Fuzzy Knight
Encyclopedia
John Forrest "Fuzzy" Knight (May 9, 1901 – February 23, 1976) was an American
film and television actor. He appeared in over 180 films between 1929 and 1967, usually as a cowboy hero's sidekick.
the third child and son of James A. and Olive Knight, and attended nearby West Virginia University
where he was a cheerleader and law student. He wrote a pep song, "Fight Mountaineers," which is still frequently used by the Mountaineer Marching Band 90 years later. He also wrote the melody for a WVU song entitled "To Thee Our Alma Mater," with words by fellow graduate David A. Christopher. He formed his own band in college and played drums, eventually leaving school to perform in vaudeville and in big bands such as Irving Aaronson
's and George Olsen
's. Eventually his musical and comedy skills took him to New York, where he appeared in Earl Carroll
's Vanities of 1927 and on Broadway
in Here's Howe and Ned Wayburn's Gambols. He was billed under his nickname, Fuzzy (given him because of his peculiarly soft voice).
While touring with bands, Knight came to Hollywood and appeared in several musical short films for MGM and Paramount
between 1929 and 1932. Mae West
gave him his first notable film role in She Done Him Wrong
, and he went on to play in hundreds of films over the next 30 years. By the 1940s, he was primarily playing in Western movies
and was voted on of the Top Ten Money-Making Stars in Westerns in 1940.
Knight became famous to a new generation when he co-starred as Buster Crabbe
's sidekick on the 1955 TV series Captain Gallant of the Foreign Legion
. In semi-retirement thereafter, Knight continued to make occasional appearances in films and TV shows through 1967.
He died in his sleep at the Motion Picture Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California, and was survived by his wife, actress Patricia Ryan (née Thelma de Long). He was buried in Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
in Burbank, California
. His unmarked grave is next to that of the grave of Slapsie Maxie Rosenbloom, Knight's two-time co-star, who died less than two weeks after Knight.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film and television actor. He appeared in over 180 films between 1929 and 1967, usually as a cowboy hero's sidekick.
Biography
Knight was born in Fairmont, West VirginiaFairmont, West Virginia
Fairmont is a city in Marion County, West Virginia, United States. Nicknamed "The Friendly City". The population was 18,704 at the 2010 census...
the third child and son of James A. and Olive Knight, and attended nearby West Virginia University
West Virginia University
West Virginia University is a public research university in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Other campuses include: West Virginia University at Parkersburg in Parkersburg; West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery; Potomac State College of West Virginia University in Keyser;...
where he was a cheerleader and law student. He wrote a pep song, "Fight Mountaineers," which is still frequently used by the Mountaineer Marching Band 90 years later. He also wrote the melody for a WVU song entitled "To Thee Our Alma Mater," with words by fellow graduate David A. Christopher. He formed his own band in college and played drums, eventually leaving school to perform in vaudeville and in big bands such as Irving Aaronson
Irving Aaronson
Irving A. Aaronson was an American jazz pianist and big band leader.Born in New York, USA, Irving Aaronson learned piano from Alfred Sendry at the David Mannes School for music...
's and George Olsen
George Olsen
George Edward Olsen, Sr. was an American band-leader.Born in Portland, Oregon, he played the drums and attended the University of Michigan, where he was drum major. Here he formed his band, George Olsen and his Music, which continued in the Portland area...
's. Eventually his musical and comedy skills took him to New York, where he appeared in Earl Carroll
Earl Carroll
Earl Carroll was an American theatrical producer, director, songwriter and composer born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.-Career:...
's Vanities of 1927 and on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in Here's Howe and Ned Wayburn's Gambols. He was billed under his nickname, Fuzzy (given him because of his peculiarly soft voice).
While touring with bands, Knight came to Hollywood and appeared in several musical short films for MGM and Paramount
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
between 1929 and 1932. Mae West
Mae West
Mae West was an American actress, playwright, screenwriter and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned seven decades....
gave him his first notable film role in She Done Him Wrong
She Done Him Wrong
She Done Him Wrong is a Pre-Code 1933 Paramount Pictures comedy romance film starring Mae West and Cary Grant. Others in the cast include Owen Moore, Gilbert Roland, Noah Beery, Sr., Louise Beavers and Rochelle Hudson....
, and he went on to play in hundreds of films over the next 30 years. By the 1940s, he was primarily playing in Western movies
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
and was voted on of the Top Ten Money-Making Stars in Westerns in 1940.
Knight became famous to a new generation when he co-starred as Buster Crabbe
Buster Crabbe
Clarence Linden "Buster" Crabbe was an American athlete and actor, who starred in a number of popular serials in the 1930s and 1940s.-Birth:...
's sidekick on the 1955 TV series Captain Gallant of the Foreign Legion
Captain Gallant of the Foreign Legion
Captain Gallant of the Foreign Legion was a half-hour black-and-white television series about the French Foreign Legion starring Buster Crabbe in the title role. Crabbe's real-life son Cullen Crabbe played the Legion mascot, with cowboy sidekick Fuzzy Knight playing himself as Legion comedy relief...
. In semi-retirement thereafter, Knight continued to make occasional appearances in films and TV shows through 1967.
He died in his sleep at the Motion Picture Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California, and was survived by his wife, actress Patricia Ryan (née Thelma de Long). He was buried in Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery is located at 10621 Victory Boulevard in North Hollywood, California.The cemetery has a special section called the Portal of the Folded Wings Shrine to Aviation that is the final resting place for a number of aviation pioneers — barnstormers, daredevils and...
in Burbank, California
Burbank, California
Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
. His unmarked grave is next to that of the grave of Slapsie Maxie Rosenbloom, Knight's two-time co-star, who died less than two weeks after Knight.
