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'''Oliver Burgess Meredith''' ([[November 16]], [[1907]]<ref name="date" /> &ndash; [[September 9]], [[1997]]) was a versatile two-time [[Academy Award]]-nominated [[United States|American]] [[actor]]. He was known for portraying Rocky Balboa's trainer [[Mickey Goldmill]] in the ''[[Rocky (film series)|Rocky]]'' films and [[Penguin (comics)|The Penguin]] in the television series ''[[Batman (TV series)|Batman]]'', amongst many other roles. He was one of only two people to star in four episodes of ''[[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|The Twilight Zone]]''.
'''Oliver Burgess Meredith''' ([[November 16]], [[1907]]<ref name="date" /> &ndash; [[September 9]], [[1997]]) was a versatile two-time [[Academy Award]]-nominated [[United States|American]] [[actor]]. He was known for portraying Rocky Balboa's trainer [[Mickey Goldmill]] in the ''[[Rocky (film series)|Rocky]]'' films and [[Penguin (comics)|The Penguin]] in the television series ''[[Batman (TV series)|Batman]]'', amongst many other roles. He was one of only two people to star in four episodes of ''[[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|The Twilight Zone]]''.


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==Biography==
===Early life & career===
Meredith was born in [[Cleveland, Ohio]], the son of Ida Beth ([[married and maiden names|née]] Burgess) and [[Canada|Canadian]]-born William George Meredith, M.D.<ref name="date">[http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~battle/celeb/meredith.htm 1<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D04E3DE1339F932A2575AC0A961958260 Burgess Meredith, 89, Who Was at Ease Playing Good Guys and Villains, Dies - New York Times<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> He graduated from Hoosac School in 1926. He then attended [[Amherst College]] as a member of the Class of 1931. In 1933, he became a member of [[Eva Le Gallienne]]'s theatre company in [[New York City, New York|New York]]. He attracted favorable attention for playing George in a 1939 adaptation of [[John Steinbeck]]'s ''[[Of Mice and Men (1939 film)|Of Mice and Men]]'' and as war correspondent [[Ernie Pyle]] in ''[[The Story of G.I. Joe]]'' (1945). The comic strip on which the latter film was based later inspired a range of action figures which themselves became popular and in the 1980s featured in their own movie, the animated ''[[GI Joe: The Movie]]'' in which Meredith also starred as the voice of villain [[Golobulus]].

Meredith was featured in many 1940s films, including three (''[[Second Chorus]]'' (1940), ''[[The Diary of a Chambermaid (1946 film)|Diary of a Chambermaid]]'' (1946) and ''[[On Our Merry Way]]'' (1948)) co-starring then-wife [[Paulette Goddard]]. He also played along side Lana Turner in ''''Madame X''''. Among later roles, he became known for playing [[Penguin (comics)|The Penguin]] on the [[television series]] ''[[Batman (TV series)|Batman]]''. His role as the Penguin was so well-received that the show's writers always had a script featuring the Penguin ready whenever Meredith was available. He appeared on the show more times during its run than any other villain.

Meredith served in the [[United States Army Air Forces]] in [[World War II]], reaching the rank of [[Captain (land)|captain]]. He was discharged in 1944 to work on the movie "The Story of GI Joe", in which he starred as the popular war correspondent Ernie Pyle.

As a result of the [[House Committee on Un-American Activities]] investigation into [[Communist]] influence in Hollywood, Meredith was placed on the [[Hollywood blacklist]] in the 1950s.

===Breadth of acting===
Burgess Meredith was adept playing both [[drama]]tic and [[comedic]] roles, and with his rugged looks and gravelly voice, he could convincingly play either an everyman hero or a sinister villain. He appeared in four different starring roles in the acclaimed anthology TV series ''[[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|The Twilight Zone]]''; only [[Jack Klugman]] had as many leading guest appearances. In the famous "[[Time Enough at Last]]", a 1959 episode of ''The Twilight Zone'', Meredith plays a henpecked bank teller who only wants to be left alone with his [[Bibliophilia|books]]. In the 1961 episode "[[Mr. Dingle, the Strong]]", Meredith plays the title character, a timid weakling who, as the subject of a space [[Extraterrestrial life|alien]]'s experiment on human nature, suddenly acquires superhuman strength. In "[[Printer's Devil]]," Meredith portrayed the [[Devil]] himself, and in "[[The Obsolete Man]]" he portrayed a deeply religious man, sentenced to death in a future, [[dystopia|dystopic]] totalitarian society. He would later play two more roles in [[Rod Serling]]'s other anthology series, ''[[Night Gallery]]''. Meredith was the narrator for ''[[Twilight Zone: The Movie]]'' in 1983. He did not receive on-screen credit for his narration (this was so that he could do the job for scale rather than charge his usual minimum fee); as compensation for Meredith's uncredited work, his name was inserted into the dialogue in a scene between Dan Aykroyd and Albert Brooks.

