25 Facts About Larry Parks

Samuel Lawrence Klusman Parks was an American stage and film actor.

Larry Parks's career arced from bit player and supporting roles to top billing, before it virtually ended when he admitted to having been a member of a Communist Party cell, which led to his blacklisting by all Hollywood studios.

Larry Parks's best known role was Al Jolson, whom he portrayed in two films: The Jolson Story and Jolson Sings Again.

Larry Parks was raised in his mother's religion of Judaism.

Larry Parks grew up in Joliet, Illinois, and graduated from Joliet Township High School in 1932.

Larry Parks attended the University of Illinois as a pre-med student, and played in stock companies for some years.

Larry Parks traveled to Hollywood at John Garfield's suggestion, for a role in a Warner Bros.

In November 1944 Columbia was preparing a screen biography of Al Jolson, and Larry Parks was the first actor tested for The Story of Jolson, as the project was then titled.

Larry Parks must have worked almost endlessly to effect so perfectly the Jolson speech and the Jolson mannerism in putting over the songs.

Now that Larry Parks was a full-fledged star, Columbia kept him busy in elaborate productions.

Larry Parks appeared opposite the studio's biggest star, Rita Hayworth, in Down to Earth, a musical sequel to Columbia's 1941 fantasy Here Comes Mr Jordan.

Larry Parks tried to break his contract with Columbia in 1948.

Larry Parks claimed that such coercive methods had been employed by Columbia to obtain his signature on a new contract and, from the evidence, Judge Mathes found that it had been obtained by undue influence, indicating that he might have ruled in Larry Parks' favor had he not waited too long to file the suit.

Larry Parks remained on the Columbia payroll and starred in Jolson Sings Again, another huge boxoffice hit earning Parks another set of rave reviews.

In 1948 Larry Parks had criticized the House Un-American Activities Committee.

In 1951, Larry Parks was summoned to appear before the HUAC under threat of being blacklisted in the movie industry, but he begged not to be forced to testify.

Larry Parks eventually did so in tears, only to be blacklisted anyway.

Larry Parks eventually gave up the names of his former colleagues to the committee.

Larry Parks made a TV film for The Ford Television Theatre in 1953 and starred in the British film Tiger by the Tail in England.

Larry Parks continued to squeeze out a living acting on the stage and doing occasional television programs.

Larry Parks eventually left the film industry and formed a successful construction business.

Rather than sell them upon completion, Larry Parks decided to retain ownership and collect rents as a landlord, a decision that proved to be extremely profitable.

Larry Parks starred in Hollywood films such as On the Town and on television as Archie Bunker's neighbor Irene Lorenzo on All in the Family and as landlady Edna Babish on Laverne and Shirley.

Larry Parks's career faced turmoil as a result of her marriage to Parks, and the two spent much of the 1950s doing theatre and musical variety shows.

Larry Parks died of a heart attack in 1975 at the age of 60.