
Ron Carey
Biography
Ron Carey (December 11, 1935 – January 16, 2007) was an American actor. He was known as a notably short, Italian, nasal-toned and mischievous-looking fellow, a perfect type for the stand-up comedy circuit and for playing Brooklynesque characters in T.V. sitcoms and films. He earned his Bachelor's degree in communications from Seton Hall University in South Orange in 1956, but moved to near-by New York and took to the comedy stage, finding work in such prime clubs as "The Improvisation". He soon earned notice for his "little man" humor, which was built around Italian family and Roman Catholic "guilt" jokes (in reality, he once considered being a priest). Ron finally gained some momentum on T.V. making various funnyman appearances on the talk/variety show formats hosted by the best of the best -- Jack Paar, Merv Griffin, Mike Douglas, Ed Sullivan and Johnny Carson. He also found lucrative work in commercials playing various feisty or hapless characters. Ron finally broke into films with the Jack Lemmon/Sandy Dennis comedy The Out of Towners (1970) as a Boston taxi driver, then continued on with other minor bits in Who Killed Mary Whats'ername? (1971) and the cult film Made for Each Other (1971) starring Joseph Bologna and Renée Taylor. Earlier Ron appeared on Broadway in the couple's 1968 hit comedy "Lovers and Other Strangers." It wasn't until his work as a secondary staple in Mel Brooks' madcap company that he earned even a modicum of success in films. His participation in the zany parodies Silent Movie (1976), High Anxiety (1977) and History of the World: Part I (1981) occurred during the height of his T.V. fame. Likewise, he went on to deliver a substantial role as plus-sized Dom DeLuise's unsympathetic brother Frankie in Fatso (1980), directed by Brooks' wife Anne Bancroft. As for the smaller screen, a regular player on the summer variety series The Melba Moore-Clifton Davis Show (1972) led to his being cast in the New York-area sitcom The Corner Bar (1972) and the ethnic family comedy The Montefuscos (1975). A steady pay-check was not to be had, however, until he was added to the second season ensemble of Barney Miller (1975) headed by Hal Linden and Abe Vigoda. Ron earned sympathy strokes as Carl Levitt, a brown-nosing, eager-beaver patrolman who yearned to be a plainclothes detective in Barney's police agency, but just didn't measure up because of his vertically challenged stature. Ron, whose character finally received a promotion after the long haul, stayed with the popular show until its cancellation in 1982. Ron died of complications from a stroke at 71 years old in Los Angeles and is survived by long-time wife Sharon.
Filmografi
Silent Movie1976 · Devour
High Anxiety1977 · Brophy
Troublemakers1994 · Sheriff Fox
Lucky Luke1991 · Joe Dalton
The Out-of-Towners1970 · Barney Polacek, Cab Driver in Boston
History of the World: Part I1981 · Swiftus
Johnny Dangerously1984 · Pat
Fatso1980 · Frankie
Making History: Mel Brooks on Creating the World2009 · Self (archive footage)
Acts of Love and Other Comedies1973 · Ed
Made For Each Other1971 · Group Member
Who Killed Mary Whats'ername?1971 · Larry The Bartender
The Good Bad Guy1997 · Robert Lambert
Dynamite Chicken1971 · Self
Peeping Times1978 · Angelo Bertinelli
Lucky Luke 21992 · Joe Dalton (archive footage)
Mel Brooks
Rudy De Luca
Barry Levinson
Jack Riley
Charlie Callas
Lee Delano
Terence Hill
Cloris Leachman
Madeline Kahn
Harvey Korman
Howard Morris
Boots Southerland