Clifford Porter Hall (September 19, 1888 – October 6, 1953) was an American

character actor A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to b ...

known for appearing in a number of films in the 1930s and 1940s. Hall typically played villains or comedic incompetent characters.

Early years

Hall was born in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line w ...

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

. His father, W. A. Hall, headed a cooperage business that ended because of

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholi ...

in the United States. After graduating from the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,0 ...

, Hall worked for the Fleischmann Company while also directing and acting in little theater productions in Cleveland.

Career

Hall began his career touring as a stage actor with roles in productions of ''

The Great Gatsby ''The Great Gatsby'' is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City, the novel depicts first-person narrator Nick Carraway's interactions with mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby ...

'' and ''Naked'' in 1926. His Broadway credits included ''The Great Gatsby'' (1926), ''Naked'' (1926), ''Loud Speaker'' (1927), ''Night Hostess'' (1928), ''It's a Wise Child'' (1929), ''Collision'' (1932), ''The Warrior's Husband'' (1932), ''The Dark Tower'' (1933), ''The Red Cat'' (1934). Hall made his film debut in the 1931 drama ''

Secrets of a Secretary ''Secrets of a Secretary'' is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film directed by George Abbott, and starring Claudette Colbert and Herbert Marshall. The film was stage actress Mary Boland's first role in a talkie. Premise Society girl becomes a ...

''. His last onscreen appearance was in the 1954 film '' Return to Treasure Island'', which was released after his death. Hall was probably best remembered for five roles: a senator in '' Mr. Smith Goes to Washington''; an

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

in '' Going My Way''; the nervous, ill-tempered Granville Sawyer, who administers a psychological test to Kris Kringle in ''

Miracle on 34th Street ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (initially released as ''The Big Heart'' in the United Kingdom) is a 1947 American Christmas comedy-drama film released by 20th Century Fox, written and directed by George Seaton and based on a story by Valentine Davi ...

''; a train passenger who encounters a man (

Fred MacMurray Frederick Martin MacMurray (August 30, 1908 – November 5, 1991) was an American actor. He appeared in more than one hundred films and a successful television series, in a career that spanned nearly a half-century. His career as a major film le ...

) who has just committed a murder in ''

Double Indemnity ''Double Indemnity'' is a 1944 American crime film noir directed by Billy Wilder, co-written by Wilder and Raymond Chandler, and produced by Buddy DeSylva and Joseph Sistrom. The screenplay was based on James M. Cain's 1943 novel of the same ...

''; and the title character's lawyer (Herbert MacCaulay) in '' The Thin Man''.

Personal life

Hall married actress Geraldine Brown in 1927; they had two children. He served as a deacon at

First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood The First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood has had a significant impact on both the Presbyterian Church and evangelical Christianity around the world. The church was founded in 1903. A large brick gothic sanctuary was built in 1923, and seats 1,8 ...

for many years. On October 6, 1953, Hall died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, at the age of 65. His interment was at Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery.

In popular culture

Director

Russ Meyer Russell Albion Meyer (March 21, 1922 – September 18, 2004) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, and editor. He is known primarily for writing and directing a series of successful sexploitation films that fea ...

named one of the characters in the 1970 cult film ''

Beyond the Valley of the Dolls ''Beyond the Valley of the Dolls'' is a 1970 American satirical musical melodrama film starring Dolly Read, Cynthia Myers, Marcia McBroom, Phyllis Davis, John LaZar, Michael Blodgett, and David Gurian. The film was directed by Russ Meyer and ...

'' after Hall.

Complete filmography

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hall, Porter 1888 births 1953 deaths 20th-century American male actors American male film actors American male radio actors American male stage actors American male television actors American Presbyterians Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) Male actors from Cincinnati