Maurice Cass Explained

Maurice Cass
Birth Date:October 12, 1884
Birth Place:Vilna, Russian Empire
Death Place:Hollywood, California, U.S.
Resting Place:Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California, U.S.
Occupation:Actor
Years Active:1932 - 1954

Maurice Cass (October 12, 1884  - June 8, 1954) was a character actor on stage and in films and television shows.

Early life

Born in Vilna, Russian Empire (modern day Vilnius, Lithuania) he moved to America at six years of age.[1] When he was 17, he toured the southern United States with a repertory company.[2]

Career

His slight build, frizzy hair and pince-nez glasses cast him as the "absent minded professor" or eccentric scientist type in many of his films, such as the character who discovers the element kryptonite in Adventures of Superman.

He is best remembered for his role as Professor Newton in the 1954 TV science fiction show Rocky Jones, Space Ranger, which later was produced as a film Manhunt in Space.

Cass's Broadway credits included The Sky's the Limit (1934), Broadway Boy (1932), Wild Waves (1932), Wonder Boy (1931), Overture (1930), The Violet and One, Two, Three (1930), The Novice and the Duke (1929), The Broken Chain (1929), and Faust (1928).[3]

Personal life

He married Fay Elaine Geffen in 1910.[1]

Death

He died of a heart attack at age 69, he is interred in Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) in Glendale, California.[4]

Selected filmography

Notes and References

  1. New York, U.S., State and Federal Naturalization Records, 1794-1943 - Ancestry.com
  2. News: Studio Flashes . September 10, 2020 . The Age . November 27, 1937 . Australia, Victoria, Melbourne . 40. Newspapers.com.
  3. Web site: Maurice Cass . Internet Broadway Database . The Broadway League . September 10, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200910224257/https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/maurice-cass-34853 . September 10, 2020.
  4. Wilson, Scott. Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 25047-25048). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition.
  5. https://books.google.com/books?id=GP7GAwAAQBAJ&dq=I%27m+always+chasing+rainbows+alice+faye+Rose+of+Washington+square+DVD&pg=PA65 Great Movie Musicals on DVD - A Classic Movie Fan's Guide