Karl Swenson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Karl Swenson (July 23, 1908 – October 8, 1978) was an American theatre, radio, film, and television actor. Early in his career, he was credited as Peter Wayne Swenson was born in Brooklyn, New York, of Swedish parentage. Planning to be a doctor, he enrolled at Marietta College and undertook pre-medical studies but left that field to pursue acting. Swenson appeared extensively on the radio from the 1930s through the 1950s. Swenson entered the film industry in 1943 with two wartime documentary shorts, December 7 and The Sikorsky Helicopter, followed by more than thirty-five roles in feature films and television movies. No Name on the Bullet (1959) is only one of the many westerns in which he performed for both film and television. Swenson is remembered for his role as the doomsayer in the diner in Alfred Hitchcock's classic The Birds (1963) and had roles in The Prize (1963), Major Dundee (1965), The Sons of Katie Elder (1965), The Cincinnati Kid (1965) and Seconds (1966). In 1967, Swenson appeared in the western Hour of the Gun, and played the role of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt in the western film Brighty of the Grand Canyon, with co-stars Pat Conway and Joseph Cotten. His later film appearances included roles in ...tick...tick...tick... (1970), The Wild Country (1970), Vanishing Point (1971) and Ulzana's Raid (1972). Swenson was married to actress Joan Tompkins. Swenson died of a heart attack at Charlotte Hungerford Hospital in Torrington, Connecticut on October 8, 1978, shortly after filming the Little House on the Prairie episode in which his character dies. The episode aired on October 16, 1978, eight days after Swenson's death. Swenson was interred at Center Cemetery in New Milford, Connecticut. CLR
The Cincinnati Kid
(Mr. Rudd)
The Birds
(Drunken Doomsayer in Diner)
Judgment at Nuremberg
(Heinrich Geuter)
The Prize
(Hilding)
Seconds
(Dr. Morris)
North to Alaska
(Lars Nordqvist)
Vanishing Point
(Clerk)
The Sword in the Stone
(Merlin (voice))
Major Dundee
(Captain Waller)
Ulzana's Raid
(Rukeyser)
The Hanging Tree
(Tom Flaunce)
Lonely are the Brave
(Rev. Hoskins)
Walk on the Wild Side
(Schmidt)
The Sons of Katie Elder
(Doc Isdell)
Hour of the Gun
(Dr. Charles Goodfellow)
Ice Palace
(Scotty Ballantyne)
Flaming Star
(Dred Pierce)
No Name on the Bullet
(Stricker)
Kings Go Forth
(The Colonel)
Disney Sing-Along Songs: Colors of the Wind
((voice) (archive footage))
The Man from Galveston
(Sheriff)
The New Healers
(Mr. Fisherman)
Alice in Wonderland
(Humpty Dumpty)
Pericles on 31st Street
(Louie DeBella)
A Howling in the Woods
(Apperson)
Strangers All
(Protester at Communist Meeting)
Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night
(Dr. Keller)
The Gallant Hours
(Bill Bailey)
The Gun and the Pulpit
(Adams)
Tick... Tick... Tick...
(Frank Braddock Sr.)
One Foot in Hell
(Sheriff Ole Olson)
Gateways to the Mind
(Hal - the Cameraman (uncredited))
Brighty of the Grand Canyon
(Theodore Roosevelt)
How the West Was Won
(Train Conductor (uncredited))
December 7th
(Machine-Gunner (uncredited))
The Wild Country
(Jensen)
Disney's Halloween Treat
(Merlin (voice) (archive footage))
The Spiral Road
(Insp. Bevers)
Four Boys and a Gun
(Mr. Badek)
The Andy Griffith Show
(Mr. McBeevee)
77 Sunset Strip
Maverick
Trackdown
Little House on the Prairie
(Lars Hanson)
The Odd Couple
(Captain Potter)
Mr. Lucky
Hawaii Five-O
(Abel Morgan)
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters
(Coley Bishop)
Happy Days
Surfside 6
The Mod Squad
The Fugitive
(Axel Nielsen - Service station owner)
Perry Mason
(Axel Norstaad)
Gunsmoke
(Hank Luz)
Hawaiian Eye
Lassie
Cannon
The Amazing Spider-Man
Hallmark Hall of Fame
(Humpty Dumpty)
Ironside
(Vet)
Leave It to Beaver
(George Haskell)
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
(Ed Holland)
Klondike
Sam Benedict
The Greatest Show on Earth
Outlaws
Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse
The Immortal
Rawhide
Have Gun, Will Travel
Cimarron Strip
The Outcasts
The Fugitive
(Morgan)
The Virginian
(Col. Theodore Roosevelt)
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
(Asmussen)
Portia Faces Life
The Young Rebels
The Big Valley
(Bert Hadley)
Bronco
Judd for the Defense
Profiles in Courage
(Chynoweth)
The Adventures of Jim Bowie
(Andre Rochambeau)
Tarzan
Black Saddle
(Dr. Wyle)
Lock-Up
The Rebel
(Lew Bussey)
The Rifleman
The Dakotas
Sugarfoot
(Andy Burke)
Ben Casey
Bat Masterson
(Jim Pate)
The Rat Patrol
(Colonel Seidner)
The Guns of Will Sonnett
Mr. Novak
(Mr. Haskell)
Riverboat
(Ansel Torgin)
The Texan
The Bill Dana Show
CBS Playhouse
Robert Montgomery Presents
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
(Lee Willis)
The Lieutenant
Playwrights '56
Johnny Ringo
(Kramer)
General Electric True
Tightrope
Dr. Kildare
(Judge)
The Westerner
(Ben Potts)
The Court of Last Resort
The Walter Winchell File
Doc Elliot
Ghost Story
(Ed Barnes)
Emergency!
(Gus)
Maverick
(Captain Nares)
Maverick
(Sheriff Griffin)
Hong Kong
(John Olwine)
Sugarfoot
(Bill Manning)
Sugarfoot
(Alexi Sharlokov)
The Big Valley
(Aaron Moyers)
The Big Valley
(Steve Minter)
Sugarfoot
(Dennis O'Hara)
The Virginian
(Karl Swenson)
Gunsmoke
(Raff)
The Virginian
(Ben Wallace)
Gunsmoke
(Hutch)
Gunsmoke
(Adam)
Gunsmoke
(Tabe)
Gunsmoke
(Ian McGovern)
Gunsmoke
(Lars Karlgren)
Gunsmoke
(McGruder)
Gunsmoke
(Mr. Hubert)
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
(Lud Greening)
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
(Will Harmon)
Hogan's Heroes
(Dr. Karl Svenson)
Perry Mason
(Corley Ketchum)
Perry Mason
(Charles Norman)
Perry Mason
(Unk Hazekian)
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
(John)
Mission: Impossible
(Colonel Dubov)
Little House on the Prairie
(Mr. Hanson)
Mission: Impossible
(Dr. Ziegler)
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
(George Sherston)