Top 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsMost Popular Video GamesMost Popular Music VideosMost Popular Podcasts
    Release CalendarBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersSundance Film FestivalIndependent Spirit AwardsBlack History MonthSXSWSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
Sign In
New Customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Biography
  • Awards
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Keenan Wynn(1916-1986)

  • Actor
  • Stunts
  • Soundtrack
IMDbProStarmeter
See rank
Keenan Wynn c. 1945 / MGM
A sketch comedy feature film featuring several award nominated actors. Note: No harm was done to the careers of these actors in the filming of this motion picture.
Play trailer2:40
Imps* (1983)
62 Videos
99+ Photos
The talented scion of a show-business family, Keenan Wynn's father was the great burlesque and television buffoon Ed Wynn while his maternal grandfather, Frank Keenan, earned distinction on the other side of the entertainment ladder as a Shakespearean tragedian. Mother Hilda Keenan was also a minor actress. Born in New York City on July 27, 1916, during the height of his father's Broadway popularity, Keenan grew up in the lap of luxury and was educated at St. John's Military Academy. He initially followed in his grandfather's dramatic footsteps as opposed to his father's clown shoes, making his professional bow in Maine with the Lakewood Players in a production of "Accent of Youth". By 1937, he was on Broadway with "Hitch Your Wagon" in two small roles. During the run of the show, he met first wife, actress Evie Wynn Johnson, who became his coach, manager and advisor. At the same time, he began to get steady radio work.

Through the aid and encouragement of his wife and her contacts, he eventually wrangled screen tests for both 20th Century-Fox and MGM. Turned down by the first studio, he signed with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer at a rather low pay scale of $300 a week. At MGM, Keenan became the utilitarian character player, adept at playing almost anything handed to him. Balding, homely but with real distinctive, imposing features, he made his unbilled debut in Somewhere I'll Find You (1942), and went on to play a grab-bag of shady brutes, usually in comic relief style. He was Gene Kelly's agent in For Me and My Gal (1942), a gangster in Lost Angel (1943), a soldier buddy to Robert Walker in See Here, Private Hargrove (1944) and its sequel; a drunk in a diner in The Clock (1945); Lucille Ball's tipsy beau in the Katharine Hepburn / Spencer Tracy vehicle Without Love (1945); and a news editor paired up with Ms. Ball again in Easy to Wed (1946). Moreover, he was given "B" co-star assignments in lesser material such as The Thrill of Brazil (1946), No Leave, No Love (1946) and The Cockeyed Miracle (1946).

Two sons were born to Keenan and Eve during the war years but he and Eve soon drifted apart. In 1946, the couple filed divorce papers with a third-party involvement in the form of family close friend and MGM star Van Johnson. Eve went on to marry Johnson the day after the couple's divorce was decreed in 1947. Keenan's second marriage in 1949 to Betty Jane Butler lasted only four years.

He resigned with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in the postwar years and ventured on as one of Hollywood's strongest character players. The drawback was that not many of his roles were high-quality challenges, roles that might have moved him toward the top of the MGM hierarchy. The more scene-stealing roles that came to him were his disagreeable, self-important burlesque star in the Clark Gable starrer The Hucksters (1947); his jazz reedman in Song of the Thin Man (1947); and the songwriter friend to Kirk Douglas in My Dear Secretary (1948). He was also given his quota of vulgar, blunt-talking villains to play, both comically and dramatically, in such films as Love That Brute (1950), Kind Lady (1951) and, in particular, his Runyonesque gangster in the musical classic Kiss Me Kate (1953). Partnered with co-hort James Whitmore, their rendering of "Brush Up Your Shakespeare" was one of many comedy highlights. He also doled out a number of brash soldier types in such films as Fearless Fagan (1952), Battle Circus (1953), Code Two (1953) and Men of the Fighting Lady (1954).

After leaving Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1954, he set his sights on television, but the lure of films (and steady work) never stopped. In The Great Man (1956), Keenan finally appeared with father Ed Wynn, who had suffered a major career slide and subsequent nervous breakdown. Keenan, who at one time had gone to great lengths to extricate himself from his father's famous shadow, was now an instrument of encouragement. He suggested the elder Wynn abandon his old-styled clowning in favor of a serious character acting. His father agreed to try and appeared in a small role in the film but they had no scenes together. The risk worked. The following year both were being hailed for their superlative work together in the dramatic television production Requiem for a Heavyweight (1956).

