Earl Holliman

Henry Earl Holliman (born September 11, 1928) is an American actor, animal-rights activist, and singer known for his many character roles in films, mostly Westerns and dramas, in the 1950s and 1960s. He won a Golden Globe Award for the film The Rainmaker (1956) and portrayed Sergeant Bill Crowley on the television police drama Police Woman throughout its 1974–1978 run.

Earl Holliman
Born
Henry Earl Holliman[1]

(1928-09-11) September 11, 1928
Delhi, Louisiana, U.S.
OccupationActor, activist, singer
Years active1952–2000

Early life and education

Earl Holliman was born on September 11, 1928, in Delhi[1] in Richland Parish, located within northeastern Louisiana. Holliman's biological father, William A. Frost (1870-1928), a farmer,[2] died seven months prior to his birth, and his biological mother, Mary Frost Smith (1898-1973),[3] living in poverty with several other children,[4] gave him up for adoption at birth.[1] Earl was the seventh of ten children overall, all of whom, like himself, were sent to various orphanages,[2] and in later years he was able to reconnect and establish relationships with them.[5] He was adopted a week after his birth by Henry Holliman (1897-1941),[6] an oil-field worker, and his wife, Velma (1898-1985),[7] a waitress, who then gave him the name Henry Earl Holliman.[1] Although the Holliman's living conditions and family history have strong ties to Louisiana during Earl's teenaged years, his family and he lived in Kerrville, Texas, for a time[8] as well as some parts of Arkansas[9] (a fact, in which he was once noted later on as being a "red-blooded Ark-La-Texan"[9]).

Holliman's early years were normal until his father died when he was 13.[10] Earl credited his parents with providing him with so much love and encouragement growing up as their only child[11] and helping him look within himself to discover his self-confidence in converting his dreams into reality.[2] In addition, when Earl began his career in films, Velma was so supportive of him, she once even went to a theatre in their home state of Louisiana an hour before it opened just so she could be the first attendee present there to not only see her son in his first major role appearance, but also to also work with the theatre manager, show columnist, and a friend of the family who knew Earl from his schoolboy days, to go through a vast set of stills for that particular film so she could begin the composition of an album for him reflecting the start of his professional career as an actor.[12]

He saved money from his position ushering at the Strand Theatre, as well as from also being a newsboy for the Shreveport Times[13] and a magician's assistant,[14] and then left Louisiana hitchhiking to Hollywood. After an unsuccessful first attempt finding work in the film industry, he soon returned to Louisiana after being out in California for only one week.[15] Meanwhile, his adoptive mother had remarried, and Earl disliked his new stepfather, Guy Bellotte (1891-1957).[16] He lied about his age and enlisted in the United States Navy during World War II.[17] Assigned to a Navy communications school in Los Angeles, he spent his free time at the Hollywood Canteen, talking to stars who dropped by to support the servicemen and women. A year after his enlistment, the Navy discovered his real age and he was immediately discharged.

Holliman returned home, worked in the oil fields in his spare time,[10] washed dishes at various restaurants,[18] and after some attendance at Louisiana Avenue, Fair Park, and Byrd High School in Shreveport,[18] completed his public education at Oil City High School in Oil City, Louisiana, graduating with high honors[10] in 1946; while a student there, he also played right tackle on the school football team[11] and served as senior-class president.[13] After rejecting a scholarship to Louisiana State University,[10] he re-enlisted in the Navy and was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia.[10] Interested in acting, he was cast as the lead in several Norfolk Navy Theatre productions.[17] When he left the Navy for good, Holliman studied acting at the Pasadena Playhouse.[19] He also graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles.[20] During the time he studied acting at both the Playhouse and UCLA, Holliman supplemented his income working as a file clerk for Blue Cross (later known as Blue Cross Blue Shield Association)[21] and with North American Aviation[13] constructing airplanes.

