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Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

134

Gender

Male

Birthday

1907-02-22

Day of Death

1998-07-21 (91 years old)

Place of Birth

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Also Known As

Robert George Young

Robert Young

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

Known For

Acting

The Mortal Storm

1940

The Mortal Storm

as

Fritz Marberg

Secret Agent

1936

Secret Agent

as

Robert Marvin

They Won't Believe Me

1947

They Won't Believe Me

as

Larry Ballentine

Stowaway

1936

Stowaway

as

Tommy Randall

Crossfire

1947

Crossfire

as

Finlay

Secret of the Incas

1954

Secret of the Incas

as

Stanley Moorehead

Cairo

1942

Cairo

as

Homer Smith, aka Juniper Jones

That Forsyte Woman

1949

That Forsyte Woman

as

Philip Bosinney

The Enchanted Cottage

1945

The Enchanted Cottage

as

Oliver Bradford

Journey for Margaret

1942

Journey for Margaret

as

John Davis

Lady Be Good

1941

Lady Be Good

as

Edward 'Eddie' Crane

Northwest Passage

1940

Northwest Passage

as

Langdon Towne

Western Union

1941

Western Union

as

Richard Blake

The Second Woman

1950

The Second Woman

as

Jeff Cohalan

Honolulu

1939

Honolulu

as

Brooks Mason / George Smith

The Black Camel

1931

The Black Camel

as

Jimmy Bradshaw

Spitfire

1934

Spitfire

as

John Stafford

The Canterville Ghost

1944

The Canterville Ghost

as

Cuffy Williams

Maisie

1939

Maisie

as

Charles 'Slim' Martin

The Emperor's Candlesticks

1937

The Emperor's Candlesticks

as

Grand Duke Peter

Remember Last Night?

1935

Remember Last Night?

as

Tony Milburn

Tugboat Annie

1933

Tugboat Annie

as

Alec (Son)

Sitting Pretty

1948

Sitting Pretty

as

Harry King

H.M. Pulham, Esq.

1941

H.M. Pulham, Esq.

