Robert Young
Acting • Born 1907-02-22 – Died 1998-07-21
Biography
Robert George Young (February 22, 1907 – July 21, 1998) was an American television, film, and radio actor, best known for his leading roles as Jim Anderson, the father of Father Knows Best (NBC and then CBS) and as physician Marcus Welby in Marcus Welby, M.D. (ABC). Young appeared in over 100 films between 1931 and 1952. After appearing on stage, Young was signed with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and, in spite of having a "tier B" status, he co-starred with some of the studio's most illustrious actresses, such as Katharine Hepburn, Margaret Sullavan, Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Helen Hayes, Luise Rainer, Hedy Lamarr, and Helen Twelvetrees. Yet, most of his assignments consisted of B movies, also known as "programmers," which required two to three weeks of shooting (considered very brief shooting periods at the time). Actors who were relegated to such a hectic schedule appeared, as Young did, in some six to eight movies per year. As an MGM contract player, Young was resigned to the fate of most of his colleagues—to accept any film assigned to him or risk being placed on suspension—and many actors on suspension were prohibited from earning a salary from any endeavor at all (even those unrelated to the film industry). In 1936, MGM summarily loaned Young to Gaumont British for two films; the first was directed by Alfred Hitchcock with the other co-starring Jessie Matthews. While there he surmised that his employers intended to terminate his contract, but he was mistaken. He unexpectedly received one of his most rewarding roles late in his MGM career, in H.M. Pulham, Esq., featuring one of Hedy Lamarr's most effective performances. He once remarked that he was assigned only those roles which Robert Montgomery and other A-list actors had rejected. After his contract ended at MGM, Young starred in light comedies as well as in trenchant dramas for studios such as 20th Century Fox, United Artists, and RKO Radio Pictures. From 1943, Young assayed more challenging roles in films like Claudia, The Enchanted Cottage, They Won't Believe Me, The Second Woman, and Crossfire. His portrayal of unsympathetic characters in several of these later films—which was seldom the case in his MGM pictures—was applauded by numerous reviewers. Young's career began an incremental and imperceptible decline, despite a propitious beginning as a freelance actor without the nurturing of a major studio. He continued starring as a leading man in the late 1940s and early 1950s, but only in mediocre films, then he subsequently disappeared from the silver screen - only to reappear several years later on a much smaller one. Description above from the Wikipedia article Robert Young (actor), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia
Filmography
137 credits
The Mortal Storm
Movie • 1940
Fritz Marberg
Secret Agent
Movie • 1936
Robert Marvin
They Won't Believe Me
Movie • 1947
Larry Ballentine
Stowaway
Movie • 1936
Tommy Randall
Crossfire
Movie • 1947
Finlay
Secret of the Incas
Movie • 1954
Stanley Moorehead
Cairo
Movie • 1942
Homer Smith, aka Juniper Jones
That Forsyte Woman
Movie • 1949
Philip Bosinney
The Enchanted Cottage
Movie • 1945
Oliver Bradford
Journey for Margaret
Movie • 1942
John Davis
Lady Be Good
Movie • 1941
Edward 'Eddie' Crane
Northwest Passage
Movie • 1940
Langdon Towne
Western Union
Movie • 1941
Richard Blake
The Second Woman
Movie • 1950
Jeff Cohalan
Honolulu
Movie • 1939
Brooks Mason / George Smith
The Black Camel
Movie • 1931
Jimmy Bradshaw
Spitfire
Movie • 1934
John Stafford
The Canterville Ghost
Movie • 1944
Cuffy Williams
Maisie
Movie • 1939
Charles 'Slim' Martin
The Emperor's Candlesticks
Movie • 1937
Grand Duke Peter
Remember Last Night?
Movie • 1935
Tony Milburn
Tugboat Annie
Movie • 1933
Alec (Son)
Sitting Pretty
Movie • 1948
Harry King
H.M. Pulham, Esq.
Movie • 1941
Harry Moulton Pulham
Dr. Kildare's Crisis
Movie • 1940
Douglas Lamont
It's Love Again
Movie • 1936
Peter Carlton
Death on the Diamond
Movie • 1934
Larry Kelly
Today We Live
Movie • 1933
Claude William Hope
West Point of the Air
Movie • 1935
Little Mike Stone
Three Comrades
Movie • 1938
Gottfried Lenz
The Shining Hour
Movie • 1938
David Linden
The Bride Walks Out
Movie • 1936
Hugh McKenzie
The Bride Wore Red
Movie • 1937
Rudolph 'Rudi' Pal
The Kid from Spain
Movie • 1932
Ricardo
Strange Interlude
Movie • 1932
Gordon Evans as a young man
Goodbye, My Fancy
Movie • 1951
Doctor James Merrill
I Met Him in Paris
Movie • 1937
Gene Anders
The Wet Parade
Movie • 1932
Kip Tarleton
Navy Blue and Gold
Movie • 1937
Roger 'Rog' Ash
Married Before Breakfast
Movie • 1937
Tom Wakefield
