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Difference between revisions of "Will Geer"

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'''Will Geer''' (born [[1902]] [[March 9]] in [[Frankfort, Indiana]] – died [[1978]] [[22 April]] in [[Los Angeles]]) was an [[United States|American]] [[actor]]. Geer's official name was '''William Auge Ghere'''. He is best known for his portrayal of the character Grandpa Walton, in the popular [[1970s]] [[TV series]] ''[[The Waltons]]''.
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Geer was heavily influenced by his grandfather, who taught him the botanical names of the plants in his native [[Indiana]].  He started out to become a [[botanist]], studying the subject and obtaining a [[master's degree]] from [[Columbia University]].  But he eventually succumbed to the allure of acting.
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He began his career touring in tent shows and on river boats. He eventually made his way to [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]], and in 1964 received a nomination for the [[Tony Award]] for [[Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical|Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical]] for ''[[110 in the Shade]]''.
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He was married to the actress [[Herta Ware]], best known for her poignant performance as the wife of [[Jack Gilford]] in [[Cocoon (film)|Cocoon]]. Geer and Ware had 3 children, including actress [[Ellen Geer]]. Although they eventually divorced they remained close. Ware also had a daughter, actress [[Melora Marshall]], by another marriage.
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Geer was also a [[social activism|social activist]], touring government work camps in the 1930s with [[folk singer]]s like [[Burl Ives]] and [[Woody Guthrie]]. In the [[1950s]] he was [[blacklist]]ed for refusing to testify before the [[House Committee on Un-American Activities]]. During that period, he built the Will Geer [[Theatricum Botanicum]] in [[Topanga, California|Topanga Canyon]], [[California]], which he and Herta Ware helped to found. He combined his acting and botanical careers at the Theatricum, by making sure that every plant mentioned in [[Shakespeare]] was grown there.
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As Will Geer was dying on April 22, 1978, of a [[respiratory]] [[ailment]] at the age of 76, his family sang Guthrie's ''[[This Land Is Your Land]]'' at his deathbed, and recited poems by [[Robert Frost]]. Geer was [[cremation|cremated]], and his ashes buried at the Theatricum Botanicum in the "Shakespeare Garden."
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==Filmography==
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===1930s===
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*''[[Misleading Lady]]'' (1932)
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*''[[Wild Gold]]'' (1934)
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*''[[Spitfire (1934 film)|Spitfire]]'' (1934)
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*''[[The Mystery of Edwin Drood]]'' (1935)
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*''[[Union Pacific (film)|Union Pacific]]'' (1939)
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===1940s===
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*''[[The Fight for Life]]'' (1940)
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*''[[Deep Waters (film)|Deep Waters]]'' (1948)
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*''[[The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre]]'' (1948)
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*''[[Intruder in the Dust]]'' (1949)
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*''[[Anna Lucasta]]'' (1949)
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*''[[Lust for Gold]]'' (1949)
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*''[[Johnny Allegro]]'' (1949)
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===1950s===
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*''[[To Please a Lady]]'' (1950)
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*''[[Convicted (film)|Convicted]]'' (1950)
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*''[[Broken Arrow (1950 film)|Broken Arrow]]'' (1950)
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*''[[Winchester '73]]'' (1950)
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*''[[The Kid from Texas]]'' (1950)
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*''[[Comanche Territory]]'' (1950)
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*''[[It's a Small World (film)|It's a Small World]]'' (1950)
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*''[[The Barefoot Mailman]]'' (1951)
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*''[[Racket Squad]]'' (1951)
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*''[[The Tall Target]]'' (1951)
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*''[[Bright Victory]]'' (1951)
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*''[[Double Crossbones]]'' (1951)
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*''[[Salt of the Earth (film)|Salt of the Earth]]'' (1954)
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*''[[Mobs, Inc.]]'' (1956)
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===1960s===
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*''[[Advise and Consent]]'' (1962)
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*''[[Black Like Me]]'' (1964)
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*''[[East Side/West Side]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1964)
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*''[[Seconds (film)|Seconds]]'' (1966)
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*''[[The Trials of O'Brien]]'' (TV series guest appearance)(1966)
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*''[[The President's Analyst]]'' (1967)
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*''[[In Cold Blood (film)|In Cold Blood]]'' (1967)
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*''[[The Crucible]]'' (Made-for-TV Film) (1967)
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*''[[Garrison's Gorillas]]'' (TV-series guest appearance) (1967)
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*''[[Certain Honorable Men]]'' (1968)
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*''[[Bandolero!]]'' (1968)
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*''[[Gunsmoke]]'' (TV-series guest appearance)(1968)
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*''[[The Invaders]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1968)
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*''[[Mission: Impossible]]'' (TV-series guest appearance) (1968)
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*''[[Run for Your Life]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1968)
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*''[[I Spy]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1968)
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*''[[The Reivers]]'' (1969)
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*''[[Daniel Boone (TV series)|Daniel Boone]]'' (guest appearance) (1969)
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*''[[Then Came Bronson]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1969)
