Robert Preston
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- June 8, 1918
- Died
- March 21, 1987
- Birthplace
- Newton Highlands, Massachusetts, USA
Robert Preston (June 8, 1918 – March 21, 1987) was an American stage and film actor and singer, best known for his collaboration with composer Meredith Willson and originating the role of Professor Harold Hill in the 1957 musical The Music Man and the 1962 film adaptation; the film earned him his first of two Golden Globe Award nominations. Preston collaborated twice with filmmaker Blake Edwards, first in S.O.B. (1981) and again in Victor/Victoria (1982). For portraying Carroll "Toddy" Todd in the latter, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor at the 55th Academy Awards. Preston was born Robert Preston Meservey in Newton, Massachusetts, the son of a garment worker and a record store clerk. He attended Abraham Lincoln High School, training as a musician and playing several instruments, but quit at age sixteen to study acting at the Pasadena Community Playhouse. Preston made his Broadway debut in 1940 in the play The Philadelphia Story. He went on to star in a number of successful Broadway musicals, including The Pajama Game (1954), Damn Yankees (1955), and I Do! I Do! (1966). He also appeared in a number of films, including The Music Man (1962), The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1960), and Victor/Victoria (1982). Preston was a versatile actor who could play a wide range of roles. He was known for his charisma, his singing voice, and his comic timing. He was a two-time Tony Award winner and was nominated for an Academy Award. He was also a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame. Preston died of cancer in 1987 at the age of 68. He was survived by his wife, Catherine Craig; the couple had no children. A biography of the actor, @Robert Preston - Forever The Music Man”, was published in 2022.
Filmography
Disclosure 2020
as Carole 'Toddy' Todd (archive footage)
Chita Rivera: A Lot Of Livin' To Do 2015
as Self (archive footage)
Sam Peckinpah's West: Legacy of a Hollywood Renegade 2004
as Self (archive footage)
Broadway's Lost Treasures 2003
as Harold Hill (segment "The Music Man")
Outrage! 1986
as Dennis Riordan
Night of 100 Stars II 1985
as Self
Finnegan Begin Again 1985
as Mike Finnegan
The Last Starfighter 1984
as Centauri
Going Hollywood: The '30s 1984
as Self - Host
September Gun 1983
as Ben Sunday
Rehearsal for Murder 1982
as Alex Dennison
Victor/Victoria 1982
as Carroll 'Toddy' Todd
Night of 100 Stars 1982
as Self
S.O.B. 1981
as Dr. Irving Finegarten
The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg 1980
as Stranger
Semi-Tough 1977
as Big Ed Bookman
My Father's House 1975
as Tom Lindholm Sr.
Mame 1974
as Beauregard
Child's Play 1972
as Joseph Dobbs
Junior Bonner 1972
as Ace Bonner
All the Way Home 1963
as Jay Follet
Island of Love 1963
as Steve Blair
How the West Was Won 1962
as Roger Morgan
The Music Man 1962
as Harold Hill
The Dark at the Top of the Stairs 1960
as Rubin Flood
Made in Heaven 1956
as Zachary Meredith
Confession 1956
as Self - Host
Sentinels in the Air 1956
as Narrator (voice)
The Last Frontier 1955
as Col. Frank Marston
Face to Face 1952
as Jack Potter
My Outlaw Brother 1951
as Joe Walter
Best of the Badmen 1951
as Matthew Fowler
Cloudburst 1951
as John Graham
When I Grow Up 1951
as Father Reed
The Sundowners 1950
as James Cloud ('Kid Wichita')
The Lady Gambles 1949
as David Boothe
Tulsa 1949
as Brad Brady
Whispering Smith 1948
as Murray Sinclair
Blood on the Moon 1948
as Tate Riling
Big City 1948
as Rev. Philip Y. Andrews
Wild Harvest 1947
as Jim Davis
Variety Girl 1947
as Robert Preston
The Macomber Affair 1947
as Francis Macomber
Night Plane from Chungking 1943
as Nick Stanton
Wings Up 1943
as Himself
Wake Island 1942
as Pvt. Joe Doyle
This Gun for Hire 1942
as Det. Michael Crane
Reap the Wild Wind 1942
as Dan Cutler
Star Spangled Rhythm 1942
as Robert Preston (uncredited)
Pacific Blackout 1941
as Robert Draper
The Night of January 16th 1941
as Steve Van Ruyle
New York Town 1941
as Paul Bryson, Jr.
Parachute Battalion 1941
as Donald Morse
The Lady from Cheyenne 1941
as Steve Lewis
North West Mounted Police 1940
as Ronnie Logan
Moon Over Burma 1940
as Chuck Lane
Typhoon 1940
as Johnny Potter
Beau Geste 1939
as Digby Geste
Union Pacific 1939
as Dick Allen
Disbarred 1939
as Bradley Kent
Illegal Traffic 1938
as Charles Bent Martin
King of Alcatraz 1938
as Robert MacArthur
Credits from TMDB.