The Toy Wife
Movie • 1938
Andre Vallaire
Men Must Fight
Movie • 1933
Geoffrey Aiken
Red Salute
Movie • 1935
Jeff
And Baby Makes Three
Movie • 1949
Vernon 'Vern' Walsh
The Half-Breed
Movie • 1952
Dan Craig
Relentless
Movie • 1948
Nick Buckley
The Longest Night
Movie • 1936
Charley Phelps
Slightly Dangerous
Movie • 1943
Bob Stuart
The Right To Romance
Movie • 1933
Bobby Preble
Lazy River
Movie • 1934
William 'Bill' Drexel
Rich Man, Poor Girl
Movie • 1938
Bill Harrison
Hell Below
Movie • 1933
Lieut. (JG) 'Brick' Walters
The Guilty Generation
Movie • 1931
Marco Ricca, also known as Marco Smith
Sworn Enemy
Movie • 1936
Henry 'Hank' Sherman
Florian
Movie • 1940
Anton Erban
My Darling Daughters' Anniversary
Movie • 1973
Judge Charles Raleigh
Claudia and David
Movie • 1946
David Naughton
Adventure in Baltimore
Movie • 1949
Dr. Andrew Sheldon
Lady Luck
Movie • 1946
Larry Scott
Miracles for Sale
Movie • 1939
Michael Morgan
The Searching Wind
Movie • 1946
Alex Hazen
New Morals for Old
Movie • 1932
Ralph Thomas
Paradise for Three
Movie • 1938
Fritz Hagedorn
Unashamed
Movie • 1932
Dick Ogden
The House of Rothschild
Movie • 1934
Capt. Fitzroy
The Bride Comes Home
Movie • 1935
Jack Bristow
Carolina
Movie • 1934
Will Connelly
Married Bachelor
Movie • 1941
Randolph Haven
Hollywood Hobbies
Movie • 1939
Self (uncredited)
The Band Plays On
Movie • 1934
Tony Ferrera
Calm Yourself
Movie • 1935
Preston Patton
The Big Moment
Movie • 1954
Narrator
Bridal Suite
Movie • 1939
Neil McGill
Bride for Sale
Movie • 1949
Steve Adams
Marcus Welby, M.D.: A Matter of Humanities
Movie • 1969
Marcus Welby
Paris Interlude
Movie • 1934
Pat
Marcus Welby, M.D.: A Holiday Affair
Movie • 1988
Dr. Marcus Welby
Josette
Movie • 1938
Pierre Brassard
Vagabond Lady
Movie • 1935
Tony Spear
Dangerous Number
Movie • 1937
Hank
The Campus Vamp
Movie • 1928
Student at Dance / at Beach (uncredited)
The Sin of Madelon Claudet
Movie • 1931
Dr.Claudet
That's Entertainment!
Movie • 1974
(archive footage) (uncredited)
Those Endearing Young Charms
Movie • 1945
Lt. Hurley 'Hank' Travers
Sporting Blood
Movie • 1940
Myles Vanders
Sweet Rosie O'Grady
Movie • 1943
Samuel Magee
A Conspiracy of Love
Movie • 1987
Joe Woldarski
Northward, Ho!
Movie • 1940
Himself
Highball Highway
Movie • 1963
Himself
The Trial of Mary Dugan
Movie • 1941
Jimmy Blake
The Father Knows Best Reunion
Movie • 1977
James Anderson
Whom the Gods Destroy
Movie • 1934
Jack Forrester
Joe Smith, American
Movie • 1942
Joe Smith
Claudia
Movie • 1943
David Naughton
The Three Wise Guys
Movie • 1936
Joe Hatcher
Hollywood Party
Movie • 1934
Radio Announcer (uncredited)
A New Romance of Celluloid: The Miracle of Sound
Movie • 1940
Self
Hell Divers
Movie • 1932
Graham - Pilot Reporting Missing Airplanes (uncredited)
Hollywood: Style Center of the World
Movie • 1940
Self
Hollywood Goes to Town
Movie • 1938
Self
Saturday's Millions
Movie • 1933
Jim Fowler
That's Entertainment, Part II
Movie • 1976
(archive footage)
That's Entertainment! III
Movie • 1994
(archive footage)
All My Darling Daughters
Movie • 1972
Judge Charles Raleigh
The Romance of Celluloid
Movie • 1937
Self (archive footage)
Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To
Movie • 1990
(archive footage)
Twenty Years After
Movie • 1944
(archive footage)
Mercy or Murder?
Movie • 1987
Roswell Gilbert
Father Knows Best: Home for Christmas
Movie • 1977
Jim Anderson
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: The Making of a Movie Classic
Movie • 1990
Self
Hollywood’s Children
Movie • 1982
Self (archive footage)
The Return of Marcus Welby, M.D.
Movie • 1984
Dr. Marcus Welby
Calling Hubby's Bluff
Movie • 1929
Party Guest (uncredited)
Marcus Welby, M.D.
TV • 1969
Dr. Marcus Welby
Donny & Marie
TV • 1976
Self
The Merv Griffin Show
TV • 1962
Self
Window on Main Street
TV • 1961
Father Knows Best
TV • 1954
Jim Anderson
This Is Your Life
TV • 1952
Self
Climax!
TV • 1954
Lieutenant Commander Knowles
ABC Stage 67
TV • 1966
Self - Host
Vanished
TV • 1971
Sen. Earl Gannon
The Steve Allen Show
TV • 1956
Self - Guest
Dr. Kildare
TV • 1961
Dr. Gilbert Winfield
Little Women
TV • 1978
Mr. Laurence
The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour
TV • 1969
Self
The Ed Sullivan Show
TV • 1948
Self
The Name of the Game
TV • 1968
Herman Allison
Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law
TV • 1971
Dr. Marcus Welby
The Steve Allen Show
TV • 1956
Self
The Dick Cavett Show
TV • 1968
Self - Guest
What's My Line?
TV • 1950
Self - Mystery Guest
Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre
TV • 1963
Nick Holloway
What's My Line?
TV • 1950
Self - Panelist
Dinah!
TV • 1974
Self
Golden Globe Awards
TV • 1944
Self - Nominee
The Partridge Family
TV • 1970