Herbert "Herb" Vigran (June 5, 1910 - November 29, 1986) was a well-known American character actor in Hollywood from the 1930s to the 1980s. Over his 50-year career, he made over 350 television and film appearances.
Video Herb Vigran
Early years
Vigran was a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, but his family moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana, when he was 16. He graduated with an LL.B. degree from Indiana University, but later chose to pursue acting.
Maps Herb Vigran
Stage
Billed as Herbert Vigran, he appeared on Broadway in three plays from 1935 through 1938.
Radio
After starting out on Broadway, Vigran soon moved to Hollywood with no money and only the Broadway acting experience. In 1939, Vigran's agent helped him secure a lead in the radio drama Silver Theatre. The actor had a $5 recording made of the radio show and used it as a demo to get other jobs with his unique voice. He performed in radio shows with the likes of Jack Benny, Bob Hope, Lucille Ball and Jimmy Durante.
Television
He later had hundreds of television appearances on shows like Adventures of Superman (six episodes), Dragnet (11 episodes), I Love Lucy (four episodes), The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (seven episodes), The Dick Van Dyke Show (three episodes), Perry Mason (two episodes), Dragnet 1967 (seven episodes), Petticoat Junction (one episode, 1969), and The Brady Bunch (two episodes). Vigran had a recurring role as Judge Brooker in Gunsmoke between 1970-1975. He appeared in a number of I Love Lucy episodes, and in the 1954 episode titled Lucy Is Envious, Vigran is the promoter who hired Lucy and Ethel to dress up as "Women From Mars" for a publicity stunt. With his bushy eyebrows and balding pate, he was easily cast in a wide variety of middle-aged "everyman" roles: cops, small-time crooks, judges, jurors, bartenders, repairmen, neighbors, shopkeepers, etc.
Film
1954's "White Christmas" starring Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye saw Vigran in the role as Novello, a nightclub owner who ushered in the characters of Wallace and Davis to see his floor show attraction, The Haines Sisters. In the rock and roll movie Go, Johnny, Go (1959), Vigran played an assistant to promoter Alan Freed and performed dialogue scenes with rock legend Chuck Berry. He also provided the voice of "Whitney's boss" on the Arrowhead bottled-water television (animated) and radio commercials in the 1960s. He also played a small role (as a reporter) in Charlie Chaplin's Monsieur Verdoux (1947).
Personal life
In 1952, Vigran married the former Belle Pasternack. The couple had two sons.
Vigran was active up until his death.
Death
Vigran died of complications from cancer on November 29, 1986, in Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He was survived by his wife and two sons. He was cremated.
Theatre
Radio
Television
Films
Further reading
- Dunning, John (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3.
Notes
References
External links
- Herb Vigran on IMDb
- Herb Vigran at the TCM Movie Database
- Herb Vigran at the Internet Broadway Database
- Herb Vigran at Find a Grave
Source of article : Wikipedia
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