1891-09-06 San Bernardino, California, USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Roscoe Karns (September 7, 1891 – February 6, 1970) was an American actor who appeared in nearly 150 films between 1915 and 1964. He specialized in cynical, wise-cracking (and often tipsy) characters, and his rapid-fire delivery enlivened many comedies and crime thrillers in the 1930s and 1940s. Though he appeared in numerous silent films, such as Wings and Beggars of Life, his career didn't really take off until sound arrived. Arguably his best-known film role was the annoying bus passenger Oscar Shapeley, who tries to pick up Claudette Colbert in the Oscar-winning comedy It Happened One Night (1934), quickly followed by one of his best performances as the boozy press agent Owen O'Malley in Howard Hawks' Twentieth Century. (Six years later, he co-starred as one of the reporters in another Hawks classic, His Girl Friday.) In 1937, Paramount teamed him with Lynne Overman as a pair of laconic private eyes in two B comedy-mysteries, Murder Goes to College and Partners in Crime. From 1950 to 1954, Karns played the title role in the popular DuMont Television Network series Rocky King, Inside Detective. His son, character actor Todd Karns, also appeared in that series. From 1959 to 1962, Karns was cast as Admiral Walter Shafer in seventy-three of the ninety-five episodes of the CBS military sitcom/drama series, Hennesey, starring Jackie Cooper in the title role of a United States Navy physician, and Abby Dalton as nurse Martha Hale. His final film was another Hawks comedy, Man's Favorite Sport?, in 1964. Karns was born in San Bernardino, California, and died in Los Angeles. Description above from the Wikipedia article Roscoe Karns, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia
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Man's Favorite Sport? | Major Phipps | 1964-01-31 |
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Onionhead | 'Windy' Woods | 1958-10-25 |
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Devil's Cargo | Lt. Hardy | 1948-04-01 |
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The Inside Story | Eustace Peabody | 1948-03-14 |
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Texas, Brooklyn & Heaven | Officer Carmody | 1948-07-16 |
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Speed to Spare | Kangaroo | 1948-05-14 |
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That's My Man | Toby Gleeton | 1947-06-01 |
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Vigilantes of Boomtown | Bill Delaney | 1947-02-15 |
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Avalanche | Red Kelly | 1946-06-30 |
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One Way to Love | Hobie Simmons | 1946-01-08 |
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I Ring Doorbells | Stubby | 1946-02-28 |
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Hi, Good Lookin'! | Archie | 1944-03-22 |
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Minstrel Man | Lasses White | 1944-01-02 |
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The Navy Way | Frankie Gimble | 1944-02-26 |
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Stage Door Canteen | Roscoe Karns | 1943-06-24 |
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Old Acquaintance | Charlie Archer | 1943-11-27 |
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His Butler's Sister | Fields | 1943-11-26 |
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My Son, The Hero | Big-Time Morgan | 1943-04-05 |
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Riding High | Shorty | 1943-11-11 |
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A Tragedy at Midnight | Cassidy | 1942-02-02 |
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Yokel Boy | Al Devers | 1942-03-13 |
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Woman of the Year | Phil Whittaker | 1942-02-05 |
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You Can't Escape Forever | 'Mac' McTurk | 1942-10-10 |
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Black Eyes and Blues | Alfred Harmon | 1941-04-18 |
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Petticoat Politics | Joe Higgins | 1941-01-31 |
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Half Shot at Sunrise | Henry Warren | 1941-09-04 |
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Footsteps in the Dark | Monahan | 1941-03-08 |
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The Gay Vagabond | Arthur Dixon / Jerry Dixon | 1941-05-12 |
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Road to Happiness | Charley Grady | 1941-12-19 |
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Saturday's Children | Willie Sands | 1940-05-04 |
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Meet the Missus | Joe Higgins | 1940-11-29 |
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Ladies Must Live | Pete Larrabee | 1940-07-27 |
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They Drive by Night | Irish McGurn | 1940-07-26 |
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Double Alibi | Jeremiah Jenkins | 1940-03-01 |
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His Girl Friday | McCue | 1940-01-18 |
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King of Chinatown | Rip Harrigan | 1939-03-17 |
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That's Right – You're Wrong | Mal Stamp | 1939-11-24 |
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Everything's on Ice | Felix Miller | 1939-10-05 |
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Dancing Co-Ed | Joe Drews | 1939-09-29 |
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Scandal Street | Austin Brown | 1938-02-11 |
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Tip-Off Girls | Tom Benson aka Tommy Logan | 1938-04-01 |
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Thanks for the Memory | George Kent | 1938-11-11 |
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Dangerous to Know | Duncan | 1938-03-11 |
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You and Me | Cuffy | 1938-06-01 |
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Night of Mystery | Sergeant Heath | 1937-05-21 |
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Partners in Crime | Sim Perkins | 1937-10-08 |
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Murder Goes to College | Sim Perkins | 1937-02-24 |
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On Such a Night | Joe Flynn | 1937-08-27 |
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Clarence | Clarence Smith | 1937-02-12 |
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Border Flight | Calico Smith | 1936-05-29 |
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Cain and Mabel | Reilly | 1936-09-26 |
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Three Married Men | Peter Cary | 1936-09-24 |
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Woman Trap | Mopsy | 1936-03-06 |
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Wings in the Dark | Nick Williams | 1935-02-01 |
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Front Page Woman | Toots O'Grady | 1935-07-11 |
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Four Hours to Kill! | Johnson | 1935-04-11 |