as

Harry Moulton Pulham

Dr. Kildare's Crisis

1940

Dr. Kildare's Crisis

as

Douglas Lamont

It's Love Again

1936

It's Love Again

as

Peter Carlton

Death on the Diamond

1934

Death on the Diamond

as

Larry Kelly

Today We Live

1933

Today We Live

as

Claude William Hope

West Point of the Air

1935

West Point of the Air

as

Little Mike Stone

Three Comrades

1938

Three Comrades

as

Gottfried Lenz

The Shining Hour

1938

The Shining Hour

as

David Linden

The Bride Walks Out

1936

The Bride Walks Out

as

Hugh McKenzie

The Bride Wore Red

1937

The Bride Wore Red

as

Rudolph 'Rudi' Pal

The Kid from Spain

1932

The Kid from Spain

as

Ricardo

Strange Interlude

1932

Strange Interlude

as

Gordon Evans as a young man

Goodbye, My Fancy

1951

Goodbye, My Fancy

as

Doctor James Merrill

I Met Him in Paris

1937

I Met Him in Paris

as

Gene Anders

The Wet Parade

1932

The Wet Parade

as

Kip Tarleton

Navy Blue and Gold

1937

Navy Blue and Gold

as

Roger 'Rog' Ash

Married Before Breakfast

1937

Married Before Breakfast

as

Tom Wakefield

The Toy Wife

1938

The Toy Wife

as

Andre Vallaire

Men Must Fight

1933

Men Must Fight

as

Geoffrey Aiken

Red Salute

1935

Red Salute

as

Jeff

And Baby Makes Three

1949

And Baby Makes Three

as

Vernon 'Vern' Walsh

The Half-Breed

1952

The Half-Breed

as

Dan Craig

Relentless

1948

Relentless

as

Nick Buckley

The Longest Night

1936

The Longest Night

as

Charley Phelps

Slightly Dangerous

1943

Slightly Dangerous

as

Bob Stuart

The Right To Romance

1933

The Right To Romance

as

Bobby Preble

Lazy River

1934

Lazy River

as

William 'Bill' Drexel

Rich Man, Poor Girl

1938

Rich Man, Poor Girl

as

Bill Harrison

Hell Below

1933

Hell Below

as

Lieut. (JG) 'Brick' Walters

The Guilty Generation

1931

The Guilty Generation

as

Marco Ricca, also known as Marco Smith

Sworn Enemy

1936

Sworn Enemy

as

Henry 'Hank' Sherman

Florian

1940

Florian

as

Anton Erban

My Darling Daughters' Anniversary

1973

My Darling Daughters' Anniversary

as

Judge Charles Raleigh

Claudia and David

1946

Claudia and David

as

David Naughton

Adventure in Baltimore

1949

Adventure in Baltimore

as

Dr. Andrew Sheldon

Lady Luck

1946

Lady Luck

as

Larry Scott

Miracles for Sale

1939

Miracles for Sale

as

Michael Morgan

The Searching Wind

1946

The Searching Wind

as

Alex Hazen

New Morals for Old

1932

New Morals for Old

as

Ralph Thomas

Paradise for Three

1938

Paradise for Three

as

Fritz Hagedorn

Unashamed

1932

Unashamed

as

Dick Ogden

The House of Rothschild

1934

The House of Rothschild

as

Capt. Fitzroy

The Bride Comes Home

1935

The Bride Comes Home

as

Jack Bristow

Carolina

1934

Carolina

as

Will Connelly

Married Bachelor

1941

Married Bachelor

as

Randolph Haven

Hollywood Hobbies

1939

Hollywood Hobbies

as

Self (uncredited)

The Band Plays On

1934

The Band Plays On

as

Tony Ferrera

Calm Yourself

1935

Calm Yourself

as

Preston Patton

The Big Moment

1954

The Big Moment

as

Narrator

Bridal Suite

1939

Bridal Suite

as

Neil McGill

Bride for Sale

1949

Bride for Sale

as

Stephen Tracy Adams

Josette

1938

Josette

as

Pierre Brassard

Vagabond Lady

1935

Vagabond Lady

as

Tony Spear

The Campus Vamp

1928

The Campus Vamp

as

Student at Dance / at Beach (uncredited)

That's Entertainment!

1974

That's Entertainment!

as

(archive footage) (uncredited)

Those Endearing Young Charms

1945

Those Endearing Young Charms

as

Lt. Hurley 'Hank' Travers

Sporting Blood

1940

Sporting Blood

as

Myles Vanders

Sweet Rosie O'Grady

1943

Sweet Rosie O'Grady

as

Samuel Magee

A Conspiracy of Love

1987

A Conspiracy of Love

as

Joe Woldarski

Northward, Ho!

1940

Northward, Ho!

as

Himself

Highball Highway

1963

Highball Highway

as

Himself

The Trial of Mary Dugan

1941

The Trial of Mary Dugan

as

Jimmy Blake

The Father Knows Best Reunion

1977

The Father Knows Best Reunion

as

James Anderson

Whom the Gods Destroy

1934

Whom the Gods Destroy

as

Jack Forrester

Joe Smith, American

1942

Joe Smith, American

as

Joe Smith

Claudia

1943

Claudia

as

David Naughton

The Three Wise Guys

1936

The Three Wise Guys

as

Joe Hatcher

Hollywood Party

1934

Hollywood Party

as

Radio Announcer (uncredited)

Hell Divers

1932

Hell Divers

as

Graham - Pilot Reporting Missing Airplanes (uncredited)

Saturday's Millions

1933

Saturday's Millions

as

Jim Fowler

That's Entertainment, Part II

1976

That's Entertainment, Part II

as

(archive footage)

That's Entertainment! III

1994

That's Entertainment! III

as

(archive footage)

All My Darling Daughters

1972

All My Darling Daughters

as

Judge Charles Raleigh

The Romance of Celluloid

1937

The Romance of Celluloid

as

Self (archive footage)

Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To

1990

Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home To

as

(archive footage)

Twenty Years After

1944

Twenty Years After

as

(archive footage)

Mercy or Murder?

1987

Mercy or Murder?

as

Roswell Gilbert

Hollywood’s Children

1982

Hollywood’s Children

as

Self (archive footage)

The Return of Marcus Welby, M.D.

1984

The Return of Marcus Welby, M.D.

as

Dr. Marcus Welby

Marcus Welby, M.D.

Marcus Welby, M.D.

as

Dr. Marcus Welby

Father Knows Best

Father Knows Best

as

Jim Anderson

Climax!

Climax!

as

Lieutenant Commander Knowles

ABC Stage 67

ABC Stage 67

as

Self - Host

Vanished

Vanished

as

Sen. Earl Gannon

The Steve Allen Show

The Steve Allen Show

as

Self - Guest

Dr. Kildare

Dr. Kildare

as

Dr. Gilbert Winfield

Little Women

Little Women

as

Mr. Laurence

The Name of the Game

The Name of the Game

as

Herman Allison

The Steve Allen Show

The Steve Allen Show

as

Self - Recipient

The Dick Cavett Show

The Dick Cavett Show

as

Self - Guest

What's My Line?

What's My Line?

as

Self - Mystery Guest

What's My Line?

What's My Line?

as

Self - Panelist

Dinah!

Dinah!

as

Self

Production

Crew

Directing