He appeared in various television programs, including the role of Chris, III, in the 1962 episode "Hooray, Hooray, the Circus Is Coming to Town" of the [[National Broadcasting Company|NBC]] [[medical drama]] about [[psychiatry]], ''[[The Eleventh Hour (1962 TV series)|The Eleventh Hour]]'' starring [[Wendell Corey]] and [[Jack Ging]]. He also guest starred in the [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] drama about psychiatry, ''[[Breaking Point (TV series)|Breaking Point]]'' in the 1963 episode entitled "Heart of Marble, Body of Stone".

Meredith appeared in various [[Western (genre)|western]] series too, such as ''[[Rawhide (TV series)|Rawhide]]'' (four times), ''[[The Virginian (TV series)|The Virginian]]'' (twice), ''[[Wagon Train]]'', ''[[Branded]]'', ''[[The Wild, Wild West]]'', ''[[The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters (TV series)|The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters]]'', Laredo and ''[[Daniel Boone (TV series)|Daniel Boone]].

In 1963, he appeared as Vincent Marion in a five-part episode of the last season of the [[Warner Brothers]] [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] [[detective]] series ''[[77 Sunset Strip]]''. He starred three times in 1963-1964 with Gene Barry in ''[[Burke's Law]]'', starring [[Gene Barry]], also on ABC.

Meredith achieved iconic status for playing [[Penguin (comics)|The Penguin]] in the [[television series]] ''[[Batman (TV series)|Batman]].'' Before he originated the role of [[Mickey Goldmill]] in the original ''[[Rocky]]'', the first of the three ''Rocky'' films in which he appeared, this was the character for whom he was best known.

In 1972 - 1973, Meredith played V.C.R. Cameron, director of ''Probe Control'', in the television movie/pilot ''[[Probe (TV pilot)|Probe]]'' and then in ''[[Search (TV series)|Search]]'', the subsequent TV series (the name was changed to avoid conflict with a program on PBS). The series involved "World Securities Corporation," a private agency which, among other activities, fielded a number of detectives equipped with high-tech equipment including a tiny TV transmitter (the "Scanner") which allowed Probe Control to see what was going on where the agents were working. One episode centered around Cameron being kidnapped and having to escape from a torture chamber, without any of the tools carried by Probe agents.

===Movie roles of note===
[[Image:Penguin1BurgessMeredith.jpg|frame|left|Meredith as the Penguin.]]
Meredith was a favorite of director [[Otto Preminger]], who cast him in ''[[Advise and Consent (film)|Advise and Consent]]'' (1962), ''[[In Harm's Way]]'' (1965), ''[[Hurry Sundown (film)|Hurry Sundown]]'' (1967), ''[[Skidoo (film)|Skidoo]]'' (1968) and ''[[Such Good Friends]]'' (1971). (Both Preminger and Meredith portrayed villains on ''[[Batman (TV series)|Batman]]''.) He appeared in [[Ray Harryhausen]]'s last stop-motion feature ''[[Clash of the Titans]]'', in a supporting role. He played [[Rocky Balboa]]'s trainer, [[Mickey Goldmill]], in the first three ''[[Rocky]]'' films (1976), (1979) and (1982), to great acclaim. Even though his character died in the third Rocky film, he returned briefly in the fifth film, ''[[Rocky V]]'' (1990). (1981) He played an old Korean War veteran Captain J.G. Williams in ''[[The Last Chase]]'' with [[Lee Majors]]. Meredith also appeared in ''[[Santa Claus: The Movie]]'' (1985). In his twilight years, he played [[Jack Lemmon]]'s character's father in ''[[Grumpy Old Men (film)|Grumpy Old Men]]'' (1993) and its sequel, ''[[Grumpier Old Men]]'' (1995). He was [[Penguin (comics)|the Penguin]] in the original ''[[Batman (1966 film)|Batman]]'' movie. As a nod to his longtime association with ''The Twilight Zone'', he served as narrator for the [[Twilight Zone: The Movie|1983 film]] based on the series. He was [[Academy Award]]-nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category for his roles in ''[[The Day of the Locust (film)|The Day of the Locust]]'' (1975) and ''[[Rocky]]'' (1976). Another notable role was as [[Goldie Hawn]]'s landlord in ''[[Foul Play]]''.

