Vernon Dent

Vernon Dent
Vernon Bruce Dent (February 16, 1895 – November 5, 1963) was an American comic actor, who appeared in over 400 films. He co-starred in many short films for Columbia Pictures, frequently as the foil, main antagonist, and an ally to The Three Stooges.
Early career
In the early 1920s, Dent was a fixture at the Mack Sennett studio, working with comedians Billy Bevan, Andy Clyde, and especially Harry Langdon. Dent alternately played breezy pals and blustery authority figures opposite Langdon's timid character.
Sennett voided all contracts when it came time to retool his studio for sound, and Dent moved to Educational Pictures in 1929. Dent's supporting performances were frequently funnier than the sometimes uninspired antics of the nominal stars. When Educational hired Harry Langdon for a series of two-reelers in 1932, Vernon Dent resumed his place as Langdon's co-star.
Columbia Pictures
Dent joined Columbia Pictures' short-subject department in 1935, and achieved his greatest success there. He went on to work with practically every star on the payroll, including Andy Clyde, Charley Chase, and Eddie Quillan (all fellow Mack Sennett alumni), as well as Buster Keaton, El Brendel, Vera Vague, Hugh Herbert, Gus Schilling and Richard Lane, Harry von Zell, and Bert Wheeler. Dent appeared very occasionally in feature films, including Million Dollar Legs, Chip Off the Old Block, The Harvey Girls, Rockin' in the Rockies, and Kill the Umpire. In feature films he sometimes played character roles with a German dialect, which served him well during World War II with war-themed films in production.
Dent was most often featured in the Three Stooges comedies; in fact, he made more appearances in their films than any other supporting actor (96). Dent also appeared with The Three Stooges on a live CBS Television broadcast of The Frank Sinatra Show on January 1, 1952. Through his association with the Stooges, Dent became a close friend of Shemp Howard.
Illness and death
Away from motion pictures, in the late 1930s and early 1940s, Vernon Dent owned and operated a soda fountain and refreshments concession at Westlake Park in Los Angeles. Mrs. Dent recalled:
It wasn't our livelihood so we didn't depend upon it. He did this as a lark. We had jukeboxes and ice cream. It was very lucrative and a lot of fun. Vernon loved that. He drank far too much Coca-Cola. When we had the concession he'd drink the syrup and add his own seltzer.
This ultimately resulted in a diagnosis of diabetes later in life, and Vernon Dent eventually lost his vision. Even this affliction didn't stop his career; producer-director Jules White, filming low-budget remakes of earlier comedies, hired Vernon Dent for a few new scenes to match his older ones. Dent, now legally blind, delivered enthusiastic performances while in static or seated positions accommodating his low vision. He retired from performing in 1954 but he continued to appear in previously filmed footage from his earlier shorts; as such, his last "appearance" was in the Stooge short Guns a Poppin (1957). Dent had appeared in over 400 films by the time he retired.
Dent attended Shemp Howard's funeral in 1955. By that time, he was completely blind and had to be led to Shemp's casket. Character actor Emil Sitka was one of many at the event who did not know Dent had lost his sight:
Vernon came into the parlor, wearing a yarmulke like everyone else since this was a Jewish ceremony. He was led in by his arm, and brought up to Shemp's casket. The man accompanying Vernon told him, "this is Shemp." Vernon was staring straight ahead at the wall – it was then that I realized he was blind. Vernon felt Shemp's hand, then his face very gently. Everyone else had been filing past the casket quickly, but Vernon took his time, giving a last goodbye to his friend. It was one of the most moving things I ever saw.
Dent's diabetes worsened after his retirement, limiting his activities. He died of a heart attack on November 5, 1963. He is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, in Hillside plot, grave L-3796.
