
Ned Sparks
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ned Sparks (born Edward Arthur Sparkman, November 19, 1883 – April 3, 1957) was a Canadian-born character actor of the American stage and screen. Sparks was known for his deadpan expression and deep, gravelly voice.
Born in Guelph, Ontario, Sparks left home at age 16 and attempted to work as a gold prospector on the Klondike Gold Rush. After running out of money, he won a spot as a singer on a traveling musical company's tour. At age 19, he returned to Canada and briefly attended a Toronto seminary. After leaving the seminary, he worked for the railroad and worked in theater in Toronto. In 1907, he left Toronto for New York City to try his hand in the Broadway theatre, where he appeared in his first show in 1912.
While working on Broadway, Sparks developed his trademark deadpan expression while portraying the role of a desk clerk in the play Little Miss Brown. His success on the stage soon caught the attention of MGM's Louis B. Mayer who signed Sparks to a six picture deal. Sparks began appearing in numerous silent films before finally making his "talkie" debut in the 1928 film The Big Noise.
In the 1930s, Sparks became known for portraying dour-faced, sarcastic, cigar-chomping characters. He became so associated with the type that, in 1936, The New York Times reported that Sparks had his face insured for USD$100,000 with Lloyd's of London. The market agreed to pay the sum to any photographer who could capture Sparks smiling (Sparks later admitted that the story was a publicity stunt and he was only insured for $10,000). Sparks was also caricatured in cartoons including the Jack-in-the-Box character in the Disney short Broken Toys (1935), and the jester in Mother Goose Goes Hollywood (1938), a hermit crab in both Tex Avery's Fresh Fish (1939) and Bob Clampett's Goofy Groceries (1941), a chicken in Bob Clampett's Slap Happy Pappy (1940), Friz Freleng's Warner Bros. cartoon Malibu Beach Party (1940), and Tex Avery's Hollywood Steps Out (1940). Sparks also voiced the cartoon characters Heckle and Jeckle from 1947 to 1951.
Sparks appeared in ten stage productions on Broadway and over 80 films. He retired from films in 1947, saying that everyone should retire at 65
Acting (71 movies)

42nd Street
1933

Gold Diggers of 1933
1933

Alice in Wonderland
1933

Lady for a Day
1933

Blessed Event
1932

Sweet Adeline
1934

In Search of a Sinner
1920

Imitation of Life
1934

The Canary Murder Case
1929

Corsair
1931

Nothing But the Truth
1920

Love's Blindness
1926

This Way Please
1937

Street Girl
1929

The Bride Walks Out
1936

One in a Million
1937

Big City Blues
1932

Marie Galante
1934

Seven Keys to Baldpate
1925

Conspiracy
1930

Sweet Music
1935

George White's 1935 Scandals
1935

Sing and Like It
1934

The Bond Boy
1923

Hi, Nellie!
1934

The Crusader
1932

Wake Up and Live
1937

Love Comes Along
1930

The Star Maker
1939

The Fall Guy
1930

Down to Their Last Yacht
1934

The Devil's Holiday
1930

Magic Town
1947

Too Much Harmony
1933

Secrets
1933

Hawaii Calls
1938

The Miracle Man
1932

The Small Bachelor
1927

The Hidden Way
1926

Going Hollywood
1933

The Only Thing
1925

Servants' Entrance
1934

Private Scandal
1934

Gold Diggers: FDR'S New Deal... Broadway Bound
2006

Kept Husbands
1931

Stage Door Canteen
1943

Double Cross Roads
1930

Alias the Lone Wolf
1927

Nothing But the Truth
1929

Iron Man
1931

Alias The Deacon
1927

Twinkletoes
1926

Good References
1920

The Secret Call
1931

Faint Perfume
1925

His Supreme Moment
1925

Leathernecking
1930

Money Talks
1926

Collegiate
1936

The Big Noise
1928

Bright Lights
1925

Strange Cargo
1929

The Magnificent Flirt
1928

For Beauty's Sake
1941

A Temperamental Wife
1919

The Perfect Woman
1920

Two's Company
1936

The Boomerang
1925

The Law Forbids
1924

Soul Mates
1925

The Auction Block
1926
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