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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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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Follow the Boys | Nick West | 1944-05-05 |
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Atlantic City | Jake Taylor | 1944-09-15 |
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Crash Dive | Pop | 1943-04-22 |
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Enemy Agents Meet Ellery Queen | Inspector Richard Queen | 1942-07-30 |
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A Desperate Chance for Ellery Queen | Insp. Queen | 1942-05-07 |
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A Close Call for Ellery Queen | Insp. Queen | 1942-01-29 |
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Ellery Queen's Penthouse Mystery | Insp. Queen | 1941-03-24 |
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Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime | Insp. Queen | 1941-08-14 |
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Ellery Queen and the Murder Ring | Insp. Queen | 1941-11-18 |
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They Died with Their Boots On | California Joe | 1941-11-20 |
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Tobacco Road | Jeeter Lester | 1941-02-20 |
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Johnny Apollo | Judge Emmett T. Brennan | 1940-04-19 |
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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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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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The Texas Rangers Ride Again | Ben Caldwalder | 1940-12-13 |
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Hero for a Day | Uncle Frank "Lucky" Higgins | 1939-10-06 |
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Dust Be My Destiny | Pop | 1939-09-16 |
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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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Burn 'Em Up O'Connor | Doc Heath | 1939-01-13 |
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Stand Up and Fight | 'Old Puff' | 1939-01-06 |
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Sudden Money | Grandpa Casey Patterson | 1939-03-31 |
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Sabotage | Major Matt Grayson | 1939-10-13 |
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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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Three Comrades | Local Doctor | 1938-06-02 |
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Of Human Hearts | Jim Meeker | 1938-02-11 |
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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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The Good Earth | Old Father | 1937-06-02 |
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Between Two Women | Dr. Webster | 1937-07-09 |
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The Bad Man of Brimstone | Barney Lane | 1937-12-31 |
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Bad Guy | Dan Gray | 1937-08-27 |
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Captains Courageous | Uncle Salters | 1937-06-25 |
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A Family Affair | Frank Redmond | 1937-03-12 |
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Big City | Robert, the Mayor | 1937-09-03 |
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Broadway Melody of 1938 | James K. Blakeley | 1937-08-20 |
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Sinner Take All | Aaron Lampier | 1936-12-18 |
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The Petrified Forest | Gramp Maple | 1936-02-08 |
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Without Orders | J.P. Kendrick | 1936-10-22 |
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Breakdowns of 1936 | Self | 1936-12-30 |
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Small Town Girl | Dr. Ned Fabre | 1936-04-10 |
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The Voice of Bugle Ann | Cal Royster | 1936-02-15 |
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Libeled Lady | Hollis Bane | 1936-10-09 |
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One Frightened Night | Jasper Whyte | 1935-05-01 |
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King Solomon of Broadway | Uncle Winchester | 1935-09-30 |
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Party Wire | Will Oliver | 1935-04-27 |
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Super Speed | Terry Devlin | 1935-12-02 |
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Shanghai | Truesdale | 1935-07-19 |
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In Spite of Danger | Pop Sullivan | 1935-03-08 |
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Rendezvous | Prof. Martin | 1935-10-25 |
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Alice Adams | J. A. Lamb | 1935-08-23 |
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Eight Bells | Grayson | 1935-04-10 |
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Ah, Wilderness! | Dave McComber | 1935-12-25 |
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She Made Her Bed | Joe Olesen | 1934-04-26 |
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The Quitter | Ed Tilford | 1934-02-05 |
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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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Anne of Green Gables | Dr. Tatum | 1934-11-23 |
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Judge Priest | Sergeant Jimmy Bagby | 1934-09-15 |
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Caravan | Notary | 1934-12-30 |
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Two Alone | Sandy Roberts | 1934-01-26 |
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The President Vanishes | Richard Norton | 1934-11-17 |
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Turn Back the Clock | Dr. Henderson (uncredited) | 1933-08-25 |
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The Kiss Before the Mirror | Schultz | 1933-05-04 |
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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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Female | Drunk at Hamburger Stand (Uncredited) | 1933-11-11 |
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Don't Bet on Love | Patrick McCaffrey | 1933-06-30 |
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Wild Boys of the Road | Mr. Cadman (uncredited) | 1933-10-07 |
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Heroes for Sale | Pa Dennis | 1933-06-17 |
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Hell and High Water | Peck Wealin | 1933-12-16 |
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Pilgrimage | Dad Saunders | 1933-07-12 |
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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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No Man of Her Own | Clerk | 1932-12-30 |
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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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Wild Horse Mesa | Sam Bass | 1932-11-25 |
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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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The Washington Masquerade | Senator Simmons (uncredited) | 1932-07-09 |
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Heaven on Earth | Doc Boax | 1931-11-27 |
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The Millionaire | Ed Powers | 1931-05-01 |
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Gold Dust Gertie | Nicholas Hautrey | 1931-06-27 |
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For the Love of Fanny | Professor | 1931-12-27 |
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Only Saps Work | Simeon Tanner | 1930-12-05 |
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The Shannons of Broadway | Swanzey | 1929-12-08 |
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Above the Limit | Chimmie Hicks | 1900-11-21 |
