36 Facts About Andy Clyde

Andy Clyde was the fifth of six children of theatrical actor, producer and manager John Clyde.

Andy Clyde is known for recurring roles in two television series: the farmer Cully Wilson in CBS's Lassie and as the neighbor George MacMichael on ABC's The Real McCoys.

In 1912, Andy Clyde first came to the United States on tour in the Graham Moffat Players, playing the part of Bob Dewar in a vaudeville comedy sketch depicting tenement life in Glasgow called The Concealed Bed.

Andy Clyde hit upon an "old man" characterization in his short comedies, and it was immediately successful.

Andy Clyde starred in short comedies longer than any other actor.

Andy Clyde made a successful transition to sound films while in Mack Sennett's employ.

Columbia Pictures launched its short subject department in 1934 and Andy Clyde was one of the first comedy stars signed by producer Jules White.

Unlike many of the Columbia short-subject comedians who indulged in broad facial and physical gestures, Andy Clyde was subtler and more economical: his comic timing was so good that he could merely lift an eyebrow, shudder slightly, or mutter "My, my, my" for humorous effect.

Andy Clyde kept busy as a character actor in feature films.

Andy Clyde did play a couple of leads for low-budget, independent producers: the comedy Red Lights Ahead and the western Sundown Riders.

Andy Clyde is well remembered for his roles as a comic sidekick.

Andy Clyde stayed with the Cassidy feature films until the series lapsed in 1948.

Andy Clyde worked on the Hopalong Cassidy "record readers" issued by Capitol Records in the 1950s.

In 1949 Andy Clyde became the comic sidekick to Monogram Pictures' newest cowboy star Whip Wilson.

In 1955 Andy Clyde signed with Republic Pictures for two features, a Judy Canova comedy and a John Payne western.

Andy Clyde was such an audience favorite that he continued to star in Columbia shorts through 1956, when his last theatrical film was released.

Andy Clyde began working in the new TV industry in 1952, making guest appearances in established series.

Andy Clyde appeared in Rod Cameron's syndicated series City Detective.

Andy Clyde guested in several other early series as well, including The People's Choice, Soldiers of Fortune, My Little Margie, The Bob Cummings Show, and Lock Up.

Andy Clyde appeared in two children's programs: as Colonel Jack in four episodes of Circus Boy and as Homer Tubbs in four segments of ABC's western series The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin.

In 1959, Clyde portrayed millionaire "Andrew C Cooley" in the CBS fantasy drama The Millionaire.

In 1961, on CBS's The Andy Griffith Show, Clyde played Frank Myers, an eccentric old man whom the town tries to evict in the episode "Mayberry Goes Bankrupt".

In 1964, Andy Clyde reunited with Walter Brennan for one episode of the new ABC series, The Tycoon.

Andy Clyde further guest-starred in such westerns as Wagon Train, Tales of the Texas Rangers, The Restless Gun, Jefferson Drum, Buckskin, Fury, Shotgun Slade, and The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp.

Andy Clyde subsequently played "Captain Gibbs" in the episode "Yellow Terror", with Brad Dexter in the role of John Barker.

On CBS's long-running western series Gunsmoke, Andy Clyde portrayed Poney Thompson in "Snakebite" in 1958 and Henry Squires in "Durham Bull" in 1962.

Andy Clyde worked well opposite Brennan, with the devious Amos usually entangling George in his latest ideas between games of checkers.

In 1959, concurrently with the McCoys series, Andy Clyde joined the Lassie series as the eccentric farmer and nature lover Cully Wilson, the friend to Timmy Martin, portrayed by child actor Jon Provost.

From 1960 to 1962, Andy Clyde was cast as the farmer Pa McBeam in five episodes of the NBC western series The Tall Man, starring Barry Sullivan and Clu Gulager.

On September 23,1932, Andy Clyde married Elsie Maud Tarron, a former member of the Sennett Bathing Beauties, in Ontario in San Bernardino County, California.

Jules White recalled that Andy Clyde became a father in middle age, and was devastated when his son, John Allan Andy Clyde, died of meningitis at age nine.

Andy Clyde was close friends with Ben Turpin, serving as the witness at Turpin's second marriage and a pallbearer at his funeral.

Andy Clyde became a naturalized United States citizen on September 24,1943.

Andy Clyde continued to perform on television until his death of natural causes on May 18,1967.

Andy Clyde's remains are interred at Glendale's Forest Lawn Memorial Park.

On February 8,1960, Andy Clyde received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6758 Hollywood Boulevard, for his contribution to the motion pictures industry.