Charles Sherman Ruggles was an American character actor, who appeared in several Disney films during the the 1960s and provided the voice of Benjamin Franklin in the 1953 featurette, Ben and Me.
Ruggles was born in Los Angeles, California in 1886. Despite training to be a doctor, Ruggles soon found himself on the stage, appearing in a stock production of WikipediaLink|Nathan Hale in 1905. Making his way to Broadway, Ruggles appeared in Help Wanted, The Passing Show of 1918, The Demi-Virgin, Battling Butler, Queen High, Spring Is Here, and The Pleasure of his Company, where he won the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play, as well as reprising his role of Mackenzie Savage in the 1963 film adaptation of The Pleasure of His Company.
His first screen role came in the silent Peer Gynt. Like some actors, he made an easy transition to talking pictures with films, such as Madame Butterfly, Alice in Wonderland (1933), The Big Broadcast of 1936, Anything Goes, Gentleman of the Press, If I Had a Million, Six of a Kind, Ruggles of Red Gap, People Will Talk, Bringing Up Baby, The Farmer's Daughter, It Happened on Fifth Avenue, and Papa's Delicate Condition. His television credits included The Ruggles, Conflict, The World of Mr. Sweeney, The Real McCoys, The Beverly Hillbillies, Bewitched, Wagon Train, The Andy Griffith Show, and lent his voice to the "Aesop and Son" features in Jay Ward's The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.
In 1944, he had a summer radio series called The Charlie Ruggles Show on CBS.
Ruggles died of cancer at Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California, on December 23, 1970 at the age of 84.
Filmography[]
| Year | Film | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1953 | Ben and Me | Ben Franklin (uncredited) |
| 1961 | The Parent Trap | Charles McKendrick |
| 1963 | Son of Flubber | Judge Murdock |
| 1966 | The Ugly Dachshund | Dr. J.L. Pruitt |
| 1966 | Follow Me, Boys! | John Everett Hughes |
Roles[]
(Ben and Me)
(The Parent Trap)
(Son of Flubber)
(The Ugly Dachshund)