Robert Preston
Robert Preston (June 8, 1918 – March 21, 1987) was an American stage and film actor and singer, best known for his collaboration with composer Meredith Willson and originating the role of Professor Harold Hill in the 1957 musical The Music Man and the 1962 film adaptation; the film earned him his first of two Golden Globe Award nominations. Preston collaborated twice with filmmaker Blake Edwards, first in S.O.B. (1981) and again in Victor/Victoria (1982). For portraying Carroll "Toddy" Todd in the latter, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor at the 55th Academy Awards. Preston was born Robert Preston Meservey in Newton, Massachusetts, the son of a garment worker and a record store clerk. He attended Abraham Lincoln High School, training as a musician and playing several instruments, but quit at age sixteen to study acting at the Pasadena Community Playhouse. Preston made his Broadway debut in 1940 in the play The Philadelphia Story. He went on to star in a number of successful Broadway musicals, including The Pajama Game (1954), Damn Yankees (1955), and I Do! I Do! (1966). He also appeared in a number of films, including The Music Man (1962), The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1960), and Victor/Victoria (1982). Preston was a versatile actor who could play a wide range of roles. He was known for his charisma, his singing voice, and his comic timing. He was a two-time Tony Award winner and was nominated for an Academy Award. He was also a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame. Preston died of cancer in 1987 at the age of 68. He was survived by his wife, Catherine Craig; the couple had no children. A biography of the actor, @Robert Preston - Forever The Music Man”, was published in 2022.
Known For
Credits
- 2020 · Disclosure as Carole 'Toddy' Todd (archive footage)
- 2015 · Chita Rivera: A Lot Of Livin' To Do as Self (archive footage)
- 2004 · Sam Peckinpah's West: Legacy of a Hollywood Renegade as Self (archive footage)
- 2003 · Broadway's Lost Treasures as Harold Hill (segment "The Music Man")
- 1986 · Outrage! as Dennis Riordan
- 1985 · Night of 100 Stars II as Self
- 1985 · Finnegan Begin Again as Mike Finnegan
- 1984 · The Last Starfighter as Centauri
- 1984 · Going Hollywood: The '30s as Self - Host
- 1983 · September Gun as Ben Sunday
- 1982 · Rehearsal for Murder as Alex Dennison
- 1982 · Victor/Victoria as Carroll "Toddy" Todd
- 1982 · Night of 100 Stars as Self
- 1981 · S.O.B. as Dr. Irving Finegarten
- 1980 · The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg as Stranger
- 1979 · The Chisholms as Hadley Chisholm
- 1977 · Semi-Tough as Big Ed Bookman
- 1975 · My Father's House as Tom Lindholm Sr.
- 1974 · Mame as Beauregard Jackson Pickett Burnside
- 1972 · Child's Play as Joseph Dobbs
- 1972 · Junior Bonner as Ace Bonner
- 1963 · All the Way Home as Jay Follet
- 1963 · Island of Love as Steve Blair
- 1962 · How the West Was Won as Roger Morgan
- 1962 · The Merv Griffin Show as Self
- 1962 · The Music Man as Harold Hill
- 1960 · The Dark at the Top of the Stairs as Rubin Flood
- 1959 · The Bell Telephone Hour as Self
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Presenter / Performer
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Host / Nominee/ Performer
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Host
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Presenter
- 1956 · Tony Awards as Self - Performer
- 1956 · Sentinels in the Air as Narrator (voice)
- 1955 · The Last Frontier as Col. Frank Marston
- 1955 · The 20th Century Fox Hour as
- 1954 · Climax! as William Struthers
- 1954 · Climax! as Cleve Gordon
- 1954 · Climax! as Lt. Hogue
- 1953 · General Electric Theater as Jim Tweedy
- 1952 · Face to Face as Jack Potter
- 1951 · Schlitz Playhouse of Stars as
- 1951 · My Outlaw Brother as Joe Walter
- 1951 · Best of the Badmen as Matthew Fowler
- 1951 · Cloudburst as John Graham
- 1951 · When I Grow Up as Father Reed
- 1950 · Lux Video Theatre as Phil Baxter
- 1950 · Lux Video Theatre as Dowey
- 1950 · Lux Video Theatre as Jed Kennedy
- 1950 · Lux Video Theatre as Kelly
- 1950 · Lux Video Theatre as Isaac Eaton
- 1950 · Lux Video Theatre as Tom
- 1950 · Your Show of Shows as
- 1950 · What's My Line? as Self - Mystery Guest
- 1950 · What's My Line? as Self - Panelist
- 1950 · The Sundowners as James Cloud ('Kid Wichita')
- 1950 · Robert Montgomery Presents as Jeff Frazer
- 1950 · Robert Montgomery Presents as Professor Richard Wanley
- 1949 · The Lady Gambles as David Boothe
- 1949 · Tulsa as Brad Brady
- 1948 · Whispering Smith as Murray Sinclair
- 1948 · Blood on the Moon as Tate Riling
- 1948 · Big City as Rev. Philip Y. Andrews
- 1947 · Wild Harvest as Jim Davis
- 1947 · Variety Girl as Robert Preston
- 1947 · The Macomber Affair as Francis Macomber
- 1943 · Night Plane from Chungking as Nick Stanton
- 1943 · Wings Up as Himself
- 1942 · Wake Island as Pvt. Joe Doyle
- 1942 · This Gun for Hire as Det. Michael Crane
- 1942 · Reap the Wild Wind as Dan Cutler
- 1942 · Star Spangled Rhythm as Robert Preston (uncredited)
- 1941 · Pacific Blackout as Robert Draper
- 1941 · The Night of January 16th as Steve Van Ruyle
- 1941 · New York Town as Paul Bryson, Jr.
- 1941 · Parachute Battalion as Donald Morse
- 1941 · The Lady from Cheyenne as Steve Lewis
- 1940 · North West Mounted Police as Ronnie Logan
- 1940 · Moon Over Burma as Chuck Lane
- 1940 · Typhoon as Johnny Potter
- 1939 · Beau Geste as Digby Geste
- 1939 · Union Pacific as Dick Allen
- 1939 · Disbarred as Bradley Kent
- 1938 · Illegal Traffic as Charles Bent Martin
- 1938 · King of Alcatraz as Robert MacArthur