Mister Ed star Alan Young, who played the straight man to a talking horse, has died aged 96
Actor-comedian Alan Young, who played the amiable straight man to a talking horse in the 1960s sitcom Mister Ed, has died.
He was 96.
The English-born, Canadian-educated Young died Thursday, according to Jaime Larkin, spokeswoman for the retirement community where Young had lived for four years.
Famous supporting role: Alan Young starred alongside a talking horse in the hugely popular sixties TV series Mister Ed. He passed away Thursday at the age of 96
Young was already a well-known radio and TV comedian, having starred in his own Emmy-winning variety show, when Mister Ed was being readied at comedian George Burns' production company.
Burns is said to have told his staff: 'Get Alan Young. He looks like the kind of guy a horse would talk to.'
Mr. Ed was a golden Palomino who spoke only to his owner, Wilbur Post, played by Young. Fans enjoyed the horse's deep, droll voice and the goofy theme song lyrics: 'A horse is a horse, of course, of course'.
Cowboy star Allan 'Rocky' Lane supplied Mr. Ed's voice.
Memorable: Mr. Ed was a golden Palomino who spoke only to his owner, Wilbur Post, played by Young. Fans enjoyed the horse's deep, droll voice and the goofy theme song lyrics: 'A horse is a horse, of course, of course'
An eclectic group of celebrities including Clint Eastwood, Mae West and baseball great Sandy Koufax made guest appearances on the show.
A loose variation on the Francis the Talking Mule movies of the 1950s, Mister Ed was one of the few network series to begin in syndication. After six months, it moved to ABC in October 1961 and lasted four seasons.
When the cameras weren't rolling, the human and four-legged co-stars were friends, according to Young.
If Ed was reprimanded by his trainer, Young said, 'He would come over to me, like, 'Look what he said to me.''
Real pals: When the cameras weren't rolling, the human and four-legged co-stars were friends, according to Young
Young also appeared in a number of films, including Gentlemen Marry Brunettes, Tom Thumb, The Cat from Outer Space and The Time Machine, the latter the 1960 classic in which, speaking in a Scottish brogue, he played time traveler Rod Taylor's friend.
In later years, Young found a new career writing for and voicing cartoons, portraying Scrooge McDuck in 65 episodes for Disney's TV series Duck Tales.
His gentle comedy on The Alan Young Show caused TV Guide to hail him as 'the Charlie Chaplin of television,' and the fledgling Academy of Television Arts and Sciences awarded Emmys to Young as best actor and to the show as best variety series.
More kids programming: In later years, Young found a new career writing for and voicing cartoons, portraying Scrooge McDuck in 65 episodes for Disney's TV series Duck Tales
Winner: His gentle comedy on The Alan Young Show caused TV Guide to hail him as 'the Charlie Chaplin of television,' and the fledgling Academy of Television Arts and Sciences awarded Emmys to Young as best actor and to the show as best variety series
In 1940, Young married Mary Anne Grimes and they had a daughter, Alana, and a son, Alan Jr. The marriage ended in 1947.
In 1948 he married singer Virginia McCurdy, and they had a son, Cameron Angus, and a daughter, Wendy.
His children were with him when he died peacefully of natural causes.
Always involved: Alan stayed involved in Hollywood for decades (seen here in 2007)
- Tutor caught on camera having sex with student in classroom
- Latest ISIS execution video shows man's head crushed by rock
- Man teaches adorable wolf club how to howl
- Moment Paul Mason makes explosive attack against Boris...
- Dad covers 80's classic with adorable daughter in funny...
- Kitten delight! Adorable felines cosy up to their mum
- Demi Rose leaves little to the imagination in lacy black...
- The moment Karen Harding missed her national anthem cue
- Channel 4 documentary trailer: Secret Life of the Human Pups
- Arsenal target Xhaka scores a header for Monchengladbach
- Hillsborough survivor and his rescuer on Hillsborough heroes
- Brazilian TV host Richard Rasmussen runs from raging waters
- The VERY racy past of the British beauty sweeping Tyga off...
- Were EgyptAir passengers alive for three minutes as plane...
- Flight MS804 was on fire BEFORE it crashed: French...
- One-legged Albanian murderer who posed as a Kosovan refugee...
- The final goodbye: Heartbreaking pictures show couple's last...
- Secret life of the 'human pups': Weird world of the grown...
- EXCLUSIVE: 'How could a father act this way?' David Ginola's...
- Murder probe launched as woman in her 30s 'is killed in...
- Death of the Cockney: A BBC film, Last Whites Of The East...
- Revealed: 'Moron' who gave alcoholic England ace Paul...
- ‘To be able to say thank you means the world to me’:...
- 'I call him Yoko because a lot of people don't like what...