Career

Film

Holliman first appeared, uncredited, in the 1952 Western Pony Soldier. After he gained popularity in his image following a change in haircutting,[18] he then followed with five films released in 1953. His credits include: The Bridges at Toko-Ri (1954), The Big Combo (1955), I Died a Thousand Times (1955), Forbidden Planet (1956), Giant (1956), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), Last Train from Gun Hill (1959), Visit to a Small Planet (1960), The Sons of Katie Elder (1965), Anzio (1968), and Sharky's Machine (1981).

Holliman played a doomed helicopter crewman in the William Holden war drama The Bridges at Toko-Ri and a gangster's double-crossed thug in The Big Combo. He co-starred with Jack Palance in the crime drama I Died a Thousand Times (1955), a remake of High Sierra. He starred in The Rainmaker (1956), opposite Katharine Hepburn and Burt Lancaster, playing a rancher's timid son, who finally must defy his brother to gain self-respect, for which he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture;[22] he was cast in the role instead of Elvis Presley.[23] His role in Rainmaker brought him such praise that columnist Louella Parsons cited him being "as dedicated as though he were Marlon Brando and Anthony Perkins combined".[24]

He was the soft-spoken son-in-law of a rancher (Rock Hudson) in the epic Western saga Giant. Holliman would play many roles set in the American West. He was Wyatt Earp's deputy in Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, co-starring Lancaster and Douglas, and a sniveling coward guilty of murdering and raping the wife of a lawman (Kirk Douglas) in Last Train from Gun Hill. He played a drunken deputy sheriff whose brother Richard Widmark returns to town in a modern-day Western, The Trap (1959), and the brother of John Wayne, Dean Martin, and Michael Anderson Jr., out to avenge their murdered father, in a traditional Western, The Sons of Katie Elder. He portrayed a corrupt Atlanta politician in the crime drama, Sharky's Machine, directed by, and starring, Burt Reynolds.

Television

Holliman became known to television audiences through his portrayal as Sundance in CBS's Hotel de Paree, with costar Jeanette Nolan, from 1959 to 1960, and in the title role of Mitch Guthrie with Andrew Prine in NBC's Wide Country, a drama about modern rodeo performers that aired for 28 episodes between 1962 and 1963. He also had the distinction of appearing in the debut episode of CBS's The Twilight Zone, titled "Where Is Everybody?", which aired on October 2, 1959, the same night as the premiere of Hotel de Paree.

Holliman in a publicity portrait for The Wide Country

In 1962, Claude Akins and he guest-starred as a pair of feuding brothers in "The Stubborn Stumbos" episode of Marilyn Maxwell's ABC drama series Bus Stop. In 1965, he guest-starred on 12 O'Clock High as Lt. Steiger, a pilot who learns to appreciate life after being assigned a dangerous mission and winning the lottery.[25] In 1967, Holliman guest-starred on Wayne Maunder's short-lived ABC military–Western series Custer. In 1970, Holliman starred in the TV movie Tribes as the antagonist Master Sergeant Frank DePayster, co-starring with Darren McGavin and Jan-Michael Vincent. In 1970 and 1971, Holliman made two appearances in the Western comedy series Alias Smith and Jones starring Pete Duel (né Deuel) and Ben Murphy.

From 1974 to 1978, he portrayed Sergeant Bill Crowley opposite Angie Dickinson in the Police Woman series. He co-starred in all 91 episodes of the hit series (which he later remarked changed his life),[26] playing the police department superior of undercover officer Pepper Anderson. He later took part in The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast comedy roast of co-star Dickinson on August 2, 1977.

Holliman continued to appear in television guest roles throughout the 1970s to 1990s. He shared a starring role in the CBS movie Country Gold (a made for television remake of All About Eve), filmed on location in Nashville, Tennessee, which also featured Loni Anderson, Linda Hamilton, and Cooper Huckabee. He was also a regular celebrity panelist on The Hollywood Squares, where he was recognized for his ability to trick the contestants with believable bluff answers. His most notable role during this period was in the hit miniseries The Thorn Birds with Richard Chamberlain and Rachel Ward. He also took part in the Gunsmoke reunion movie Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge in 1987 as Jake Flagg, having guest-starred on the Gunsmoke TV series with James Arness three times between 1969 and 1973.

