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Wilton Graff

{{Short description|American actor (1903–1969)}}

{{Use American English|date=June 2022}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2022}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Wilton Graff

| image = Wilton Graff in Bloodlust! (1961).jpg

| image_size =

| alt =

| caption = Graff in Bloodlust! (1961)

| birth_name = Wilton Calvert Ratcliffe

| birth_date = {{Birth date|1903|08|13|mf=yes}}

| birth_place = St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.

| death_date = {{Death date and age|1969|01|13|1903|08|13|mf=yes}}

| death_place = Pacific Palisades, California, U.S.

| alma_mater =

| occupation = Actor

| years_active = 1939–1964

| spouse = {{plainlist|

  • {{marriage|Mary Goodwin|1938|1950|end=died}}
  • {{marriage|Elizabeth W. Wilson|1952}}

}}

| children = 1

| parents =

| relatives =

}}

Wilton Graff (born Wilton Calvert Ratcliffe; August 13, 1903 – January 13, 1969) was an American actor.

Early years

Graff was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Graff.{{cite news|title='Beauty And the Beast' Seen By Child Audience|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/20192964/wilton_graff/|work=Hartford Courant|date=December 13, 1931|location=Connecticut, Hartford|page=9|via = Newspapers.com|accessdate = May 18, 2018}} {{Open access}} He graduated from West Hartford High School in 1921.{{cite news|title=Cars Available for Voters Today|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/20193393/wilton_graff/|work=Hartford Courant|date=June 6, 1921|location=Connecticut, Hartford|page=13|via = Newspapers.com|accessdate = May 18, 2018}} {{Open access}}

Career

Before he became an actor, Graff worked for newspapers, including The Hartford Times, The Springfield Republican, and the Paris Herald.{{cite news|last1=Hay|first1=Calla|title=Actor Wilton Graff Plays Actor Role In New Play At Teatro|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/20192701/wilton_graff/|work=The Santa Fe New Mexican|date=August 5, 1951|location=New Mexico, Santa Fe|page=19|via = Newspapers.com|accessdate = May 18, 2018}} {{Open access}}

Graff debuted on Broadway in Fantasia (1933). His last Broadway appearance was in Gabrielle (1941).{{cite web|title=Wilton Graff|url=https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/wilton-graff-67653|website=Internet Broadway Database|publisher=The Broadway League|accessdate=May 19, 2018|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180519015404/https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/wilton-graff-67653|archivedate=May 19, 2018}} He began working in movies in the 1940s and eventually appeared in dozens, usually as a professional man or an authority figure, such as a military officer. He starred in only one film, Bloodlust!, playing against type as an obvious, deranged villain. Most of his work in the last 10 years of his career was on television.{{cite book|last1=Senn|first1=Bryan|title=The Most Dangerous Cinema: People Hunting People on Film|date=2013|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-0-7864-3562-3|page=40|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HeKvAQAAQBAJ&dq=%22Wilton+Calvert+Ratcliffe%22&pg=PA40|accessdate=May 19, 2018|language=en}}

In 1956, he guest starred on James Arness’s TV Western Series Gunsmoke, as “Troy Carver”, in the episode “20-20” (S1E19) as an aging lawman losing both his eyesight and his faith in his ability to handle his job.

Death

Graff died in Pacific Palisades, California on January 14, 1969. He was 65 years old.{{cite book|last1=Wilson|first1=Scott|title=Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed.|date=2016|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-1-4766-2599-7|page=291|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FOHgDAAAQBAJ&dq=%22Wilton+Calvert+Ratcliffe%22&pg=PA291|accessdate=May 19, 2018|language=en}}

Partial filmography

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References

{{Reflist}}

External links

{{Commons category}}

  • {{IMDb name|0333807}}
  • {{IBDB name|67653}}

{{Portal bar|Biography|Connecticut|Film|Theater}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Graff, Wilton}}

Category:1903 births

Category:1969 deaths

Category:American male film actors

Category:20th-century American male actors

Category:Male actors from St. Louis