Saturday, February 25, 2012

Character Actor Laurie Main Passes On

Character actor Laurie Main passed on 8 February 2012 at the age of 89.

Laurie Main was born on 29 November 1922 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. At age 16 he migrated to England. He made his film debut in 1953 in The Yellow Balloon. During the Fifties he appeared in such movies as Delavine Affair (1954), Shop Spoiled (1954), The Master Plan (1955),  and tThe Whole Truth (1958). He appeared on such television shows as The Adventures of Robin Hood, The New Adventures of Charlie Chan, Fair Game, BBC Sunday Night Theatre, Dow Hour of Great Mysteries, and The DuPont Show of the Month.

In 1960 Mr. Main migrated to the United States where he studied under Agnes Moorehead. During the Sixties he appeared in such films as The Phantom of the Opera (1962), The Punch and Judy Man (1963), My Fair Lady (1964), Munster Go Home (1966), and On a Clear Day You Can See Forever (1970). He appeared on such television shows as Bachelor Father, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Play of the Week, Maverick, The Detectives, The Jack Benny Programme, The Third Man, Honey West, I Spy, The Girl From U.N.C.L.E., The Andy Griffith Show, That Girl, The Monkees, Hogan's Heroes, and Daniel Boone.

In the Seventies he appeared in such TV shows as The Doris Day Show, The Partridge Family, and McMillan and Wife. He appeared in such movies as Private Parts (1972), The Strongest Man in the World (1975), Freaky Friday (1976), Time After Time (1979), and The Competition (1980). During the Eighties he served as the narrator on the TV programme Welcome to Pooh Corner. He also served as the narrator on various Winnie the Pooh shorts and television specials. He appeared on such TV shows as Casablanca and Murder She Wrote. He appeared in such films as Cheech and Chong's The Corsican Brothers (1984), My Chauffeur (1986), Wicked Stepmother (1989), and Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993).

Laurie Main was a prolific actor, appearing in many films, many television programmes, and a good deal on stage. The reason that he worked so frequently was simply that he was very talented. During his long career he played everything from spies to preachers and played every role convincingly. He was versatile and gifted with a great voice, two things which allowed him such a long and prolific career.

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