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Robert Preston
Actor
Born June 8, 1918Died March 21, 1987 (68 years)
Robert Preston (June 8, 1918 – March 21, 1987) was an American stage and film actor and singer, best known for his collaboration with composer Meredith Willson and originating the role of Professor Harold Hill in the 1957 musical The Music Man and the 1962 film adaptation; the film earned him his first of two Golden Globe Award nominations. Preston collaborated twice with filmmaker Blake Edwards, first in S.O.B. (1981) and again in Victor/Victoria (1982). For portraying Carroll "Toddy" Todd in the latter, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor at the 55th Academy Awards.
Preston was born Robert Preston Meservey in Newton, Massachusetts, the son of a garment worker and a record store clerk. He attended Abraham Lincoln High School, training as a musician and playing several instruments, but quit at age sixteen to study acting at the Pasadena Community Playhouse.
Preston made his Broadway debut in 1940 in the play The Philadelphia Story. He went on to star in a number of successful Broadway musicals, including The Pajama Game (1954), Damn Yankees (1955), and I Do! I Do! (1966). He also appeared in a number of films, including The Music Man (1962), The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1960), and Victor/Victoria (1982).
Preston was a versatile actor who could play a wide range of roles. He was known for his charisma, his singing voice, and his comic timing. He was a two-time Tony Award winner and was nominated for an Academy Award. He was also a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame.
Preston died of cancer in 1987 at the age of 68. He was survived by his wife, Catherine Craig; the couple had no children.
A biography of the actor, @Robert Preston - Forever The Music Man”, was published in 2022.
Preston was born Robert Preston Meservey in Newton, Massachusetts, the son of a garment worker and a record store clerk. He attended Abraham Lincoln High School, training as a musician and playing several instruments, but quit at age sixteen to study acting at the Pasadena Community Playhouse.
Preston made his Broadway debut in 1940 in the play The Philadelphia Story. He went on to star in a number of successful Broadway musicals, including The Pajama Game (1954), Damn Yankees (1955), and I Do! I Do! (1966). He also appeared in a number of films, including The Music Man (1962), The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1960), and Victor/Victoria (1982).
Preston was a versatile actor who could play a wide range of roles. He was known for his charisma, his singing voice, and his comic timing. He was a two-time Tony Award winner and was nominated for an Academy Award. He was also a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame.
Preston died of cancer in 1987 at the age of 68. He was survived by his wife, Catherine Craig; the couple had no children.
A biography of the actor, @Robert Preston - Forever The Music Man”, was published in 2022.
Known For
Filmography
| 2020 | Disclosure · as Carole 'toddy' Todd (archive Footage) |
| 2002 | Cinerama Adventure · as Roger Morgan |
| 1987 | The 41st Annual Tony Awards · as Harold Hill |
| 1986 | Outrage! · as Dennis Riordan |
| 1985 | Finnegan Begin Again · as Mike Finnegan |
| 1984 | The Last Starfighter · as Centauri |
| 1983 | September Gun · as Ben Sunday |
| 1982 | Rehearsal for Murder · as Alex Dennison |
| 1982 | Victor/Victoria · as Carroll "toddy" Todd |
| 1981 | S.O.B. · as Dr. Irving Finegarten |
| 1980 | The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg · as Stranger |
| 1979 | The Chisholms (TV Series) · as Hadley Chisholm |
| 1977 | Semi-Tough · as Big Ed Bookman |
| 1975 | My Father's House · as Tom Lindholm Sr. |
| 1974 | Mame · as Beauregard Jackson Pickett Burnside |
| 1972 | Child's Play · as Joseph Dobbs |
| 1972 | Junior Bonner · as Ace Bonner |
| 1963 | Island of Love · as Steve Blair |
| 1963 | All the Way Home · as Jay Follet |
| 1962 | How the West Was Won · as Roger Morgan |
| 1962 | The Music Man · as Harold Hill |
| 1960 | The Dark at the Top of the Stairs · as Rubin Flood |
| 1959 | The Bells of St. Mary's · as Father Chuck O'malley |
| 1957 | The DuPont Show of the Month (TV Series) · as Clinton Jones |
| 1955 | The Last Frontier · as Col. Frank Marston |
| 1955 | Alcoa Hour (TV Series) · as Doug Hallock |
| 1955 | The 20th Century-Fox Hour (TV Series) |
| 1954 | Climax! (TV Series) · as William Struthers |
| 1954 | The Elgin Hour (TV Series) · as Ben Wagner |
| 1953 | The United States Steel Hour (TV Series) · as Dr. Abbott |
| 1953 | General Electric Theater (TV Series) · as Jim Tweedy |
| 1952 | Omnibus (TV Series) · as (segment "henry Adams") |
| 1952 | Face to Face · as Jack Potter |
| 1951 | Goodyear Television Playhouse (TV Series) · as Jesse James |
| 1951 | Schlitz Playhouse of Stars (TV Series) |
| 1951 | My Outlaw Brother · as Joe Walter |
| 1951 | Best of the Badmen · as Matthew Fowler |
| 1951 | Cloudburst · as John Graham |
| 1951 | When I Grow Up · as Father Reed |
| 1950 | The Pulitzer Prize Playhouse (TV Series) · as Cast |
| 1950 | The Lux Video Theatre (TV Series) · as Dowey |
| 1950 | Danger (TV Series) · as Cast |
| 1950 | Your Show of Shows (TV Series) |
| 1950 | The Sundowners · as James Cloud ('kid Wichita') |
| 1950 | Robert Montgomery Presents Your Lucky Strike Theatre (TV Series) · as Professor Richard Wanley |
| 1949 | Man Against Crime (TV Series) · as Pat Barnett (1951) |
| 1949 | The Lady Gambles · as David Boothe |
| 1949 | |
| 1948 | Whispering Smith · as Murray Sinclair |
| 1948 | Blood on the Moon · as Tate Riling |
| 1948 | Studio One (TV Series) · as Cast |
| 1948 | Big City · as Rev. Philip Y. Andrews |
| 1947 | Wild Harvest · as Jim Davis |
| 1947 | The Macomber Affair · as Francis Macomber |
| 1947 | Kraft Television Theatre (TV Series) · as Cast |
| 1943 | Night Plane from Chungking · as Nick Stanton |
| 1942 | Star Spangled Rhythm · as Robert Preston (uncredited) |
| 1942 | This Gun for Hire · as Det. Michael Crane |
| 1942 | Wake Island · as Pvt. Joe Doyle |
| 1942 | Reap the Wild Wind · as Dan Cutler |
| 1941 | Pacific Blackout · as Robert Draper |
| 1941 | The Night of January 16th · as Steve Van Ruyle |
| 1941 | New York Town · as Paul Bryson, Jr. |
| 1941 | Parachute Battalion · as Donald Morse |
| 1941 | The Lady from Cheyenne · as Steve Lewis |
| 1940 | Moon Over Burma · as Chuck Lane |
| 1940 | North West Mounted Police · as Ronnie Logan |
| 1940 | Typhoon · as Johnny Potter |
| 1939 | Beau Geste · as Digby Geste |
| 1939 | Union Pacific · as Dick Allen |
| 1939 | Disbarred · as Bradley Kent |
| 1938 | King of Alcatraz · as Robert Macarthur |