Donald Meek
male
Born on July 13, 1878 (147 years old)
Passed Away on November 18, 1946
From Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Known for Acting
Biography
Thomas Donald Meek (14 July 1878 – 18 November 1946) was a Scottish-American actor. He first performed publicly at the age of eight and began appearing on Broadway in 1903. Meek is perhaps best known for his roles in the films You Can't Take It with You (1938) and Stagecoach (1939). He posthumously received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. Meek was born in Glasgow to Matthew and Annie Meek. In the 1890s, the Meek family emigrated to Canada and then to the United States. By 1900, they were living in Philadelphia where Meek was employed as a dry goods salesman, according to the United States census of that year with Meek later working on stage. After years on the stage, Meek became a film actor, appearing memorably in several movies including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Little Miss Broadway, and State Fair. Before becoming an actor, he fought in the Spanish–American War in the United States Army and contracted yellow fever which caused him to lose his hair. He was cast as timid, worried characters in many of his films, and is perhaps best known for his roles as Mr. Poppins in Frank Capra's You Can't Take It With You and as whiskey salesman Samuel Peacock in John Ford's Stagecoach. From 1931 through 1932, Meek was featured as criminologist Dr. Crabtree in a series of 12 Warner Brothers two-reel short subjects written by S.S. Van Dine. Meek and Isabella "Belle" Walken married in Boston in a Methodist church on January 3, 1909. By this marriage, the American-born Belle Meek lost her United States citizenship by taking her husband's British nationality. Donald Meek died of leukaemia on 18 November 1946 in Los Angeles, while filming the role of Mr. Twiddle in Magic Town. A prolific film actor in over 100 Hollywood movies during its Golden Age, he received a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was entombed in the Fairmount Mausoleum at Fairmount Cemetery in Denver, Colorado.
Cast Credits
- 1984
- 1947
- 1946
- 1945
- 1944
- 1943
- 1942
- 1941
Come Live with Me
as
Joe Darsie
1941
A Woman's Face
as
Herman Rundvik
1941
The Feminine Touch
as
Captain Makepeace Liveright
1941
The Wild Man of Borneo
as
Professor Charles W. Birdo
1941
Barnacle Bill
as
"Pop" Cavendish
1941
Blonde Inspiration
as
'Dusty' King
1941
Babes on Broadway
as
Mr. Stone
1941
Rise and Shine
as
Professor Philip Murray
1941
- 1940
My Little Chickadee
as
Amos Budge
1940
The Return of Frank James
as
McCoy
1940
Sky Murder
as
Bartholomew
1940
Phantom Raiders
as
Bartholomew
1940
Third Finger, Left Hand
as
Mr. Flandrin
1940
Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet
as
Mittelmeyer
1940
The Ghost Comes Home
as
Mortimer Hopkins, Sr.
1940
Turnabout
as
Henry, the Valet
1940
The Man from Dakota
as
Mr. Vestry
1940
Star Dust
as
Sam Wellman
1940
- no image
Oh, Johnny, How You Can Love!
as
Adelbert Thistlebottom
1940
Hullabaloo
as
Mr. Clyde Perkins
1940
- 1939
- 1938
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
as
Sunday School Superintendent
1938
You Can't Take It with You
as
Mr. Poppins
1938
Having Wonderful Time
as
P.U. Rogers
1938
Double Danger
as
Gordon Ainsley, aka Henry Robinson
1938
Goodbye Broadway
as
Iradius P. Oglethorpe
1938
Hold That Co-ed
as
Dean Thatcher
1938
Little Miss Broadway
as
Willoughby Wendling
1938
- 1937
The Toast of New York
as
Daniel Drew
1937
Breakfast for Two
as
Justice of the Peace
1937
Make a Wish
as
Joseph
1937
Behind The Headlines
as
Potter
1937
Parnell
as
Nicholas Daniel Murphy
1937
- no image
Three Legionnaires
as
Uriah S. Grant
1937
Artists & Models
as
Dr. Zimmer
1937
Maid of Salem
as
Ezra Cheeves
1937
You're a Sweetheart
as
Conway Jeeters
1937
Double Wedding
as
Judge Blynn (uncredited)
1937
- 1936
- 1935
Mark of the Vampire
as
Dr. Doskil
1935
Captain Blood
as
Dr. Whacker
1935
The Whole Town's Talking
as
Hoyt
1935
Peter Ibbetson
as
Mr. Slade
1935
The Return Of Peter Grimm
as
Mayor Everett Bartholomew
1935
Biography of a Bachelor Girl
as
Mr. Irish, Moose Village General Store
1935
Romance in Manhattan
as
Minister
1935
Happiness C.O.D.
as
Thomas Sherridan
1935
She Couldn't Take It
as
Uncle Wyndersham
1935
Village Tale
as
Charlie
1935
The Gilded Lily
as
Hankerson
1935
The Bride Comes Home
as
The Judge
1935
Baby Face Harrington
as
Skinner
1935
Barbary Coast
as
Sawbuck McTavish
1935
Kind Lady
as
Mr. Foster
1935
Society Doctor
as
Moxley
1935
Old Man Rhythm
as
Paul Parker
1935
China Seas
as
Chess Player (uncredited)
1935
The Informer
as
Peter Mulligan
1935
- 1934
Murder at the Vanities
as
Dr. Saunders
1934
Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch
as
Mr. Wiggs
1934
Bedside
as
Dr. George Wiley
1934
The Last Gentleman
as
Judd Barr, Cabot's son
1934
Hi, Nellie!
as
Durkin
1934
The Defense Rests
as
Fogg
1934
The Captain Hates the Sea
as
Josephus Bushmills
1934
The Merry Widow
as
Valet
1934
What Every Woman Knows
as
Snibby the Jeweler (uncredited)
1934
- 1933
- 1932
- no image
The Side Show Mystery
as
Dr. Amos Crabtree
1932
- no image
The Crane Poison Case
as
Dr. Amos Crabtree
1932
The Studio Murder Mystery
as
Dr. Crabtree
1932
- no image
The Trans-Atlantic Mystery
as
Dr. Crabtree - Criminologist
1932
Wayward
as
Hotel Clerk (uncredited)
1932
The Skull Murder Mystery
as
Dr. Crabtree
1932
- no image
The Cole Case
as
Dr. Crabtree
1932
Murder in the Pullman
as
Dr. Amos Crabtree
1932
The Symphony Murder Mystery
as
Dr. Crabtree
1932
- 1931
- 1929
- 1923