He was an occasional celebrity on the $25,000 and $100,000 Pyramid game shows between 1983 and 1991. In 1991 and 1994, Holliman had two guest-star roles on Murder, She Wrote, in the season-seven episode "Who Killed JB Fletcher?" and the season-10 episode, "Roadkill". From September 15, 1991, to January 4, 1992, he appeared in the lead role of Detective Matthew Durning on the CBS sitcom P.S. I Luv U (a role which he got due to his prominence in Police Woman two decades prior[27]) and after the series ended, he was then featured as a special guest in the season-six episode of In the Heat of the Night entitled "Last Rights" portraying Dr. Lambert, a man who had been a prime suspect in a string of mercy killings. In 1996, he was the guest voice of the character Milton in the season-six Captain Planet and the Planeteers episode, "Never the Twain Shall Meet". Later in his career, Holliman had a recurring role as Fred Duffy, the father of the title character Caroline Duffy, on Caroline in the City, appearing in three episodes, and he additionally starred in the 1997–99 television series Night Man as Frank Dominus, a disgraced former police officer and father of the main character.

Music

From 1958 to 1963, Holliman found a brief, yet successful, career as a singer, and had a record deal with such notable recording studios as Capitol Records, Prep, and HiFi. His songs included: "A Teenager Sings the Blues", "Nobody Knows How I Feel", "Don't Get Around Much Anymore", "Sittin' and a Gabbin'", "If I Could See the World Through the Eyes of a Child", "La La La Lovable", "Wanna Kiss You To-Night", "I'm in the Mood for Love", "We Found Love", "Willingly", "There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight", and "Road to Nowhere".[28] In May 1976, he guest-starred on The John Davidson Show singing a vaudeville-style version of "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" with Davidson, as well as performing his own solo version of The Carpenters track, "Rainy Days and Mondays".[29]

Stage
Holliman photographed in 1993

After Wide Country ended its run in April 1963, Holliman spent the next two months traveling the country in the acclaimed musical Oklahoma! appearing in the lead role of Curly McLain.[30] Later that same year, he appeared in the role of Mike Mitchell in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, summer tour of Sunday in New York[30] and at the Avondale Playhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, in The Country Girl in the role of Bernie Dodd opposite Lee Bowman and Julie Wilson.[31] Between September 4 and September 9, 1963, he starred in a production of The Tender Trap, opposite Anthony George, in the role of Charlie Y. Reader at the Westchester County Playhouse in Dobbs Ferry, New York.[32] In 1968, he starred in the Los Angeles Mark Taper Forum production of Tennessee Williams' Camino Real in the role of Kilroy; his performance was well received by critics[33] and Williams himself not only came to see Earl's performance about 11 times, but he also sent him a correspondence praising his work in both Real and Streetcar as being "the best" interpretations of the characters "Kilroy" and "Mitch" he had even seen.[27]

From September 15 to October 14, 1981, he starred in a stage production of Mister Roberts at the Fiesta Dinner Playhouse in San Antonio, Texas,[34] of which he was owner. He occasionally performed at his theater when he was not working in Hollywood; other productions in which he appeared there include Arsenic and Old Lace as Mortimer Brewster from April 1 to May 4, 1980,[35] and Same Time, Next Year with Julie Sommars in 1983.[36] The facility closed after 1987. He also appeared in stage productions of the 1973 revival of A Streetcar Named Desire as Mitch[37] and the 1977 Santa Monica Civic production of A Chorus Line as Zach the Choreographer.[38][39]

Personal life

During the late 1970s, he served as the national honorary chairman for the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation.[40][41] In 1976, he was the grand marshal of the Annual Fourth of July Parade in Huntington Beach, California.[42]

Holliman in a publicity portrait for Police Woman

He is also a vegetarian[43] and is against the exploitation of animals by using their furs for clothing.[44]

He is also one of many in the entertainment industry who have been cited in the short saying, "There are Five Stages in the Life of an Actor" by Hollywood columnist Mike Connolly (e.g. "Who's Earl Holliman? Get me Earl Holliman. Get me an Earl Holliman type. Get me a young Earl Holliman. Who's Earl Holliman?").

