Wally Maher (August 4, 1908 – December 26, 1951) was an American actor, primarily on old-time radio; he was also known as the original voice of Tex Avery's cartoon character Screwy Squirrel.
Early years
editMaher was born in Cincinnati on August 4, 1908.[1] He was the son of Daniel and Mary Maher,[2] and he had three brothers and two sisters.[3] He dropped out of high school to pursue a career in acting.[1]
Career
editTheater
editMaher gained early acting experience with a stock theater company in Cincinnati. His radio debut came when he portrayed Paul Baumer in a production of All Quiet on the Western Front. However, a lack of future acting opportunities led him to pray for divine guidance, and soon after he had another acting opportunity.[1]
On Broadway, Maher portrayed Rittenhoff in Every Man for Himself (1940).[4]
Radio
editIn 1936, he began working on several radio dramas from the West Coast.[5] That same year he had one of his most prominent film performances as the reporter who films the mob attempting to lynch Spencer Tracy's character in MGM's Fury, directed by Fritz Lang.
| Program | Role |
|---|---|
| Brenthouse | Lance Dudley [6]: 118 |
| Let George Do It | Lieutenant Riley[6]: 391 |
| The Lineup | Sergeant Matt Grebb[7] |
| The Main Line | Narrator[6]: 423 |
| Michael Shayne | Michael Shayne[6]: 458 |
| The New Adventures of Nero Wolfe | Archie Goodwin[6] |
| This Is Judy Jones | Leighton[6]: 664 |
| Tommy Riggs and Betty Lou | Wilbur[1] |
Other radio programs on which he appeared included The Whistler,[6]: 719 NBC Presents: Short Story,[6]: 481 The Eddie Bracken Show,[6]: 220 Camel Caravan, Gang Busters, Suspense, Mr. District Attorney,[3] Hollywood Showcase, I Love a Mystery, and Junior Miss.[1]
Maher held offices in the Los Angeles chapter of the American Federation of Radio Artists, including being third vice-president in 1943[8] and a member of the board in 1945.[9]
Films
editThe motion pictures in which he appeared include Nick Carter, Master Detective (1950), Pound Foolish (1940), The Story of Molly X (1949), Right Cross (1950, and Mystery Street (1950).[10]
Recording career
editIn 1951, Maher and Gene Autry recorded The Story of Little Champ, a two-record album about a young colt.[11]
Animated shorts
editMaher provided the voice of Tex Avery's cartoon character Screwy Squirrel for five shorts produced at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Screwball Squirrel, Happy-Go-Nutty, Big Heel-Watha (all 1944), The Screwy Truant (1945), and Lonesome Lenny (1946). He also voiced the Jimmy Durante-sounding turkey in Jerky Turkey (1945).
Personal life and death
editMaher married Carmella Bruno,[1] and they had a son and two daughters.[3] Maher died on December 26, 1951, in St. Vincent's Hospital, aged 43.[3]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f "Budding Star". The Cincinnati Enquirer. January 31, 1943. p. 34. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Wally Maher, radio actor, taken by death". Daily News. California, Los Angeles. December 27, 1951. p. 35. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d "Services Pending For Wally Maher, 43, Radio Actor". Los Angeles Evening Citizen News. December 17, 1951. p. 2. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Wally Maher". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
- ^ "Radio: A Career of Crime". The Cincinnati Post. January 24, 1946. p. 17. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Dunning, John (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio (Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 10. ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3.
- ^ Adams, Magee (December 31, 1951). "Look and Listen". The Cincinnati Enquirer. p. 10. Retrieved March 12, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Local AFRA Election" (PDF). Broadcasting. October 18, 1943. p. 61. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
- ^ "Allied Arts" (PDF). Broadcasting. October 8, 1945. p. 48. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
- ^ "Wally Maher". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on December 4, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
- ^ "Children: The Story of Little Champ" (PDF). Billboard. May 26, 1951. p. 36. Retrieved March 12, 2022.