EDGAR KENNEDY BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:

Edgar Kennedy was born on April 26, 1890 in Monterey, California to parents Neil Kennedy and Annie Quinn.  He attended San Rafael High School and joined the boxing team.  He later continued his training and actually fought as a professional boxer.  For most of 1911-1912 he held the coast professional heavyweight title.

He chose to leave home during his teen years with the idea of seeing the world.  He found work in various jobs and also sang in touring musicals.  In 1912 he chose to move back to California to try to break into the movie industry.

In 1914 he was hired by Mack Sennett and he played numerous roles in the Keystone comedies.  He had a small part in "Tillie’s Punctured Romance" starring Charlie Chaplin.  In 1921, when his contract expired, he decided to go freelance, but he did return every once in a while to appear in films starring Ben Turpin, Charlie Murray and Gloria Swanson.

In 1928 he joined Hal Roach Studio's and that is where he completed some of his best known work from his early acting years.  While under contract with Roach he developed his mastery of ‘the slow burn’ that he became famous for.  He also worked on the Laurel and Hardy films "Leave ‘Em Laughing", "The Finishing Touch" and "Angora Love".  However, in 1930 due to the economic drive, Edgar Kennedy was dropped from Roach's Payroll. 

In 1931, RKO Studio hired Edgar to star in a series of two-reelers.  Over the next several years he made six short films for RKO, but also took time to play in films such as "Duck Soup" (1933), "San Francisco" (1936), "A Star is Born" (1937), and "Anchors Aweigh" (1944).  It is thought that some of his best work in his career was in the film "Hidden Killer", a Falcon Mystery.  He also played a bartender in Harold Lloyd's "Sin of Harold Diddlebock" (1946) and also a music loving pirate in "Unfaithfully Yours" (1948).  His most unusual role was as a puppeteer in the mystery "The Falcon Strikes Back" in 1943. 

For most of his acting career he was managed by Fralick Management.

His last film appearance was in "My Dream is Yours" where he played Doris Day’s uncle.  On November 9, 1948, just 36 hours before a Hollywood testimonial dinner was to be held in his honor, he died of throat cancer in Woodland Hills, California.  His remains are buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.

Edgar Kennedy left behind two children, Colleen and Larry, and his wife, Patricia Violet Kennedy.  (Mrs. Kennedy was also an actress, with the screen name Patricia Alynn.)

It was rare that an audience ever saw Kennedy give anything but the best in each performance.  In his long and prolific career he made over 200 short films and 100 feature length films.  His legacy in the movies is strong, and anywhere his films are shown, laughter is heard throughout.

Filmography:

