# Wendell Holmes (actor)

Wendell Holmes (August 17, 1914 – April 27, 1962) was an American actor whose career included work in radio, television, Broadway, and film.

## Early years

Holmes was born Oliver Wendell Holmes in Cheshire, Ohio to Ferdie and Ada Holmes.
Census records indicate that by 1930 the family was living in Columbus, Ohio.

## Career

An article appearing in The Des Moines Register (1941) mentions Holmes being born on a farm and describes his winning a Chautauqua competition at age six, entering high school at age ten, and graduating from Ohio State University at age 18 with a degree in Education. It further states that instead of becoming an educator, Holmes hitch-hiked to New York and began working as an actor, starting his radio career in 1934.
An article appearing in The Daily Dispatch (1949) mentions that Holmes' parents were school teachers and adds to the Chautauqua event by noting it took place in Middleport, Ohio, where a talent scout signed him up for more work.
The same Daily Dispatch article (1949) quotes Holmes as saying at the time, "There are about 5,000 radio actors here, and last year they averaged $16 a week salary. Only about 500 manage to earn a truckdriver's living...When I started in 1934 I got $20 a week for working in 30 shows."
During the years 1948–49, Holmes appeared as Dr. Watson in the radio adaptation of Sherlock Holmes starring John Stanley, but was credited as "George Spelvin" to avoid confusion between his actual surname and the surname of the show's protagonist.
Over the years, Holmes acted in more than 40 radio dramas, 50 TV episodes, and 10 movies.

## Personal life

On June 20, 1938, Holmes married actress Lois E Jesson in Manhattan, New York. Following his divorce (date unknown) from Jesson, Holmes married actress Adrienne Marden in Santa Monica, California, on August 12, 1956.
Wendell Holmes died of what is thought to have been a heart attack in Paris, France, on April 27, 1962.

## Radio acting

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1945 | Words at War: "Apartment in Athens" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1947 | Colonel Humphrey Flack | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1948 | The Ford Theater: "Storm in a Teacup" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1948 | The Mysterious Traveler: "The Man Who Vanished" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1948 | Sherlock Holmes: "The Blue Carbuncle | voice actor | Radio drama; credited as George Spelvin |
| 1950 | Dimension X: "Almost Human" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1950 | Dimension X: "And the Moon Be Still as Bright" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1950 | Dimension X: "No Contact" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1950 | Dimension X: "Mars Is Heaven" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1950 | Dimension X: "The Outer Limit" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1950 | Dimension X: "The Potters of Firsk" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1950 | Dimension X: "The Roads Must Roll" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1951 | John Steele, Adventurer: "Counterpoint" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1951 | Dimension X: "First Contact" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1951 | Dimension X: "The Last Objective" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1952 | Best Plays: Arsenic and Old Lace | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1952 | The Chase: "Career Girl" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1953 | The Chase: "A Frame for Murder" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1953 | 21st Precinct: "The Dog Day" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1955 | X Minus One: "The Green Hills of Earth" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1955 | X Minus One: "A Logic Named Joe" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1955 | X Minus One: "No Contact" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1955 | X Minus One: "Mars Is Heaven" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1955 | X Minus One: "First Contact" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1955 | X Minus One: "Nightfall" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1955 | X Minus One: "The Outer Limit" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1956 | X Minus One: "Chain of Command" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1956 | X Minus One: "A Gun for Dinosaur" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1956 | X Minus One: "Honeymoon in Hell" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1956 | X Minus One: "Mr. Costello, Hero" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1956 | X Minus One: "The Old Die Rich" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1956 | X Minus One: "Protective Mimicry" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1956 | X Minus One: "The Roads Must Roll" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1956 | X Minus One: "Skulking Permit" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1956 | X Minus One: "The Snowball Effect" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1956 | X Minus One: "Soldier Boy" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1957 | X Minus One: "The Category Inventor" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1957 | X Minus One: "Discovery of Morniel Mathaway" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1957 | X Minus One: "Man's Best Friend" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1957 | X Minus One: "Open Warfare" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1957 | X Minus One: "Saucer of Loneliness" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1957 | X Minus One: "The Scapegoat" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1957 | X Minus One: "Something for Nothing" | voice actor | Radio drama |
| 1961 | Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar: "The Stock in Trade Matter" | voice actor | Radio drama |

