1878-07-13 ( 146 years old ) in Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Thomas Donald Meek (14 July 1878 – 18 November 1946) was a Scottish-American actor. He first performed publicly at the age of eight and began appearing on Broadway in 1903. Meek is perhaps best known for his roles in the films You Can't Take It with You (1938) and Stagecoach (1939). He posthumously received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960.
Meek was born in Glasgow to Matthew and Annie Meek. In the 1890s, the Meek family emigrated to Canada and then to the United States. By 1900, they were living in Philadelphia where Meek was employed as a dry goods salesman, according to the United States census of that year with Meek later working on stage.
After years on the stage, Meek became a film actor, appearing memorably in several movies including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Little Miss Broadway, and State Fair. Before becoming an actor, he fought in the Spanish–American War in the United States Army and contracted yellow fever which caused him to lose his hair. He was cast as timid, worried characters in many of his films, and is perhaps best known for his roles as Mr. Poppins in Frank Capra's You Can't Take It With You and as whiskey salesman Samuel Peacock in John Ford's Stagecoach.
From 1931 through 1932, Meek was featured as criminologist Dr. Crabtree in a series of 12 Warner Brothers two-reel short subjects written by S.S. Van Dine. Meek and Isabella "Belle" Walken married in Boston in a Methodist church on January 3, 1909. By this marriage, the American-born Belle Meek lost her United States citizenship by taking her husband's British nationality. Donald Meek died of leukaemia on 18 November 1946 in Los Angeles, while filming the role of Mr. Twiddle in Magic Town. A prolific film actor in over 100 Hollywood movies during its Golden Age, he received a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was entombed in the Fairmount Mausoleum at Fairmount Cemetery in Denver, Colorado.
Movies
Going Hollywood: The '30s
1984-01-01
Magic Town
1947-10-07
The Fabulous Joe
1947-08-28
Affairs of Geraldine
1946-11-18
Janie Gets Married
1946-06-22
Colonel Effingham's Raid
1946-01-24
Because of Him
1946-01-18
State Fair
1945-08-29
The Thin Man Goes Home
1944-12-24
Barbary Coast Gent
1944-09-01
Maisie Goes to Reno
1944-08-15
Bathing Beauty
1944-06-27
Two Girls and a Sailor
1944-06-14
Rationing
1944-03-24
Lost Angel
1943-12-23
Du Barry Was a Lady
1943-08-13
Air Raid Wardens
1943-04-04
Keeper of the Flame
1943-04-01
They Got Me Covered
1943-03-04
Seven Sweethearts
1942-11-13
The Omaha Trail
1942-09-01
Maisie Gets Her Man
1942-06-01
Tortilla Flat
1942-05-21
Babes on Broadway
1941-12-31
Rise and Shine
1941-11-21
The Feminine Touch
1941-10-01
A Woman's Face
1941-05-09
Barnacle Bill
1941-04-07
Blonde Inspiration
1941-02-07
Come Live with Me
1941-01-31
The Wild Man of Borneo
1941-01-24
Hullabaloo
1940-10-25
Third Finger, Left Hand
1940-10-11
Sky Murder
1940-09-27
The Return of Frank James
1940-08-10
Phantom Raiders
1940-06-07
Turnabout
1940-05-17
Star Dust
1940-04-06
The Ghost Comes Home
1940-03-08
Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet
1940-02-23
The Man from Dakota
1940-02-16
My Little Chickadee
1940-02-09
Oh, Johnny, How You Can Love!
1940-01-01
Nick Carter, Master Detective
1939-12-13
The Housekeeper's Daughter
1939-10-26
Hollywood Cavalcade
1939-10-13
Blondie Takes a Vacation
1939-07-20
Young Mr. Lincoln
1939-06-09
Stagecoach
1939-03-02
Jesse James
1939-01-14
Hold That Co-ed
1938-09-16
You Can't Take It with You
1938-09-01
Little Miss Broadway
1938-07-29
Having Wonderful Time
1938-07-01
Goodbye Broadway
1938-04-01
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
1938-02-11
Double Danger
1938-01-28
You're a Sweetheart
1937-12-26
Breakfast for Two
1937-10-22
Double Wedding
1937-10-15
Make a Wish
1937-09-01
Artists & Models
1937-08-04
The Toast of New York
1937-07-22
Three Legionnaires
1937-07-10
Parnell
1937-06-04
Behind The Headlines
1937-05-14
Maid of Salem
1937-02-12
Pennies from Heaven
1936-11-25
Love on the Run
1936-11-20
Two in a Crowd
1936-10-03
Old Hutch
1936-09-25
Three Married Men
1936-09-24
One Rainy Afternoon
1936-05-13
And So They Were Married
1936-05-10
Everybody's Old Man
1936-03-20
Captain Blood
1935-12-26
The Bride Comes Home
1935-12-25
Kind Lady
1935-12-06
Peter Ibbetson
1935-11-07
Happiness C.O.D.
1935-10-14
Barbary Coast
1935-10-13
She Couldn't Take It
1935-10-08
The Return Of Peter Grimm
1935-09-13
China Seas
1935-08-09
Old Man Rhythm
1935-08-02
Village Tale
1935-06-15
The Informer
1935-05-09
Mark of the Vampire
1935-04-26
Baby Face Harrington
1935-04-12
The Whole Town's Talking
1935-02-22
The Gilded Lily
1935-01-25
Society Doctor
1935-01-25
Romance in Manhattan
1935-01-11
Biography of a Bachelor Girl
1935-01-04
The Captain Hates the Sea
1934-11-02
The Merry Widow
1934-11-02
Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch
1934-10-28
What Every Woman Knows
1934-10-18
The Defense Rests
1934-07-15
Murder at the Vanities
1934-05-18
The Last Gentleman
1934-04-27
Bedside
1934-01-27
Hi, Nellie!
1934-01-20
College Coach
1933-11-04
The Trans-Atlantic Mystery
1932-08-31
The Crane Poison Case
1932-07-08
The Side Show Mystery
1932-06-01
Murder in the Pullman
1932-05-01
The Cole Case
1932-04-01
The Skull Murder Mystery
1932-03-01
Wayward
1932-02-19
The Studio Murder Mystery
1932-02-17
The Symphony Murder Mystery
1932-01-13
The Week End Mystery
1931-12-01
The Wall Street Mystery
1931-11-04
The Clyde Mystery
1931-10-01
Personal Maid
1931-09-12
The Girl Habit
1931-06-27
The Hole in the Wall
1929-04-27
Six Cylinder Love
1923-11-04
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