1869-12-20 Xenia, Ohio, USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Charles Ellsworth Grapewin (December 20, 1869 – February 2, 1956) was an American vaudeville performer, writer and a stage and silent and sound actor, and comedian who was best known for portraying Aunt Em's husband, Uncle Henry in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's The Wizard of Oz (1939) as well as Grandpa Joad in The Grapes of Wrath (1940) and Jeeter Lester in Tobacco Road (1941). He usually portrayed elderly folksy-type characters in a rustic setting, in all appearing in over 100 films. He was the oldest cast member of The Wizard of Oz. Born in Xenia, Ohio, Charles Ellsworth Grapewin ran away from home to be a circus acrobat which led him to work as an aerialist and trapeze artist in a traveling circus before turning to acting. He traveled all over the world with the famous P. T. Barnum circus. Grapewin also appeared in the original 1903 Broadway production of The Wizard of Oz, 36 years before he would appear in the famous Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film version. After this he continued in theatre, on and offstage, for the next thirty years, starting with various stock companies, and wrote stage plays as a vehicle for himself. His sole Broadway theatre credit was the short-lived play It's Up to You John Henry in 1905. Grapewin married actress Anna Chance (1875–1943) in 1896, and they remained a devoted couple until her death some 47 years later. Two years after his first wife's death, Grapewin married Loretta McGowan Becker on Jan 10, 1945. Grapewin began in silent films at the turn of the twentieth century. His very first films were two "moving image shorts" made by Frederick S. Armitage and released in November 1900; Chimmie Hicks at the Races (also known as Above the Limit) and Chimmie Hicks and the Rum Omelet, both shot in September and October 1900 and released in November of that year. During his long career, Grapewin appeared in more than one hundred films, including The Good Earth, The Grapes of Wrath, Tobacco Road, and in what is probably his best-remembered role: Uncle Henry in The Wizard of Oz. He also had a recurring role as Inspector Queen in the Ellery Queen film series of the early 1940s. Grapewin died of natural causes in Corona, California at age 86, and his ashes are interred with his wife's in Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California, at the Great Mausoleum's Columbarium of Inspiration.
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The Dark Side of the Rainbow | Uncle Henry (archive footage) | 2000-07-01 |
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The Dark Side of Oz | Uncle Henry (archive footage) | 1995-08-15 |
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Going Hollywood: The '30s | (archive footage) | 1984-01-01 |
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That's Entertainment, Part II | (archive footage) | 1976-05-16 |
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The Big Parade of Comedy | Mr. Bane in 'Libeled Lady' (archive footage) (uncredited) | 1964-09-02 |
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When I Grow Up | Grandpa Reed | 1951-04-19 |
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Sand | Doug | 1949-08-03 |
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The Enchanted Valley | Grandpa | 1948-03-24 |
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Gunfighters | Rancher Inskip | 1947-07-15 |
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The Impatient Years | Benjamin L. Pidgeon, Bellboy | 1944-09-10 |
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Atlantic City | Jake Taylor | 1944-09-15 |
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Follow the Boys | Nick West | 1944-05-05 |
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Crash Dive | Pop | 1943-04-22 |
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A Close Call for Ellery Queen | Insp. Queen | 1942-01-29 |
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A Desperate Chance for Ellery Queen | Insp. Queen | 1942-05-07 |
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Enemy Agents Meet Ellery Queen | Inspector Richard Queen | 1942-07-30 |
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They Died with Their Boots On | California Joe | 1941-11-20 |
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Ellery Queen and the Murder Ring | Insp. Queen | 1941-11-18 |
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Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime | Insp. Queen | 1941-08-14 |
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Ellery Queen's Penthouse Mystery | Insp. Queen | 1941-03-24 |
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Tobacco Road | Jeeter Lester | 1941-02-20 |
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The Texas Rangers Ride Again | Ben Caldwalder | 1940-12-13 |
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Rhythm on the River | Uncle Caleb | 1940-08-28 |
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The Grapes of Wrath | Grandpa Joad | 1940-03-15 |
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Earthbound | Mr. Whimser | 1940-06-06 |
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Ellery Queen, Master Detective | Insp. Queen | 1940-11-30 |
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Johnny Apollo | Judge Emmett T. Brennan | 1940-04-19 |
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Dust Be My Destiny | Pop | 1939-09-16 |
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Sudden Money | Grandpa Casey Patterson | 1939-03-31 |
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Burn 'Em Up O'Connor | Doc Heath | 1939-01-13 |
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Sabotage | Major Matt Grayson | 1939-10-13 |
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Stand Up and Fight | 'Old Puff' | 1939-01-06 |
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Hero for a Day | Uncle Frank "Lucky" Higgins | 1939-10-06 |
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The Man Who Dared | Ulysses Porterfield | 1939-06-03 |
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The Wizard of Oz | Uncle Henry | 1939-08-15 |
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The Girl of the Golden West | Uncle Davy | 1938-03-18 |
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Three Loves Has Nancy | Grandpa Briggs | 1938-09-02 |
