Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John Qualen (born Johan Mandt Kvalen, December 8, 1899 – September 12, 1987) was a Canadian-American character actor of Norwegian heritage who specialized in Scandinavian roles.
Qualen was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, the son of immigrants from Norway; his father was a Lutheran minister and changed the family's original surname, "Kvalen", to "Qualen" – though some sources give Oleson, later Oleson Kvalen as Qualen's earlier surnames. His father's ministering meant many moves and John was 20 when he graduated from Elgin High School in 1920. Though he was awarded a scholarship to Northwestern University after he won an oratory contest he never attended college. In a Milwaukee Journal interview he said he needed to start working and did so with the Chattaqua Circuit. Eventually reaching Broadway, he gained his big break as the Swedish janitor in Elmer Rice's Street Scene. His movie career began when he recreated the role in the film version. This was followed by his appearance in John Ford's Arrowsmith (1931) which began a more than thirty year membership in the director's "stock company", with important supporting roles in The Searchers (1956), Two Rode Together (1961), The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) and Cheyenne Autumn (1964).
Appearing in well over one hundred films, and acting extensively on television into the 1970s, Qualen performed many of his roles with various accents, usually Scandinavian, often intended for comic effect. Three of his more memorable roles showcase his versatility. Qualen assumed a Midwestern dialect as Muley, who recounts the destruction of his farm by the bank in Ford's The Grapes of Wrath (1940), and as the confused killer Earl Williams in Howard Hawks' classic comedy His Girl Friday (also 1940). As Berger, the jewelry-selling Norwegian resistance member in Michael Curtiz' Casablanca (1942), he essayed a light Scandinavian accent, but put on a thicker Mediterranean accent as the homeward-bound fisherman Locota in William Wellman's The High and the Mighty (1954)
Qualen was treasurer of The Authors Club and historian of The Masquers, Hollywood's social group for actors.
John Qualen was blind in his later years. He died of heart failure in 1987 in Torrance, California, and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale. He was survived by his three daughters.
Filmography
all 173
Movies 134
TV Shows 39
self 1
La Classe américaine (1993)
The Streets of San Francisco (1972)
Getting Away from It All (1972)
The Odd Couple (1970)
Hail, Hero! (1969)
Doc (1969)
P.J. (1968)
Firecreek (1968)
Jericho (1966)
The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. (1966)
Shane (1966)
A Big Hand for the Little Lady (1966)
A Patch of Blue (1965)
Green Acres (1965)
The Sons of Katie Elder (1965)
I'll Take Sweden (1965)
Those Calloways (1965)
Cheyenne Autumn (1964)
No Time for Sergeants (1964)
7 Faces of Dr. Lao (1964)
The Prize (1963)
Burke's Law (1963)
Donovan's Reef (1963)
The Virginian (1962)
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
Ben Casey (1961)
Dr. Kildare (1961)
Two Rode Together (1961)
Mister Ed (1961)
North to Alaska (1960)
The Andy Griffith Show (1960)
The Barbara Stanwyck Show (1960)
Thriller (1960)
Elmer Gantry (1960)
Tate (1960)
Hell Bent for Leather (1960)
The Alaskans (1959)
The Third Man (1959)
Tightrope (1959)
Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
Revolt in the Big House (1958)
Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse (1958)
Yancy Derringer (1958)
The Donna Reed Show (1958)
Bronco (1958)
My World Dies Screaming (1958)
The Gun Runners (1958)
Sea Hunt (1958)
Maverick (1957)
Sugarfoot (1957)
The Big Land (1957)
Johnny Concho (1956)
The Searchers (1956)
At Gunpoint (1955)
Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955)
Cheyenne (1955)
Unchained (1955)
The Sea Chase (1955)
Man On A Bus (1955)
The Millionaire (1955)
The Other Woman (1954)
Climax! (1954)
Passion (1954)
December Bride (1954)
The High and the Mighty (1954)
Public Defender (1954)
I, the Jury (1953)
Ambush at Tomahawk Gap (1953)
General Electric Theater (1953)
Hans Christian Andersen (1952)
Dragnet (1951)
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars (1951)
Racket Squad (1951)
Goodbye, My Fancy (1951)
Belle Le Grand (1951)
The Flying Missile (1950)
Woman on the Run (1950)
The Jackpot (1950)
Lux Video Theatre (1950)
Buccaneer's Girl (1950)
Captain China (1950)
The Big Steal (1949)
The Philco Television Playhouse (1948)
Hollow Triumph (1948)
16 Fathoms Deep (1948)
My Girl Tisa (1948)
Alias a Gentleman (1948)
Reaching from Heaven (1948)
The Fugitive (1947)
High Conquest (1947)
Song of Scheherazade (1947)
Adventure (1945)
Captain Kidd (1945)
River Gang (1945)
Roughly Speaking (1945)
Dark Waters (1944)
An American Romance (1944)
The Impostor (1944)
Swing Shift Maisie (1943)
Casablanca (1943)
Breakdowns of 1942 (1942)
Arabian Nights (1942)
Tortilla Flat (1942)
Larceny, Inc. (1942)
Jungle Book (1942)
All That Money Can Buy (1941)
New Wine (1941)
The Shepherd of the Hills (1941)
Out of the Fog (1941)
Million Dollar Baby (1941)
Model Wife (1941)
Youth Will Be Served (1940)
The Long Voyage Home (1940)
Knute Rockne All American (1940)
Angels Over Broadway (1940)
Babies for Sale (1940)
On Their Own (1940)
Ski Patrol (1940)
Saturday's Children (1940)
The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
Blondie on a Budget (1940)
His Girl Friday (1940)
Four Wives (1939)
Honeymoon in Bali (1939)
Thunder Afloat (1939)
Mickey the Kid (1939)
Let Us Live (1939)
Stand Up and Fight (1939)
The Strange Case of Dr. Meade (1938)
The Mad Miss Manton (1938)
Five of a Kind (1938)
The Chaser (1938)
Joy of Living (1938)
The Bad Man of Brimstone (1937)
Nothing Sacred (1937)
Fit for a King (1937)
She Had to Eat (1937)
Angel's Holiday (1937)
Fifty Roads to Town (1937)
Seventh Heaven (1937)
Reunion (1936)
The Road to Glory (1936)
Girls Dormitory (1936)
Meet Nero Wolfe (1936)
The Country Doctor (1936)
Wife vs. Secretary (1936)
Ring Around the Moon (1936)
Man of Iron (1935)
Whipsaw (1935)
The Three Musketeers (1935)
Thunder in the Night (1935)
Orchids to You (1935)
Silk Hat Kid (1935)
Doubting Thomas (1935)
The Farmer Takes a Wife (1935)
Black Fury (1935)
Chasing Yesterday (1935)
The Great Hotel Murder (1935)
One More Spring (1935)
Charlie Chan in Paris (1935)
365 Nights in Hollywood (1934)
Our Daily Bread (1934)
Servants' Entrance (1934)
Straight Is the Way (1934)
He Was Her Man (1934)
Sing and Like it (1934)
Upperworld (1934)
Hi, Nellie! (1934)
Let's Fall in Love (1933)
Counsellor at Law (1933)
Arrowsmith (1931)
Street Scene (1931)
This is Alice
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Information
Known ForActing
GenderMale
Birthday1899-12-08
Deathday1987-09-12 (87 years old)
Birth PlaceVancouver, Canada
ReligionLutheranism
CitizenshipsUnited States of America, Canada
Also Known AsJohn M. Qualen, John T. Qualen, Johan Mandt Kvalen
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