Morris Ankrum
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- August 28, 1896
- Died
- September 2, 1964
- Birthplace
- Danville, Illinois, USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Morris Ankrum (born Morris Nussbaum, August 28, 1896 – September 2, 1964) was an American radio, television and film character actor. Before signing with Paramount Pictures in the 1930s, Nussbaum had already changed his last name to Ankrum. Upon signing with the studio, he chose to use the name "Stephen Morris" before changing it to Morris Ankrum in 1939. Ankrum's stern visage and sharply defined features helped cast him in supporting roles as stalwart authority figures, including scientists, military men (particularly army officers), judges and even psychiatrists in more than 150 films, mostly B movies. One standout role was in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's production of Tennessee Johnson (1942), a biographical film about Andrew Johnson, the 17th U.S. president. As Sen. Jefferson Davis, Ankrum movingly addresses the United States Senate upon his resignation to lead the Confederate States of America as that republic's first—and only—president. Ankrum's film career was extensive and spanned 30 years. His credits were largely concentrated in the western and science-fiction genres. Ankrum appeared in such westerns as Ride 'Em Cowboy in 1942, Vera Cruz opposite Gary Cooper and Burt Lancaster, Apache (1954), and Cattle Queen of Montana with Barbara Stanwyck and Ronald Reagan. In the sci-fi genre, he appeared in Rocketship X-M (1950), Flight to Mars (1951), as a Martian, Red Planet Mars (1952), playing the United States Secretary of Defense; the cult classic Invaders From Mars (1953), playing a United States Army officer; and as an Army general in Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956). In 1957 he played a psychiatrist in the cult sci-fi classic Kronos and had military-officer roles in Beginning of the End and The Giant Claw.
Filmography
The Movie Orgy 1968
as Self (archive footage)
Guns of Diablo 1964
as Ray Macklin
X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes 1963
as Mr. Bowhead (uncredited)
Tower of London 1962
as The Archbishop
Most Dangerous Man Alive 1961
as Capt. Davis
The Little Shepherd Of Kingdom Come 1961
as Gen. Lew Wallace
From the Earth to the Moon 1958
as President Ulysses S. Grant
Tarawa Beachhead 1958
as Chief of Staff, Pearl Harbor (uncredited)
Frontier Gun 1958
as Andrew Barton
The Saga of Hemp Brown 1958
as Bo Slauter
Curse of the Faceless Man 1958
as Narrator (unconfirmed)
Twilight for the Gods 1958
as Sea Captain
Badman's Country 1958
as Mayor Coleman
How to Make a Monster 1958
as Police Capt. Hancock
Young and Wild 1958
as Police Capt. Egan
Giant from the Unknown 1958
as Dr. Frederick Cleveland
The Power of the Resurrection 1958
as Annas
Omar Khayyam 1957
as Sharain's Father
Beginning of the End 1957
as Gen. John Hanson
The Giant Claw 1957
as Lt. Gen. Edward Considine
Half Human: The Story of the Abominable Snowman 1957
as Dr. Carl Jordan
Kronos 1957
as Dr. Albert Stern
Hell's Crossroads 1957
as Wheeler
Zombies of Mora Tau 1957
as Dr. Jonathan Eggert
Down Liberty Road 1957
as Fred Schroder
Drango 1957
as Henry Calder
Naked Gun 1956
as Sheriff Jim Jackson (as Morrie Ankrum)
The Desperados Are in Town 1956
as Mr. Rutherford
Walk the Proud Land 1956
as Gen. Wade
Earth vs. the Flying Saucers 1956
as Brig. Gen. John Hanley
Quincannon, Frontier Scout 1956
as Col. Harry Conover
When Gangland Strikes 1956
as Leo Fantzler
Fury at Gunsight Pass 1956
as Doc Phillips
No Man's Woman 1955
as Capt. Hostedder
Tennessee's Partner 1955
as Judge Parker
Duel on the Mississippi 1955
as Magistrate (uncredited)
The Last Command 1955
Actor
The Eternal Sea 1955
as Vice-Adm. Arthur Dewey Struble
The Silver Star 1955
as Charlie Childress
Chief Crazy Horse 1955
as Red Cloud
Crashout 1955
as Head Guard
The Little Lamb: A Christmas Story 1955
as Azar the Shepherd
Vera Cruz 1954
as Gen. Ramírez
The Steel Cage 1954
as Prison Board Member Garvey, segment "The Hostages"
Three Young Texans 1954
as Jeff Blair
Cattle Queen of Montana 1954
as J.I. 'Pop' Jones
Two Guns and a Badge 1954
as Sheriff Jackson
Apache 1954
as Dawson
The Outlaw Stallion 1954
as Sheriff
Silver Lode 1954
as Zachary Evans
Drums Across the River 1954
as Chief Ouray
Southwest Passage 1954
as Dr. Stanton
Taza, Son of Cochise 1954
as Grey Eagle
Flight Nurse 1953
