Leon Ames

Early years:

Leon Ames was born Harry Leon Wycoff on January 20, 1902, in Portland, Indiana, to Charles Elmer Wycoff and Cora Alice (DeMoss) Wycoff. Some sources list his original last name as Wykoff or Waycoff, and in his early films, he acted under the name of Leon Waycoff. In 1935, Ames explained that he had changed his name because Waycoff was often misspelled and mispronounced. Ames was his mother's maiden name.

In the 1910 census, when his family was residing in Fowler, Indiana, Ames' name was given as Harry L. Wycoff and his father was listed as a manager of a meat market. During World War I, Ames served in the field artillery of the U.S. Army and later in the flying corps (the Army Air Service).

Stage:

Ames' involvement with entertainment began when he worked as a stage manager for the Charles K. Champlin Theatre Company. He ventured into acting with the group and progressed to the lead in a production of Tomorrow and Tomorrow in Los Angeles. He acted for three years with the Stuart Walker Stock Company in Cincinnati.

Ames debuted on Broadway in It Pays to Sin (1933). His other Broadway credits include Howie (1958), Winesburg, Ohio, (1958), Slightly Married (1943), The Russian People (1942), Little Darling (1942), Guest in the House (1942), The Land Is Bright (1941), The Male Animal (1940), Thirsty Soil (1937), A House in the Country (1937), and Bright Honor (1936).

Film:

Ames made his film debut in Quick Millions in 1931. During the 1940s, he was under contract to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Among his important roles at MGM was his portrayal of Mr. Smith in the studio's 1944 hit film Meet Me in St. Louis.

Ames was also featured in The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946), portraying district attorney Kyle Sackett. He appeared in the Doris Day-Gordon MacRae film On Moonlight Bay (1951), its sequel By the Light of the Silvery Moon (1953), Peyton Place (1957), and From the Terrace (1960).

In the 1961 Walt Disney comedy The Absent-Minded Professor, Ames played college president Rufus Daggett. He reprised the role in the film's 1963 sequel, Son of Flubber. In 1970, he was cast as Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox in the action war film Tora! Tora! Tora! His last screen role occurred in Peggy Sue Got Married (1986), playing the grandfather of Kathleen Turner's character.

Radio and television:

Ames' first radio broadcast was in January 1942 on Grand Central Station.

Ames' television roles included leads in the adaptations of Life with Father (1953–55) and Father of the Bride (1961–62). His role in the latter was soon expanded because he had become the series' dominant character. Ames played the general practitioner on the series My Three Sons, as titled "Dr. Osborne, M. D." in season 9, episode 14, in 1968, when Katie and Robbie were deciding on a physician to care for her during her pregnancy; Dr. Osborne had a call from the hospital stating he had an expectant mother awaiting him as he was checking in on Katie at the Douglas home. They decided Dr. Osborne was the best for their first child (who turned out to be triplets).

Ames had the title role of Judge John Cooper in the syndicated series Frontier Judge and played Howard McMann on Bewitched. He joined the cast of Mister Ed (1963–66) as a neighbor, following the death of actor Larry Keating. Ames also appeared in episodes of the NBC anthology series The Barbara Stanwyck Show and on the short-lived CBS legal drama Storefront Lawyers. He played a grandfather in the 1975 The Jeffersons episode "Jenny’s Grandparents".

Other professional activities:

Ames was a founder of the Screen Actors Guild in 1933, and he served as its president in 1957. During the 1960s, Ames owned several Ford dealerships in California.

Ames was the father of Robert Fletcher, who was left with his mother when Ames and she split up in 1923.

Ames wed actress Christine Gossett in 1938. The couple had a daughter, Shelley (b. 1940), and a son, Leon (b. 1943). Christine retired early from acting to raise their family. They remained married until Ames' death in 1993.

Ames supported Barry Goldwater in the 1964 United States presidential election.

Kidnapping:

On February 12, 1964, Ames and his wife were held hostage in their home by an intruder who demanded $50,000 before he would free them. Ames called his business partner, who obtained the money from a bank and delivered it to the house as instructed. After inspecting the cash, the kidnapper left Ames in the house, bound with tape, and instructed Mrs. Ames to drive him in the couple's car. He also forced both the business partner and a guest in the Ames house into the trunk. Eventually, police (who had been alerted by the partner while he was picking up the money) surrounded the car and freed the hostages.

Death:

On October 12, 1993, Ames died at the age of 91 in Laguna Beach, California, of complications after suffering a stroke. His gravesite is at Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Recognition:

In 1980, after 50 years in show business, Ames received the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award.