Paul Reed(1909-2007)
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Another mop-faced, gruff-looking character who belongs in the "Where
have I seen that face?" category, Paul Reed enjoyed a long and varied
career on radio, Broadway musicals, TV and commercials. Though smaller
in stature, his imposing figure and ability to command made him seem
much taller in his shoes. Surprisingly, one would deem his features
ideal for films, but he hardly made a dent, with the exception of some
minor work in a couple of comedy duds of the late 1960s. Best recalled
for his balding, beleaguered police captain on the police station
comedy
Car 54, Where Are You? (1961),
he played to amusing effect the "slow burn" nemesis to blundering
officers (and future Munsters) Fred Gwynne
and Al Lewis. The show, which
co-starred another dunderhead on duty,
Joe E. Ross, featured plain-faced but superb
character actors. It ran for only two seasons but it has since reached
cult status.
Reed was born Sidney Kahn in Highland Falls, New York, on June 16,
1909, one of seven children born to Russian-Jewish immigrants. His
father died when he was very young and the children were spread out
among several orphanages. It was the older children who eventually were
able to reunite the broken family, and they set up residence in
Brooklyn. As a teenager Paul already had set his mind on an acting
career and earned his stripes as a radio singer initially billed as
"Paul Roberts", then as "Paul Reed". With his heart set on making it on
The Great White Way, he took his first Broadway bow at age 31 in a 1940
revival of the musical operetta "The Gondoliers." A strong and forceful
presence, Paul had runs that included the operettas "Trial by Jury"
(1940) and "La Vie, Parisienne" (1942), as well as "Up in Central Park"
(1945), "Carnival in Flanders" (1953), "By the Beautiful Sea" (1954)
and "Here's Love" (1963), but it was his participation in a quartet of
original Broadway musical treasures that is most notable--"Guys and
Dolls" (1950), "The Music Man" (1957), "How to Succeed in Business
Without Really Trying" (1961) and "Promises, Promises" (1968).
On TV Paul served as a hot-headed foil for
Sid Caesar in a couple of his variety
showcases, Caesar's Hour (1954)
(during the 1956 season) and
Sid Caesar Invites You (1958).
He then hit his TV peak as Capt. Martin Block on "Car 54, Where Are
You?", whose misadventures took place in a Bronx police station.
Following this show, he played
Cara Williams' blustery boss on
the aptly titled
The Cara Williams Show (1964),
then hung around making guest appearances on the popular sitcom
circuit. They included episodes of
The Munsters (1964) (of course),
as well as
The Donna Reed Show (1958),
Bewitched (1964) and
The Beverly Hillbillies (1962),
usually playing some sort of authority figure (military officer,
business executive, politician, etc.).
Two of the three films Paul appeared in during the late 1960s were
unfortunate showcases that their top comedy stars would just as soon
forget. The critics reviewing
Dick Van Dyke's
Fitzwilly (1967) and
Phyllis Diller's
Did You Hear the One About the Traveling Saleslady? (1968)
were none too kind to them and the comedies themselves quickly tanked
at the box office. Paul more than made up for it in other mediums.
In later years the veteran character actor could be spotted in
commercials, which lasted well into the 1990s as a white-haired
octogenarian. The actor passed away on April 2, 2007, at age 97 at the
Greenwich Hospital in Greenwich, Connecticut. He was survived by his
long-time wife of nearly 60 years, June MacLaren, a former Broadway
dancer ("Lady in the Dark," "Something for the Boys") whom he met after
returning to his role in the musical "Up in Central Park" in 1947. He
was buried in Pemaquid, Maine. His beloved wife June died above seven
weeks later and was interred next to him.
have I seen that face?" category, Paul Reed enjoyed a long and varied
career on radio, Broadway musicals, TV and commercials. Though smaller
in stature, his imposing figure and ability to command made him seem
much taller in his shoes. Surprisingly, one would deem his features
ideal for films, but he hardly made a dent, with the exception of some
minor work in a couple of comedy duds of the late 1960s. Best recalled
for his balding, beleaguered police captain on the police station
comedy
Car 54, Where Are You? (1961),
he played to amusing effect the "slow burn" nemesis to blundering
officers (and future Munsters) Fred Gwynne
and Al Lewis. The show, which
co-starred another dunderhead on duty,
Joe E. Ross, featured plain-faced but superb
character actors. It ran for only two seasons but it has since reached
cult status.
Reed was born Sidney Kahn in Highland Falls, New York, on June 16,
1909, one of seven children born to Russian-Jewish immigrants. His
father died when he was very young and the children were spread out
among several orphanages. It was the older children who eventually were
able to reunite the broken family, and they set up residence in
Brooklyn. As a teenager Paul already had set his mind on an acting
career and earned his stripes as a radio singer initially billed as
"Paul Roberts", then as "Paul Reed". With his heart set on making it on
The Great White Way, he took his first Broadway bow at age 31 in a 1940
revival of the musical operetta "The Gondoliers." A strong and forceful
presence, Paul had runs that included the operettas "Trial by Jury"
(1940) and "La Vie, Parisienne" (1942), as well as "Up in Central Park"
(1945), "Carnival in Flanders" (1953), "By the Beautiful Sea" (1954)
and "Here's Love" (1963), but it was his participation in a quartet of
original Broadway musical treasures that is most notable--"Guys and
Dolls" (1950), "The Music Man" (1957), "How to Succeed in Business
Without Really Trying" (1961) and "Promises, Promises" (1968).
On TV Paul served as a hot-headed foil for
Sid Caesar in a couple of his variety
showcases, Caesar's Hour (1954)
(during the 1956 season) and
Sid Caesar Invites You (1958).
He then hit his TV peak as Capt. Martin Block on "Car 54, Where Are
You?", whose misadventures took place in a Bronx police station.
Following this show, he played
Cara Williams' blustery boss on
the aptly titled
The Cara Williams Show (1964),
then hung around making guest appearances on the popular sitcom
circuit. They included episodes of
The Munsters (1964) (of course),
as well as
The Donna Reed Show (1958),
Bewitched (1964) and
The Beverly Hillbillies (1962),
usually playing some sort of authority figure (military officer,
business executive, politician, etc.).
Two of the three films Paul appeared in during the late 1960s were
unfortunate showcases that their top comedy stars would just as soon
forget. The critics reviewing
Dick Van Dyke's
Fitzwilly (1967) and
Phyllis Diller's
Did You Hear the One About the Traveling Saleslady? (1968)
were none too kind to them and the comedies themselves quickly tanked
at the box office. Paul more than made up for it in other mediums.
In later years the veteran character actor could be spotted in
commercials, which lasted well into the 1990s as a white-haired
octogenarian. The actor passed away on April 2, 2007, at age 97 at the
Greenwich Hospital in Greenwich, Connecticut. He was survived by his
long-time wife of nearly 60 years, June MacLaren, a former Broadway
dancer ("Lady in the Dark," "Something for the Boys") whom he met after
returning to his role in the musical "Up in Central Park" in 1947. He
was buried in Pemaquid, Maine. His beloved wife June died above seven
weeks later and was interred next to him.