Disney employed both father and son in the 1960s with a mustachioed Keenan as an exceptionally hissable villain in the studio's comedy feature The Absent Minded Professor (1961) and its sequel, Son of Flubber (1963). His hammy antics were spurred on in Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), The Great Race (1965), Viva Max (1969) and Pretty Maids All in a Row (1971), along with standard, if not always stand-out, television work. His annoying, fast-talking conmen, scheming tycoons and other unappetizing cronies never lost their demand. In 1975, he earned an Emmy Award nomination for his guest-starring role on Police Woman (1974).

Though his later years were marred by a severe case of tinnitus (a ringing in the ear that blocks out exterior sound), he was able to continue acting until the very end. One of his last roles was as a regular on the short-lived television series The Last Precinct (1986). Sons Ned Wynn ("Edmund") and Tracy Keenan Wynn became successful writers in the business. On October 14, 1986, Keenan Wynn died of pancreatic cancer at age 70 and was survived by third wife Sharley Jean Hudson, who had three daughters by him: Hilda, Emily and Edwina. His granddaughter Jessica Keenan Wynn (Edwina's daughter) is also a Broadway singer and actress.
BornJuly 27, 1916
DiedOctober 14, 1986(70)
BornJuly 27, 1916
DiedOctober 14, 1986(70)
IMDbProStarmeter
See rank
  • Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy

Photos155

Gregory Peck, Edward G. Robinson, Omar Sharif, Lee J. Cobb, David Garfield, Raymond Massey, Burgess Meredith, Shelley Morrison, Dick Peabody, Robert Phillips, Robert Porter, Anthony Quayle, Eli Wallach, and Keenan Wynn in Mackenna's Gold (1969)
Eli Wallach and Keenan Wynn in Mackenna's Gold (1969)
Keenan Wynn in Mackenna's Gold (1969)
Gregory Peck, Omar Sharif, Ted Cassidy, Dick Peabody, Robert Phillips, and Keenan Wynn in Mackenna's Gold (1969)
Gregory Peck, Omar Sharif, Madeleine Taylor Holmes, Julie Newmar, Dick Peabody, Robert Phillips, and Keenan Wynn in Mackenna's Gold (1969)
James Westerfield and Keenan Wynn in The Absent Minded Professor (1961)
Charlie Briggs, Tommy Kirk, Don Ross, and Keenan Wynn in The Absent Minded Professor (1961)
Fred MacMurray, Nancy Olson, and Keenan Wynn in The Absent Minded Professor (1961)
Tommy Kirk and Keenan Wynn in The Absent Minded Professor (1961)
Fred MacMurray and Keenan Wynn in The Absent Minded Professor (1961)
Keenan Wynn in The Absent Minded Professor (1961)
Tommy Kirk, Fred MacMurray, and Keenan Wynn in The Absent Minded Professor (1961)

Known for

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
8.4
  • Col. 'Bat' Guano
  • 1964
Annie Get Your Gun (1950)
Annie Get Your Gun
6.9
  • Charlie Davenport
  • 1950
Myrna Loy, William Powell, and Asta Jr. in Song of the Thin Man (1947)
Song of the Thin Man
6.9
  • Clarence 'Clinker' Krause
  • 1947
Mia Farrow in The Last Unicorn (1982)
The Last Unicorn
7.3
  • Captain Cully
  • Harpy(voice)
  • 1982

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actor

  • Hyper Sapien: People from Another Star (1986)
    Hyper Sapien: People from Another Star
  • Ernie Hudson, Adam West, Randi Brooks, and Keenan Wynn in The Last Precinct (1986)
    The Last Precinct
  • The Fall Guy (1981)
    The Fall Guy
  • Linda Hamilton and Tommy Lee Jones in Black Moon Rising (1986)
    Black Moon Rising
  • Craig T. Nelson in Call to Glory (1984)
    Call to Glory
  • Zoo Ship
    • (voice)
  • Michael Landon in Highway to Heaven (1984)
    Highway to Heaven
  • Mirrors (1985)
    Mirrors
  • Charles Taylor in Code of Vengeance (1985)
    Code of Vengeance
  • Code of Vengeance
  • Sean Astin, Corey Feldman, Martha Plimpton, Josh Brolin, Jeff Cohen, Kerri Green, and Ke Huy Quan in The Goonies (1985)
    The Goonies
    • (uncredited)
  • Prime Risk (1985)
    Prime Risk
  • Tales from the Darkside (1983)
    Tales from the Darkside
  • Imps* (1983)
    Imps*
  • The Mississippi (1982)
    The Mississippi

