1890-06-12 Saginaw, Michigan, USA
Born and raised on a farm in Michigan in 1890, Irish-American character actor Harry Shannon had the credentials for becoming a staple player in westerns. He started off his career traveling around with repertory and stock companies and developed his musical abilities in tent shows, burlesque houses and such tuneful Broadway shows as "Oh, Kay!" (1926), "Hold Everything" (1928), "Simple Simon" (1931), and "Pardon My English" (1933). A company member of Joseph Schildkraut's Hollywood Theater Guild, Shannon broke into films at the advent of sound and started things off in comedy film shorts opposite such celebrated players as Bert Lahr, Shemp Howard, and Leon Errol. In the 1940s Shannon established himself in feature-length movies and although he remained a minor, second-string player, he proved himself a durable presence in westerns usually remaining on the good side of the law as sheriffs and bucolic dads. In lighthearted entertainment he could be found as a friendly Irish cop or bartender. He made a slight but memorable impression as Kane's alcoholic father in the classic Citizen Kane (1941), while his last role would be as the grandfather in the musical Gypsy (1962). In between were small parts in such notable films as The Fighting Sullivans (1944), The Jolson Story (1946), High Noon (1952), Touch of Evil (1958), and The Buccaneer (1958). 1950s TV westerns such as Cheyenne (1955), Have Gun - Will Travel (1957), Rawhide (1959), and Gunsmoke (1955) made consistent use of his rustic demeanor. Shannon died in 1964 at age 74.
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The World of Tomorrow | Pop Middleton (archive footage) | 1984-12-31 |
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Gypsy | Grandpa | 1962-11-01 |
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Summer and Smoke | Dr. Burke (uncredited) | 1961-11-16 |
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Wild in the Country | Sam Tyler (uncredited) | 1961-06-15 |
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Yellowstone Kelly | Captain of the Far West (uncredited) | 1959-11-11 |
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The Buccaneer | Tom Carruthers - Captain of the Corinthian | 1958-12-11 |
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Touch of Evil | Chief Gould | 1958-03-30 |
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Man or Gun | Justin Corley | 1958-05-30 |
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Hell's Crossroads | Clay Ford | 1957-03-08 |
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The Lonely Man | Dr. Fisher | 1957-06-21 |
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Duel at Apache Wells | Wayne Shattuck | 1957-01-25 |
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The Peacemaker | Drunken Cowpuncher | 1956-11-01 |
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Written on the Wind | Hoak Wayne | 1956-10-04 |
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Come Next Spring | Mr. Totter | 1956-03-09 |
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At Gunpoint | Marshal Pete MacKay | 1955-12-25 |
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The Marauders | John Rutherford | 1955-09-26 |
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The Violent Men | Purdue | 1955-01-26 |
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The Tall Men | Sam | 1955-09-22 |
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Rails Into Laramie | Judge Pierce | 1954-04-14 |
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Witness to Murder | Captain Donnelly | 1954-04-15 |
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Executive Suite | Ed Benedeck | 1954-04-30 |
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Phantom Stallion | Michael Reilly | 1954-02-10 |
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Cry of the Hunted | Sheriff Brown | 1953-05-08 |
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Kansas Pacific | Smokestack the Train Engineer | 1953-02-22 |
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Roar of the Crowd | Sam 'Pop' Tracy | 1953-05-31 |
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Jack Slade | Tom Carter | 1953-11-08 |
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Flesh and Fury | Mike Callan | 1952-06-26 |
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Lure of the Wilderness | Pat McGowan | 1952-07-16 |
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High Noon | Cooper | 1952-06-09 |
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The Lemon Drop Kid | John (Policeman) | 1951-04-02 |
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Al Jennings of Oklahoma | Fred Salter | 1951-01-17 |
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Blue Blood | Mr. Buchanan | 1951-01-28 |
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The Scarf | Asylum Warden Anderson | 1951-04-06 |
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Tarnished | Kelsey Bunker | 1950-02-28 |
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The Jackie Robinson Story | Charlie | 1950-05-16 |
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The Underworld Story | George Parker | 1950-07-26 |
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Singing Guns | Judge Waller | 1950-02-28 |
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Where Danger Lives | Dr. Maynard | 1950-11-16 |
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Curtain Call at Cactus Creek | Clay | 1950-05-25 |
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The Sound of Fury | Mr. Yaeger | 1950-12-12 |
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The Gunfighter | Chuck (uncredited) | 1950-05-26 |
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Cow Town | Sandy Reeves | 1950-05-19 |
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Three Little Words | Clanahan | 1950-07-12 |
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The Killer That Stalked New York | Police Officer Houlihan | 1950-10-06 |
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Hunt the Man Down | Wallace Bennett | 1950-12-26 |
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The Flying Missile | Vice Admiral Williams | 1950-12-24 |
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Tulsa | Nelse Lansing | 1949-04-13 |
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Mr. Soft Touch | Police Sergeant Garrett | 1949-07-28 |
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Rustlers | Sheriff Harmon | 1949-03-03 |
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Champion | Lew | 1949-04-09 |
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Mary Ryan, Detective | Sawyer | 1949-11-03 |
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Fighting Father Dunne | Thomas Lee | 1948-05-12 |
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Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House | Tesander | 1948-03-25 |