Selected filmography
Hail the Woman (1921) - Joe Hurd
The Shriek of Araby (1923) - Minor Role (uncredited)
Soul of the Beast (1923) - The Boob
The Extra Girl (1923) - Aaron Applejohn
Picking Peaches (1924) as Store Manager
Feet of Mud (1924) as the Coach
Flirty Four-Flushers (1926, Short) - Bill Brown
His First Flame (1927) - Amos McCarthy
The Girl from Everywhere (1927) - Minor Role (uncredited)
Golf Widows (1928) - Ernest Ward
The Cameraman (1928) - Man in Tight Bathing Suit (uncredited)
Midnight Daddies (1930) - Baron von Twiddlebaum - Designer
Crazy House (1930 film)
Murder at Midnight (1931) - Detective Eating Peanuts (uncredited)
Dragnet Patrol (1931) - Cookie
Dream House (1932, Short) - Director Von Schnauble
Texas Cyclone (1932) - Hefty - the Bartender
Business and Pleasure (1932) - Charles Turner (uncredited)
Passport to Paradise (1932)
The Riding Tornado (1932) - Hefty - Bartender
Daring Danger (1932) - Bartender Pee Wee
Million Dollar Legs (1932) - Secretary of Agriculture (uncredited)
Please (1933, Short) - Elmer Smoot
Just an Echo (1934, Short)
You're Telling Me! (1934) - Fat Man in Compartment (uncredited)
Manhattan Melodrama (1934) - Otto - German Dancer on Steamship (uncredited)
Good Morning, Eve! (1934, early Technicolor short) - Emperor Nero
The Painted Veil (1934) - Chief of Police (scenes deleted)
Half Shot Shooters (1936, Short) - Man in Restaurant
San Francisco (1936) - Fat Man (uncredited)
Slippery Silks (1936, Short) - Mr. Morgan (uncredited)
Dizzy Doctors (1937, Short) - Dr. Harry Arms (uncredited)
Back to the Woods (1937, Short) - Governor (uncredited)
Easy Living (1937) - First Partner (uncredited)
Murder in Greenwich Village (1937) - Ship's Officer (uncredited)
Outlaws of the Prairie (1937) - Bearded Townsman (uncredited)
Paid to Dance (1937) - Dance Hall Floor Manager (uncredited)
All American Sweetheart (1937) - Waiter (uncredited)
The Shadow (1937) - Dutch Schultz
Little Miss Roughneck (1938) - (uncredited)
Wee Wee Monsieur (1938, Short) - Simitz - Arab Chief (uncredited)
Who Killed Gail Preston? (1938) - Bill, the Watchman
Women in Prison (1938) - Guard (uncredited)
Start Cheering (1938) - Pops - the Soda Jerk (uncredited)
When G-Men Step In (1938) - Colonel (uncredited)
Tassels in the Air (1938, Short) - Building Superintendent (uncredited)
The Lone Wolf in Paris (1938) - Rene Ledaux (uncredited)
Reformatory (1938) - Cook Howard
You Can't Take It with You (1938) - Expressman (uncredited)
Juvenile Court (1938) - Mr. Schultz (uncredited)
Mutts to You (1938, Short) - Mr. Stutz, Hotel Manager (uncredited)
Thanks for the Memory (1938) - Refuse Man (uncredited)
Three Little Sew and Sews (1939, Short) - Party Guest (uncredited)
The Lone Wolf Spy Hunt (1939) - Fat Man at Party (uncredited)
A Ducking They Did Go (1939, Short) - Vegetarian in Hallway (uncredited)
Only Angels Have Wings (1939) - Ship's Captain (uncredited)
Yes, We Have No Bonanza (1939, Short) - Sheriff (uncredited)
Saved by the Belle (1939, Short) - Mike (uncredited)
Stanley and Livingstone (1939) - Newspaperman in Office (uncredited)
Hitler – Beast of Berlin (1939) - Lustig - Beer Garden Bartender
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) - Senate Reporter (uncredited)
The Lone Wolf Strikes (1940) - Hotel Doorman (uncredited)
The Doctor Takes a Wife (1940) - Man Outside Phone Booth (uncredited)
Nutty but Nice (1940, Short) - Dr. Walters (uncredited)
How High Is Up? (1940, Short) - Mr. Blake (uncredited)
