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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The Last Hurrah | Cuke Gillen | 1958-12-31 |
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The Female Animal | Tom Maloney | 1958-01-22 |
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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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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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No Time at All | Dolph Grimes | 1958-02-13 |
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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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Man in the Shadow | Hank James | 1957-12-12 |
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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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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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We're Not Married! | Duffy | 1952-07-11 |
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Come Fill the Cup | Charley Dolan | 1951-10-24 |
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Two Gals and a Guy | Max Howard | 1951-07-01 |
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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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Joe Palooka in the Squared Circle | Knobby Walsh | 1950-11-04 |
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The Yellow Cab Man | Mickey Corkins | 1950-03-25 |
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Key to the City | Sergeant Hogan | 1950-02-02 |
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The Jackpot | Harry Summers | 1950-11-01 |
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Riding High | Racing Secretary | 1950-04-12 |
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Bad Boy | Chief | 1949-02-22 |
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A Guy Named Joe | “Nails” Kilpatrick | 1949-01-08 |
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Take One False Step | Captain Gledhill | 1949-08-14 |
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Miss Grant Takes Richmond | Timothy Gleason | 1949-10-20 |
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The Life of Riley | Gillis | 1949-04-16 |
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The Return of October | Uncle Willie Ramsey | 1948-10-26 |
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Smart Woman | Sam Corkle | 1948-04-30 |
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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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The Bishop's Wife | Sylvester | 1947-12-25 |
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Down to Earth | Max Corkle | 1947-08-21 |
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Home Sweet Homicide | Sgt. O'Hare | 1946-10-02 |
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The Well Groomed Bride | Captain Hornby | 1946-05-17 |
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The Hoodlum Saint | Snarp | 1946-04-04 |
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Lady Luck | Sacramento Sam | 1946-10-30 |
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A Tree Grows in Brooklyn | McGarrity | 1945-02-28 |
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This Man's Navy | Jimmy Shannon | 1945-01-04 |
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Captain Eddie | Tom Clark | 1945-06-18 |
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The Clock | Al Henry | 1945-05-25 |
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The Keys of the Kingdom | Rev. Dr. Wilbur Fiske | 1944-12-15 |
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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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Crash Dive | Chief Mike 'Mac' McDonnell | 1943-04-22 |
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A Date with the Falcon | Inspector Michael 'Mike' O'Hara | 1942-01-16 |
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Manila Calling | Tim O'Rourke | 1942-10-16 |
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The Falcon Takes Over | Inspector Mike O'Hara | 1942-05-29 |
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My Gal Sal | Pat Hawley | 1942-04-30 |
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Hay Foot | Colonel J. A. Barkley | 1942-01-02 |
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Tales of Manhattan | Father Joe | 1942-08-05 |
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Footlight Serenade | Bruce McKay | 1942-08-01 |
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Affectionately Yours | 'Chet' Phillips | 1941-05-10 |
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Breakdowns of 1941 | Self (archive footage) (uncredited) | 1941-11-14 |
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Here Comes Mr. Jordan | Max Corkle | 1941-08-07 |
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Meet John Doe | Henry Connell | 1941-03-14 |
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Babes on Broadway | Thornton Reed | 1941-12-31 |
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Tanks a Million | Col. 'Spitfire' Barkley | 1941-09-12 |
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Nine Lives Are Not Enough | Sergeant Daniels | 1941-09-20 |
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Earl of Puddlestone | Joe Higgins | 1940-08-31 |
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Grandpa Goes To Town | Joe Higgins | 1940-04-13 |
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The Covered Trailer | Joe Higgins | 1939-11-10 |
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Should Husbands Work? | Joe Higgins | 1939-07-26 |
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Money To Burn | Joe Higgins | 1939-12-31 |
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On Your Toes | Phil Dolan Sr. | 1939-10-14 |
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My Wife's Relatives | Joe Higgins | 1939-05-20 |
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The Higgins Family | Joe Higgins | 1938-03-28 |
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Screen Snapshots Series 17, No. 6 | Self | 1938-02-04 |
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Screen Snapshots Series 17, No. 12 | James Gleason | 1938-07-29 |
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Army Girl | Hennessy | 1938-08-11 |
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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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The Big Game | George Scott | 1936-10-09 |
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The Plot Thickens | Police Insp. Oscar Piper | 1936-12-11 |
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Murder on a Bridle Path | Police Insp. Oscar Piper | 1936-04-17 |
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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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Orders Is Orders | Ed Waggermeyer | 1933-07-18 |
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The Billion Dollar Scandal | "Ratsy" Harris | 1933-01-06 |
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Clear All Wires! | Lefty Williams | 1933-02-24 |
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Hoopla | Jerry | 1933-11-30 |
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High Hats and Low Brows | Danny Ruff | 1932-07-10 |
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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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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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It's a Wise Child | Cool Kelly | 1931-04-10 |
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Suicide Fleet | Skeets | 1931-11-20 |
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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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Don't Believe It | Jimmy | 1930-02-08 |
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The Swellhead | Johnny Trump | 1930-03-20 |
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Meet the Missus | Bert La Motte | 1929-03-30 |
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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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The Shannons of Broadway | Mickey Shannon | 1929-12-08 |
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Polly of the Follies | Paul Gordon | 1922-01-30 |
