Howard Morris, Crocodile and Comic Genius

What’s Howard Morris best known for? There may not be one answer to that question.

Morris was a second banana with Sid Caesar in the 1950s, appeared on occasion with Andy Griffith in the ‘60s and sat behind a microphone supplying voices for a number of characters created at the Hanna-Barbera studio (until he told Joe Barbera to do something physical which good taste prevents us from repeating) and several other cartoon makers.

None of this includes his career as a director; you’ll see his name on the credits of Hogan’s Heroes. If I recall, he also directed a number of commercials for McDonald’s featuring the big costumed characters.

Howie was over-the-top in a number of his TV roles but he was a Shakespearean actor during and shortly after World War Two.

The “comic genius” label was imposed on Morris by no less than Sid Caesar himself.

Here are some short newspaper columns about Howie. The first one is from the Tarrytown News of February 1, 1956. The typesetter was evidently distracted as it’s missing a line of text. The second story is from King Features Syndicate, published January 15, 1958. Morris has found plenty of guest work, he says. The third piece is from United Press International, December 20, 1963. Morris apparently didn’t find plenty of guest work.

Whether you remember him best as Uncle Goopy, Ernest T. Bass or Jet Screamer, I’m sure you appreciated what a funny man he was. Morris died on May 31, 2005. He was 85.

Howard Morris Had Start As Crocodile Impersonator
By CARYL POSNER
LARCHMONT—Mr. Morris came to tea the other afternoon.
He is the new owner of the spacious Norman stucco home of 17 South Drive in Larchmont's Rouken Glen and his backyard touches ours. His full name is Howard Morris and he's the "little guy" on Sid Caesar's television program.
At tea we chatted of houses, nurses, families (he spoke of his six-week-old daughter, Kim), furniture, the neighborhood baby sitting brigade, and he asked where a good gardener might be found. Even in January, a primary worry of this friendly and neat-looking man was that his grounds most not become unkempt.
His wife, the former Helen McGowan, has been a private detective, a newspaper copy girl and airline stewardess. One of her favorite hobbies is astronomy. Kim's nurse and a cocker spaniel complete the family circle.
Man Of Many Parts
Often called the "man of many parts," the thirty-six-year-old actor is at his best when in disguise — and most charming when in one's living room as himself. The five foot, six-inch pixieish actor has been hiding behind a beard and wrinkles most of his career. However, he is also convincing when portraying a child, a court jester, when poking gentle fun at the suburban commuter, as one of the inimitable "Haircuts," as a lyrical Italian, an emotional Frenchman, a humorous German or aging Prussian militarist — each with a distinctly individual flavor.
A man of great energy, Mr. Morris recalls his role as the old Frenchman in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes." At the time he was doubling in television's "Your Show of Shows." From 9 to 9:30 he would appear on the TV show. He would then change, race over to the theater, change again and be seen on stage precisely in time for his 10:10 entrance!
"Following high school I became a runner on Wall Street," he noted, "then and there I made up my mind that business was not for me." He received a scholarship to NYC and began the study of dramatics. He appeared with the Washington Square Players in numerous Summer stock productions, found a niche in radio impersonating crocodiles and lost sheep and was drafted.
Serving in the Pacific theatre from 1942 to 1945, he became first sergeant in Major Maurice Evans' special service entertainment unit (Carl Reiner, third in the Caesar triumvirate, was a private in same unit,), appearing in Evans' productions of "Hamlet," and "Macbeth", both in service and later on Broadway.
The turning point in Howard Morris' career was the beginning of his association with Sid Caesar on Max Liebman's "Broadway Revue". When Caesar later formed his own production unit Howie went along as a member of "Your Show of Shows." The star of the present "Caesar's [MISSING LINE] Morris as a "comic genius whose creative ability makes the 'Hour' tick." Mr. Morris believes that comedy must be based on "real, plausible, everyday lifelike situations and characters," and notes that the current television show tries to attain this.

Howard Morris Is Busy Acting Now
By STEVEN H. SCHEUER
Howard Morris, who turns up as a small-time hood on tonight's Kraft Theater, "Code Of The Corner," makes another appearance on TV later this month on the Patrice Munsel show. In fact, ever since the NBC Version of the Sid Caesar show folded, Howie's been all over the channels.
"I'm doing what any actor should be doing," said Howie. "I'm working regularly. I started as an actor before I became identified as a comic and, now that I'm no longer with Sid, I'm back in the open market again. Working with Caesar, there just wasn't the time or the inclination to look for other parts."
Howie sighed. "It's fascinating to be available."

On the subject of Sid Caesar, with whom Howie had been identified for years, he had only good things to say.
"I think it's very important that he succeeds," said Howie about Caesar's new show, debuting on ABC on Jan. 26, "important to you and to everybody who's been complaining about low TV standards. I have all sorts of admiration for Sid and I might have continued with him, but I just didn't feel I belonged on his new half-hour show."
One of Howie's biggest problems is type-casting. Most TV shows don't even consider him for dramatic roles, continuing to regard him as a comic. He considers a role such as tonight's a break. "But," he reasons, "tonight I'm playing a mob member with a problem. That's why I get bumped off before the end of the show. Now I bet I'll get called for all of TV's corpse work."

Morris Gets Rolling Again In Hollywood
By JOSEPH FINNIGAN
UPI Hollywood Correspondent
HOLLYWOOD (UPI)—Actor Howard Morris is hot, which means he's either running from the police or he's gainfully employed in Hollywood.
Fortunately for Howard, the latter is true. After years of sporadic employment Howard is a sought after commodity in filmland's television studios.
Morris was a sidekick of Sid Caesar on that comedian's old video show. The two worked together nine years until Sid's series went off the air in 1957. Since then, Caesar has gotten a new show. Howard hasn't.
Morris "cooled," as they say in Hollywood, for more than five years. In fact he almost froze.
Howard, who is now directing, acting and writing for such programs as "The Dick Van Dyke Show," "Danny Kaye Show," and Bill Dana's series, recently told about his life in the arctic of show Hollywood.
"THE FACT THAT careers cool and then get hot again for no apparent reason, hot or cold, is quite apparent," he said. "I'm sure that any actor in the business has gone through it.
"I haven't had a steady job since 1957 when Sid went off the air. Now I've got all kinds of steady jobs. I'm working on a long term directing-acting contract with Sheldon Leonard."
Leonard, one-time-gangster actor turned television executive, is partnered with Danny Thomas in a successful production company. Also associated with the firm is Carl Reiner who helped his friend Morris get his career back in high gear.
The two worked together on Caesar's old show and were also in the army together.
Howard believes that his association with Caesar made such an impression on video producers that they didn't realize he was out of work when the show left the air.
"YOU CAN GO around for years with torn bloomers but nobody knows because they're inside your pants," he said. "They assume you're still going."
There are two problems which face an actor shivering in the cool period of his career. He must pay the bills and find some way of getting back into the television and movie game.
Some actors sit around and cry, yell at their personal manager, fire their agent and browbeat their publicist. Morris did voice work in television commercials. "Quite frankly that's what sustained me over the rough times," he said. "Now it's a blessed addition and the residuals come rolling in."
Commercials paid the living expenses. To rebuild the career, Morris spent months as an observer of shows being produced by the Leonard-Thomas Co.
Howard was observing the directors, preparing himself for that phase of video.
But to Morris, heating up a frigid career takes more than just luck.
"If a guy has problems and wants to do something about them he has to pull himself up by his bootstraps," he said, also admitting that it helps to have a few friends around town.