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 Wizard of Oz at Sphere | Uncle Henry (archive footage) | 2025-08-28 |
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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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Atlantic City | Jake Taylor | 1944-09-15 |
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Follow the Boys | Nick West | 1944-05-05 |
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The Impatient Years | Benjamin L. Pidgeon, Bellboy | 1944-09-10 |
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Crash Dive | Pop | 1943-04-22 |
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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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Enemy Agents Meet Ellery Queen | Inspector Richard Queen | 1942-07-30 |
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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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Tobacco Road | Jeeter Lester | 1941-02-20 |
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They Died with Their Boots On | California Joe | 1941-11-20 |
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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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Ellery Queen, Master Detective | Insp. Queen | 1940-11-30 |
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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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Johnny Apollo | Judge Emmett T. Brennan | 1940-04-19 |
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Burn 'Em Up O'Connor | Doc Heath | 1939-01-13 |
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The Wizard of Oz | Uncle Henry | 1939-08-15 |
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Hero for a Day | Uncle Frank "Lucky" Higgins | 1939-10-06 |
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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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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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Sabotage | Major Matt Grayson | 1939-10-13 |
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The Girl of the Golden West | Uncle Davy | 1938-03-18 |
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Three Comrades | Local Doctor | 1938-06-02 |
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Listen, Darling | Joe Higgins | 1938-10-21 |
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Artists and Models Abroad | James Harper | 1938-12-20 |
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Of Human Hearts | Jim Meeker | 1938-02-11 |
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Three Loves Has Nancy | Grandpa Briggs | 1938-09-02 |
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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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The Good Earth | Old Father | 1937-06-02 |
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Bad Guy | Dan Gray | 1937-08-27 |
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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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A Family Affair | Frank Redmond | 1937-03-12 |
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Captains Courageous | Uncle Salters | 1937-06-25 |
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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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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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Without Orders | J.P. Kendrick | 1936-10-22 |
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Libeled Lady | Hollis Bane | 1936-10-09 |
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Sinner Take All | Aaron Lampier | 1936-12-18 |
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Eight Bells | Grayson | 1935-04-10 |
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Alice Adams | J. A. Lamb | 1935-08-23 |
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Ah, Wilderness! | Dave McComber | 1935-12-25 |
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King Solomon of Broadway | Uncle Winchester | 1935-09-30 |
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Rendezvous | Prof. Martin | 1935-10-25 |
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In Spite of Danger | Pop Sullivan | 1935-03-08 |
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Super Speed | Terry Devlin | 1935-12-02 |
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Shanghai | Truesdale | 1935-07-19 |
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One Frightened Night | Jasper Whyte | 1935-05-01 |
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Party Wire | Will Oliver | 1935-04-27 |
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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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Caravan | Notary | 1934-12-30 |
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Two Alone | Sandy Roberts | 1934-01-26 |
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The Quitter | Ed Tilford | 1934-02-05 |
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Return of the Terror | Jessup | 1934-07-07 |
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The President Vanishes | Richard Norton | 1934-11-17 |
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Judge Priest | Sergeant Jimmy Bagby | 1934-09-15 |
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The Loudspeaker | Pop Calloway | 1934-06-01 |
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Female | Drunk at Hamburger Stand (Uncredited) | 1933-11-11 |
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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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Pilgrimage | Dad Saunders | 1933-07-12 |
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The Kiss Before the Mirror | Schultz | 1933-05-04 |
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Turn Back the Clock | Dr. Henderson (uncredited) | 1933-08-25 |
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Don't Bet on Love | Patrick McCaffrey | 1933-06-30 |
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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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Torch Singer | Andrew 'Juddy' Judson | 1933-09-08 |
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Hell and High Water | Peck Wealin | 1933-12-16 |
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Midnight Mary | Clerk | 1933-06-30 |
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No Man of Her Own | Clerk | 1932-12-30 |
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Hell's House | Henry Clark | 1932-01-30 |
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Are You Listening? | Pierce | 1932-03-21 |
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Huddle | Doctor (uncredited) | 1932-05-14 |
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The Night of June 13 | "Grandpop" Strawn (as Charles Grapewin) | 1932-09-17 |
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The Big Timer | Pop Baldwin | 1932-03-10 |
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The Woman in Room 13 | Andy | 1932-05-15 |
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The Washington Masquerade | Senator Simmons (uncredited) | 1932-07-09 |
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Wild Horse Mesa | Sam Bass | 1932-11-25 |
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American Madness | Mr. Jones (uncredited) | 1932-08-15 |
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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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Heaven on Earth | Doc Boax | 1931-11-27 |
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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 |
