Russ Brown

Russ Brown (May 30, 1892 – October 19, 1964) was an American actor of stage, television, and screen. He is best known for his Tony Award-winning role of baseball manager Benny Van Buren in the 1955 Broadway musical Damn Yankees!, a role he reprised on film in 1958.

Early life and career Born Russell Brown in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he grew up in South Philadelphia. In his youth he sang as a boy soprano in his church's choir. He made his Broadway debut as a member of the chorus in the original production of The Firefly in 1912-1913. He married the actress Gertrude Whitaker during World War I, and the two performed in a vaudeville act together. It differed from the usual boy-and-girl act where the male partner played straight to the female partner's silly jokes; "Brown and Whitaker" had Brown as the wisecracking comedian and Whitaker as the solemn straight woman. They married in 1924 and divorced in 1930.

Broadway Brown's first leading role on Broadway was as Jimmy Ridgeway in Lewis E. Gensler's 1928 musical Ups-a Daisy. He next starred on Broadway in two plays: Robert Carlyle in One Good Year (1935) and Pat Dunn in Louis Pelletier and Robert Sloane's Howdy Stranger (1937).

In 1941 Brown starred in the title role of the Broadway musical Viva O'Brien; a creation of the composer María Grever. a role which was reportedly the favorite of his career. In 1959 Brown gave his final performance on Broadway portraying New York City mayor Fiorello La Guardia in the Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick musical Fiorello!

Film and television Brown made his screen debut in a short film for Radio Pictures, Russ Brown in "The Palooka Flying School" (1930). One of the early films to experiment with sound, it was deemed a "novelty chatter routine that's too smart for the average picture audience." This was followed by performances in the Broadway Brevities short film Footlights in December 1931, and the 1933 Vitaphone Varieties comic short film Pie a la Mode which features a baking contest that devolves into a pie-throwing fight.

Brown's first appearance in a feature film was as Joe in the 1934 Sidney Lanfield musical Moulin Rouge. This was followed by supporting roles in the feature films Let's Talk It Over (1934), The Love Captive (1934), and Sweet Surrender (1935); all for Universal Pictures.

Russ Brown returned to New York, where he was signed by Educational Pictures, a short-subject studio. There he appeared with one of Educational's star comedians, Bert Lahr, in three shorts, and the singing team of Niela Goodelle and Lee Sullivan in a fourth.

In 1940 Brown went back to Hollywood for the Joe Penner feature Millionaire Playboy. He did not appear in any more films for nearly two decades; until 1958 when made the two musical films he is best known for: Benny Van Buren in Damn Yankees and Captain Brackett in South Pacific. From 1960-1962 he portrayed the recurring character of Thomas Jones on the legal drama The Law and Mr. Jones. In 1963 he appeared on The Dick Powell Theatre opposite Lee Marvin in the tele-play "The Loosers".

Death Brown died on October 19, 1964, in Englewood, New Jersey.

Filmography Year Title Role Notes1934 Moulin Rouge Joe 1934 Let's Talk It Over Bill 1934 The Love Captive Larry Chapman 1935 Sweet Surrender Jerry Burke 1940 Millionaire Playboy Mr. Bob Norman 1958 South Pacific Capt. Brackett, USN 1958 Damn Yankees Benny Van Buren 1959 It Happened to Jane Uncle Otis 1959 Anatomy of a Murder George Lemon 1962 Advise & Consent Night Watchman (Mike) 1963 The Cardinal Dr. Heller