Charlie Cantor
Cantor onThe Fred Allen Show withMinerva Pious, 1941.
Born	Charles Cantor (1898-09-04)September 4, 1898 Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	September 11, 1966(1966-09-11) (aged 68) Hollywood,California, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1921–1965
Spouse	Reece Cantor (1902–1968)

Charles Cantor (September 4, 1898 – September 11, 1966) was an American radio and television actor. Cantor was known for his frequent appearances on radio, sometimes, totaling 40 shows a week, during the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Cantor also appeared in nearly 30 television shows between 1951 and 1965.

Cantor's most notable roles on radio were those of Socrates Mulligan on the "Allen's Alley" segments ofThe Fred Allen Show, Clifton Finnegan onDuffy's Tavern and as Logan Jerkfinkel onThe Jack Benny Program.^[1] Cantor also was the second of three actors to portray Abie Levy's father Solomon Levy onAbie's Irish Rose.

Cantor was not related to comedianEddie Cantor (whose real last name was Itzkowitz and only used Cantor as astage surname).^[2] However, his brother was actor Nat Cantor.^[3]

Cantor first stepped onto the radio scene in 1921 as an actor for a local program atWHN in New York City. From there, Cantor's radio career took off. Between the 1930s and the 1950s, Cantor was a feature guest on anywhere between 20 and 40 radio programs a week, most of them comedy shows. Some of his radio guest star appearances includedThe Shadow,Dick Tracy,The Life of Riley,The Baby Snooks Show^[4] andThe Kate Smith Hour.^[5]

Cantor became popular with radio audiences in 1940 when he joined the cast ofThe Fred Allen Show. Cantor, along withAlan Reed andJohn Brown, joined the cast of the newTexaco Star Theater.^[6] When "Allen's Alley", a segment in which starFred Allen would stroll through an imaginary neighborhood conversing with imaginary neighbors, was first introduced in 1942, Cantor soon joined the list of Allen's "neighbors". Cantor portrayed the dim-witted Socrates Mulligan on the Alley.^[7]

Shortly after the premiere ofTexaco Star Theater, Cantor joined the cast ofDuffy's Tavern (which began in 1941) as Clifton Finnegan, a regular patron and the most frequently heard customer.

Cantor joined the cast ofAbie's Irish Rose, replacing Alfred White in the role of Solomon Levy. Sol Levy was a widower who owned his own business inthe Bronx and is Abie Levy's father.^[8] The program itself depicted the story of aJewish man who marries anIrish woman despite family objections. Cantor was soon replaced by his "Allen's Alley" co-starAlan Reed. The program ended in 1944.

Cantor made his television debut on the February 25, 1951 episode ofThe Colgate Comedy Hour.Lena Horne,Jack Albertson and Chris Barbery also made appearances on the episode. Eddie Cantor was the host of the episode.^[9] Cantor also had a recurring role as Logan Jerkfinkel on both the radio and television incarnations ofThe Jack Benny Program. He appeared on 16 episodes of the television version of the program between 1954 and 1965.^[10]

Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Cantor guest starred in 30 television shows. Along the list of Cantor's television credits includedThe Ray Bolger Show,Damon Runyon Theater,Alfred Hitchcock Presents,Schlitz Playhouse of Stars,Playhouse 90,December Bride,Bachelor Father,New Comedy Showcase,The Ann Sothern Show,The Red Skelton Show,The Danny Thomas Show,The Dick Van Dyke Show,Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre andThe Lucy Show. His last appearance was on a 1965 episode ofO.K. Crackerby!

Cantor died in Hollywood on September 11, 1966, a week after his 68th birthday.^[11] He was survived by his wife Reece Cantor, who herself died on May 16, 1968, at the age of 66. The couple are buried together atMount Sinai Memorial Park inLos Angeles,California.

• Charlie Cantor atIMDb
• Charlie Cantor atFind a Grave

• 1898 births
• 1966 deaths
• Burials at Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Articles with hCards