The Lady in Question (1940) - Gendarme (uncredited)
From Nurse to Worse (1940, Short) - Dr. D. Lerious (uncredited)
He Stayed for Breakfast (1940) - Chef (uncredited)
No Census, No Feeling (1940, Short) - Moe's Bridge Partner (uncredited)
The Villain Still Pursued Her (1940) - Jim - Policeman (uncredited)
So Long Mr. Chumps (1941, Short) - Desk Sergeant (uncredited)
You're the One (1941) - Zeno Springs Hotel Guest
Meet John Doe (1941) - (uncredited)
Dutiful But Dumb (1941, Short) - Mr. Wilson (uncredited)
Adventure in Washington (1941) - Senator on exercise bike (uncredited)
San Antonio Rose (1941) - Worthington (uncredited)
I'll Never Heil Again (1941, Short) - Mr. Ixnay (uncredited)
An Ache in Every Stake (1941, Short) - Poindexter Lawrence (uncredited)
In the Sweet Pie and Pie (1941, Short) - Senator (uncredited)
Bedtime Story (1941) - Conventioneer (uncredited)
Loco Boy Makes Good (1942, Short) - Balbo the Magician (uncredited)
Sappy Birthday (1942, Short) - Neighbor Policeman, trying to sleep in the daytime
Cactus Makes Perfect (1942, Short) - Heavyset Prospector (uncredited)
House of Errors (1942) - White
My Favorite Blonde (1942) - Ole (uncredited)
Matri-Phony (1942, Short) - Emperor Octopus Grabus
Three Smart Saps (1942, Short) - Disappointed customer of tailor (uncredited)
The Glass Key (1942) - Bartender Serving Beers (uncredited)
Even as IOU (1942, Short) - Motorist (uncredited)
They Stooge to Conga (1943, Short) - Hans - the Nazi (uncredited)
Back from the Front (1943, Short) - Lt. Dungen (uncredited)
Higher Than a Kite (1943, Short) - Marshall Boring (uncredited)
Idle Roomers (1943, Short) - Mr. Leander
Cowboy in the Clouds (1943) - Newspaper Publisher Whitson (uncredited)
True to Life (1943) - Bit Role (uncredited)
Chip Off the Old Block (1944) - Sheffer (uncredited)
Crash Goes the Hash (1944, Short) - Fuller Bull
Busy Buddies (1944, Short) - Hotcakes Customer (uncredited)
Her Primitive Man (1944) - Doorman (uncredited)
Jam Session (1944) - Butler (uncredited)
Address Unknown (1944) - Nazi Party Member (uncredited)
Once Upon a Time (1944) - Mayor's Aide (uncredited)
Secret Command (1944) - Shipyard Worker (uncredited)
Kansas City Kitty (1944) - Repossession Man from A-1 Piano Co. (uncredited)
San Diego, I Love You (1944) - Mr. Fitzmaurice (uncredited)
Mrs. Parkington (1944) - Quartet Member (uncredited)
No Dough Boys (1944, Short) - Hugo, Nazi Spy
Let's Go Steady (1945) - Bosby (uncredited)
She Gets Her Man (1945) - Doorman (uncredited)
Three Pests in a Mess (1945, Short) - Philip Black
Sagebrush Heroes (1945) - Editor Haynes (uncredited)
Sing Me a Song of Texas (1945) - Realtor (uncredited)
See My Lawyer (1945) - Man in Mud Gang (uncredited)
Booby Dupes (1945, Short) - Captain
Having Wonderful Crime (1945) - Guest in Room 202 (uncredited)
Rockin' in the Rockies (1945) - Stanton (uncredited)
Idiots Deluxe (1945, Short) - Judge (uncredited)
I Love a Bandleader (1945) - Counter Man (uncredited)
Song of the Prairie (1945) - Ted Parker (uncredited)
Snafu (1945) - American Legionnaire (uncredited)
Beer Barrel Polecats (1946, Short) - Warden
The Harvey Girls (1946) - Engineer (uncredited)
A Bird in the Head (1946, Short) - Prof. Panzer
Night Editor (1946) - Fat Man in Library (uncredited)
That Texas Jamboree (1946) - Barbershop Patron (uncredited)
Renegades (1946) - Caleb Smart (uncredited)
Dangerous Business (1946) - Fat Man (uncredited)
Cowboy Blues (1946) - Irate Lodger (uncredited)
