Don Porter

Don Porter
as Russell Lawrence in the 1965 television series Gidget
Born	Donald Porter September 24, 1912 Miami, Oklahoma, U.S.
Died	February 11, 1997 (aged 84) Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1939 – 1988
Spouse(s)	Peggy Converse (m. 1944–97)

Donald "Don" Porter (September 24, 1912 – February 11, 1997) was an American actor who appeared in a number of films in the 1940s, including Top Sergeant and Eagle Squadron, but is perhaps best known for his role as Russell Lawrence, the widowed father of 15-year-old Frances "Gidget" Lawrence (Sally Field) in the 1965 ABC situation comedy Gidget.

Life and career

Born in Miami, Oklahoma,^[1] Porter began his acting career in the late 1930s. He appeared in various films in the 1940s before landing the role of Peter Sands, the boss of Susan Camille MacNamara (Ann Sothern) on the 1950s situation comedy Private Secretary. A retooled version of the series appeared later, titled The Ann Sothern Show. It featured many of the same actors, including Porter, in the venue of a fashionable New York City hotel. He later guest starred on episodes of Green Acres, Love, American Style, The Mod Squad, Barnaby Jones, The Six Million Dollar Man, Hawaii Five-O, Three's Company (on which he played Jack Tripper's uncle), and Switch. Porter also had a lucrative stage career that included the long-running hit Any Wednesday (1964) opposite Sandy Dennis and Gene Hackman.

Porter also appeared in numerous films including The Turning Point (1952), Our Miss Brooks (1956), Gidget Goes to Rome (playing Russell Lawrence two years prior to repeating the role in the series), The Candidate (1972), and as Mr. Upson in the 1974 film adaptation of Mame with Lucille Ball and Bea Arthur. Porter made his last onscreen appearance in a 1988 episode of CBS Summer Playhouse.

Personal life and death

Porter was married to actress Peggy Converse with whom he had two children. He died at the age of eighty-four at his home in Beverly Hills, California on February 11, 1997.^[2]

Selected filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1939	Mystery of the White Room	Dr. Donald Fox
1941	Sing for Your Supper	Tim	Uncredited
1942	Who Done It?	Art Fraser
1942	Night Monster	Dick Baldwin
1942	Top Sergeant	Al Bennett
1943	Keep 'Em Slugging	Jerry
1944	Resisting Enemy Interrogation	Lieutenant Frank L. Williams, Jr.	Uncredited
1946	She-Wolf of London	Barry Lanfield	Alternative title: The Curse of the Allenbys
1946	Cuban Pete	Roberts	Alternative title: Down Cuba Way
1947	Buck Privates Come Home	Capt. Christie	Alternative title: Rookies Come Home
1950	My Friend Irma Goes West	Mr. Brent
1951	The Racket	R.G. Connolly
1951	7-11 Ocean Drive	Larry Mason
1952	Because You're Mine	Captain Burton Nordell Loring
1952	The Savage	Running Dog	Credited as Donald Porter
1957	Desk Set	Elevator operator Don	Uncredited Alternative title: His Other Woman
1961	Bachelor in Paradise	Thomas W. Jynson
1964	Youngblood Hawke	Ferdie Lax
1968	Live a Little, Love a Little	Mike Lansdown
1972	The Candidate	Senator Crocker Jarmon
1974	Mame	Claude Upson
1975	White Line Fever	Cutler
1985	Joey		Alternative title: Making Contact

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1953–1957	Private Secretary	Peter Sands	103 episodes
1959–1961	The Ann Sothern Show	James Devery	45 episodes
1965–1966	Gidget	Professor Russell Lawrence	32 episodes
1969	Judd, for the Defense	Frank Vinton	Episode: "Epitaph on a Computer Card"
1972	Cade's County	Martin Russell	Episode: "Blackout"
1972	Banacek	Arnold Leeland	Episode: "A Million the Hard Way"
1972	The Rookies	General Brooker	Episode: "A Deadly Velocity"
1973	The New Adventures of Perry Mason	Otis Temple	Episode: "The Case of the Deadly Deeds"
1973	Tenafly	Miles	Episode: "The Cash and Carry Caper"
1974	Here's Lucy	Ken Richards	Episode: "Meanwhile, Back At the Office"
1974	The Six Million Dollar Man	Dr. Stanley Bacon	Episode: "Population: Zero"
1974	Chase	Miller	Episode: "Out of Gas"
1974	The F.B.I.	Mason Hammond	Episode: "The Lost Man"
1975	Ellery Queen	Gregory Layton	Episode: "The Adventure of Veronica's Veils"
1975	McMillan & Wife	Adrian Danzinger	Episode: "Secrets for Sale"
1976–1977	The Bionic Woman	Dr. James Courtney	3 episodes
1977	Three's Company	Uncle Fremont	Episode: "Jack's Uncle"
1978	The Paper Chase	Franklin Ford II	Episode: "The Man Who Would Be King"
1978	Vega$	Senator William Mitchell	Episode: "The Games Girls Play"
1978	Sword of Justice	Judge Addams	Episode: "Judgement Day"
1979	Turnabout	Ed	Episode: "Till Dad Do Us Part"
1980	Dallas	Matt Devlin	4 episodes
1981	Fantasy Island	Emmett Latham	Episode: "Also Rans/Portrait of Solange"
1983	Hotel	Jonathan Corry	Episode: "Faith, Hope & Charity"
1986	Matlock	Professor Erskine Tate	Episode: "The Professor"

Awards and honors

Year	Award	Result	Category	Series
1974	Daytime Emmy Award	Nominated	Best Actor in Daytime Drama - For a Special Program	The ABC Afternoon Playbreak

See also

Biography portal

References

Notes

1. Vosburgh, Dick (March 5, 1997). "Obituary: Don Porter". The Independent. Retrieved September 11, 2009.
2. "Don Porter, 84, Actor In Sitcoms and Films". The New York Times. February 24, 1997. Retrieved September 11, 2009.

External links

• Don Porter at the Internet Movie Database
• Don Porter at AllMovie
• Don Porter at Find a Grave