Kenneth Tobey

Kenneth Tobey
Born	March 23, 1917(1917-03-23) Oakland, California  United States
Died	December 22, 2002 (aged 85) Rancho Mirage, California  United States
Occupation	Film, television and stage actor
Spouse(s)	June Hutton

Kenneth Tobey (March 23, 1917 - December 22, 2002) was an American stage, television, and film actor.

Early years

Born in Oakland, California, Tobey was headed for a law career when he first dabbled in acting at the University of California Little Theater. That experience led to a year-and-a-half of study at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse, where his classmates included Gregory Peck, Eli Wallach and Tony Randall. Throughout the 1940s, Tobey acted on Broadway and in stock; he made his film debut in a 1943 short, The Man of the Ferry. He made his Hollywood film debut in a Hopalong Cassidy Western, and went on to appear in scores of features and on numerous television series. He was a sentry guard who was dressed down by General Savage (played by Gregory Peck) in Twelve O' Clock High. A brief comedy bit in I Was a Male War Bride caught the attention of director Howard Hawks, who promised to use Tobey in something more substantial.

The Thing from Another World

In 1951, Tobey was cast in Hawks' production The Thing from Another World, playing Captain Patrick Hendry, a United States Air Force pilot and leader of the arctic polar station's dogged defense against the movie's title character, as portrayed by James Arness. That role led to other sci-fi film roles in the 1950s, usually cast in the role of a military man, particularly The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953), and It Came from Beneath the Sea (1956).

Television

Tobey appeared in in three episodes of NBC's western anthology television series, Frontier. His Frontier roles were Wade Trippe in "In Nebraska" (1955) and as Gabe Sharp in "Out from Texas" and "The Hostage" (1956). In 1955, he also portrayed legendary frontiersman Jim Bowie on ABC's Davy Crockett, a Walt Disney Production starring Fess Parker in the title role. After Bowie's death at the Battle of the Alamo, Tobey played a second character, Jocko, in the two final Crockett episodes.

Thereafter, he appeared in the syndicated series Sheriff of Cochise starring John Bromfield. In 1957, he co-starred with John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara in John Ford's The Wings of Eagles.

In 1957, Tobey launched his own television series The Whirlybirds, a successful syndicated adventure produced by Desilu Studios, in which he played the co-owner of a helicopter charter service. It was a major hit in the U.S. and abroad, with 111 episodes were filmed through 1959. It remained in syndication worldwide for many years.

In 1960, he guest starred in the episode "West of Boston" of the NBC western series, Overland Trail starring William Bendix and Doug McClure.

Broadway

In 1964, he began a long run on Broadway opposite Sammy Davis, Jr. in the musical version of Clifford Odets' play Golden Boy. He became a semi-regular on the NBC series I Spy as the field boss of agents Robinson and Scott. Chris Nyby, director of The Thing, was often director of these episodes. Tobey continued to work in features and television through the 1970s and 1980s, appearing in such movies as Billy Jack, Walking Tall, and Airplane!.

Other films

He also co-starred in such horror films as The Howling, the war movie MacArthur, and the comedies Honey, I Blew Up the Kid, and Gremlins 2: The New Batch.

Later years

In his retirement years, he frequently received acting jobs from people who had grown up on his 50s sci-fi films, particularly Joe Dante, who considered Tobey a good-luck charm. Two appearances on the sit-com Night Court came the same way, through fans of his work. Along with other character actors who had been in 1950s sci-fi and horror movies (John Agar, Robert O. Cornthwaite, Gloria Talbott, etc.), Tobey starred in a spoof originally titled "Attack Of The B Movie Monster". In 2006, Anthem Pictures released the completed feature version on DVD under the new title, The Naked Monster. Tobey's scenes were actually shot in 1985, but this posthumously became his final released film credit. Tobey made a memorable appearance in the 1994 Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Shadowplay" as Rurigan, an alien who recreated his dead friends as holograms, and frequent appearances on L.A. Law as a judge.

Tobey died of natural causes in 2002 in Rancho Mirage, California at age 85. He was cremated.^{[citation needed]}

Partial filmography

• Honey, I Blew Up the Kid - (1992)
• Single White Female - (1992)
• Gremlins 2: The New Batch - (1990)
• Freeway - (1988)
• Gremlins - (1984)
• The Howling - (1981)
• Airplane! - (1980)
• Hero at Large - (1980)
• MacArthur - (1977)
• Baby Blue Marine - (1976)
• Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry - (1974)
• Walking Tall - (1973)
• Ben - (1972)
• The Candidate - (1972)
• Billy Jack - (1971)
• The Long Ride Home - (1967)
• X-15 - (1961)
• Cry Terror! - (1958)
• Gunfight at the O.K. Corral - (1957)
• The Wings of Eagles - (1957)
• The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit - (1956)
• The Search For Bridey Murphy - (1956)
• Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier - (1955)
• It Came from Beneath the Sea - (1955)
• Rage at Dawn - (1955)
• Down Three Dark Streets - (1954)
• Angel Face - (1952)
• The Thing from Another World - (1951)
• Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye - (1950)
• I Was a Male War Bride - (1949)
• Twelve O'Clock High - (1949)

External links

• Kenneth Tobey at Find a Grave
• Kenneth Tobey at the Internet Movie Database
• Kenneth Tobey at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
• Kenneth Tobey at Film Buff Online.com