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Mystery Photos #2: Who’s That Gent?

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Thanks to all who reviewed and commented on our inaugural post last week of unknown film stills.

Since last week we posted a series of unknown women, this week, we offer up a series of unknown men.

Any suggestions, thoughts, or even speculation on who any of these gentlemen might be is gratefully appreciated and can be shared in the Comments.

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1) Probably an actor from the late silent era or early talkies.

SOLVED:  This is legendary Japanese director Yasujiro Ozu. 

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2) A very familiar face, but so far we’ve been unable to put a name to him.

SOLVED!:  This is British actor Michael Knowles.

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3) A character actor we can’t quite place.

SOLVED!:   Fred Foy, longtime radio announcer.

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4) He looks like a character actor who would be cast as a judge, a school principal or a kindly father. But who is he?

SOLVED!:  This is Wells Church, CBS radio executive.

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5) Another character actor.

SOLVED:  This is playwright Leonard Melfi.

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6)  The back of this photo has a hand-written notation on its back, “Fri TV ON Two Guys,” but there’s no other information.

SOLVED:  The above is the Maine-based humorist Marshall Dodge.

 Thanks for your help! 

Comments (39)

  1. 1. George E, Stone, famous as The Runt in the 1940s Boston Blackie films

  2. Could #4 be a young Karl Malden?

  3. Sorry…#5 on Karl Malden

  4. #4 might be Nat Polan, an actor on several soap operas from the 1950s to the 1970s

  5. #2 Looks a lot like Charlie Chaplin, but I’m not sure.

  6. Yep, looked like George E. Stone to me too. Next to last looks like Steven Hill, maybe in the 70s.

  7. #5 I can’t identify the film but the actor looks a lot like Steven Hill, sometime between Mission Impossible season 1 and Law & Order.

  8. Actually the last one may be Jesse Vint.

  9. I don’t see Steven Hill in number 4.

    Number 2 looks a little like Lex Barker.

  10. number 2 looks like Whit Bissell.

  11. Could #3 be character actor Herbert Rudley?

  12. I’m 99.9999 percent sure the actor in the third photo is Richard Webb, perhaps best known as Captain Midnight on TV in the early 1950s. Google search the name and you’ll find an array of photos of Webb that will surely verify that your photo is indeed him.

  13. #3 Lex Barker

  14. #3 ALOOKS TO ME, LIKE A VERY YOUNG DENVER PYLE, WITHOUT THE SCRAGGLY BEARD

  15. After checking and comparing IMDb and Online photos of Lex Barker and the guy in photo #3 I’m now persuaded that #3 was Lex Barker, looking a little long in the tooth.

  16. First gentleman is Audi Murphy

  17. I’m with Julie on #5 possibly being a young Karl Malden – just look at those eyes, and especially the tip of the nose! However, Karl never had that much hair and never wore it that way in his younger days (the hairstyle in the picture looks too ’70s-ish when Karl would have been too old to sport such a full head of hair) so I guess this could just be the Malden “brother of [later] another mother”…

  18. * “brother of another [later] mother”…

  19. #4 looks a bit like Harry Bartell

  20. Another suggestion for #4: Victor Mature

  21. #4 looks like character actor Art Smith (1899-1973).

  22. 6 I think is Richard Crenna.

  23. #2 reminds me of an early Christopher Plummer, but I can’t prove my theory.

  24. I don’t believe #1 is George E. Stone. The ears and nose do not match. The shape of the face is also different.

  25. I agree with Nancy Kauffman re #1; also #1’s ear appears differently shaped than either of Stone’s and the lobe appears free, unlike, I believe, either of Stone’s.

  26. I believe #2 is a fairly current British (?) character actor, usually plays government minister types. Maybe that will jog someone else’s memory. I cannot place his name or remember where I’ve seen him, but he would be in any number of British movies or shows in the last decade or so.

  27. #2 looks like Peter Finch, Network’s [1976] Howard Beale

  28. I did spot the resemblance before you mentioned it, Jym, but #2 is definitely NOT Peter Finch.

  29. #1 is definitely not George E. Stone.

  30. #1 Is surely a young Cesar Romero.

  31. Number 4 looks like a younger version of THEO GOETZ, who played “Papa Bauer”, in the early days of the Soap Opera GUIDING LIGHT.

  32. number 3 is actor Eddie Albert, I think

  33. No. 1 is definitely not George E. Stone. No. 3 is definitely not Lex Barker, Aldo Ray, or Richard Webb. No. 4 is definitely not Art Smith.

  34. #3 Not A. Murphy, not Aldo Ray.

  35. No 3 is NOT Aldo Ray or Lex Barker. A difficult set of gentlemen.

  36. I’m quite positive that #4 is NOT Steven Hill. Steven Hill is well documented throughout 60’s to the 2000’s. If you did a comparison you would clearly see that it’s not him.

  37. #5 is NOT Steven Hill!

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