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Feudin', Fussin' and A-Fightin' | Chauncey | 1948-06-01 |
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Big Town Scandal | Police Captain Henry (uncredited) | 1948-05-27 |
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My Girl Tisa | 1948-02-07 | |
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The Red House | Dr. Jonathan Byrne | 1947-02-04 |
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The Lady from Shanghai | Cab Driver | 1947-12-24 |
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Dangerous Years | Judge Raymond | 1947-12-07 |
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Time Out of Mind | Capt. Rogers | 1947-05-03 |
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The Invisible Wall | Det. Capt. R.W. Davis | 1947-10-15 |
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The Farmer's Daughter | Mr. Holstrom | 1947-03-26 |
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The Devil Thumbs a Ride | Detective Owens, San Diego Police | 1947-02-20 |
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Exposed | Severance | 1947-09-08 |
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Nora Prentiss | Police Lieutenant | 1947-02-22 |
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San Quentin | Warden Kelly | 1946-12-16 |
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Canyon Passage | Henry McLane (uncredited) | 1946-07-17 |
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Night Editor | Capt. Lawrence | 1946-03-29 |
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Crack-Up | Cop (Uncredited) | 1946-09-06 |
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I Ring Doorbells | Shannon | 1946-02-28 |
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The Last Crooked Mile | Police Lieutenant Blake | 1946-08-09 |
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Captain Eddie | Simmons | 1945-06-18 |
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Crime, Inc. | Police Commissioner Collins | 1945-04-15 |
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Pride of the Marines | Uncle Ralph | 1945-08-24 |
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When the Lights Go On Again | Tom Cary | 1944-10-22 |
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The Mummy's Ghost | Sheriff Elwood | 1944-07-07 |
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The Yellow Rose of Texas | Sam Weston | 1944-06-24 |
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The Powers Girl | Mr. Hendricks | 1943-01-15 |
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Someone to Remember | Tom Gibbons | 1943-08-21 |
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In Old Oklahoma | Charlie Witherspoon | 1943-12-06 |
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Alaska Highway | John 'Pop' Ormsby | 1943-06-24 |
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True to Life | Mr. Mason | 1943-12-24 |
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Song of Texas | Sam Bennett | 1943-06-14 |
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Headin' for God's Country | Albert Ness | 1943-08-26 |
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Idaho | Judge John Grey | 1943-03-10 |
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The Lady Is Willing | Barnes | 1942-02-12 |
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Once Upon a Honeymoon | Ed Cumberland | 1942-11-27 |
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This Gun for Hire | Steve Finnerty | 1942-04-24 |
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The Falcon Takes Over | Detective Grimes (Uncredited) | 1942-05-29 |
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The Big Street | Florida Doctor (Uncredited) | 1942-08-13 |
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The Mad Martindales | Policeman | 1942-05-15 |
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In Old California | Mr. Carlin | 1942-05-31 |
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Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch | Mr. Tim Wiggs | 1942-10-01 |
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The Affairs of Jimmy Valentine | Pinky Dolan | 1942-03-27 |
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The Saint In Palm Springs | Chief R.L. Graves | 1941-01-24 |
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Hold Back the Dawn | American Immigration Official (uncredited) | 1941-09-26 |
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Citizen Kane | Jim Kane | 1941-04-17 |
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Sailor's Lady | Father McGann | 1940-07-05 |
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Parole Fixer | Randall | 1940-02-02 |
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One Crowded Night | McDermott | 1940-08-09 |
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City of Chance | Passline | 1940-01-13 |
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Tugboat Annie Sails Again | Capt. Mahoney | 1940-10-26 |
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Young Tom Edison | Army Captain Brackett | 1940-03-15 |
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Tear Gas Squad | Lieutenant Sullivan | 1940-05-04 |
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The Girl from Avenue A | Timson | 1940-08-09 |
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Gambling on the High Seas | Ed, Chief of Police | 1940-06-22 |
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Too Many Girls | Mr. Casey | 1940-10-08 |
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The Middleton Family at the New York World's Fair | Father | 1939-04-30 |
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Alibi Mark | Railroad Detective | 1937-12-25 |
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Shake, Mr. Shakespeare | Macbeth | 1936-08-21 |
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A Peach of a Pair | 1934-12-29 | |
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No More West | Bank Robber | 1934-03-29 |
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Smoked Hams | The Landlord | 1934-10-20 |
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Close Relations | Harry Wart | 1933-09-30 |
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20,000 Cheers for the Chain Gang | 1933-08-12 | |
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Wrongorilla | Grogan | 1933-03-04 |
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Take a Chance | Bartender | 1933-11-25 |
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The Campus Mystery | Police Sergeant | 1932-07-01 |
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Heads Up | Capt. Denny | 1930-10-10 |
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Sympathy | Larry | 1929-08-29 |
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Faint Heart | Dynamite Dan | 1929-12-21 |
