Peter Whitney

Character actor Peter Whitney played to type, heaving his fleshy frame and glowering through numerous villain roles in films of the '40s and '50s, followed by similar turns in TV series. He honed his skills performing with the Pasadena Playhouse before landing a contract with Warner Brothers in 1941. Supporting parts in minor films quickly came his way, both for Warner and on loan to other studios, including a minor Abbott and Costello comedy, "Rio Rita." He occasionally hooked more memorable parts, including a double role as a pair of murderous redneck twins tormenting Fred MacMurray in "Murder, He Says." Toward the late '50s, he moved almost exclusively into TV series, with a recurring role on the single season of "The Rough Riders" as a former Union soldier, but more often he played guest spots as a seedy, intimidating hick scoundrel in many Westerns, including "The Rifleman" and "Gunsmoke." Whitney's final part was in a 1972 episode of "Night Gallery," where he played a grave robber. He died that same year of a heart attack at age 55.