Lloyd Corrigan

Lloyd Corrigan (October 16, 1900 – November 5, 1969) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter born in San Francisco, California. The son of actors Lillian Hiby Corrigan, known professionally as Lillian Elliott, and James Corrigan, he grew up in a theatrical household and pursued formal training in drama at the University of California, Berkeley, graduating in 1922. His career spanned stage, film, and television across more than four decades.

Corrigan entered the film industry in the mid-1920s, with early acting credits including The Splendid Crime (1925) and It (1927). He transitioned into directing and writing during the late 1920s and 1930s, helming a series of films from Follow Thru (1930) through Lady Behave! (1937), with a particular focus on mystery pictures. Among his directing credits was Daughter of the Dragon, starring Anna May Wong, part of a Fu Manchu trilogy for which he also held writing credits. His short film La Cucaracha earned an Academy Award in 1935. His screenwriting work extended from Hands Up! (1926) to Night Work (1939). In 1933, during this period of his career, Corrigan appeared on Broadway in the play Her Man of Wax.

By 1938, Corrigan shifted his primary focus to acting, taking on both romantic leads and villainous roles throughout the remainder of his film career. He appeared in multiple Boston Blackie films as the recurring character Arthur Manleder, a millionaire. In 1949, he starred alongside Roy Acuff and William Frawley in My Home in San Antone. The following year, he appeared in the 1950 film Cyrano de Bergerac as Ragueneau, a role partially merged in that production with the character of Ligniere. He continued acting in films into the mid-1960s.

Television occupied a significant portion of Corrigan's later career. He served as a series regular on multiple programs, including Willy (1954–1955) as Papa Dodger, the Mickey Mouse Club serial Corky and White Shadow (1956) as Uncle Dan across seventeen episodes, and Happy (1960–1961) as Uncle Charlie Dooley on NBC. From 1965 to 1966, he appeared as Professor McKillup in the NBC sitcom Hank.

His guest appearances were extensive. He portrayed the Western writer Ned Buntline six times on ABC's The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp. He appeared twice on Death Valley Days, as Carl Herman in the 1960 episode "Money to Burn" and as Dorsey Bilger in the 1962 episode "A Sponge Full of Vinegar." In 1959, he was cast as John Jenkins opposite Anne Baxter in the Riverboat episode "A Race to Cincinnati," starring Darren McGavin and Burt Reynolds. In 1963, he portrayed Captain Rembrandt Van Creel in "The Day of the Flying Dutchman" on The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters, a series featuring child actor Kurt Russell.

Corrigan made three appearances on CBS's Perry Mason: as Rudy Mahlsted in "The Case of the Dodging Domino" (1962), as Harvey Forrest in "The Case of the Decadent Dean" (1963), and as attorney Gerald Shore in "The Case of the Careless Kitten" (1965). Additional television credits include The Real McCoys, Father Knows Best, My Three Sons, Rawhide, Gunsmoke, Bonanza, The Restless Gun, Crossroads, City Detective, How to Marry a Millionaire, Johnny Staccato, Man Without a Gun, and Dennis the Menace. Corrigan died on November 5, 1969.