Howard Wendell

Howard David Wendell (January 2, 1908 – August 11, 1975 ) was an American actor.

A native of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Wendell was one of two sons born to Irwin Wendell and Clara Heal. By 1913, the family had relocated to Elyria, Ohio, where his father found regular employment at Parsch Lumber and Coal Company, first as a truck driver and later as the foreman at the lumber yard. Wendell attended Ohio University and later apprenticed at the Cleveland Playhouse.

Wendell's Broadway credits include Make a Wish (1951), The Curious Savage (1950), Arms and the Man (1950), The Show Off (1950), and The Great Campaign (1947). He acted in the Santa Barbara Summer Theatre and in theaters in Hollywood, Phoenix, La Jolla, and San Francisco.[ 11] He received a gold cup in recognition of being named as the actor with the best performance in 1946 at the Newport Casino Theatre in Rhode Island.[ 12]

Between 1949 and 1970, Wendell made a number of film appearances but worked mostly on TV, in such programs as Dragnet, Perry Mason, Wagon Train, Gunsmoke, Bonanza, Batman (season 1, episodes 3 and 4), The Munsters, The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet, Leave it to Beaver, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Hazel, and The Big Valley. His final appearance was in Adam-12.

From September 13, 1937 until their divorce in January 1968, Wendell was married to Harriet Morley, [ 13] whom he had met while apprenticing at the Cleveland Play House, where she was employed as a costumer. The union produced three sons and one daughter.[ 14]

On August 11, 1975, at age 67, Wendell died of undisclosed causes at his home in Oregon City, survived by his wife, children and brother.