Walter Connolly

Known for ActingBorn 1887-04-08Died 1940-05-28Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Walter Connolly (April 8, 1887 – May 28, 1940) was an American actor. While some film historians complain that a number of his performances were annoying or overbaked, he was for the most part applauded for his zesty contributions to a number of comedy classics. Frank Capra's Lady for a Day (1933), Broadway Bill (1934) and It Happened One Night (1934), as well as the Carole Lombard/Fredric March screwball farce Nothing Sacred (1937) as news reporter March's hot-headed editor boss are sure-fire examples. The son of the head of the Western Union relay office, he attended St. Xavier College and the University of Dublin in Ireland before making his New York debut in 1910 in an outdoor presentation of "As You Like It". For the next year or so he was a member of E.H. Sothern's touring company and played supporting roles in a number of Shakespearean shows on the road. After a few silent pictures left him unimpressed with film-making, he turned to the Broadway stage in the 1920s and scored quite well. Somewhat short and tubby, it was not difficult for the jowly, mustachioed actor to seize laughs and he found his share in such outings as "The Talking Parrot" (1923), "Applesauce" (1925), "The Springboard" (1927), "The Happy Husband" (1928), "Stepping Out" (1929), "Your Uncle Dudley" (1930), "Anatol" (1931), "Six Characters in Search of an Author" (1931), "The Good Fairy" (1932) and "The Late Christopher Bean" (1932). With his talents as a stage farceur firmly established, it was time to make a second attempt at a film career and Hollywood (specifically, Columbia) wisely opened their doors to him. Interestingly, his debut in a full-length talking picture came at age 45 in the form of a drama, Washington Merry-Go-Round (1932), where he was third-billed as a rather benign senator. For the next seven years Connolly, often playing older than he really was, could be found everywhere giving good fluster to the greatest and glossiest of stars -- Janet Gaynor, Carole Lombard, Clark Gable, Jean Harlow, Myrna Loy, Paul Muni, Spencer Tracy, and Ginger Rogers, among hordes of others. His hobbies were collecting old books and theatre programmes. Connolly was married to actress Nedda Harrigan from 1923 to his death. They had one daughter, Ann (1924–2006). Connolly suffered a fatal stroke on May 28, 1940, and was buried in New St. Joseph Cemetery in Cincinnati.Read more

Movies & web series

Eight Girls in a Boat

Master of Men

Soak the Rich

Servants' Entrance

It Happened One Night

So Red the Rose

White Lies

Washington Merry-Go-Round

Hollywood on Parade No. B-1

Libeled Lady

Good Girls Go to Paris

Lady for a Day

Fifth Avenue Girl

Penitentiary

Nancy Steele Is Missing!

The Music Goes 'Round

Start Cheering

Lady by Choice

Man's Castle

Twentieth Century

No More Orchids

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

First Lady

Let's Get Married

Father Brown, Detective

The Captain Hates the Sea

Those High Grey Walls

The Good Earth

Nothing Sacred

The Bitter Tea of General Yen

East of Fifth Avenue

The League of Frightened Men

Once to Every Woman

Too Hot to Handle

Coast Guard

Broadway Bill

The King Steps Out

One Way Ticket

Whom the Gods Destroy

Breakdowns of 1938

Four's a Crowd

The Great Victor Herbert

Bridal Suite

She Couldn't Take It

Man Against Woman

The Girl Downstairs

Paddy the Next Best Thing

Black Shadows on a Silver Screen