Photos
Harvey Parry
- Narrator
- (archive footage)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIncluded as a special feature in the DVD version of Think Fast, Mr. Moto.
Featured review
Harvey Parry: A Name To Know In Hollywood Film History
How many of you have heard of Harvey Parry? Probably not too many. I didn't know who he was, and I've seen thousands of films. It turns out he is called "The Dean of Hollywood" for his decades of great stunt work and other contributions to film-making. In other words, he has a great legacy in Hollywood. He was a stunt man for seven decades and an actor for six!
I only now know of him thanks to a bonus feature that was on the "Think Fast, Mr. Moto" DVD. Parry worked as Peter Lorre's double in his eight Mr. Moto films. Parry had a build similar to Lorre and was close enough in physical appearance to effectively pretend to be Lorre. Barry started in the business at the very bottom in 1919 and was last seen acting - this is really weird - as a bag lady on the comedy "Airplane II" in the early 1980s. (That isn't listed here at IMDb but it's mentioned in the documentary.)
You don't see him in this documentary but most of the time he is being interviewed. The interview took place in 1978 when Barry was an older man but his mind was as sharp as ever. He died in 1985.
"You always hear people talk about the 'good old day,'" he said, "but I didn't think they were. Some days who worked all day like hell and hardly got paid. I didn't see anything great about 'em."
Parry was three points away from qualifying as a diver for the United States in Olympics and that broke his heart. He later turned to boxing and he excelled in that. Those dives and those fights all helped make him a terrific stuntman because he could do these diving feats and fake boxing scenes expertly. Parry was Jimmy Cagney's ring opponent in the four films Cagney made with boxing in them.
This bonus goes on to tell of Parry's great friendship for years with Lorre with an interesting insights on the latter. Parry also was a regular - as stunt man and an actor - on the Baretta TV series. In all, it's a good feature and highly recommended. Don't pass this up on the DVD.
I only now know of him thanks to a bonus feature that was on the "Think Fast, Mr. Moto" DVD. Parry worked as Peter Lorre's double in his eight Mr. Moto films. Parry had a build similar to Lorre and was close enough in physical appearance to effectively pretend to be Lorre. Barry started in the business at the very bottom in 1919 and was last seen acting - this is really weird - as a bag lady on the comedy "Airplane II" in the early 1980s. (That isn't listed here at IMDb but it's mentioned in the documentary.)
You don't see him in this documentary but most of the time he is being interviewed. The interview took place in 1978 when Barry was an older man but his mind was as sharp as ever. He died in 1985.
"You always hear people talk about the 'good old day,'" he said, "but I didn't think they were. Some days who worked all day like hell and hardly got paid. I didn't see anything great about 'em."
Parry was three points away from qualifying as a diver for the United States in Olympics and that broke his heart. He later turned to boxing and he excelled in that. Those dives and those fights all helped make him a terrific stuntman because he could do these diving feats and fake boxing scenes expertly. Parry was Jimmy Cagney's ring opponent in the four films Cagney made with boxing in them.
This bonus goes on to tell of Parry's great friendship for years with Lorre with an interesting insights on the latter. Parry also was a regular - as stunt man and an actor - on the Baretta TV series. In all, it's a good feature and highly recommended. Don't pass this up on the DVD.
- ccthemovieman-1
- Jan 21, 2008
- Permalink
Details
- Runtime12 minutes
- Color
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content