Robert Preston

Robert Preston

Birthdate
June 8, 1918 (106 years old)
Place of Birth
Newton Highlands, Massachusetts, USA
Date of Death
March 21, 1987
Known For
Acting

Details

Birthdate
June 8, 1918 (106 years old)
Place of Birth
Newton Highlands, Massachusetts, USA
Date of Death
March 21, 1987
Known For
Acting

Biography

Robert Preston (June 8, 1918 – March 21, 1987) was an American stage and film actor and singer, best known for his collaboration with composer Meredith Willson and originating the role of Professor Harold Hill in the 1957 musical The Music Man and the 1962 film adaptation; the film earned him his first of two Golden Globe Award nominations. Preston collaborated twice with filmmaker Blake Edwards, first in S.O.B. (1981) and again in Victor/Victoria (1982). For portraying Carroll "Toddy" Todd in the latter, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor at the 55th Academy Awards.

Preston was born Robert Preston Meservey in Newton, Massachusetts, the son of a garment worker and a record store clerk. He attended Abraham Lincoln High School, training as a musician and playing several instruments, but quit at age sixteen to study acting at the Pasadena Community Playhouse.

Preston made his Broadway debut in 1940 in the play The Philadelphia Story. He went on to star in a number of successful Broadway musicals, including The Pajama Game (1954), Damn Yankees (1955), and I Do! I Do! (1966). He also appeared in a number of films, including The Music Man (1962), The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1960), and Victor/Victoria (1982).

Preston was a versatile actor who could play a wide range of roles. He was known for his charisma, his singing voice, and his comic timing. He was a two-time Tony Award winner and was nominated for an Academy Award. He was also a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame.

Preston died of cancer in 1987 at the age of 68. He was survived by his wife, Catherine Craig; the couple had no children.

A biography of the actor, @Robert Preston - Forever The Music Man”, was published in 2022.

Robert Preston's LGBTQ+ Titles

Victor/Victoria
Victor/Victoria
Carroll "Toddy" Todd

Acting (85)

2020
Disclosure as Carole 'Toddy' Todd (archive footage)
2015
Chita Rivera: A Lot Of Livin' To Do as Self (archive footage)
2004
Sam Peckinpah's West: Legacy of a Hollywood Renegade as Self (archive footage)
2003
Broadway's Lost Treasures as Harold Hill (segment "The Music Man")
1986
Outrage! as Dennis Riordan
1985
Night of 100 Stars II as Self
1985
Finnegan Begin Again as Mike Finnegan
1984
The Last Starfighter as Centauri
1984
Going Hollywood: The '30s as Self - Host
1983
September Gun as Ben Sunday
1982
Rehearsal for Murder as Alex Dennison
1982
Victor/Victoria as Carroll "Toddy" Todd
1982
Night of 100 Stars as Self
1981
S.O.B. as Dr. Irving Finegarten
1980
The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg as Stranger
1979
The Chisholms as Hadley Chisholm (18 episodes)
1977
Semi-Tough as Big Ed Bookman
1975
My Father's House as Tom Lindholm Sr.
1974
Mame as Beauregard Jackson Pickett Burnside
1972
Child's Play as Joseph Dobbs
1972
Junior Bonner as Ace Bonner
1963
All the Way Home as Jay Follet
1963
Island of Love as Steve Blair
1962
How the West Was Won as Roger Morgan
1962
The Merv Griffin Show as Self (1 episode)
1962
The Music Man as Harold Hill
1960
The Dark at the Top of the Stairs as Rubin Flood
1959
The Bell Telephone Hour as Self (1 episode)
1956
Tony Awards as Self - Host (2 episodes)
1956
Tony Awards as Self - Host / Nominee/ Performer (1 episode)
1956
Tony Awards as Self - Performer (1 episode)
1956
Tony Awards as Self - Presenter (1 episode)
1956
Tony Awards as Self - Presenter / Performer (1 episode)
1956
Sentinels in the Air as Narrator (voice)
1955
The Last Frontier as Col. Frank Marston
1955
The 20th Century Fox Hour (1 episode)
1954
Climax! as Cleve Gordon (1 episode)
1954
Climax! as Lt. Hogue (1 episode)
1954
Climax! as William Struthers (1 episode)
1953
General Electric Theater as Jim Tweedy (1 episode)
1952
Face to Face as Jack Potter
1951
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars (1 episode)
1951
My Outlaw Brother as Joe Walter
1951
Best of the Badmen as Matthew Fowler
1951
Cloudburst as John Graham
1951
When I Grow Up as Father Reed
1950
Lux Video Theatre as Dowey (1 episode)
1950
Lux Video Theatre as Isaac Eaton (1 episode)
1950
Lux Video Theatre as Jed Kennedy (1 episode)
1950
Lux Video Theatre as Kelly (1 episode)
1950
Lux Video Theatre as Phil Baxter (1 episode)
1950
Lux Video Theatre as Tom (1 episode)
1950
Your Show of Shows (2 episodes)
1950
What's My Line? as Self - Mystery Guest (2 episodes)
1950
What's My Line? as Self - Panelist (2 episodes)
1950
The Sundowners as James Cloud ('Kid Wichita')
1950
Robert Montgomery Presents as Jeff Frazer (1 episode)
1950
Robert Montgomery Presents as Professor Richard Wanley (1 episode)
1949
The Lady Gambles as David Boothe
1949
Tulsa as Brad Brady
1948
Whispering Smith as Murray Sinclair
1948
Blood on the Moon as Tate Riling
1948
Big City as Rev. Philip Y. Andrews
1947
Wild Harvest as Jim Davis
1947
Variety Girl as Robert Preston
1947
The Macomber Affair as Francis Macomber
1943
Night Plane from Chungking as Nick Stanton
1943
Wings Up as Himself
1942
Wake Island as Pvt. Joe Doyle
1942
This Gun for Hire as Det. Michael Crane
1942
Reap the Wild Wind as Dan Cutler
1942
Star Spangled Rhythm as Robert Preston (uncredited)
1941
Pacific Blackout as Robert Draper
1941
The Night of January 16th as Steve Van Ruyle
1941
New York Town as Paul Bryson, Jr.
1941
Parachute Battalion as Donald Morse
1941
The Lady from Cheyenne as Steve Lewis
1940
North West Mounted Police as Ronnie Logan
1940
Moon Over Burma as Chuck Lane
1940
Typhoon as Johnny Potter
1939
Beau Geste as Digby Geste
1939
Union Pacific as Dick Allen
1939
Disbarred as Bradley Kent
1938
Illegal Traffic as Charles Bent Martin
1938
King of Alcatraz as Robert MacArthur