Holliman supported the re-election of Dwight Eisenhower in the 1956 presidential election.[45]

He is of the Baptist faith.[46]

Holliman is also known for his work as an animal-rights activist, including more than 25 years as president of Actors and Others for Animals.[47] He is well-known for nursing animals on his own property, at one point feeding roughly 500 pigeons in a day, as well as healing a wounded dove and blind opossum inside his home.[27]

For many years, during the Christmas season, he was one of the many gracious elite of the film community to help organize various luncheons and dinners for the less fortunate at the Los Angeles Mission.[48]

He currently resides in Studio City, California. Holliman has never been married and has no children.[49]

Awards and nominations

In addition to his Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture for The Rainmaker, he also earned a nomination for a Golden Globe Award for "Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Television Series" for his performance alongside Delta Burke in the short-lived 1992 sitcom Delta.[22]

For his contributions to the television industry, Holliman has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame located at 6901 Hollywood Blvd.[50]

Filmography
Main article: Earl Holliman filmography

Conflation with Anthony Earl Numkena

For several years, various sources erroneously reported that Earl Holliman's original name was Anthony Earl Numkena.[51][52][53] In fact, Numkena was a child actor, born in 1942, who appeared with Holliman in the films Pony Soldier (1952) and Destination Gobi (1954).