Selected filmography
| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1935 | Home on the Range Home on the Range (1935 film) Home on the Range is a 1935 American drama film directed by Arthur Jacobson and starring Jackie Coogan.- Cast :* Jackie Coogan as Jack Hatfield* Randolph Scott as Tom Hatfield* Evelyn Brent as Georgia* Dean Jagger as Thurman* Addison Richards as Beady... |
||
| 1936 | The Trail of the Lonesome Pine The Trail of the Lonesome Pine (1936 film) The Trail of the Lonesome Pine is a 1936 romance film based on the novel of the same name. It was directed by Henry Hathaway. It was the second full length feature film to be shot in three-strip Technicolor and the first in color to be shot outdoors, with the approval of the Technicolor Corporation... |
Tater | |
| Sea Spoilers Sea Spoilers -Cast:* John Wayne - 'Bos'n' Bob Randall* Nan Grey - Connie Dawson* William Bakewell - Lieut. Commander Mays* Fuzzy Knight - Hogan* Russell Hicks - Phil Morgan* George Irving - Commander Mays* Lotus Long - Marie* Harry Worth - Nick Austin... |
Hogan | ||
| 1941 | Law of the Range Law of the Range Law of the Range is a 1941 American film directed by Ray Taylor using a screenplay by Sherman L. Lowe which is based on a story by Charles E. Barnes. The film starred Johnny Mack Brown as Steve Howard, Fuzzy Knight as Chap, Nell O'Day as Mary O'Brien, Riley Hill as The Wolverine Kid, Janet Warren... |
Chap | |
| The Shepherd of the Hills The Shepherd of the Hills (film) The Shepherd of the Hills is a 1941 film starring John Wayne. It was Wayne's first film in Technicolor. The film was based on the novel of the same name by Harold Bell Wright.-Differences from the novel:... |
Mr. Palestrom | ||
| 1944 | Trigger Trail Trigger Trail Trigger Trail is a 1944 American film about a crooked financier and a corrupt sheriff that conspire to steal land from ranchers in Oklahoma Territory for the purposes of a railroad right-of-way. A young lawyer, Clint Farrell, comes to the resuce with the aid of some fighting-mad ranchers. Lewis D.... |
Echo | |
| 1945 | Song of the Sarong Song of the Sarong Song of the Sarong is a 1945 musical film starring Nancy Kelly and William Gargan. The film was written by Gene Lewis and directed by Harold Young.-Plot:... |
Pete McGillicutty | |
| Renegades of the Rio Grande Renegades of the Rio Grande Renegades of the Rio Grande is a 1945 American film about a crooked financier and a corrupt sheriff that conspire to steal land from ranchers in Oklahoma Territory for the purposes of a railroad right-of-way. A young lawyer, Clint Farrell, comes to the resuce with the aid of some fighting-mad... |
Ranger Trigger Bidwell | Alternative title: Bank Robbery | |
| 1947 | The Egg and I The Egg and I (film) The Egg and I is a 1947 film directed by Chester Erskine, who co-wrote screenplay with Fred F. Finklehoffe, based on the book by Betty MacDonald.This comedy was such a hit with audiences, it spawned the Ma and Pa Kettle film series... |
Cab Driver | |
| 1951 | Skipalong Rosenbloom | Sneaky Pete | Alternative title: Square Shooter |
| 1952 | Night Raiders Night Raiders Night Raiders is a 1952 American film directed by Howard Bretherton using a screenplay by Maurice Tombragel. The film was written as a star vehicle for Whip Wilson who portrayed himself in the film. The plot of the film involves Whip saving a town from a corrupt Sheriff and his goons... |
Tex | |
| 1966 | Waco Waco (1966 film) Waco is a 1966 western film starring Howard Keel and Jane Russell. The film was directed by R. G. Springsteen and written by Max Lamb, Steve Fisher, and Harry Sanford... |
Telegraph Operator | Uncredited |
| Television | |||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1950–1951 | The Gene Autry Show The Gene Autry Show The Gene Autry Show is an American western/cowboy television series which aired for 91 episodes on CBS from July 23, 1950 until August 7, 1956, originally sponsored by Wrigley's Doublemint chewing gum.-Overview:... |
Sagebrush - Sidekick | 4 episodes |
| 1955–1957 | Captain Gallant of the Foreign Legion Captain Gallant of the Foreign Legion Captain Gallant of the Foreign Legion was a half-hour black-and-white television series about the French Foreign Legion starring Buster Crabbe in the title role. Crabbe's real-life son Cullen Crabbe played the Legion mascot, with cowboy sidekick Fuzzy Knight playing himself as Legion comedy relief... |
Pvt. Fuzzy Knight | 33 episodes |
| 1959 | The Man and the Challenge The Man and the Challenge The Man and the Challenge is a 36-segment half-hour television adventure/science fiction series which ran new episodes on NBC from September 12, 1959, to June 11, 1960. It starred George Nader as Dr. Glenn Barton, a research scientist for the Institute of Human Factors, an agency that conducted... |
Burro Charlie | 1 episode |
| 1960 | Outlaws | Isaac Miller | 1 episode |
| 1962 | The Tall Man The Tall Man (TV series) The Tall Man is an American Western television series that aired on NBC from 1960 to 1962. The series was produced by Revue Productions.-Synopsis:... |
Red | 1 episode |
| The Joey Bishop Show | Charles Porter | 2 episodes | |