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*''[[Hawaii Five-O]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1969)
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*''[[Bonanza]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1969)
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*''[[Here Come the Brides]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1969)
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*''[[Mayberry R.F.D]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1969)
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===1970s===
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*''[[The Moonshine War]]'' (1970)
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*''[[Shooting the Moonshine War]]'' (1970)
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*''[[Pieces of Dreams]]'' (1970)
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*''[[The Brotherhood of the Bell]]'' (Made-for-TV film) (1970)
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*''[[Of Mice and Men]]'' (Made-For-TV film) (1970)
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*''[[The Bill Cosby Show]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1970)
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*''[[The Bold Ones: The Senator]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1970) 
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*''[[Medical Center (TV series)|Medical Center]]'' (1970)
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*''[[The Name of the Game (TV series)|The Name of the Game]]'' (guest appearance) (1970)
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*''[[Brother John]]'' (1971)
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*''[[Sam Hill: Who Killed Mr. Foster?]]'' (Made-For-TV film) (1971)
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*''[[The Bold Ones: The Lawyers]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1971)
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*''[[O'Hara, U.S. Treasury]]'' ((TV series guest appearance) 1971)
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*''[[Alias Smith and Jones]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1971)
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*''[[Cade's County]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1971)
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*''[[Love, American Style]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1971)
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*''[[The Waltons]]'' (TV series) (1972 to 1978)
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*''[[Jeremiah Johnson]]'' (1972)
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*''[[Napoleon and Samantha]]'' (1972)
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*''[[The Rowdyman]]'' (1972)
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*''[[The Scarecrow (play)|The Scarecrow]]'' (1972)
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*''[[The Sixth Sense (1972 film)|The Sixth Sense]]'' (made-for-TV film) (1972) 
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*''[[Bewitched]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1972)
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*''[[Executive Action]]'' (1973)
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*''[[Isn't It Shocking?]]'' (Made-for-TV film) (1973)
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*''[[The Gift of Terror]]'' ((Made for TV Film) (1973)
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*''[[Savage (film)|Savage]]'' (1973)
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*''[[Harry O]]'' (TV Series guest appearance) (1973)
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*''[[Brock's Last Case]]'' (Made-for-TV film) (1973)
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*''[[Columbo: A Stitch in Crime]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1973)
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*''[[Doc Elliot]]'' (1973)
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*''[[Kung Fu (TV series)|Kung Fu]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1973)
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*''[[The ABC Afternoon Playbreak]]'' (1973)
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*''[[Night Gallery]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1973)
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*''[[Hurricane (1974 film)|Hurricane]]'' (1974)
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*''[[Memory of Us]]'' (1974)
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*''[[Silence (1974 made-for-TV film)|Silence]]'' (1974)
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*''[[Honky Tonk (film)|Honky Tonk]]'' (1974)
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*''[[The Hanged Man (film)|The Hanged Man]]'' (1974)
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*''[[The Night That Panicked America]]'' (Made-for-TV film) (1975)
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*''[[The Manchu Eagle Murder Caper Mystery]]'' (1975)
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*''[[Dear Dead Delilah]]'' (1975)
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*''[[Moving Violation (film)|Moving Violation]]'' (1976)
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*''[[Hollywood on Trial]]'' (1976)
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*''[[Law and Order (1976 film)|Law and Order]]'' (1976)
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*''[[The Blue Bird (film)|The Blue Bird]]'' (1976)
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*''[[Starsky and Hutch]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1976) 
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*''[[The Billion Dollar Hobo]]'' (1977)
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*''[[The Love Boat]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1977)
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*''[[Eight Is Enough]]'' (TV series guest appearance) (1977)
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*''[[A Woman Called Moses]]'' (Made-for-TV film) (1978)
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*''[[Unknown Powers]]'' (1978)
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*''[[CBS: On the Air]]'' (1978)
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*''[[The Mafu Cage]]'' (1979)
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==Trivia==
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In the [[German language|German]] dubbed version of ''The Waltons'', the first name of Geer's character, Zeb Walton, was altered to Samuel "Sam" Walton because "Zeb" sounded too similar to "Sepp", a [[Bavaria]]n short form of the name "Joseph", which was considered a cliché for an older man. The real [[Sam Walton]] was the founder of [[Wal-Mart]].
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==External link==
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*{{imdb name|id=0002095|name=Will Geer}}
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{{lgbt|Will Geer}}
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[[Category:American film actors]]
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[[Category:American television actors]]
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[[Category:Hollywood blacklist]]
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[[Category:Bisexual American actors]]

