E. G. Marshall | |
|---|---|
 Marshall in 1970 | |
| Born | Everett Eugene Grunz (1914-06-18)June 18, 1914 Owatonna, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Died | August 24, 1998(1998-08-24) (aged 84) Bedford, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1945–1998 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 5 |
Everett Eugene Grunz[1][2] (June 18, 1914 – August 24, 1998), known professionally asE. G. Marshall, was an American actor. One of the first group selected for the newActors Studio, by 1948, Marshall had performed in major plays on Broadway.
Among his film roles, Marshall is perhaps best known as the unflappable and analytical Juror 4 inSidney Lumet's courtroom drama12 Angry Men (1957).[3][4][5] He starred in the CBS legal dramaThe Defenders, played thePresident of the United States inSuperman II (1980), and Nazi collaborator Henri Denault on the CBS prime-time dramaFalcon Crest in 1982. Marshall was also known as the host of the radio drama seriesCBS Radio Mystery Theater (1974–1982).
Marshall was born Everett Eugene Grunz[1] inOwatonna, Minnesota,[2] the son of Hazel Irene (née Cobb) and Charles G. Grunz. During his life, he chose not to reveal what "E. G." stood for, saying that it stood for "Everybody's Guess."[6] The U.S. Social Security Claims Index states that he was listed with theSocial Security Administration in June 1937 as Everett Eugene Grunz, and in December 1975 as E.G. Marshall.[2]
Marshall claimed in interviews in later life to have attended bothCarleton College and theUniversity of Minnesota, but there is no evidence that he ever attended either institution, or had attended college at all.[7]
He took the surname "Marshall" for his acting career. Although most familiar for his later television and movie roles, which gained wide audiences, Marshall also had a distinguishedBroadway career. In 1948, having already performed in the original New York productions ofThe Skin of Our Teeth andThe Iceman Cometh, Marshall joinedMarlon Brando,Montgomery Clift,Julie Harris,Kim Stanley, and 45 others to make up the first group of actors granted membership in the newly formedActors Studio.[8] In subsequent years, he landed the leading roles inThe Crucible andWaiting for Godot.[9]
Marshall achieved perhaps his highest profile as top-billed star of the CBS-TV legal dramaThe Defenders (1961-5). Marshall portrayed Manhattan defense attorney Lawrence Preston, for which he won two Emmys. He later played Dr. David Craig in the television seriesThe Bold Ones: The New Doctors (1969–73), and Nazi collaborator Henri Denault on the CBS prime-time dramaFalcon Crest in 1982.
In 1973, Marshall returned to the live stage to play the title role in a well-received production ofMacbeth at the Virginia Museum Theatre in Richmond, Virginia, under the direction ofKeith Fowler. The production was highly praised by theNew York Times.[10] From January 1974 until February 1982, Marshall was an occasional participant and the original host of the popular nightly radio drama,TheCBS Radio Mystery Theater.[3]
In film, Marshall was known for playing Juror 4 in12 Angry Men (1957), District Attorney Harold Horn inCompulsion (1959), Colonel Jerome Pakenham inTown Without Pity (1961), ColonelRufus S. Bratton inTora! Tora! Tora! (1970), Arthur inInteriors (1978), thePresident of the United States inSuperman II (1980), Arthur "Art" Smith (Ellen's father) inNational Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989),John N. Mitchell inNixon (1995), and Walter Sullivan inAbsolute Power (1997). His final performance was a reprisal of his role as Lawrence Preston in two TV Movies based onThe Defenders.
Marshall was selected as aFellow of theAmerican Bar Association and an officer of theAmerican Judicature Society, a national organization of judges, lawyers, and lay persons devoted to promoting the effective administration of justice.[11]
Marshall was married twice. He married Helen Wolf in 1931. They had two daughters—Jill and Degen.[12][13] Their marriage ended in divorce in 1953. He married Judith Coy in 1958.[12] They had two sons and a daughter — Sam, Jud, and Sarah.[13] They remained married until his death.[14][13]
As a member of the Committee for National Health Insurance, Marshall was a long-time advocate of government-provided health care in the United States.[15] During the 1968 United States presidential campaign, he filmed and narrated a political advertisement endorsing Democratic candidateHubert Humphrey.[16]
Marshall died oflung cancer at his home inBedford, New York, on August 24, 1998, at age 84.[17]
 |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1949–1958 | Studio One | (various) | 6 episodes |
| 1954 | Middle of the Night | Jerry | Live TV broadcast.The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse |
| 1955 | Studio One | Dr. Shratt | Episode "Donovans' Brain"(S7.E24) |
| 1957 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Ronald Grimes | Episode: "Mail Order Prophet" |
| 1957 | Suspicion | Paul Steppe | Episode: "Four O'Clock" |
| 1960 | The Islanders | Curt Cober | Episode: "Forbidden Cargo"(ABC) |
| 1961 | Rawhide | Ben Foley | Episode: "Incident of the Broken Word"(S3.E11)(CBS) |
| 1961–1965 | The Defenders | Lawrence Preston | 132 episodes(CBS) |
| 1966 | The Poppy Is Also a Flower | Coley Jones | TV movie |
| 1969 | The Littlest Angel | God | TV movie |
| 1969–1973 | The Bold Ones: The New Doctors | Dr. David Craig | 45 episodes(NBC) |
| 1970 | The Brady Bunch | J.P. Randolph | 1 episode |
| 1971 | Ellery Queen: Don't Look Behind You | Dr. Edward Cazalis | TV movie |
| 1971 | Night Gallery | Jared Soames, The Funeral Director | 1 episode |
| 1972 | Ironside | Dr. David Craig | 1 episode |
| 1972 | Pursuit | James Wright | ABC Movie of the Week |
| 1976 | Collision Course: Truman vs. MacArthur | PresidentHarry S. Truman | TV movie |
| 1977 | Equal Justice Under Law | Himself | TV miniseries |
| 1979 | Vampire | Harry Kilcoyne | TV movie |
| 1982–1983 | Falcon Crest | Henri Denault | 3 episodes |
| 1983 | Kennedy | Joseph P. Kennedy | TV miniseries |
| 1986 | Tales from the Darkside | Grandfather | Episode: "Seasons of Belief" |
| 1987 | At Mother's Request | Franklin Bradshaw | TV miniseries |
| 1988 | The Equalizer | Senator Virgil Thomas Blake | Episode: "The Last Campaign" |
| 1988–1989 | War and Remembrance | Dwight D. Eisenhower | TV miniseries |
| 1993 | The Tommyknockers | Ev Hillman | TV miniseries |
| 1994–1995 | Chicago Hope | Dr. Arthur Thurmond | 8 episodes |
| 1997 | Miss Evers' Boys | The Senate Chairman | TV movie |
| 1997 | The Defenders: Payback | Lawrence Preston | TV movie |
| 1998 | The Defenders: Choice of Evils | Lawrence Preston | TV movie |
That first year, they interviewed around 700 actors and picked 50. In that first group were people like Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift, Tom Ewell, John Forsythe, Julie Harris, Kim Hunter, Karl Malden, E.G. Marshall, Margaret Phillips, Maureen Stapleton, Kim Stanley, Jo Van Fleet, Eli Wallach, Ray Walston and David Wayne.