It's Great to Be Young (1946) - Pop (uncredited)
Three Little Pirates (1946, Short) - Governor
Lone Star Moonlight (1946) - Sheriff
Half-Wits Holiday (1947, Short) - Prof. Quackenbush
The Sea of Grass (1947) - Train Conductor (uncredited)
Out West (1947, Short) - Doctor (uncredited)
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947) - Bartender (uncredited)
Wild Harvest (1947) - Farmer (uncredited)
Merton of the Movies (1947) - Keystone Kop (uncredited)
Sing a Song of Six Pants (1947, Short) - Detective Sharp
It Had to Be You (1947) - Man in Drugstore (uncredited)
Shivering Sherlocks (1948, Short) - Police Capt. Mullins
Squareheads of the Round Table (1948, Short) - King Arthur
Fiddlers Three (1948, Short) - King Cole
Heavenly Daze (1948, Short) - I. Fleecem, attorney
Mummy's Dummies (1948, Short) - King Rootentooten
Make Believe Ballroom (1949) - Chef (uncredited)
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1949) - Guard (uncredited)
Hokus Pokus (1949, Short) - Insurance Adjustor
The Doolins of Oklahoma (1949) - Bank Clerk (uncredited)
Look for the Silver Lining (1949) - Heckler (uncredited)
Fuelin' Around (1949, Short) - General
The Girl from Jones Beach (1949) - Man at Stand (uncredited)
Malice in the Palace (1949, Short) - Hassan Ben Sober
Super Wolf (1949, Short) - Police Officer (uncredited)
And Baby Makes Three (1949) - Umpire (uncredited)
Punchy Cowpunchers (1950, Short) - Colonel
The Good Humor Man (1950) - Fat Man in Park (uncredited)
Kill the Umpire (1950) - Phone Company Manager (uncredited)
One Shivery Night (1950, Short) - Boss
Studio Stoops (1950, Short) - Police Captain Casey
Three Arabian Nuts (1951, Short) - Mr. Bradley
Scrambled Brains (1951, Short) - Nora's Father
Bonanza Town (1951) - Whiskers (uncredited)
Sunny Side of the Street (1951) - King (uncredited)
The Tooth Will Out (1951, Short) - Dr. Keefer, professor of dentistry
Pest Man Wins (1951, Short) - Mr. Philander
A Missed Fortune (1952, Short) - Hotel Manager
Listen, Judge (1952, Short) - Judge Henderson
Booty and the Beast (1953, Short) - Night Watchman
Rip, Sew and Stitch (1953, Short) - Detective Sharp (in 1947 footage from Sing a Song of Six Pants)
Income Tax Sappy (1954, Short) - Internal Revenue Agent (uncredited)
Musty Musketeers (1954, Short) - King Cole
Pals and Gals (1954, Short) - Doctor (uncredited)
Knutzy Knights (1954, Short) - King Arthur (uncredited; final film performance)
The Fire Chaser (1954, Short) - J. Peabody Knott (in 1949 footage from Waiting in the Lurch)
Of Cash and Hash (1955, Short) - Police Capt. Mullins (in 1948 footage from Shivering Sherlocks)
Bedlam in Paradise (1955, Short) - I. Fleecem, attorney (in 1948 footage from Heavenly Daze)
Flagpole Jitters (1956, Short) - Insurance Adjuster (in 1949 footage from Hokus Pokus)
Rumpus in the Harem (1956, Short) - Hassan Ben Sober (in 1949 footage from Malice in the Palace)
Hot Stuff (1956, Short) - Anemian General (in 1949 footage from Fuelin' Around)
Guns a Poppin (1957, Short) - Judge (in 1945 footage from Idiots Deluxe)
References
Bibliography
Cassara, Bill (2010). Vernon Dent: Stooge Heavy. Albany: BearManor Media
External links
Vernon Dent at threestooges.net
1895 births
1963 deaths
American male film actors
American male silent film actors
Male actors from California
Actors from San Jose, California
20th-century American male actors
Deaths from diabetes
Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)
American blind people
20th-century American comedians