Earl Holliman

Henry Earl Holliman was born on September 11, 1928, in Delhi, Louisiana. His biological father, William A. Frost, was a farmer who died six months before his birth. His mother, Mary Smith, was living in poverty with several other children and gave him up for adoption at birth, while her other children were sent to orphanages until she could take them all back, which she did. a traveling oilfield worker, and his wife Velma, a waitress, who then gave him the name Henry Earl Holliman. Although his upbringing and family history have strong ties to Louisiana, during his teenage years he and his family lived in Kerrville, Texas, for a time, as well as some parts of Arkansas, which he once stated made him out to be a "red-blooded Ark-La-Texan". Holliman's early years were normal until Henry died when he was 13. Earl credited Henry and Velma with providing him with so much love and encouragement that despite their own poverty Holliman saved money from his positions as an usher at the Strand Theatre, as a newsboy for The Shreveport Times, before he left Louisiana for Hollywood. After an unsuccessful first attempt finding work in the film industry, he soon returned to Louisiana after being in California for only one week. Meanwhile, Velma had remarried, and Holliman disliked his new stepfather Guy Bellotte so much that he lied about his age and enlisted in the United States Navy during World War II. Holliman returned home, worked in the oilfields in his spare time, and after some attendance at Louisiana Avenue, Fair Park, and Byrd High School in Shreveport, completed his public education at Oil City High School in Oil City, graduating with high honors When he left the Navy for good, he studied acting at the Pasadena Playhouse. He also graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles. During the time he studied acting at both the Playhouse and UCLA, he supplemented his income working as a file clerk for Blue Cross (later known as Blue Cross Blue Shield Association) and with North American Aviation constructing airplanes. ==Career==

Film While at the Pasadena Playhouse, Holliman entered the Paramount lot by claiming he had an appointment with a studio barber. Eventually he became friendly with studio executives. Holliman first got a small bit part opposite Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis in Scared Stiff (1953). Next he was cast as a marine in The Girls of Pleasure Island (1953), for which he needed a G.I. haircut. Finally he saw the barber and ended up with a haircut (and bangs) that changed his life. After he gained popularity for his image following a change in hairstyle, he then followed with three more films released in 1953. he was cast in the role instead of Elvis Presley. His role in Rainmaker brought him such praise that columnist Louella Parsons cited him being "as dedicated as though he were Marlon Brando and Anthony Perkins combined". He was the soft-spoken son-in-law of rancher Bick Benedict, played by Rock Hudson, in the epic Western saga Giant. Holliman played many roles set in the American West. He was Wyatt Earp's deputy in Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, co-starring Lancaster and Kirk Douglas, and a sniveling coward guilty of murdering and raping the wife of a lawman (Kirk Douglas) in Last Train from Gun Hill. In 1970 and 1971, Holliman made two appearances in the Western comedy series Alias Smith and Jones starring Pete Duel and Ben Murphy. '' From 1974 to 1978, he portrayed Sergeant Bill Crowley opposite Angie Dickinson in the Police Woman series. He co-starred in all 91 episodes of the hit series (which he later remarked changed his life), playing the police department superior of undercover officer Pepper Anderson. Holliman continued to appear in television guest roles throughout the 1970s to 1990s. He shared a starring role in the CBS movie Country Gold (a made for television remake of All About Eve), filmed on location in Nashville, Tennessee, which also featured Loni Anderson, Linda Hamilton, and Cooper Huckabee. He was also a regular celebrity panelist on Hollywood Squares, where he was recognized for his ability to trick the contestants with believable bluff answers. In 1991 and 1994, Holliman had two guest-star roles on Murder, She Wrote. Later in his career, Holliman had a recurring role as Fred Duffy, the father of the title character Caroline Duffy, on Caroline in the City, appearing in three episodes, and he additionally starred in the 1997–99 television series Night Man as Frank Dominus, a disgraced former police officer and father of the main character. In May 1976, he guest-starred on The John Davidson Show singing a vaudeville-style version of "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" with Davidson, as well as performing his own solo version of The Carpenters track, "Rainy Days and Mondays". Stage After Wide Country ended its run in April 1963, Holliman spent the next two months traveling the country in the acclaimed musical Oklahoma! appearing in the lead role of Curly McLain. Later that same year, he appeared in the role of Mike Mitchell in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, summer tour of Sunday in New York Between September 4 and 9, 1963, he starred in a production of The Tender Trap, opposite Anthony George, in the role of Charlie Y. Reader at the Westchester County Playhouse in Dobbs Ferry, New York. In 1968, he starred in the Los Angeles Mark Taper Forum production of Tennessee Williams' Camino Real in the role of Kilroy; his performance was well received by critics and Williams himself not only came to see Earl's performance about 11 times, but he also sent him a correspondence praising his work in both Real and Streetcar as being "the best" interpretations of the characters "Kilroy" and "Mitch" he had even seen. From September 15 to October 14, 1981, he starred in a stage production of Mister Roberts at the Fiesta Dinner Playhouse in San Antonio, Texas, of which he had ownership. He occasionally performed at his theater when he was not working in Hollywood; other productions in which he appeared there include Arsenic and Old Lace as Mortimer Brewster from April 1 to May 4, 1980, and Same Time, Next Year with Julie Sommars in 1983. The facility closed after 1987. He also appeared in stage productions of the 1973 revival of A Streetcar Named Desire as Mitch and the 1977 Santa Monica Civic production of A Chorus Line as Zach the Choreographer. ==Personal life and death==

In 1960, Holliman lived in Paris, in a flat on the Left Bank. While he adopted the French culture and language quite rapidly, he maintained his reputation for being "as American as apple pie." After returning to the United States to live, Holliman became a longtime resident of Studio City, California. In 1976, he was the grand marshal of the Annual Fourth of July Parade in Huntington Beach, California. In 2005, Holliman announced to a New York Post columnist that “his pal”, actor Anthony George, had died at age 84. Holliman died in hospice care at his home in Studio City, on November 25, 2024, at the age of 96. Though he never spoke publicly about his sexuality, Holliman was confirmed to have had a male spouse at the time of his death in November 2024; his husband, Craig Curtis, spoke publicly to The Hollywood Reporter to confirm his death. Charitable works and activism During the late 1970s, he served as the national honorary chairman for the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation. Holliman was a vegetarian and against using animal fur for clothing. He was known for his work as an animal rights activist, including serving for more than 25 years as president of Actors and Others for Animals. He was well known for nursing animals on his own property, at one point feeding roughly 500 pigeons in a day, as well as healing a wounded dove and a blind opossum inside his home. ==Awards and nominations==

In addition to his Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture for The Rainmaker, he also earned a nomination for a Golden Globe Award for "Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Television Series" for his performance alongside Delta Burke in the short-lived 1992 sitcom Delta. ==See also==