as Interrogation Officer
The Moonlighter 1953
as Alexander Prince
Mexican Manhunt 1953
as Tip Morgan
Sky Commando 1953
as Gen. W.R. Combs
Devil's Canyon 1953
as Ed
Arena 1953
as Bucky Hillberry
Invaders from Mars 1953
as Colonel Fielding
I Beheld His Glory 1953
as Peter
Fort Vengeance 1953
as Chief Crowfoot
The Man Behind The Gun 1953
as Bram Creegan
Hiawatha 1952
as Iagoo
A Star Shall Rise 1952
as King Herod
Because of You 1952
as Dr. Travis
The Raiders 1952
as Thomas Ainsworth
Son of Ali Baba 1952
as Ali Baba
Red Planet Mars 1952
as Secretary of Defense Sparks
Mutiny 1952
as Capt. Radford
Fort Osage 1952
as Arthur Pickett
My Favorite Spy 1951
as Gen. Frazer
Flight to Mars 1951
as Ikron
Tomorrow Is Another Day 1951
as Hugh Wagner
Along the Great Divide 1951
as Ed Roden
Fighting Coast Guard 1951
as Navy Captain
The Lion Hunters 1951
as Tom Forbes
The Redhead and the Cowboy 1951
as Sheriff
Short Grass 1950
as Hal Fenton
Southside 1-1000 1950
as Eugene Deane
Rocketship X-M 1950
as Dr. Ralph Fleming
In a Lonely Place 1950
as Lloyd Barnes
The Damned Don't Cry 1950
as Jim Whitehead
Borderline 1950
as Bill Whittaker
Chain Lightning 1950
as Ed Bostwick
The Fountainhead 1949
as Prosecutor (uncredited)
Colorado Territory 1949
as United States Marshal
We Were Strangers 1949
as M. Seymour
Bad Men of Tombstone 1949
as Mr. Jones
Joan of Arc 1948
as Poton de Xaintrailles, Captain
For the Love of Mary 1948
as Adm. Walton
The Fabulous Fraud 1948
as Blind Girl's Father
Fighting Back 1948
as Robert J. Higby
Souvenirs of Death 1948
as Gangster (uncredited)
High Wall 1947
as Dr. Stanley Griffin
Good News 1947
as Dean Griswold
Desire Me 1947
as Hector Martin
Merton of the Movies 1947
as Goodfellow's Club Manager (uncredited)
Cynthia 1947
as Mr. Phillips, Principal
Song of the Thin Man 1947
as Inspector (uncredited)
The Sea of Grass 1947
as A.J. Crane
Little Mister Jim 1947
as Col. W.I. Starwell
The Mighty McGurk 1947
as Fowles
Lady in the Lake 1946
as Eugene Grayson
Courage of Lassie 1946
as Farmer Crews
The Cockeyed Miracle 1946
as Dr. Wilson
The Green Years 1946
as Dr. Galbraith (uncredited)
The Postman Always Rings Twice 1946
as Judge (uncredited)
The Harvey Girls 1946
as Reverend Claggett
Adventure 1945
as Mr. Ludlow - Farmer (uncredited)
Purity Squad 1945
as Dr. Adams (uncredited)
The Hidden Eye 1945
as Ferris (henchman)
Phantoms, Inc. 1945
as Narrator (voice)
Fall Guy 1945
as District Attorney (uncredited)
The Thin Man Goes Home 1944
as Willoughby Peavy
Dark Shadows 1944
as Lt. Pat McKay
Gentle Annie 1944
as Deputy Gansby
Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo 1944
as Adm. William F. Halsey - Captain of the 'Hornet' (uncredited)
Return from Nowhere 1944
as Doctor (uncredited)
Barbary Coast Gent 1944
as Alec Veeder
Marriage Is a Private Affair 1944
as Ed Scofield
Meet the People 1944
as Monte Rowland
Main Street Today 1944
as Mayor Charlie Maxwell (uncredited)
Rationing 1944
as Morgan
The Heavenly Body 1944
as Dr. Green
The Cross of Lorraine 1943
as Col. Demas (uncredited)
Swing Fever 1943
as Dan Conlon
Best Foot Forward 1943
as Col. Harkrider
Let's Face It 1943
as Man in Sun Shell Cafe
Dixie Dugan 1943
as Editor
Reunion in France 1942
as Martin
Time to Kill 1942
as Alexander Morny
Tennessee Johnson 1942
as Jefferson Davis
The Omaha Trail 1942
as Henchman Job
The Loves of Edgar Allan Poe 1942
as Mr. Graham
Tales of Manhattan 1942
as Judge
Ten Gentlemen from West Point 1942
as Wood
Roxie Hart 1942
as Martin S. Harrison
Ride 'Em Cowboy 1942
as Ace Anderson
Road Agent 1941
as Big John Morgan
I Wake Up Screaming 1941
as Assistant District Attorney
The Bandit Trail 1941
as Red Haggerty
This Woman Is Mine 1941
as Roussel
Wide Open Town 1941
as Jim Stuart
Pirates on Horseback 1941
as Ace Gibson
Border Vigilantes 1941
as Dan Forbes
The Roundup 1941
as 'Parenthesis'
In Old Colorado 1941
as Weiler, Davidson's Foreman
Doomed Caravan 1941
as Stephen Westcott
Three Men from Texas 1940
as Bruce Morgan
Cherokee Strip 1940
as Hawk Barrett
Buck Benny Rides Again 1940
as Second Outlaw
The Light of Western Stars 1940
as Nat Hayworth
The Showdown 1940
as Baron Rendor
Knights of the Range 1940
as Gamecock
Rustlers' Valley 1937
as Glen Randall
North of the Rio Grande 1937
as Henry Stoneham
Hills of Old Wyoming 1937
as Andrews
Borderland 1937
as Loco
Trail Dust 1936
as Tex Anderson
Hopalong Cassidy Returns 1936
as Blackie Felton
Stand Up and Cheer! 1934
as Washington Press Correspondent
Credits from TMDB.