Actor ARTHUR LAKE (1905 – 1987) was born on April 17th. Early in his career, Lake acted in westerns as an adolescent character actor. Shortly after the formation of RKO Pictures in 1928, he signed with that studio, where he made Dance Hall (1929) and Cheer Up and Smile (1930). During this early sound film era, he typically played light romantic roles, usually with a comic Mamas Boy tone to them, in films such as Indiscreet (1931) with Gloria Swanson. He also had a substantial part as the bellhop in the 1937 film, Topper. Arthur Lake is best known for portraying the Blondie comic strip character of Dagwood Bumstead in twenty-eight Blondie films produced by Columbia Pictures from 1938-50. He was also the voice of Dagwood on the radio series, which ran from 1938-45, earning him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6646 Hollywood Blvd. Many of the actors on the radio show have noted of Lakes commitment to the program, stating that on the day of the broadcast, Lake was Dagwood Bumstead. Far from being upset about being typecast, Lake continued to embrace the role of Dagwood in a short-lived 1957 Blondie TV series, then even into the 1960s and beyond; he would often give speeches to Rotary clubs and other civic organizations, eagerly posing for pictures with a Dagwood sandwich.
Posted on: Thu, 17 Apr 2014 18:13:34 +0000
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