Latest revision as of 09:44, 20 November 2008

Will Geer (born 1902 March 9 in Frankfort, Indiana – died 1978 22 April in Los Angeles) was an American actor. Geer's official name was William Auge Ghere. He is best known for his portrayal of the character Grandpa Walton, in the popular 1970s TV series The Waltons.

Geer was heavily influenced by his grandfather, who taught him the botanical names of the plants in his native Indiana. He started out to become a botanist, studying the subject and obtaining a master's degree from Columbia University. But he eventually succumbed to the allure of acting.

He began his career touring in tent shows and on river boats. He eventually made his way to Broadway, and in 1964 received a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical for 110 in the Shade.

He was married to the actress Herta Ware, best known for her poignant performance as the wife of Jack Gilford in Cocoon. Geer and Ware had 3 children, including actress Ellen Geer. Although they eventually divorced they remained close. Ware also had a daughter, actress Melora Marshall, by another marriage.

Geer was also a social activist, touring government work camps in the 1930s with folk singers like Burl Ives and Woody Guthrie. In the 1950s he was blacklisted for refusing to testify before the House Committee on Un-American Activities. During that period, he built the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga Canyon, California, which he and Herta Ware helped to found. He combined his acting and botanical careers at the Theatricum, by making sure that every plant mentioned in Shakespeare was grown there.

As Will Geer was dying on April 22, 1978, of a respiratory ailment at the age of 76, his family sang Guthrie's This Land Is Your Land at his deathbed, and recited poems by Robert Frost. Geer was cremated, and his ashes buried at the Theatricum Botanicum in the "Shakespeare Garden."

Filmography[edit]

1930s[edit]

1940s[edit]

1950s[edit]

1960s[edit]

1970s[edit]

Trivia[edit]

In the German dubbed version of The Waltons, the first name of Geer's character, Zeb Walton, was altered to Samuel "Sam" Walton because "Zeb" sounded too similar to "Sepp", a Bavarian short form of the name "Joseph", which was considered a cliché for an older man. The real Sam Walton was the founder of Wal-Mart.

External link[edit]


This article is based on a GNU FDL LGBT Wikia article: Geer Will Geer LGBT
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