Noah Lindsey Beery (August 10, 1913 – November 1, 1994), known professionally as Noah Beery, Jr. or just Noah Beery, was an American actor specializing in warm, friendly character parts similar to the ones played by his legendary uncle Wallace Beery, although Noah Beery, Jr., unlike his uncle, seldom broke away from playing supporting roles. His father, Noah Nicholas Beery (known professionally as Noah Beery or Noah Beery, Sr.), enjoyed a similarly lengthy film career as a supporting actor. The naturally brown-headed Beery gained prominence in the 1970s, he was best known as James Garner's uptight and concerned father, Joseph "Rocky" Rockford on the television show, The Rockford Files.
Early life and career
Beery was born in New York City, New York where his father was working as a stage actor. The family moved to California in 1915 when his father began acting in motion pictures. After attending school in Los Angeles, they moved to a ranch in the San Fernando Valley, a style of living he would maintain for the rest of his life. At the age of seven, he appeared with his father in The Mark of Zorro and like his father, who immediately began billing himself as "Noah Beery, Sr.," he went on to become a respected character actor. His uncle, Oscar-winning screen phenomenon Wallace Beery, became the world's highest-paid actor by 1932, and while neither Noah nor his father ever approached that level, both had extremely long and memorable film careers. All three acting Beerys physically resembled each other rather closely, but Noah, Jr. lacked a thrillingly powerful voice like his father's and uncle's (which is ironic, since both older Beerys made major careers as supporting actors in silent movies). Noah Beery, Jr. appeared in dozens of films, including 20 Mule Team with his uncle and Red River with John Wayne, but is best known for his role as Joseph "Rocky" Rockford, the father of James Rockford, James Garner's character on the popular television series The Rockford Files (1974-1980). His television work also included the role of a clown in Circus Boy with Mickey Dolenz in the mid 1950s. Noah Beery, Jr. died in 1994 in Tehachapi, California of a cerebral thrombosis and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California with his father and uncle.
Partial Filmography
- The Mark of Zorro (1920; uncredited) with Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. and Noah Beery, Sr.
- Fighting with Kit Carson (1933) with Noah Beery, Sr.
- The Trail Beyond (1934) with John Wayne and Noah Beery, Sr.
- Only Angels Have Wings (1939) with Cary Grant and Rita Hayworth
- Of Mice and Men (1939) with Burgess Meredith and Lon Chaney, Jr.
- 20 Mule Team (1940) with Wallace Beery and Anne Baxter
- Sergeant York (1941) with Gary Cooper, Walter Brennan, and Joan Leslie
- Overland Mail (1942) with Lon Chaney, Jr. and Noah Beery, Sr.
- Follow the Boys (1944) with George Raft, Orson Welles, and Marlene Dietrich
- Red River (1948) with John Wayne and Montgomery Clift
- The Story of Will Rogers (1952) with Will Rogers, Jr.
- Inherit the Wind (1960) with Spencer Tracy and Fredric March
- The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) with Burt Reynolds and Dolly Parton
- Waltz Across Texas (1982) with Anne Archer
