1882-05-23 New York City, New York, USA
James Gleason was born in New York City to William Gleason and Mina Crolius, who were both in the theatre. He was married to Lucile Gleason (born Lucile Webster), and had a son, Russell Gleason. As a young man James fought in the Spanish-American War. After the war he joined the stock company at the Liberty Theater in Oakland, California, which his parents were running. James and his wife then moved to Portland, Oregon, where they played in stock at the Baker Theater. For several years afterward they toured in road shows until James enlisted in the army during World War I. When he returned he appeared on the stage in "The Five Million." He then turned to writing, including "Is Zat So", which he produced for the NY stage. He also wrote and acted in "The Fall Guy" and "The Shannons on Broadway." Next he wrote The Broadway Melody (1929) for MGM. He collaborated, in 1930, on The Swellhead (1930), Dumbbells in Ermine (1930), What a Widow! (1930), Rain or Shine (1930) and His First Command (1929). He and his wife were then contracted to Pathe, Lucille to act, and James (or Jimmie as he was known) as a writer. Probably his most famous acting role was as Max Corkle, the manager of Joe Pendleton who was wrongly plucked from this life into the next, in the hit fantasy Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941).
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Once Upon a Horse... | Postmaster | 1958-09-01 |
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Rock-a-Bye Baby | Doc Simpkins | 1958-07-23 |
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No Time at All | Dolph Grimes | 1958-02-13 |
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The Female Animal | Tom Maloney | 1958-01-22 |
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The Last Hurrah | Cuke Gillen | 1958-12-31 |
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Man or Gun | Sheriff Jim Jackson | 1958-05-30 |
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Money, Women and Guns | Henry Devers | 1958-10-01 |
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Man in the Shadow | Hank James | 1957-12-12 |
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Spring Reunion | Collie | 1957-03-01 |
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Loving You | Carl Meade | 1957-07-09 |
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Star in the Dust | Orval Jones | 1956-06-13 |
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The Night of the Hunter | Uncle Birdie Steptoe | 1955-07-27 |
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The Girl Rush | Ether Ferguson | 1955-09-16 |
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Hollywood Thrill-Makers | Risky Russell | 1954-01-15 |
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Suddenly | Peter 'Pop' Benson | 1954-09-17 |
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Forever Female | Eddie Woods | 1953-11-28 |
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We're Not Married! | Duffy | 1952-07-11 |
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The Story of Will Rogers | Bert Lynn | 1952-07-17 |
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What Price Glory | General Cokely | 1952-08-22 |
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Joe Palooka in Triple Cross | Knobby Walsh | 1951-09-16 |
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I'll See You in My Dreams | Fred Townsend | 1951-12-06 |
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Two Gals and a Guy | Max Howard | 1951-07-01 |
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Come Fill the Cup | Charley Dolan | 1951-10-24 |
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Joe Palooka in the Squared Circle | Knobby Walsh | 1950-11-04 |
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Key to the City | Sergeant Hogan | 1950-02-02 |
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Riding High | Racing Secretary | 1950-04-12 |
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The Yellow Cab Man | Mickey Corkins | 1950-03-25 |
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The Jackpot | Harry Summers | 1950-11-01 |
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The Life of Riley | Gillis | 1949-04-16 |
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Miss Grant Takes Richmond | Timothy Gleason | 1949-10-20 |
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Take One False Step | Captain Gledhill | 1949-08-14 |
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Bad Boy | Chief | 1949-02-22 |
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Smart Woman | Sam Corkle | 1948-04-30 |
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The Return of October | Uncle Willie Ramsey | 1948-10-26 |
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The Dude Goes West | Sam Briggs | 1948-05-30 |
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When My Baby Smiles at Me | Lefty Moore | 1948-11-10 |
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The Homestretch | Doc Kilborne | 1947-05-04 |
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Tycoon | Pop Mathews | 1947-12-27 |
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Down to Earth | Max Corkle | 1947-08-21 |
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The Bishop's Wife | Sylvester | 1947-12-25 |
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Lady Luck | Sacramento Sam | 1946-10-30 |
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The Well Groomed Bride | Captain Hornby | 1946-05-17 |
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Home Sweet Homicide | Sgt. O'Hare | 1946-10-02 |
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The Hoodlum Saint | Snarp | 1946-04-04 |
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The Clock | Al Henry | 1945-05-25 |
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Captain Eddie | Tom Clark | 1945-06-18 |
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This Man's Navy | Jimmy Shannon | 1945-01-04 |
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A Tree Grows in Brooklyn | McGarrity | 1945-02-28 |
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Once Upon a Time | Moke McGillicuddy | 1944-06-29 |
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Arsenic and Old Lace | Lt. Rooney | 1944-09-01 |
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The Keys of the Kingdom | Rev. Dr. Wilbur Fiske | 1944-12-15 |
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Crash Dive | Chief Mike 'Mac' McDonnell | 1943-04-22 |
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A Guy Named Joe | “Nails” Kilpatrick | 1943-12-24 |
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Footlight Serenade | Bruce McKay | 1942-08-01 |
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My Gal Sal | Pat Hawley | 1942-04-30 |
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The Falcon Takes Over | Inspector Mike O'Hara | 1942-05-29 |
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Manila Calling | Tim O'Rourke | 1942-10-16 |
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A Date with the Falcon | Inspector Michael 'Mike' O'Hara | 1942-01-16 |
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Hay Foot | Colonel J. A. Barkley | 1942-01-02 |
