# Porter Hall

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 typically played villains or comedic incompetent characters.

## Early years

Hall was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. His father, W.A. Hall, headed a cooperage business that ended because of prohibition in the United States. After graduating from the University of Cincinnati, Hall worked for the Fleischmann Company while also directing and acting in little theater productions in Cleveland.

## Career

Hall's Broadway credits included The Great Gatsby (1926), Naked (1926), Loud Speaker (1927), Night Hostess (1928), It's a Wise Child (1929), Collision (1932), The Warrior's Husband (1932), The Dark Tower (1933), The Red Cat (1934).
Hall made his film debut in the 1931 drama Secrets of a Secretary. His last onscreen appearance was in the 1954 film Return to Treasure Island, which was released after his death.
Hall is best remembered for five 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; a train passenger who encounters a man (Fred MacMurray) who has just committed a murder in Double Indemnity; and the title character's lawyer (Herbert MacCaulay) in The Thin Man.

## Accolades

Hall appeared in a number of critically acclaimed films, now regarded as classics, and has worked with many high-profile directors including W.S. Van Dyke, William Dieterle, Lewis Milestone, Cecil B. DeMille, Leo McCarey, Henry Hathaway, Frank Lloyd, William A. Wellman, Frank Capra, Howard Hawks, Raoul Walsh, Preston Sturges, Charles Vidor, Billy Wilder, Clarence Brown, William Castle, George Seaton and Richard Thorpe.
He appeared in three films listed on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies, a list of the 100 greatest films in American cinema; Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Sullivan's Travels (1941) and Double Indemnity (1944).
Hall also appeared in six films that were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, including The Thin Man (1934), The Story of Louis Pasteur (1936), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Double Indemnity (1944), Going My Way (the 1944 winner) and Miracle on 34th Street (1947).
He also appeared in ten films selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant"; The Thin Man (1934), Make Way for Tomorrow (1937), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), His Girl Friday (1940), Sullivan's Travels (1941), The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944), Double Indemnity (1944), Going My Way (1944), Miracle on 34th Street (1947) and Ace in the Hole (1951).

## Personal life

Hall married actress Geraldine Brown in 1927. He served as a deacon at First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood for many years.
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.

