Porter Hall

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Porter Hall
Hall in 1930.
Born
Clifford Porter Hall

(1888-09-19)September 19, 1888
Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
DiedOctober 6, 1953(1953-10-06) (aged 65)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationActor
Years active1926–1953
Spouse
Geraldine Hall
​
​
(m. 1927)​
Children2

Clifford Porter Hall (September 19, 1888 – October 6, 1953) was an American character actor known for appearing in a number of films in the 1930s and 1940s. Hall played movie villains or comedic incompetent characters.

Career

Hall was born in Cincinnati, Ohio and began his career touring as a stage actor with roles in productions of The Great Gatsby and Naked in 1926. Hall made his film debut in the 1931 drama Secrets of a Secretary. He made his last onscreen appearance in the 1954 film Return to Treasure Island, which was released after his death.

He was probably best remembered for four roles: a senator in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, an atheist in Going My Way, the nervous, ill-tempered Granville Sawyer, who administers a psychological test to Kris Kringle in Miracle on 34th Street, and a train passenger who encounters a man (Fred MacMurray) who has just committed a murder in Double Indemnity.

On October 6, 1953, Hall died of a heart attack in Los Angeles, California at the age of 65. His interment was at Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery. Hall had two children, David and Sarah Jane.

In popular culture

Director Russ Meyer named one of the characters in the 1970 cult film Beyond the Valley of the Dolls after Hall.

Complete filmography

External links

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