Arthur Q. Bryan

Arthur Q. Bryan was an American actor, radio personality, and voice artist born in Brooklyn, New York, on May 8, 1899. He died of a heart attack on November 30, 1959, in Hollywood, at the age of 60, and is buried at Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery. His Broadway credits include Bugs Bunny on Broadway, which appeared in 1990.

Bryan's early ambitions centered on singing. He performed as a tenor in churches throughout the New York City area and briefly worked as an insurance clerk at the Mutual Life Insurance Company beginning in 1918. His singing career developed through radio engagements, including work with the Seiberling Singers and the Jeddo Highlanders on NBC. He made his radio debut as a singer in 1926 on WGBS, followed by a tenor soloist position on WEAF in 1928. By 1929 he had transitioned to announcing at WOR in New Jersey, a post he held at least through September 1931. He subsequently announced at WCAU in Philadelphia beginning in October 1931, moved to Philadelphia's WIP in 1933, and was heard on WHN in New York by 1934.

Bryan relocated to Hollywood in 1936 to work as a scenario writer for Paramount Pictures. His association with animation began in 1940 when he first voiced Elmer Fudd in Elmer's Candid Camera, a role he continued until his death. His final original work as the character appeared in the Warner Bros. Edward R. Murrow parody Person to Bunny. The visibility his animation work provided led radio producers to take notice. He was initially cast on The Great Gildersleeve, where he played Lucius Llewellyn using the Elmer Fudd voice, and later Floyd Munson, the barber, performed in his natural voice. That work impressed writers Don Quinn and Phil Leslie, who added Bryan to the cast of Fibber McGee and Molly in 1943. He remained the show's secondary male lead as Dr. Gamble through the program's final run on NBC Monitor in 1959, and continued as Floyd on Gildersleeve through that series' conclusion in 1954.

Bryan's radio career extended across numerous other programs. In the early 1940s he played Waymond Wadcliffe on Al Pearce and His Gang on CBS and held the title role of Major Hoople from June 22, 1942, to April 26, 1943. He appeared on The Charlotte Greenwood Show, played Duke on Forever Ernest in the mid-1940s, and portrayed Lt. Levinson on Richard Diamond, Private Detective from September 6, 1950, to June 29, 1951. On May 5, 1949, he appeared as Clarence the Guardian Angel in the Screen Directors Playhouse adaptation of It's a Wonderful Life, alongside James Stewart reprising his role as George Bailey. From 1938 to 1940 he was a regular on The Grouch Club, which aired on the CBS Pacific network and also appeared in short-subject films. He also played Professor Warren on both the radio and television versions of The Halls of Ivy.

His live-action film work, while largely consisting of uncredited or supporting roles, spanned several decades and included appearances in Samson and Delilah, Road to Singapore, Road to Rio, and Here Come the Nelsons. He appeared regularly in short subjects for Warner Bros. and Columbia Pictures. On television, Bryan served as a panelist on the quiz program Quizzing the News from 1948 to 1949 and took on a minor recurring role as the handyman Mr. Boggs in the CBS sitcom Professional Father in 1955. On September 17, 1956, he fell ill with acute gastritis during rehearsals for the Producers' Showcase episode The Lord Don't Play Favorites and was replaced by staging director Bretaigne Windust before airtime.