1911  Brown of Harvard 

1912  Hoffmeyer's Legacy 

1913  A Bad Game 

1913  A Game of Pool 

1913  A Landlord’s Troubles 

1913  A Life in the Balance 

1913  A Quiet Little Wedding 

1913  A Ride for a Bride 

1913  Algy on the Force 

1913  Cohen Saves the Flag 

1913  Fatty Joins the Force 

1913  Forced Bravery 

1913  Get Rich Quick 

1913  Heinze's Resurrection 

1913  Hide and Seek 

1913  His Chum the Baron 

1913  Mabel's Awful Mistakes 

1913  Mabel's Dramatic Career 

1913  Mabel's Heroes 

1913  Mabel's New Hero 

1913  Mother's Boy 

1913  Out and In 

1913  Safe in Jail 

1913  Some Nerve 

1913  That Ragtime Band 

1913  The Bangville Police 

1913  The Chief's Predicament 

1913  The Firebugs 

1913  The Janitor 

1913  The Jealous Waiter 

1913  Their First Execution 

1913  Their Husbands 

1913  Toplitsky and Company 

1913  What Father Saw 

1914  A Film Johnnie 

1914  A Flirt's Mistake 

1914  A Thief Catcher 

1914  Ambrose's First Falsehood 

1914  Caught in a Cabaret 

1914  Cruel, Cruel Love 

1914  Curses!  They Remarked 

1914  Dough and Dynamite 

1914  Gentlemen of Nerve 

1914  Getting Acquainted 

1914  His Favorite Pastime 

1914  In the Clutches of the Gang 

1914  Leading Lizzie Astray 

1914  Little Billy's Triumph 

1914  Mabel at the Wheel 

1914  Mabel's Busy Day 

1914  Mabel's Stormy Love Affair 

1914  Our Country Cousin 

1914  Tango Tangles 

1914  The Knockout 

1914  The Noise of Bombs 

1914  The Rounders 

1914  The Star Boarder 

1914  Tillie's Punctured Romance 

1914  Twenty Minutes of Love 

1914  Won in a Closet 

1915  A Game Old Knight 

1915  A Lover's Lost Control 

1915  A Submarine Pirate 

1915  Ambrose's Sour Grapes 

1915  Caught in a Park 

1915  Fatty and Mabel at the San Diego Exposition 

1915  Fatty and the Broadway Stars 

1915  Fatty's New Role 

1915  Fatty's Plucky Pup 

1915  Fatty's Reckless Fling 

1915  Fatty's Tintype Tangle 

1915  Fickle Fatty's Fall 

1915  Giddy, Gay, and Ticklish 

1915  Gussle Rivals Jonah 

1915  Gussle Tied to Trouble 

1915  Mabel and Fatty's Wash Day 

1915  Mabel's Willful Way 

1915  Miss Fatty's Seaside Lovers 

1915  That Little Band of Gold 

1915  The Battle of Ambrose and Walrus 

1915  The Great Vacuum Robbery 

1915  Tools of Providence 

1915  Wished on Mabel 

1916  A Scoundrel's Toll 

1916  Ambrose’s Cup of Woe 

1916  Bombs!

1916  Bucking Society 

1916  Her Marble Heart 

1916  His Bitter Pill 

1916  His Hereafter 

1916  Madcap Ambrose 

1917  Her Fame and Shame 

1917  Her Torpedoed Love 

1917  Hero for a Minute 

1917  Mickey 

1917  Oriental Love 

1917  Skidding Hearts 

1917  The Blue Streak 

1917  Whose Baby? 

1918  A Self-Made Lady 

1918  Among Those Present 

1918  Her Screen Idol 

1918  She Loved Him Plenty 

1918  The Kitchen Lady 

1918  Watch Your Neighbor 

1918  Yankee Doodle in Berlin 

1919  Hearts and Flowers 

1919  Love’s False Faces 

1919  The Roaming Bathtub 

1919  Treating ‘Em Rough 

1920  A Lightweight Lover 

1920  Chase Me 

1920  Daredevil Jack 

1920  Her Naughty Wink 

1920  The Huntsman 

1920  Through the Keyhole 

1920  You Tell ‘Em, Lions, I’ll Roar 

1921  Skirts 

1921  The Chauffeur 

1921  The Toreador 

1922  High and Dry 

1922  Lazy Bones 

1922  The Eskimo 

1922  The Fresh Heir 

1922  The Leather Pushers 

1923  F.O.B. 

1923  The Artist 

1923  The Cyclist 

1924  All's Swell on the Ocean 

1924  Big Boy Blue 

1924  Hot Air 

1924  Racing for Life 

1924  The Battling Fool 

1924  The Broncho Express 

1924  The Night Message 