## 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

| Year | Film | Role | Director | Notes |
| 1931 | Secrets of a Secretary | Drunk | George Abbott | uncredited |
| 1931 | The Cheat | Leslie | George Abbott | uncredited |
| 1934 | The Thin Man | MacCaulay | W.S. Van Dyke | |
| 1934 | Murder in the Private Car | Alden Murray | Harry Beaumont | |
| 1935 | The Case of the Lucky Legs | Col. Bradbury | Archie Mayo | |
| 1936 | The Petrified Forest | Jason Maple | Archie Mayo | |
| 1936 | The Story of Louis Pasteur | Dr. Rossignol | William Dieterle | |
| 1936 | Too Many Parents | Mr. Saunders | Robert F. McGowan | |
| 1936 | Snowed Under | Arthur Layton | Ray Enright | |
| 1936 | The Princess Comes Across | Robert M. Darcy | William K. Howard | |
| 1936 | And Sudden Death | District Attorney | Charles Barton | |
| 1936 | Satan Met a Lady | Milton Ames | William Dieterle | |
| 1936 | The General Died at Dawn | Peter Perrie | Lewis Milestone | |
| 1936 | The Plainsman | Jack McCall | Cecil B. DeMille | |
| 1936 | Let's Make a Million | Spencer | Ray McCarey | |
| 1937 | Bulldog Drummond Escapes | Norman Merridew | James P. Hogan | |
| 1937 | King of Gamblers | George Kramer | Robert Florey John E. Burch (assistant) | |
| 1937 | Make Way for Tomorrow | Harvey Chase | Leo McCarey | |
| 1937 | Hotel Haywire | Judge Newhall | George Archainbaud | |
| 1937 | Wild Money | Bill Court | Louis King | |
| 1937 | Souls at Sea | Court Prosecutor | Henry Hathaway | |
| 1937 | This Way Please | S.J. Crawford | Robert Florey | |
| 1937 | True Confession | Mr. Hartman | Wesley Ruggles | |
| 1937 | Wells Fargo | James Oliver | Frank Lloyd | |
| 1938 | Scandal Street | James Wilson | James P. Hogan | |
| 1938 | Dangerous to Know | Mayor Bradley | Robert Florey | |
| 1938 | Bulldog Drummond's Peril | Dr. Max Botulian | James P. Hogan | |
| 1938 | Stolen Heaven | Hermann 'Von' Offer | Andrew L. Stone | |
| 1938 | Prison Farm | Chiston R. Bradby | Louis King | |
| 1938 | Men with Wings | Hiram F. Jenkins | William A. Wellman | |
| 1938 | King of Alcatraz | Matthew Talbot | Robert Florey | |
| 1938 | The Arkansas Traveler | Mayor Daniels | Alfred Santell | |
| 1938 | Tom Sawyer, Detective | Uncle Silas | Louis King | |
| 1939 | Grand Jury Secrets | Anthony Pelton | James P. Hogan | |
| 1939 | They Shall Have Music | Flower | Archie Mayo | |
| 1939 | Mr. Smith Goes to Washington | Senator Monroe | Frank Capra | |
| 1939 | Henry Goes Arizona | Banker Edward G. Walsh | Edwin L. Marin | uncredited |
| 1940 | His Girl Friday | Murphy | Howard Hawks | |
| 1940 | Dark Command | Angus McCloud | Raoul Walsh | |
| 1940 | Arizona | Lazarus Ward | Wesley Ruggles | |
| 1940 | Trail of the Vigilantes | Sheriff Korley | Allan Dwan | |
| 1941 | The Parson of Panamint | Jonathan Randall | William C. McGann | |
| 1941 | Sullivan's Travels | Mr. Hadrian | Preston Sturges | |
| 1942 | Mr. and Mrs. North | George Heyler | Robert B. Sinclair | |
| 1942 | The Remarkable Andrew | Chief Clerk Art Slocumb | Stuart Heisler | |
| 1942 | Butch Minds the Baby | Brandy Smith | Albert S. Rogell | |
| 1943 | A Stranger in Town | Judge Austin Harkley | Roy Rowland John E. Burch (assistant) | |
| 1943 | The Desperadoes | Banker Clanton | Charles Vidor | |
| 1943 | The Miracle of Morgan's Creek | Justice of the Peace | Preston Sturges | |
| 1943 | The Woman of the Town | Mayor Dog Killey | George Archainbaud | |
| 1944 | Standing Room Only | Hugo Farenhall | Sidney Lanfield | |
| 1944 | Going My Way | Mr. Belknap | Leo McCarey | |
| 1944 | Double Indemnity | Mr. Jackson | Billy Wilder | |
| 1944 | The Great Moment | President Franklin Pierce | Preston Sturges | |
| 1944 | The Mark of the Whistler | Joe Sorsby | William Castle | |
| 1945 | Bring on the Girls | Dr. Efrington | Sidney Lanfield | |
| 1945 | Blood on the Sun | Arthur Bickett | Frank Lloyd | |
| 1945 | Murder, He Says | Mr. Johnson | George Marshall | |
| 1945 | Week-End at the Waldorf | Stevens | Robert Z. Leonard | |
| 1945 | Kiss and Tell | Bill Franklin | Richard Wallace | |
| 1947 | Miracle on 34th Street | Granville Sawyer | George Seaton | |
| 1947 | Singapore | Mr. Gerald Bellows | John Brahm | |
| 1947 | Unconquered | Leach | Cecil B. DeMille | |
| 1948 | You Gotta Stay Happy | Mr. Caslon | H.C. Potter | |
| 1948 | That Wonderful Urge | Attorney Ketchell | Robert B. Sinclair | |
| 1949 | Chicken Every Sunday | Sam Howell | George Seaton | |
| 1949 | The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend | Judge O'Toole | Preston Sturges | |
| 1949 | Intruder in the Dust | Nub Gowrie | Clarence Brown | |
| 1951 | Ace in the Hole | Jacob Q. Boot | Billy Wilder | |
| 1952 | Carbine Williams | Sam Markley | Richard Thorpe | |
| 1952 | The Half-Breed | Kraemer | Stuart Gilmore | |
| 1952 | Holiday for Sinners | Pool Hall Proprietor | Gerald Mayer [fr] | |
| 1953 | Pony Express | Jim Bridger | Jerry Hopper | |
| 1953 | Vice Squad | Jack Hartrampf | Arnold Laven | |
| 1954 | Return to Treasure Island | Maximillian 'Maxie' Harris | Ewald André Dupont | |