Allen Jenkins

Acting

Born Apr 08, 1900

From Staten Island, New York City, New York, USA

Died Jul 20, 1974

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Allen Jenkins (April 9, 1900 – July 20, 1974) was an American character actor on stage, screen and television. He was born Alfred McGonegal on Staten Island, New York. He studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. In his first stage appearance, he danced next to James Cagney in a chorus line for an off-Broadway musical called Pitter-Patter. He made five dollars a week. He also appeared one thousand times in Broadway plays between 1924 and 1962, including The Front Page with Lee Tracy (1928). His big break came when he replaced Spencer Tracy for three weeks in the Broadway play The Last Mile. He was called to Hollywood by Darryl F. Zanuck and signed first to Paramount Pictures and shortly afterwards to Warner Bros. He originated the character of Frankie Wells in the Broadway production of Blessed Event and reprised the role in the film adaptation, both in 1932. With the advent of talking pictures, he made a career out of playing comic henchmen, stooges, policemen and other "tough guys" in numerous films of the 1930s and 1940s, especially for Warner Bros. He was labeled the "greatest scene-stealer of the 1930s" by the New York Times. He voiced the character of "Officer Dibble" on the Hanna-Barbera television cartoon Top Cat and was a regular on the 1956-1957 television situation comedy Hey, Jeannie! (1956), starring Jeannie Carson. He was also a guest star on The Red Skelton Show, I Love Lucy, Playhouse 90, The Ernie Kovacs Show, Zane Grey Theater, and The Sid Caesar Show. Eleven days before his death he made his final appearance, at the end of Billy Wilder's 1974 film adaptation of The Front Page. He went public with his alcoholism and was the first actor to speak in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate about it. He helped start the first Alcoholics Anonymous programs in California prisons for women. Jenkins, James Cagney, Pat O'Brien and Frank McHugh were the original members of the so-called "Irish Mafia". He was the seventh member of the Screen Actors Guild. Description above from the Wikipedia article Allen Jenkins, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Allen Jenkins

Known For

King Kong

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

Pillow Talk

A Slight Case of Murder

Grand Hotel

The Front Page

Dead End

Marked Woman

Robin and the 7 Hoods

Eyes in the Night

Filmography — Acting

King Kong

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

Pillow Talk

A Slight Case of Murder

Grand Hotel

The Front Page

Dead End

Marked Woman

Robin and the 7 Hoods

Eyes in the Night

Ball of Fire

42nd Street

The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse

Brother Orchid

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage

I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang

Wonder Man

Lady on a Train

Destry Rides Again

The Falcon Takes Over

Fun on a Weekend

A Date with the Falcon

Three on a Match

Five Came Back

Page Miss Glory

The Gay Falcon

James Stewart: A Wonderful Life

The Mayor of Hell

Bedside

Whirlpool

The Spy in the Green Hat

The Senator Was Indiscreet

Torchy Blane... Playing with Dynamite

Footsteps in the Dark

Going Places

They All Kissed the Bride

Stage Door Canteen

Tortilla Flat

For Those Who Think Young

The Inside Story

Wild Harvest

The Silk Express

I'd Rather Be Rich

Blondie Johnson

Blessed Event

The Singing Kid

Complicated Women

The Case of the Howling Dog

The Irish in Us

Dive Bomber

Time Out for Rhythm

Dance Charlie Dance

Sins of Man

Employees' Entrance

Rackety Rax

The Case of the Curious Bride

Breakdowns of 1938

Naughty But Nice

Oklahoma Annie

Maisie Gets Her Man

The Keyhole

Jimmy the Gent

The Perfect Specimen

42nd Street: From Book to Screen to Stage

Blow-Ups of 1947

Racket Busters

Ever Since Eve