1925  Cagey Love 

1925  Cupid’s Boots 

1925  His People 

1925  Paths to Paradise 

1925  The Golden Princess 

1925  The People vs. Nancy Preston 

1926  Across the Pacific 

1926  Going Crooked 

1926  Hot Dog 

1926  My Old Dutch 

1926  Oh What a Nurse! 

1926  The Better Ole 

1927  Finger Prints 

1927  The Chinese Parrot 

1927  The Gay Old Bird 

1927  The Wrong Mr. Wright 

1927  Wedding Bill$ 

1928  All Parts 

1928  Chasing Husbands 

1928  Dumb Daddies 

1928  Feed ‘em and Weep 

1928  Imagine My Embarrassment 

1928  Is Everybody Happy? 

1928  Leave ‘Em Laughing 

1928  Limousine Love 

1928  Should Married Men Go Home? 

1928  The Booster 

1928  The Boy Friend 

1928  The Family Group 

1928  The Fight Pest 

1928  The Finishing Touch 

1928  Two Tars 

1929  A Pair of Tights 

1929  Angora Love 

1929  Bacon Grabbers 

1929  Crazy Feet 

1929  Dad's Day 

1929  Going Ga-ga 

1929  Great Gobs 

1929  Hotter Than Hot 

1929  Hurdy Gurdy 

1929  Madame Q 

1929  Moan Groan, Inc. 

1929  Off to Buffalo 

1929  Perfect Day 

1929  The Big Squawk 

1929  They Had to See Paris

1929  Thundering Toupees 

1929  Trent’s Last Case 

1929  Unaccustomed As We Are 

1929  Welcome Danger 

1929  When Money Comes 

1929  Why Is a Plumber? 

1930  All Teed Up 

1930  Bigger and Better 

1930  Doctor's Orders 

1930  Dollar Dizzy 

1930  Fifty Million Husbands 

1930  Girl Shock 

1930  La estación de gasolina 

1930  Ladies Last 

1930  Ladrones 

1930  Le joueur de golf 

1930  Looser Than Loose 

1930  Moonlight and Monkey Business 

1930  Night Owls 

1930  Shivering Shakespeare 

1930  The Big Kick 

1930  The First Seven Years 

1930  The Head Guy 

1930  The Real McCoy 

1930  When the Wind Blows 

1931  A Clean-Up on the Curb 

1931  All Gummed Up 

1931  Bad Company 

1931  Camping Out 

1931  Help Wanted, Female 

1931  High Gear 

1931  Lemon Meringue 

1931  Love Fever 

1931  Next Door Neighbors 

1931  Not So Loud 

1931  Quick Millions 

1931  Rough House Rhythm 

1931  Thanks Again 

1932  Bon Voyage 

1932  Carnival Boat 

1932  Fast Companions 

1932  Fish Feathers 

1932  Giggle Water 

1932  He’s a Honey 

1932  Hold ‘Em Jail 

1932  Little Orphan Annie 

1932  Mother-in-Law’s Day 

1932  Never the Twins Shall Meet 

1932  Parlor, Bedroom and Wrath 

1932  Penguin Pool Murder 

1932  Rockabye 

1932  Sign Here 

1932  The Golf Chump 

1932  The Spot on the Rug 

1932  Westward Passage 

1933  A Merchant of Menace 

1933  Art in the Raw 

1933  Cross Fire 

1933  Diplomaniacs 

1933  Duck Soup 

1933  Good Housewrecking 

1933  Grin and Bear It 

1933  King for a Night 

1933  Professional Sweetheart 

1933  Quiet Please! 

1933  Scarlet River 

1933  Son of the Border 

1933  Tillie and Gus 

1933  What Fur 

1934  A Blasted Event 

1934  All of Me 

1934  Bachelor Bait 

1934  Flirting with Danger 

1934  Gridiron Flash 

1934  Heat Lightning 

1934  Kid Millions 

1934  King Kelly of the U.S.A. 

1934  Love on a Ladder 

1934  Money Means Nothing 

1934  Murder on the Blackboard 

1934  Operator 13 

1934  Poisoned Ivory 

1934  The Marines Are Coming 

1934  The Silver Streak 

1934  Twentieth Century 

1934  We’re Rich Again 

1934  Wrong Direction 

1935  1,000 Dollars a Minute 

1935  A Night at the Biltmore Bowl 

1935  Brick-a-Brac 

1935  Edgar Hamlet 

1935  Happy Tho Married 

1935  In Love at 40 

1935  Little Big Shot 

1935  Living on Velvet 

1935  Rendezvous at Midnight 

1935  Sock Me to Sleep 

1935  South Seasickness 

1935  The Bride Comes Home 