## Filmography

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1941 | Always Tomorrow: The Portrait of an American Business | Bottler | Promotional film, Uncredited |
| 1949 | Lost Boundaries | Mr. Morris Mitchell | Movie |
| 1955 | Medic | Dr. Welch | Episode: "Dr. Impossible" |
| 1955 | The Man Behind the Badge | Lawrence Deshaw | Episode: "The Case of the Dying Past" |
| 1955 | The Man Behind the Badge | Pawling | Episode: "The Case of the Part-Time Cop" |
| 1955 | Mr. Citizen | | Minor role, Episode: "One for the Padre" |
| 1957 | Official Detective | Wendell Jordan | Episode: "Body in the Trunk" |
| 1957 | The Court of Last Resort | Terry Booth | Episode: "The Clarence Redding Case" |
| 1958 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Henry C. Farnsworth | Season 3 Episode 36: "The Safe Place" |
| 1958 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Mr. Herrick, the Prosecutor | Season 4 Episode 5: "The $2,000,000 Defense" |
| 1958 | The Californians | Krego | Episode: "Death By Proxy" |
| 1958 | Young and Wild | Lewis J. Christopher | Movie |
| 1958 | The Adventures of Jim Bowie | Seth Morton | Episode: "Man on the Street" |
| 1958 | Father Knows Best | Dr. Runeberg | Episode: "Be Kind to Bud Week" |
| 1958 | I Want to Live! | Detective | Movie |
| 1958 | Leave It to Beaver | Mr. T.J. Willet | Episode: "Music Lesson" |
| 1958 | Perry Mason | Dr. Forbes | Episode: "The Case of the Desperate Daughter" |
| 1958 | Perry Mason | Howard Evans | Episode: "The Case of the Sardonic Sergeant" |
| 1959 | Good Day for a Hanging | Tallant Joslin | Movie |
| 1959 | Never Steal Anything Small | George Alper | Movie, Uncredited |
| 1959 | Gunsmoke | Betchel | Episode: "Doc Quits" |
| 1959 | Behind Closed Doors | Boris Gorin | Episode: "The Geneva Story" |
| 1959 | Zorro | Storekeeper | Episode: "The Brooch" |
| 1959 | Zorro | Storekeeper Avila | Episode: "The Missing Father" |
| 1959 | Zorro | Storekeeper Avila | Episode: "Please Believe Me" |
| 1959 | Compulsion | Jonas Kessler | Movie, Uncredited |
| 1959 | Playhouse 90 | Judge Ives | Episode: "Judgment at Nuremberg" |
| 1959 | The Rough Riders | Sam Hanks | Episode: "Hired Gun" |
| 1959 | But Not for Me | Miles Montgomery | Movie |
| 1959 | Edge of Eternity | Sam Houghton | Movie |
| 1959 | The Twilight Zone | Cooper | Episode: "Escape Clause" |
| 1959 | Man with a Camera | Carl Ganza | Episode: ":Missing" |
| 1959 | Special Agent 7 | Neeley | Episode: "Male Order" |
| 1959 | Lawman | Cal Nibley | Episode: "The Press" |
| 1959 | Leave It to Beaver | Mr. T.J. Willet | Episode: "Beaver's Hero" |
| 1959 | Maverick | Mayor Uli Bemus | Episode: "The Cats of Paradise" |
| 1959 | The Texan | Marshal Sommers | Episode: "Dangerous Ground" |
| 1959 | Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse | Lieutenant Holson | Episode: "So Tender, So Profane" |
| 1960 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | John B. Halverson | Season 5 Episode 19: "Not the Running Type" |
| 1960 | Bonanza | Judge Scribner | Episode: "Death at Dawn" |
| 1960 | Hawaiian Eye | Dr. Abner Moses Good | Episode: "The Kamehameha Cloak" |
| 1960 | Leave It to Beaver | Andy Hadlock | Episode: "Beaver and Andy" |
| 1960 | Tales of Wells Fargo | Governor | Episode: "The Governor's Visit" |
| 1960 | Black Saddle | Doc Hazen | Episode: "Mr. Simpson" |
| 1960 | Zane Grey Theater | Cobson, Auctioneer | Episode: "Never Too Late" |
| 1960 | Maverick | Colonel Dutton | Episode: "Greenbacks, Unlimited" |
| 1960 | Perry Mason | District Attorney Williams | Episode: "The Case of the Bashful Burro" |
| 1960 | Startime | Rigsby | Episode: "Incident at a Corner" |
| 1960 | Mr. Lucky | David Bullitt | Episode: "Hit and Run" |
| 1960 | Because They're Young | Principal Dolan | Movie |
| 1960 | Overland Trail | Mayor Bill Filmore | Episode: "First Stage to Denver" |
| 1960 | Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse | | Minor role, Episode: "City in Bondage" |
| 1960 | Hawaiian Eye | Sam Perkins | Episode: "Little Blalah" |
| 1960 | Peter Gunn | Janos Thorwald | Episode: "The Semi-Private Eye" |
| 1960 | Inherit The Wind | Banker, Critic at City Meeting | Movie, Uncredited |
| 1960 | Elmer Gantry | Reverend Ulrich | Movie |
| 1960 | The Texan | Henry Morton | Episode: "24 Hours to Live" |
| 1960 | Bonanza | Judge Rand | Episode: "Badge Without Honor" |
| 1960 | The Westerner | Henry Hadley | Episode: "Mrs. Kennedy" |
| 1960 | The Great Imposter | Surgeon Commander Winston | Movie, Uncredited |
| 1960 | Shotgun Slade | | Minor role, Episode: "A Plate of Death" |
| 1960 | Grand Jury | Taylor | Episode: "Condemned" |
| 1961 | The Absent Minded Professor | General Poynter | Movie |
| 1961 | Checkmate | Mervin Everhardt | Episode: "Portrait of a Man Running" |
| 1961 | Bus Stop | Dean Drayton | Episode: "Success Story" |
| 1961 | Follow The Sun | The Judge | Episode: "The Woman Who Never Was" |
| 1961 | The Untouchables | The Judge | Episode: "Loophole" |
| 1961 | Dr. Kildare | Judge Inley | Episode: "Hit and Run" |
| 1961 | Leave It to Beaver | Mr. Blair | Episode: "Beaver's English Test" |
| 1962 | Hazel | Mr. Wagner | Episode: "Hazel's Dog Days" |
| 1962 | Leave It to Beaver | Mr. Blair | Episode: "Farewell to Penny" |
| 1962 | Room for One More | Judge | Episode: "The Anniversary" |
| 1962 | Lawman | Frank MacStrowd | Episode: "The Barber" |
| 1962 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Sylvester Tupper | Season 7 Episode 34: "The Twelve Hour Caper" (final appearance) |