References
  1. Leszczak, Bob (2015). From Small Screen to Vinyl: A Guide to Television Stars Who Made Records, 1950-2000. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 157. ISBN 9781442242746. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
  2. "Veteran_Holliman_returns_to_TV___PS_I_Luv_U". October 5, 1991. p. 12 – via newspapers.com.
  3. The Monroe News-Star (LA), Thursday, January 25, 1973
  4. Mahan, Bill (October 31, 1971). "Outside Hollywood: Earl Holliman". Oakland Tribune. California, Oakland. The Register and Tribune Syndicate. p. 139. Retrieved August 16, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Earl Holliman". Newspapers.com.
  6. Shreveport Times 23-Nov-1941, Page 2
  7. "Velma Holliman Bellotte Obituary". Newspapers.com.
  8. "Clipped From The Kerrville Times". January 13, 1988. p. 14 – via newspapers.com.
  9. "Clipped From The Times". March 21, 1957. p. 14 – via newspapers.com.
  10. Martin, Bob (March 4, 1973). "Earl Holliman: actor with desire for variety". Independent Press-Telegram. California, Long Beach. p. Tele Vues 1. Retrieved August 7, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. "Close-Up: Actor Earl Holliman". www.boxofficemojo.com.
  12. "Mrs Guy Bellotte Follows Earl Holliman's Career". March 25, 1954. p. 14 – via newspapers.com.
  13. "Henry Earl Holliman Part 2". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  14. "Bemidji Pioneer Newspaper Archives, Aug 5, 1977, p. 25". Newspaperarchive.com. Retrieved 12 May 2019.
  15. "Earl Holliman". Newspapers.com.
  16. Shreveport Times, 25-Oct-1957, Page 1-C
  17. "Yahoo! Movies - Earl Holliman". Archived from the original on June 3, 2011.
  18. "Henry Earl Holliman Part 1". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  19. Holleran, Scott: "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-04-12. Retrieved 2009-02-22.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Box Office Mojo, March 8, 2006 - Close-Up: Actor Earl Holliman interview
  20. Erickson, Hal: "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-05-26. Retrieved 2009-02-17.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Answers.com; Earl Holliman
  21. Interview,Skip E. Lowe Looks at Hollywood - Earl Holliman, August 22, 2000
  22. "Earl Holliman". Golden Globe Awards. Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Archived from the original on 20 January 2018. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
  23. Dick, Bernard F. (2015). Engulfed: The Death of Paramount Pictures and the Birth of Corporate Hollywood. University Press of Kentucky. p. 35. ISBN 9780813159287. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
  24. Parsons, Louella (March 1957). "Louella Parsons in Hollywood". Modern Screen. p. 14. Retrieved August 11, 2019. I NOMINATE FOR STARDOM, EARL HOLLIMAN: With his angular face, high cheek bones, and fiercely determined eyes, he doesn't look like an actor. But as Burt Lancaster, Katharine Hepburn, and Wendell Corey can tell you, they had to do their tip-top best to keep this young man from stealing The Rainmaker from them. I've seldom seen a finer supporting performance from a newcomer. While he is not a product of the Actors Studio, Earl is just as dedicated as though he were Marlon Brando and Tony Perkins combined.
  25. Title credits
  26. "PS Holliman glad to be back PS I Luv U". Newspapers.com.
  27. "Actor_sincere_about_animals__Holliman_PS_I_Luv_U". December 28, 1991. p. 23 – via newspapers.com.
  28. "Earl Holliman Discography - USA". 45cat.com.
  29. "Burlington Daily Times News Archives, May 29, 1976, p. 19". Newspaperarchive.com. Retrieved 12 May 2019.
  30. Earl's Ledger - The Official Earl Holliman Fan Club Magazine, page 3, Audrey's Letter Shop, Los Angeles, CA, Vol. 1, August 1963
  31. Avondale Playhouse Collection, Manuscript and Visual Collections Department, Indiana Historical Society, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1963-64 Production Year
  32. "'Tender Trap' Playing At Dobbs Ferry" (PDF). North Westchester Times New Castle Tribune. New York, Mount Kisco. September 5, 1963. p. 12. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
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  35. Communications, Emmis (1 April 1980). "Texas Monthly". Emmis Communications – via Google Books.
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  37. Kolin, Philip C. (2000). Williams: A Streetcar Named Desire. Cambridge University Press. p. 91. ISBN 9780521626101. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
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  40. "Marine Toys for Tots Foundation". Toysfortots.org.
  41. "Theater asks toys". San Antonio Express. Texas, San Antonio. December 16, 1977. p. 3-W. Retrieved August 8, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  42. Assembly, California Legislature (26 May 1975). "Assembly Bill". California Legislature – via Google Books.
  43. Inc, Active Interest Media (1 January 1988). "Vegetarian Times". Active Interest Media, Inc. – via Google Books.
  44. Inc, Active Interest Media (1 January 1989). "Vegetarian Times". Active Interest Media, Inc. – via Google Books.
  45. Motion Picture Magazine, Issue 549, November 1956, Brewster Publications, Inc., Page. 27
  46. Interview, Billy Graham Ministries, I Believe...The Religious Faiths of 29 Stars, 1960
  47. Fraser, Nora: "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-01-30. Retrieved 2009-02-17.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) The Pet Press, October 2002 - Actors & Others’ Head Honcho Has A Huge Heart for Animals
  48. "LA Times, Wed. December 2, 1987". December 2, 1987. p. 71 – via newspapers.com.
  49. "31 Dec 1969, Page 28 - The Delta Democrat-Times". Newspapers.com.
  50. "Earl Holliman". Los Angeles Times Hollywood Star Walk. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 14 February 2018. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
  51. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-06-03. Retrieved 2017-01-14.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Yahoo Movies - Earl Holliman
  52. "Movies". Nytimes.com. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
  53. "Earl Holliman". Filmbug. Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
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