Ned Sparks
Acting
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Ned Sparks (born Edward Arthur Sparkman, November 19, 1883 – April 3, 1957) was a Canadian-born character actor of the American stage and screen. Sparks was known for his deadpan expression and deep, gravelly voice. Born in Guelph, Ontario, Sparks left home at age 16 and attempted to work as a gold prospector on the Klondike Gold Rush. After running out of money, he won a spot as a singer on a traveling musical company's tour. At age 19, he returned to Canada and briefly attended a Toronto seminary. After leaving the seminary, he worked for the railroad and worked in theater in Toronto. In 1907, he left Toronto for New York City to try his hand in the Broadway theatre, where he appeared in his first show in 1912. While working on Broadway, Sparks developed his trademark deadpan expression while portraying the role of a desk clerk in the play Little Miss Brown. His success on the stage soon caught the attention of MGM's Louis B. Mayer who signed Sparks to a six picture deal. Sparks began appearing in numerous silent films before finally making his "talkie" debut in the 1928 film The Big Noise. In the 1930s, Sparks became known for portraying dour-faced, sarcastic, cigar-chomping characters. He became so associated with the type that, in 1936, The New York Times reported that Sparks had his face insured for USD$100,000 with Lloyd's of London. The market agreed to pay the sum to any photographer who could capture Sparks smiling (Sparks later admitted that the story was a publicity stunt and he was only insured for $10,000). Sparks was also caricatured in cartoons including the Jack-in-the-Box character in the Disney short Broken Toys (1935), and the jester in Mother Goose Goes Hollywood (1938), a hermit crab in both Tex Avery's Fresh Fish (1939) and Bob Clampett's Goofy Groceries (1941), a chicken in Bob Clampett's Slap Happy Pappy (1940), Friz Freleng's Warner Bros. cartoon Malibu Beach Party (1940), and Tex Avery's Hollywood Steps Out (1940). Sparks also voiced the cartoon characters Heckle and Jeckle from 1947 to 1951. Sparks appeared in ten stage productions on Broadway and over 80 films. He retired from films in 1947, saying that everyone should retire at 65
TV Shows(1)
Movies(79)
Gold Diggers: FDR'S New Deal... Broadway Bound
Self (archive footage)
2006
King Tut's Tomb
Heckle / Jeckle (voice)
1950
Magic Town
Ike
1947
Stage Door Canteen
Ned Sparks
1943
For Beauty's Sake
Jonathan B. Sweet
1941
The Star Maker
'Speed' King
1939
Hawaii Calls
Strings
1938
This Way Please
Inky Wells
1937
Wake Up and Live
Steve Cluskey
1937
One in a Million
Danny Simpson
1937
Two's Company
Al
1936
The Bride Walks Out
Paul Dodson
1936
Collegiate
'Scoop' Oakland
1936
George White's 1935 Scandals
Elmer
1935
Sweet Music
'Ten Percent' Nelson
1935
Sweet Adeline
Dan Herzig
1934
Imitation of Life
Elmer Smith
1934
Marie Galante
Plosser
1934
Servants' Entrance
Hjalmar Gnu
1934
Down to Their Last Yacht
Captain 'Sunny Jim' Roberts
1934
Private Scandal
Inspector Riordan
1934
Sing and Like It
Toots McGuire
1934
Hi, Nellie!
Shammy
1934
Going Hollywood
Conroy
1933
Alice in Wonderland
Caterpillar
1933
Too Much Harmony
Lem Spawn
1933
Lady for a Day
Happy McGuire
1933
Gold Diggers of 1933
Barney
1933
Secrets
Sunshine
1933
42nd Street
Barry
1933
The Crusader
Eddie Crane
1932
Big City Blues
Mr. 'Stacky' Stackhouse
1932
Blessed Event
George Moxley
1932
The Miracle Man
Harry Evans
1932
Big Dame Hunting
Ned
1932
The Wide Open Spaces
Sheriff Jack Rancid
1931
Corsair
Slim
1931
The Secret Call
Bert Benedict
1931
Iron Man
Riley
1931
Kept Husbands
Hughie Hanready
1931
Leathernecking
Sparks
1930
Conspiracy
Winthrop 'Little Nemo' Clavering
1930
The Fall Guy
Danny Walsh
1930
The Devil's Holiday
Charlie Thorne
1930
Double Cross Roads
Happy Max
1930
Love Comes Along
Happy
1930
Street Girl
Happy Winter
1929
Nothing but the Truth
Clarence van Dyke
1929
Strange Cargo
Yacht First Mate
1929
The Canary Murder Case
Tony Skeel
1929
The Magnificent Flirt
Tim
1928
The Big Noise
William Howard
1928
The Small Bachelor
J. Hamilton Beamish
1927
Alias the Lone Wolf
Phinuit
1927
Alias The Deacon
Slim Sullivan
1927
The Secret Studio
The Plumber
1927
Love's Blindness
Valet
1926
Twinkletoes
1926
When the Wife's Away
1926
The Hidden Way
Mulligan
1926
The Auction Block
Nat Saluson
1926
Mike
Slinky
1926
Money Talks
Lucius Fenton
1926
The Only Thing
Gibson
1925
Bright Lights
Barney Gallagher
1925
Seven Keys to Baldpate
1925
Faint Perfume
Orrin Crumb
1925
Soul Mates
Tancred's chauffeur
1925
His Supreme Moment
Adrian
1925
The Boomerang
Bert Hanks
1925
The Law Forbids
Clyde Vernon
1924
The Bond Boy
Cyrus Morgan
1923
A Wide Open Town
Si Ryan
1922
Good References
Peter Stearns
1920
The Perfect Woman
Grimes, the Anarchist
1920
In Search of a Sinner
Waiter
1920
Nothing But the Truth
The Monocle Man
1920
A Temperamental Wife
The Hotel Clerk
1919
The Little Miss Brown
Night Clerk
1915