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Three Comrades | Local Doctor | 1938-06-02 |
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Artists and Models Abroad | James Harper | 1938-12-20 |
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Listen, Darling | Joe Higgins | 1938-10-21 |
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Of Human Hearts | Jim Meeker | 1938-02-11 |
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Bad Guy | Dan Gray | 1937-08-27 |
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Between Two Women | Dr. Webster | 1937-07-09 |
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Big City | Robert, the Mayor | 1937-09-03 |
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The Good Earth | Old Father | 1937-06-02 |
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Broadway Melody of 1938 | James K. Blakeley | 1937-08-20 |
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The Bad Man of Brimstone | Barney Lane | 1937-12-31 |
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A Family Affair | Frank Redmond | 1937-03-12 |
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Captains Courageous | Uncle Salters | 1937-06-25 |
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Small Town Girl | Dr. Ned Fabre | 1936-04-10 |
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Without Orders | J.P. Kendrick | 1936-10-22 |
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The Voice of Bugle Ann | Cal Royster | 1936-02-15 |
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Sinner Take All | Aaron Lampier | 1936-12-18 |
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Libeled Lady | Hollis Bane | 1936-10-09 |
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The Petrified Forest | Gramp Maple | 1936-02-08 |
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Breakdowns of 1936 | Self | 1936-12-30 |
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Shanghai | Truesdale | 1935-07-19 |
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Rendezvous | Prof. Martin | 1935-10-25 |
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Ah, Wilderness! | Dave McComber | 1935-12-25 |
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In Spite of Danger | Pop Sullivan | 1935-03-08 |
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Eight Bells | Grayson | 1935-04-10 |
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Party Wire | Will Oliver | 1935-04-27 |
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King Solomon of Broadway | Uncle Winchester | 1935-09-30 |
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One Frightened Night | Jasper Whyte | 1935-05-01 |
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Alice Adams | J. A. Lamb | 1935-08-23 |
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Caravan | Notary | 1934-12-30 |
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The Loudspeaker | Pop Calloway | 1934-06-01 |
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Return of the Terror | Jessup | 1934-07-07 |
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Judge Priest | Sergeant Jimmy Bagby | 1934-09-15 |
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The Quitter | Ed Tilford | 1934-02-05 |
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The President Vanishes | Richard Norton | 1934-11-17 |
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Anne of Green Gables | Dr. Tatum | 1934-11-23 |
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She Made Her Bed | Joe Olesen | 1934-04-26 |
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Two Alone | Sandy Roberts | 1934-01-26 |
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Beauty for Sale | Freddy Gordon | 1933-09-01 |
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Hello, Everybody! | Jed | 1933-02-17 |
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The Kiss Before the Mirror | Schultz | 1933-05-04 |
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Heroes for Sale | Pa Dennis | 1933-06-17 |
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Turn Back the Clock | Dr. Henderson (uncredited) | 1933-08-25 |
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Pilgrimage | Dad Saunders | 1933-07-12 |
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Female | Drunk at Hamburger Stand (Uncredited) | 1933-11-11 |
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Midnight Mary | Clerk | 1933-06-30 |
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Torch Singer | Andrew 'Juddy' Judson | 1933-09-08 |
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Wild Boys of the Road | Mr. Cadman (uncredited) | 1933-10-07 |
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Don't Bet on Love | Patrick McCaffrey | 1933-06-30 |
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Hell and High Water | Peck Wealin | 1933-12-16 |
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Are You Listening? | Pierce | 1932-03-21 |
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Hell's House | Henry Clark | 1932-01-30 |
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The Big Timer | Pop Baldwin | 1932-03-10 |
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The Night of June 13 | "Grandpop" Strawn (as Charles Grapewin) | 1932-09-17 |
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The Washington Masquerade | Senator Simmons (uncredited) | 1932-07-09 |
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The Woman in Room 13 | Andy | 1932-05-15 |
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Huddle | Doctor (uncredited) | 1932-05-14 |
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American Madness | Mr. Jones (uncredited) | 1932-08-15 |
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No Man of Her Own | Clerk | 1932-12-30 |
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Wild Horse Mesa | Sam Bass | 1932-11-25 |
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Gold Dust Gertie | Nicholas Hautrey | 1931-06-27 |
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The Millionaire | Ed Powers | 1931-05-01 |
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For the Love of Fanny | Professor | 1931-12-27 |
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Heaven on Earth | Doc Boax | 1931-11-27 |
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Only Saps Work | Simeon Tanner | 1930-12-05 |
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Above the Limit | Chimmie Hicks | 1900-11-21 |