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Tales of Manhattan | Joe - Mission Aid Society | 1942-08-05 |
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Meet John Doe | Henry Connell | 1941-03-14 |
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Here Comes Mr. Jordan | Max Corkle | 1941-08-07 |
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Nine Lives Are Not Enough | Sergeant Daniels | 1941-09-20 |
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Affectionately Yours | 'Chet' Phillips | 1941-05-10 |
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Tanks a Million | Col. 'Spitfire' Barkley | 1941-09-12 |
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Babes on Broadway | Thornton Reed | 1941-12-31 |
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Breakdowns of 1941 | Self (archive footage) (uncredited) | 1941-11-14 |
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Grandpa Goes To Town | Joe Higgins | 1940-04-13 |
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Earl of Puddlestone | Joe Higgins | 1940-08-31 |
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My Wife's Relatives | Joe Higgins | 1939-05-20 |
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The Covered Trailer | Joe Higgins | 1939-11-10 |
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Money To Burn | Joe Higgins | 1939-12-31 |
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Should Husbands Work? | Joe Higgins | 1939-07-26 |
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On Your Toes | Phil Dolan Sr. | 1939-10-14 |
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Screen Snapshots Series 17, No. 6 | Self | 1938-02-04 |
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The Higgins Family | Joe Higgins | 1938-03-28 |
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Army Girl | Hennessy | 1938-08-11 |
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Screen Snapshots Series 17, No. 12 | James Gleason | 1938-07-29 |
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Manhattan Merry-Go-Round | Danny The Duck | 1937-11-26 |
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Forty Naughty Girls | Police Insp. Oscar Piper | 1937-09-24 |
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Cinema Circus | Himself | 1937-01-27 |
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Yours for the Asking | Saratoga | 1936-07-23 |
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Don't Turn 'em Loose | Detective Daniels | 1936-09-18 |
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The Ex-Mrs. Bradford | Inspector Corrigan | 1936-04-24 |
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Murder on a Bridle Path | Police Insp. Oscar Piper | 1936-04-17 |
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The Plot Thickens | Police Insp. Oscar Piper | 1936-12-11 |
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The Big Game | George Scott | 1936-10-09 |
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West Point of the Air | Joe 'Bags' | 1935-03-23 |
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Murder on a Honeymoon | Police Insp. Oscar Piper | 1935-02-22 |
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Hot Tip | Jimmy McGill | 1935-08-20 |
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Helldorado | Sam Barnes | 1935-01-05 |
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Hollywood Hobbies | Himself | 1935-07-05 |
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We're Only Human | Detective Danny Walsh | 1935-12-27 |
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The Meanest Gal in Town | Duke Slater | 1934-01-12 |
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Murder on the Blackboard | Police Insp. Oscar Piper | 1934-06-15 |
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Change of Heart | Hot Dog Vendor (uncredited) | 1934-05-18 |
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Search for Beauty | Dan Healy | 1934-02-02 |
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The Billion Dollar Scandal | "Ratsy" Harris | 1933-01-06 |
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Hoopla | Jerry | 1933-11-30 |
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Clear All Wires! | Lefty Williams | 1933-02-24 |
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Orders Is Orders | Ed Waggermeyer | 1933-07-18 |
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The Penguin Pool Murder | Police Insp. Oscar Piper | 1932-12-09 |
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Rule 'Em and Weep | Spike Mc Gorey | 1932-05-02 |
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The All-American | Chick Knipe | 1932-10-01 |
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High Hats and Low Brows | Danny Ruff | 1932-07-10 |
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Blondie of the Follies | Pa McClune | 1932-09-01 |
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Fast Companions | Silk Henley | 1932-06-22 |
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The Crooked Circle | Arthur Crimmer | 1932-09-25 |
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The Devil Is Driving | 'Beef' Evans | 1932-12-09 |
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Lady and Gent | Pin Streaver | 1932-07-10 |
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Yoo-Hoo | Jimmy Gleason | 1932-10-04 |
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Off His Base | Picture in Opening Credits | 1932-09-18 |
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A Free Soul | Eddie | 1931-06-02 |
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Sweepstakes | Sleepy Jones | 1931-07-10 |
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The Big Gamble | Fred 'Squint' Dugan | 1931-09-04 |
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Suicide Fleet | Skeets | 1931-11-20 |
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It's a Wise Child | Cool Kelly | 1931-04-10 |
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Beyond Victory | Jim Mobley | 1931-04-03 |
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Screen Snapshots Series 10, No. 1 | Self | 1930-09-01 |
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Big Money | Tom | 1930-10-28 |
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Puttin' on the Ritz | James 'Jimmy' Tierney | 1930-02-19 |
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Her Man | Steve | 1930-09-21 |
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The Matrimonial Bed | Gustave Corton | 1930-08-01 |
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Dumb-bells in Ermine | Mike | 1930-05-10 |
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The Swellhead | Johnny Trump | 1930-03-20 |
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Don't Believe It | Jimmy | 1930-02-08 |
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Fairways and Foul | Husband | 1929-10-19 |
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The Broadway Melody | Music Publisher (uncredited) | 1929-02-08 |
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Oh, Yeah! | Dusty | 1929-10-19 |
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Meet the Missus | Bert La Motte | 1929-03-30 |
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Polly of the Follies | Paul Gordon | 1922-01-30 |
