- Paul McCullough
Paul McCullough (
27 March ,1883 -25 March ,1936 ) was an American actor who performed in a comedy team with Bobby Clark.Born in
Springfield, Ohio , McCullough met Clark at a localYMCA when they were boys. Their childhood friendship grew into an adult partnership, and the pair appeared in circuses and vaudeville revues before achieving mainstream stardom in the 1922Irving Berlin Broadway show “Music Box Revue.” Their Broadway hit "The Ramblers" was filmed in 1930 as “The Cuckoos,” a vehicle forWheeler & Woolsey .Clark and McCullough went to Hollywood in 1928 and starred in 35 short films produced over a seven-year period.
In their act, Clark was the dominant, motor-mouthed comedian and McCullough was the quieter straight man. In many of their films, McCullough’s input was severely limited to a supporting role as Clark generated the bulk of the humor. [ [http://www.starpulse.com/celebrity/Paul_McCullough/P47189/0/2/ Biography of Paul McCullough] ] Their occupations in the films usually dictated what Clark's character name was: when photographers, Clark was named "Flash"; when chefs, Clark was "Cook"; when lawyers, Clark was "Blackstone", etc. Paul McCullough was always named "Blodgett," regardless of the role. He was enthusiastic on film, punctuating scenes with a cackling laugh. His antics were much subtler than the bombastic Clark's; McCullough would fiddle with props or react quietly while the action was centered on Clark.
The Clark and McCullough film series ended in 1935. McCullough suffered from severe depression and in 1936 sought treatment at a sanitarium in
Medford, Massachusetts . Upon his release in March 1936, he stopped at a barber shop for a shave. After being shaved, he grabbed the barber’s razor and cut his wrists and neck. He died in the hospital two days later.Upon learning of his partner’s death, Clark publicly stated: "I think it was just something Paul couldn't help. Something that had been with him all the time and he didn't even know it." [ [http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Academy/8135/paul.html Clark & McCullough] ] Clark continued performing as a solo act until his death in 1960.
References
External links
*imdb name|0567223|Paul McCullough (I)
* [http://aaronneathery.com/film/CaM/cmcindex.htm The Clark & McCullough Database]
* [http://www.filmthreat.com/index.php?section=features&Id=1162 Film Threat essay on Clark & McCullough]
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