===Work as director===
Meredith also directed a movie in 1949 starring [[Charles Laughton]]: "The Man on the Eiffel Tower", which was produced by [[Irving Allen]]. He also was billed in a supporting role in this film.

===Additional roles of note===
A somewhat more mixed (comedy/dramatic) role was his portrayal of the philosophical (yet hapless) tramp, [[Vladimir (character)|Vladimir]], in a notable production of [[Beckett]]'s ''[[Waiting for Godot]]''.

Meredith also did voiceover work. He was the TV commercial voice for [[Honda]], [[Stokley-Van Camp]], [[United Airlines]], and [[Freakies]] cereal. He supplied the narration for the 1974-1975 [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] Saturday morning series ''[[Korg: 70,000 B.C.]]'' and was the voice of Puff in the series of animated adaptations of the [[Peter, Paul, and Mary]] song ''[[Puff, the Magic Dragon]]''.

He won an [[Emmy Award]] as Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy or Drama Special for the 1977 television film ''[[Tail Gunner Joe]]''.

In 1991, he narrated a track on the [[The Chieftains]]' album of [[traditional music|traditional]] [[Christmas]] music and [[Christmas carols|carols]], ''[[The Bells of Dublin]]''.

His last role before death was the portrayal of both Hamilton Wofford and Covington Wofford characters in the 1996 video game, [[Ripper (computer game)|Ripper]], by [[Take-Two Interactive]].

===Theatre work===
While best known for his film work, Meredith was also an influential actor and director for the stage. He made his [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] debut as Peter in [[Eva Le Gallienne]]'s production of ''[[Romeo and Juliet]]'' (1930) and became a star in [[Maxwell Anderson]]'s ''[[Winterset (play)|Winterset]]'' (1935), which became his film debut the following year. His early life and theatre work were the subject of a ''[[The New Yorker|New Yorker]]'' profile.<ref>''The New Yorker'', April 3, 1937, pp 26-37.</ref>

Other [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] roles of note included Van van Dorn in ''[[High Tor]]'' (1937), Liliom in ''[[Liliom]]'' (1940), Christy Mahon in ''[[The Playboy of the Western World]]'' (1946), and Adolphus Cusins ''[[Major Barbara]]'' (1957). He created the role of Erie Smith in the [[English language|English-language]] premiere of [[Eugene O'Neill]]'s ''[[Hughie]]'' at the Theater Royal in [[Bath, England]] in 1963, and was an acclaimed ''[[Hamlet]]''.

Meredith was also a distinguished theatre director, winning a [[Tony Award]] nomination for his 1974 [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] staging of ''[[Ulysses in Nighttown]]'', a theatrical adaptation of the "Nighttown" section of [[James Joyce]]'s ''[[Ulysses (novel)|Ulysses]]''. Meredith also shared a Special [[Tony Award]] with [[James Thurber]] for their collaboration on ''[[A Thurber Carnival]]'' (1960).

===Autobiography and personal life===
In 1994, Meredith published his autobiography, which he titled ''So Far, So Good.'' In the book he confessed that he suffered from violent mood swings which were caused by [[cyclothymia]], a form of [[bipolar disorder]].<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/9709/10/meredith.obit/ CNN.com] retrieved 12 OCT 2007</ref>

===Death===
Meredith died of complications due to [[Alzheimer's disease]] and [[melanoma]] on [[September 9]] [[1997]], at the age of 89. He was [[cremation |cremated]] and his ashes were either given to a friend or family. For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Burgess has a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] at 6904 Hollywood Boulevard.


==Filmography==
==Filmography==

Revision as of 18:27, 23 February 2009

Burgess Meredith
Meredith in Second Chorus
Born
Oliver Burgess Meredith
Occupation(s)actor, singer, producer, director, screenwriter
Years active1936 - 1996
Spouse(s)Helen Derby (1933-1935)
Margaret Perry (1936-1938)
Paulette Goddard (1944-1950)
Kaja Sundsten (1950-1997)
AwardsNBR Award for Best Supporting Actor
1962 Advise and Consent
Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor
1978 Magic
1981 Clash of the Titans
Walk of Fame - Motion Picture
6906 Hollywood Blvd

Oliver Burgess Meredith (November 16, 1907[1] – September 9, 1997) was a versatile two-time Academy Award-nominated American actor. He was known for portraying Rocky Balboa's trainer Mickey Goldmill in the Rocky films and The Penguin in the television series Batman, amongst many other roles. He was one of only two people to star in four episodes of The Twilight Zone.

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Filmography

Television work

References

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference date was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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