Percy Helton

Percy Alfred Helton (January 31, 1894 – September 11, 1971) was an American actor whose career spanned stage, film, and television across more than six decades. Born in Manhattan, New York, he began performing at the age of two, appearing in vaudeville acts alongside his British-born father, William Alfred "Alf" Helton.

Helton's Broadway career extended from 1906 to 1942. His earliest credited stage appearance came in the 1906 production of Julie BonBon, and he went on to perform in The Poor Nut, To the Ladies, All the Comforts of Home, Popsy, Robin Landing, The Fabulous Invalid, and the musical Naughty Naught '00, among other productions. He also worked in stock theater throughout his stage career.

His performing career was interrupted by military service during World War I. Helton enlisted in the United States Army and was deployed to Europe with the American Expeditionary Forces as part of the 77th Infantry Division's 305th Field Artillery. He received the Distinguished Service Cross for his service and, while stationed with the 77th Division, was a member of the Argonne Players, a company of soldiers who performed for fellow troops. A change in his voice following his military years redirected the course of his career, shifting him toward character roles rather than leading parts.

Helton married dancer Edna Eustace on October 24, 1931, in New York City. By the late 1940s and into the 1950s and 1960s, he had established himself as one of Hollywood's most recognizable character actors. His film credits include the Christmas comedy Miracle on 34th Street (1947), the films noir Criss Cross (1949), The Crooked Way (1949), and The Set-Up (1949), as well as Wicked Woman (1953) and Kiss Me Deadly (1955). He appeared in the comic Western Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and in the musical film The Music Man (1962) as a train conductor. His television work included three guest appearances on Perry Mason: as Asa Cooperman in the 1961 episode "The Case of the Pathetic Patient," as a pawn broker in the 1961 episode "The Case of the Torrid Tapestry," and as a hotel clerk in the 1965 episode "The Case of the Careless Kitten."

Helton died on September 11, 1971, in Hollywood, California.