Porter Hall Movies and Career Information

Porter Hall (September 19, 1888 – October 6, 1953) was an American character actor known for appearing in a number of films in the 1930s and 1940s. Possessing a weak chin and shifty eyes, Hall played movie villains or comedic incompetent characters. Born Clifford Porter Hall in Cincinnati, Ohio, he began his career touring as a stage actor with roles in productions of The Great Gatsby and Naked in 1926. Hall made his film debut in the 1931 drama Secrets of a Secretary. He later appeared in The Petrified Forest (1936), The Plainsman (1936), Henry Goes Arizona (1939), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), They Shall Have Music (1939), His Girl Friday (1940), Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944), Going My Way (1944), Double Indemnity (1944), Miracle on 34th Street (1947), and Ace in the Hole (1951). He made his last onscreen appearance in the 1954 film Return to Treasure Island, which was released after his death. Hall was probably best remembered for two roles: a senator in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and an atheist in Going My Way. On October 6, 1953, Hall died of a heart attack in Los Angeles, California at the age of 65. He is buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood. He had