Tim Herbert

Tim Herbert, born Herbert Timberg on June 22, 1914, in New York, New York, was an American actor, comedian, and vaudevillian who worked across stage, film, and television throughout a career spanning several decades. He was the son of Herman Timberg, a vaudeville performer and songwriter who regularly shared the stage with dancer Pat Rooney. Both fathers incorporated their sons into their acts, and the younger Timberg and Pat Rooney III — who performed professionally as Pat Rooney, Jr. — developed a partnership that combined dancing and comedy. Billing themselves as Herman Timberg, Jr. and Pat Rooney, Jr., the two built on their fathers' association while establishing their own identity as a team.

Beginning in 1936, Timberg and Rooney co-starred in ten musical-comedy short subjects produced by New York-based Educational Pictures. The physical contrast between the tall Timberg and the shorter Rooney complemented their comedy timing, and each film featured their individual dance specialties. Trade reviewers responded positively to the series from the outset. Their debut short, Bashful Buddies, drew favorable notices, and the follow-up, Rah! Rah! Rhythm, earned praise from Motion Picture Herald. Educational Pictures promoted the duo using the vaudeville term "the old Mike and Ike combination," a reference to the pairing of an Irish comedian with a Jewish comedian. Financial difficulties at the studio halted production in late 1937, and the final two entries in the series, Meet the Bride and Love and Onions, were released in early 1938 as the studio was closing. Timberg subsequently attempted to produce a stage revue, and when that venture closed he resumed vaudeville and personal appearances with Rooney through 1940. After Rooney retired temporarily to a New Hampshire farm, Timberg continued as a solo performer.

In the 1940s, Timberg adopted the stage name Tim Herbert, which he used for the remainder of his career. He appeared on Broadway in 1944 in the musical Follow the Girls. During the 1950s, Herbert formed a double act with comedian Don Saxon, and the two performed in nightclubs and on television. In the 1960s he transitioned into character acting in both film and television, appearing on series including The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Addams Family, The Lucy Show, and Get Smart. On The Dick Van Dyke Show he played an anxious songwriter in the episode titled "Bupkis." He appeared in two episodes of Batman as a character named Whiskers, and also portrayed the villain Killer Moth in an unaired short filmed in 1967, a production made primarily to introduce Batgirl to the series.

Herbert's film work during this period included roles in Don't Worry, We'll Think of a Title, The Boston Strangler, They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, Duel, and Win, Place or Steal. He also appeared in television films including Ellery Queen: Don't Look Behind You, Goodnight, My Love, and Terror on the 40th Floor. Herbert died of a heart attack on June 20, 1986, in Los Angeles, California, two days before what would have been his seventy-second birthday.