Don Castle

[Guest]

Anybody know much about this actor? Cannot find much on him:

Born:
September 29, 1917 in Beaumont, TX

Death:
May 26, 1966 in Hollywood, CA

Biography:A former stage actor, "Donald Castle" was groomed for stardom by MGM in the late 1930s. Castle played Marian Hardy's ("Cecilia Parker") beau Dennis Hunt in three of MGM's "Andy Hardy" features, but apparently he didn't catch on with audiences, in spite of his close resemblance to "Clark Gable". He moved into character parts, playing both lawmen and disreputables in crime flicks and westerns. A close friend of actress "Bonita Granville" and her entrepreneur-husband "Jack Wrather", Castle was part owner of a commercial 16-millimeter film production company run by Wrather, and in the 1950s and early 1960s served as associate producer for Wrather's TV series "Lassie". Following a traffic accident in 1966, 49-year-old Don Castle died of a medication overdose.

[Northern Lights]

I tried to find something, but there's not much info.


From Love Finds Andy Hardy. Don Castle introducing Judy Garland at the dance.


Andy comes to the defense of Betsy
(Don Castle, Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland)




http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0145265/

[Northern Lights]

Some old articles.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id...&dq=don+castle

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id...&dq=don+castle

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id...&dq=don+castle

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id...&dq=don+castle

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpag...679D946693D6CF

[Northern Lights]

"The El Rancho Lodge was built in 1951 by Don and Zetta Castle , and was originally called Castle's Red Barn. The buildings were painted barn-red, green grass surrounded the pool and waterfall, and tennis courts lined Palm Canyon Drive .

Don Castle was a former stage and movie character actor with MGM, and was featured in the early Andy Hardy movies, Northwest Passage , and Gunfight at the O.K. Corral . He and Zetta were close friends of producer Jack Wrather and actress Bonita Granville. Don was associate producer for Jack's television series Lassie . Jack and Bonita went on to build their own hotel next door. Don died in 1966, at the young age of 49, following a traffic accident. He and Zetta had been divorced, and she went on to manage her friend Bonita's hotel the L'Horizon.

Opened in January 1952, Castle's Red Barn was Hollywood 's â??inâ?� place to stay. Now the El Rancho Lodge, it has hosted Gig Young, Elizabeth Montgomery, Jeff Chandler, Lee Marvin, Alan Ladd, Robert Altman, Hal Wallis, Lizabeth Scott, George Reeves, Fess Parker, Buddy Hackett, John Cassavettes, Gina Rowland, Patricia Crowley, Sal Mineo, Jay North, Barbara Hale, Motown founder Berry Gordy, and more, as well as numerous writers."

More info and pictures here
http://www.elrancholodge.com/history.htm