1935  The Cowboy Millionaire 

1935  Woman Wanted 

1936  Dummy Ache 

1936  Fatal Lady 

1936  Gasoloons 

1936  High Beer Pressure 

1936  Mad Holiday 

1936  San Francisco 

1936  Small Town Girl 

1936  The Return of Jimmy Valentine 

1936  The Robin Hood of El Dorado 

1936  Three Men on a Horse 

1936  Vocalizing 

1936  Will Power 

1936  Yours for the Asking 

1937  A Star Is Born 

1937  Bad Housekeeping 

1937  Double Wedding 

1937  Dumb’s the Word 

1937  Edgar Goliath 

1937  Hollywood Hotel 

1937  Locks and Bonds 

1937  Morning Judge 

1937  Super-Sleuth 

1937  The Hillbilly Goat 

1937  Tramp Trouble 

1937  True Confession 

1937  When’s Your Birthday? 

1938  A Clean Sweep 

1938  Beaux and Errors 

1938  Ears of Experience 

1938  False Roomers 

1938  Fool Coverage 

1938  Hey!  Hey!  USA 

1938  Kennedy’s Castle 

1938  Peck’s Bad Boy with the Circus 

1938  The Black Doll 

1939  Act Your Age 

1939  Baby Daze 

1939  Charlie McCarthy, Detective 

1939  Clock Wise 

1939  Everything’s on Ice 

1939  Feathered Pests 

1939  It’s a Wonderful World 

1939  Kennedy the Great 

1939  Laugh It Off 

1939  Little Accident 

1939  Maid to Order 

1939  Scandal Street 

1940  Dr. Christian Meets the Women 

1940  Drafted in the Depot 

1940  Li’l Abner 

1940  Margie 

1940  Remedy for Riches 

1940  Sandy Gets Her Man 

1940  Sandy Is a Lady 

1940  Sunk by the Census 

1940  Taint Legal 

1940  The Bride Wore Crutches 

1940  The Quarterback 

1940  Trailer Tragedy 

1940  Who Killed Aunt Maggie? 

1941  A Quiet Fourth 

1941  An Apple in His Eye 

1941  Blondie in Society 

1941  I'll Fix It 

1941  It Happened All Night 

1941  Mad About Moonshine 

1941  Public Enemies 

1941  Too Many Blondes 

1941  Too Many Blondes 

1941  Westward Ho-Hum 

1942  Cooks and Crooks 

1942  Heart Burn 

1942  Hillbilly Blitzkrieg 

1942  In Old California 

1942  Inferior Decorator 

1942  Pardon My Stripes 

1942  Private Snuffy Smith 

1942  Rough on Rents 

1942  There's One Born Every Minute 

1942  Two for the Money 

1943  Air Raid Wardens 

1943  Cosmo Jones, Crime Smasher 

1943  Crazy House 

1943  Hitler's Madman 

1943  Hold Your Temper 

1943  Hot Foot 

1943  Indian Signs 

1943  The Falcon Strikes Back 

1943  The Girl from Monterey 

1943  Unlucky Dog 

1944  Feather Your Nest 

1944  It Happened Tomorrow 

1944  Love Your Landlord 

1944  Prunes and Politics 

1944  Radio Rampage 

1944  The Great Alaskan Mystery 

1944  The Kitchen Cynic 

1945  Alibi Baby 

1945  Anchors Aweigh 

1945  Captain Tugboat Annie 

1945  It's Your Move 

1945  Mother-In-Law's Day 

1945  Sleepless Tuesday 

1945  The Big Beef 

1945  What, No Cigarettes? 

1945  You Drive Me Crazy 

1946  I'll Build It Myself 

1946  Motor Maniacs 

1946  Noisy Neighbors 

1946  Social Terrors 

1946  Trouble or Nothing 

1946  Wall Street Blues 

1947  Do or Diet 

1947  Heading for Trouble 

1947  Heaven Only Knows 

1947  Hollywood Bound 

1947  Host to a Ghost 

1947  Mind Over Mouse 

1947  Television Turmoil 

1947  The Sin of Harold Diddlebock 

1948  Brother Knows Best 

1948  Contest Crazy 

1948  Dig That Gold 

1948  Home Canning 

1948  How to Clean House 

1948  No More Relatives 

1948  Unfaithfully Yours 

1948  Variety Time 

1949  My Dream Is Yours 

1960  When Comedy Was King 

1963  The Sound of Laughter 

1965  Laurel and Hardy's Laughing 20's

1968  The Further Perils of Laurel and Hardy 

1975  Hooray for Hollywood 

2005  The Forgotten Films of Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle