Will Travel ''Have Gun – Will Travel'' is an American Western series that was produced and originally broadcast by CBS on both television and radio from 1957 through 1963. The television version of the series starring Richard Boone was rated number t ...

'', ''

Hondo Hondo may refer to: Places * Rio Hondo (disambiguation), the name of several locations, derived from the Spanish word for "deep" Canada * Hondo, Alberta, an unincorporated community United States * Hondo, New Mexico, an unincorporated co ...

'', '' Hotel de Paree'', ''

Iron Horse ''Iron horse'' is an iconic literary term (considered by the early 21st century to be transitioning into an archaic reference) for a steam locomotive, originating in the early 1800s, when horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domes ...

'', '' Laredo'', ''

The Magical World of Disney The Walt Disney Company has produced an anthology television series since 1954 under several titles and formats. The program's current title, ''The Wonderful World of Disney'', was used from 1969 to 1979 and again from 1991 to the present. The pr ...

'', ''

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' is an American spy fiction television series produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television and first broadcast on NBC. The series follows secret agents, played by Robert Vaughn and David McCallum, who work for a secret ...

'', ''

The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis ''The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis'' (also known as simply ''Dobie Gillis'' or ''Max Shulman's Dobie Gillis'' in later seasons and in syndication) is an American sitcom starring Dwayne Hickman that aired on CBS from September 29, 1959, to June 5 ...

'', ''

Mister Ed ''Mister Ed'' is an American television sitcom produced by Filmways that aired in syndication from January 5 to July 2, 1961, and then on CBS from October 1, 1961, to February 6, 1966. The show's title character is a talking horse which orig ...

'', ''

The Monkees The Monkees were an American rock and pop band, formed in Los Angeles in 1966, whose lineup consisted of the American actor/musicians Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork alongside English actor/singer Davy Jones. The group was con ...

'', ''

The Munsters ''The Munsters'' is an American sitcom depicting the home life of a family of benign monsters. The series starred Fred Gwynne as Frankenstein's monsterEpisodes referring to the fact that Herman is Frankenstein's monster include #55, "Just Anoth ...

'', '' Overland Trail'', '' Rawhide'', '' The Rebel'', ''

The Red Skelton Hour ''The Red Skelton Show'' is an American television comedy/variety show that aired from 1951 to 1971. In the decade prior to hosting the show, Richard "Red" Skelton had a successful career as a radio and motion pictures star. Although his televis ...

'', ''

The Rifleman ''The Rifleman'' is an American Western television program starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the fictional town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show ...

'', '' Ripcord'', ''

Sea Hunt ''Sea Hunt'' is an American action adventure television series that aired in syndication from 1958 to 1961 and was popular for decades afterwards. The series originally aired for four seasons, with 155 episodes produced. It stars Lloyd Bridges a ...

'', '' Tales of Wells Fargo'', ''

Tate Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

'', ''

Two Faces West ''Two Faces West'' is an American syndicated TV series set in the Wild West running from October 1960 to July 1961 for a total of 39 half-hour episodes (one per week on a continuous run). It was produced by Donald Gold and Jonas Seinfeld and M ...

'', ''

The Untouchables Untouchables or The Untouchables may refer to: American history * Untouchables (law enforcement), a 1930s American law enforcement unit led by Eliot Ness * ''The Untouchables'' (book), an autobiography by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley * ''The U ...

'', ''

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957–1962), and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and became number one in the Nielsen ratings ...

'', ''

The Waltons ''The Waltons'' is an American historical drama television series about a family in rural Virginia during the Great Depression and World War II. It was created by Earl Hamner Jr., based on his 1961 book '' Spencer's Mountain'' and the 1963 fil ...

'' and of course twelve appearances on '' Gunsmoke'', nine of which are as Undertaker Percy Crump. In ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

'', he guest-starred as the hobo in the episode " Five Characters in Search of an Exit". He also played the recurring role of the character Beauregard O'Hanlon in '' Bourbon Street Beat''. On stage, his appearances include the play ''A Touch of the Poet'' (1963).

Personal life

From 1958 until his death, Garwood was married to interior designer Janet Garwood and the couple had two sons, one of whom became professional golfer

Doug Garwood Doug Garwood (born March 31, 1963) is an American professional golfer. Garwood played college golf at Fresno State University where he was a two-time All-American. Garwood played on the Nationwide Tour from 2002 to 2005. His best finish was a p ...

Filmography

A partial filmography follows.

Film

* '' The Miracle of the Hills'' (1959) * ''

'' (1960) * ''

'' (1961) * ''

'' (1963) * ''

'' (1965) * '' A Covenant with Death'' (1967) * '' Big Daddy'' (1969) * '' Return to Snowy River'' (1988)

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kelton, Garwood 1928 births 1991 deaths Actors from Columbus, Ohio Male actors from Columbus, Ohio American male film actors American male television actors 20th-century American male actors American male stage actors Ohio University alumni Western (genre) television actors