## Citations

* ↑ Terrace p. 80
* ↑ Pressnell/McGee p. 37
* ↑ "('Wendell Holmes' search results)". Playbill. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
* ↑ Andreychuk, Ed (2005). Burt Lancaster: A Filmography and Biography. McFarland & Company. p. 110. ISBN 9780786404360.
* ↑ "Ohio, County Births, 1841–2003". FamilySearch. March 13, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
* ↑ "United States Census, 1930". FamilySearch. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
* ↑ "Descendant of Writer Now Plays on Radio Serial". The Des Moines Register. October 27, 1941. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
* ↑ "At 34, Wendell Holmes Isn't Making as Much as When 6". The Dispatch. May 28, 1949. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
* ↑ "At 34, Wendell Holmes Isn't Making as Much as When 6". The Dispatch. May 28, 1949. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
* ↑ Dickerson, Ian (2019). Sherlock Holmes and His Adventures on American Radio. BearManor Media. p. 258. ISBN 978-1629335087.
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* ↑ Harmon, Jim (2011). Radio Mystery and Adventure and Its Appearances in Film, Television and Other Media. McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 175. ISBN 9780786485086.
* ↑ "Index to Marriages, New York City Clerk's Office, New York City". New York Municipal Archives; New York City; Borough: Manhattan; Volume Number: 5. New York Municipal Archives. June 20, 1938. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
* ↑ "Adrienne Marden and Wendell Holmes Wed". The Corpus Christi Caller-Times. Texas, Corpus Christi. Associated Press. August 13, 1956. p. 19. Retrieved July 1, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
* ↑ "Report of the Death of An American Citizen: Holmes, Oliver Wendell". Foreign Service of the United States of America. Department of State. May 18, 1962. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
* ↑ Terrace, Vincent (2015). Radio Programs, 1924–1984. McFarland. p. 80. ISBN 9781476605289.
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## General bibliography

* Andreychuk, Ed. Burt Lancaster: A Filmography and Biography. McFarland, 2005.
* Presnell, Don and McGee, Marty. A Critical History of Television's The Twilight Zone, 1959–1964. McFarland, 2015.
* Terrace, Vincent. Radio Programs, 1924–1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows. McFarland, 2015.