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Red Hot Tires | Bud Keene | 1935-02-02 |
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Alibi Ike | Carey | 1935-06-15 |
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The Woman in Red | Man in court room (uncredited) | 1935-02-16 |
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Two-Fisted | Chick Moran | 1935-10-03 |
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It Happened One Night | Oscar Shapeley | 1934-02-22 |
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I Sell Anything | Monk | 1934-10-20 |
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Shoot the Works | Sailor Burke | 1934-07-18 |
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Twentieth Century | Owen O'Malley | 1934-05-11 |
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Come On, Marines! | Spud McGurke | 1934-03-23 |
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A Lady's Profession | Tony | 1933-03-03 |
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Gambling Ship | Blooey | 1933-06-23 |
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Grand Slam | Contest Radio Announcer | 1933-02-22 |
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Today We Live | McGinnis | 1933-03-03 |
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One Sunday Afternoon | Snappy Downer | 1933-09-01 |
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The Women in His Life | Aloysius Lester | 1933-12-08 |
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Alice in Wonderland | Tweedledee | 1933-12-18 |
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Night After Night | Leo | 1932-10-29 |
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Under-Cover Man | Dannie | 1932-12-02 |
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They Call It Sin | Brad - Rehearsal Director (uncredited) | 1932-11-05 |
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The Roadhouse Murder | Dale | 1932-04-28 |
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Stowaway | Insp. Redding | 1932-03-01 |
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Week-End Marriage | Jim Davis | 1932-06-18 |
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If I Had a Million | Private O'Brien | 1932-11-18 |
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One Way Passage | S.S. Maloa Bartender (uncredited) | 1932-10-04 |
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Play Girl | Gambler (uncredited) | 1932-03-12 |
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Two Against the World | Segall, reporter | 1932-09-03 |
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The Crooked Circle | Harry Carter | 1932-09-25 |
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Lawyer Man | Merritt - Reporter (uncredited) | 1932-12-24 |
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Left Over Ladies | 'Scoop' | 1931-09-30 |
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Ladies of the Big House | Frank - Twenty Questions player (uncredited) | 1931-12-26 |
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Many a Slip | Stan Price | 1931-03-02 |
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Laughing Sinners | Fred Geer | 1931-05-30 |
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Dirigible | Sock McGuire | 1931-02-01 |
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Pleasure | Arnie | 1931-09-01 |
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Man Trouble | Scott | 1930-08-24 |
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The Gorilla | Simmons | 1930-11-02 |
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Little Accident | Gilbert | 1930-08-03 |
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Troopers Three | Bugs | 1930-02-23 |
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Safety in Numbers | Bertram Shapiro | 1930-05-30 |
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The Costello Case | Blair | 1930-10-14 |
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The Flying Fleet | Shipwrecked Radio Operator (uncredited) | 1929-01-19 |
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New York Nights | Johnny Dolan | 1929-12-28 |
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This Thing Called Love | Harry Bertrand | 1929-12-13 |
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Copy | City Editor John Mack | 1929-10-11 |
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Something Always Happens | George | 1928-03-28 |
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Beggars of Life | Lame Hoppy | 1928-09-22 |
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Beau Sabreur | Buddy | 1928-01-22 |
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The Desert Bride | Pvt. Terry | 1928-03-26 |
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Warming Up | Hippo | 1928-08-04 |
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The Trail of '98 | Man on Ship (uncredited) | 1928-03-20 |
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Moran of the Marines | Swatty | 1928-10-13 |
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The Shopworn Angel | Dance Director | 1928-12-29 |
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Jazz Mad | Sol Levy | 1928-11-18 |
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Win That Girl | Johnny Norton II | 1928-09-16 |
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The Vanishing Pioneer | Ray Hearn | 1928-06-23 |
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Wings | Lieutenant Cameron | 1927-08-12 |
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Ten Modern Commandments | Benny Burnaway | 1927-07-27 |
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The Jazz Singer | Agent (uncredited) | 1927-10-06 |
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You'd Be Surprised | Party Guest (uncredited) | 1926-09-24 |
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The Overland Limited | Patrick Henry Madden | 1925-07-14 |
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The Midnight Express | Switch Hogan | 1924-06-01 |
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Other Men's Daughters | Hubert | 1923-10-15 |
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The Ten Commandments | The Boy in the Rain (uncredited) | 1923-11-23 |
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The Trouper | 1922-07-23 | |
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Her Own Money | Jerry Woodward | 1922-01-01 |
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The Man Tamer | Bradley P. Caldwell Jr | 1921-05-30 |
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The Family Honor | Dal Tucker | 1920-03-15 |
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The Life of the Party | Sam Perkins | 1920-11-21 |
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Poor Relations | Henry | 1919-11-01 |
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From Champion to Tramp | The Girl's Father | 1915-06-17 |
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A Western Governor's Humanity | The Sheriff | 1915-11-03 |
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A Species of Mexican Man | 1915-08-25 | |
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Mr. Carlson of Arizona | 1915-04-08 |