Stunts

  • Clark Gable and Joan Crawford in Chained (1934)
    Chained
    • (uncredited)

Soundtrack

  • Pretend It's a City (2021)
    Pretend It's a City
  • Pastor Mike Online (2011)
    Pastor Mike Online
    • (uncredited)
  • That's Entertainment, Part II (1976)
    That's Entertainment, Part II
    • (uncredited)
  • Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town (1970)
    Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town
    • (uncredited)
  • Fred Astaire, Petula Clark, Don Francks, and Tommy Steele in Finian's Rainbow (1968)
    Finian's Rainbow
    • (uncredited)
  • Kiss Me Kate (1953)
    Kiss Me Kate
    • (uncredited)
  • Fred Astaire, Jane Powell, and Peter Lawford in Royal Wedding (1951)
    Royal Wedding
    • (uncredited)
  • Annie Get Your Gun (1950)
    Annie Get Your Gun

Videos62

The Absent-Minded Professor
Clip 1:09
The Absent-Minded Professor
The Absent-Minded Professor
Clip 1:09
The Absent-Minded Professor
Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town
Clip 3:27
Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town
Trailer
Trailer 2:47
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:46
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 3:42
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:35
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:02
Official Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:30
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:00
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:37
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:01
Official Trailer

Personal details

Edit
    • July 27, 1916
    • New York City, New York, USA
    • October 14, 1986
    • Los Angeles, California, USA(pancreatic cancer)
    • January 8, 1954 - October 14, 1986 (his death, 3 children)
    • Ned Wynn
    • Ed Wynn
    • Jessica Keenan Wynn(Grandchild)
  • Other works
    Stage: Appeared (as "Reporter"; Broadway debut) in "Remember the Day" on Broadway. Written / produced by Philip Dunning and Philo Higley. Scenic Design by S. Syrjala. Directed by Melville Burke. National Theatre: 25 Sep 1935-Jan 1936 (closing date unknown/122 performances). Cast: Charita Bauer (as "Ellen Talbot"), Katherine Bauer, Joe Brown Jr. (as "Steve Hill"), Francesca Bruning (as "Nora Trinell"), John Hammond Dailey (as "Mr. Steel"), John Drew Devereaux (as "1st Bellboy"), Virginia Dunning, Edna Hagan, Russell Hardie (as "Dan Hopkins"), Martha Hodge (as "Edith Phelps"), Peter Johnston (as "2nd Bellboy"), Kathleen Kidder (as "Miss Price"), Robert Mayors (as "Tom"), Mary McQuade (as "Kate Hill"), Grant Mills (as "D.R. Roberts"), Jessamine Newcombe (as "Anna"), Jane Seymour (as "Mrs. Roberts"), Clifford Stallings (as "Charlie"), Frank Thomas, Frankie Thomas (as "Dewey Roberts"), Charles Walton (as "Mr. Phelps").
  • Publicity listings
    • 2 Articles

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Introduced Steve McQueen and Lee Marvin to the power of Triumph motorcycles on a hill climb.
  • Quotes
    My billing has always been "and", or "with", or "including". That's all right; let the stars take the blame.
    • Often played Disney movie villains

Related news

Contribute to this page

Suggest an edit or add missing content
  • Learn more about contributing
Edit page

More to explore

Recently viewed

Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
Get the IMDb App
  • Get the IMDb App
  • Help
  • Site Index
  • IMDbPro
  • Box Office Mojo
  • IMDb Developer
  • Press Room
  • Advertising
  • Jobs
  • Conditions of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your Ads Privacy Choices
IMDb, an Amazon company

© 1990-2023 by IMDb.com, Inc.