Veteran Lampoon's 'Vacation' Actor Dies - Bracken Played Wally World Owner

channeloklahoma ^

[chance33_98]

Veteran Lampoon's 'Vacation' Actor Dies Bracken Played Wally World Owner

POSTED: 1:13 p.m. EST November 18, 2002

The actor who played Wally of Wally World in "National Lampoon's Vacation" has died.

Eddie Bracken was 87. He died of complications after recent surgery.

Bracken appeared in several movies -- mostly comedies -- in the 1940s and early '50s.

In the '40s, Bracken was best known for his roles in "The Miracle of Morgan's Creek" and "Hail the Conquering Hero," both directed by Preston Sturges.

Bracken also guest starred on a lot of television shows -- including playing Stuckeyville Stan in "Ed" two years ago.

Bracken also starred opposite Ashley Judd in a recent PBS production by Arthur Miller called "The Ryan Interview."

[chance33_98]

[Publius]

"Hail the Conquering Hero" was a masterpiece, and Bracken was the undisputed king of the double-take.

On occasion I find myself humming,
"We want Woodrow,
We want Woodrow,
We want Woodrow for our mayor."

[ArcLight]

Er...excuse me, but Eddie Bracken was a major comedy star long before National Lampoon even existed. He's best remembered for his work in the films of the legendary Preston Sturges. Remembering him for his work in a National Lampoon movie is like remembering Jimmy Stewart for appearing in Airport '77.

[Delbert]

Wasnt he also the toy store owner in Home Alone 2?

[chance33_98]

See here for an interview with him and other photos

[chance33_98]

Not my headline :) Jimmy Stewart was in Airport? Been awhile since I have seen that.

[dead]

I remember seeing him in some "Twilight Zone" knockoff show. He played a guy who was dead and refused to believe it. Everybody kept telling him he was dead and he had to be buried, but he kept resisting, though he was decaying and smelly. He finally accepted their diagnosis when he sneezed off his nose.

I hope he doesn't argue this time.

[chance33_98]

[Corporate Law]

Stuckeyville Stan!! His best line in that episode was in reference to having to sue a competitor over stealing his act: "In the old days, we would have settled things like this with a baseball bat and a sock full of quarters."

[PBRSTREETGANG]

Remembering him for his work in a National Lampoon movie is like remembering Jimmy Stewart for appearing in Airport '77.

Jimmy Stewart was in something else before Airport '77?!

[chance33_98]

---

Filmography as: Actor, Notable TV Guest Appearances

---

Actor - filmography
(2000s) (1990s) (1980s) (1970s) (1960s) (1950s) (1940s)

1. Ryan Interview, The (2000) (TV) .... Bob Ryan
2. AFI's 100 Years, 100 Laughs: America's Funniest Movies (2000) (TV) .... Himself
   
3. Rodgers & Hart Story: Thou Swell, Thou Witty, The (1999) (TV) .... Himself
4. Baby's Day Out (1994) .... Old Timer
5. "Winnetka Road" (1994) .... Father Burke
6. Assault at West Point: The Court-Martial of Johnson Whittaker (1994) (TV) .... Dr. Charles Alexander
   ... aka Assault at Westpoint (1994) (TV) (USA: short title)
7. American Clock, The (1993) (TV) .... Grandpa
   ... aka Arthur Miller's The American Clock (1993) (TV)
8. Rookie of the Year (1993) .... Bob Carson
9. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992) .... Mr. E.F. Duncan, Owner Duncan's Toy Chest
10. Oscar (1991) .... Five Spot Charlie
    
11. Show Boat (1989) (TV) .... Cap'n Andy Hawks
    ... aka Great Performances: Show Boat (1989) (TV) (USA)
12. Wind in the Willows, The (1987) (TV) (voice) .... Moley
13. Vacation (1983) .... Roy Walley
    ... aka American Vacation (1983) (Europe: video title English title)
    ... aka National Lampoon's Summer Vacation (1983) (USA)
    ... aka National Lampoon's Vacation (1983)
    
14. Shinbone Alley (1971) (voice) .... Archy
15. Preston Sturges - Porträt eines Hollywood-Regisseurs (1970) (TV) .... Himself
    
16. Wild Wild World (1965) .... Narrator
17. Domenica d'estate, Una (1962) (uncredited) .... Bit Part
    ... aka Always on Sunday (1962) (USA)
    ... aka Un dimanche d'éte (1962) (France)
    
18. "Masquerade Party" (1952) .... Himself/Host (1957)
19. "Make the Connection" (1955) .... Himself/panelist
20. Slight Case of Larceny, A (1953) .... Frederick Winthrop Clopp
21. "I've Got a Secret" (1952) .... Himself/panelist (1952)
22. We're Not Married! (1952) .... Willie Fisher
23. About Face (1952) .... Boff Roberts
24. Two Tickets to Broadway (1951) .... Lew Conway
25. Summer Stock (1950) .... Orville Wingait
    ... aka If You Feel Like Singing (1950) (UK)
    
26. Girl from Jones Beach, The (1949) .... Chuck Donovan
27. Ladies' Man (1947) .... Henry Haskell
28. Fun on a Weekend (1947) .... P.P. Porterhouse III
29. Duffy's Tavern (1945) .... Himself
30. Out of This World (1945) .... Herbie Fenton
31. Hold That Blonde (1945) .... Ogden Spencer Trulow III
32. Bring on the Girls (1945) .... J. Newport Bates
33. Rainbow Island (1944) .... Toby Smith
34. Hail the Conquering Hero (1944) .... Woodrow Lafayette Pershing Truesmith
35. Miracle of Morgan's Creek, The (1944) .... Norval Jones
36. Young and Willing (1943) .... George Bodell
    ... aka Out of the Frying Pan (1943)
37. Happy Go Lucky (1943) .... Wally Case
38. Sweater Girl (1942) .... Jack Mitchell
39. Star Spangled Rhythm (1942) .... Johnny Webster
40. Fleet's In, The (1942) .... Barney Waters
41. Caught in the Draft (1941) .... Bert
42. Reaching for the Sun (1941) .... Benny Hogan
43. Life with Henry (1941) .... Basil 'Dizzy' Stevens
44. Too Many Girls (1940) .... Jojo Jordan
    

---

Filmography as: Actor, Notable TV Guest Appearances

---

Notable TV Guest Appearances

1. "Ed" (2000) playing "Stuckeyville Stan" in episode: "The World of Possibility" (episode # 1.2) 15 October 2000
2. "Remember WENN" (1996) playing "Pepper Canarsie" in episode: "Like a Brother" (episode # 2.12) 1 February 1997
3. "Cosby Mysteries, The" (1994) playing "Vernon Hood" in episode: "Expert Witness" (episode # 1.8) 16 November 1994
4. "Monsters" (1988) in episode: "The Maker" (episode # 3.23) 18 April 1991
5. "Empty Nest" (1988) playing "Fred" in episode: "Someone to Watch Over Me" (episode # 3.10) 24 November 1990
6. "Wiseguy" (1987) playing "Father Patrick" in episode: "Brummp-Bump" (episode # 3.22) 18 April 1990
7. "Wiseguy" (1987) playing "Father Patrick" in episode: "Sanctuary" (episode # 3.21) 11 April 1990
8. "Golden Girls, The" (1985) playing "Buzz" in episode: "Twice in a Lifetime" (episode # 5.20) 23 February 1990
9. "Amazing Stories" (1985) playing "Ghost / Husband" in episode: "Boo!" (episode # 1.17) 16 February 1986
10. "Murder, She Wrote" (1984) playing "Barney Ogden" in episode: "Armed Response" (episode # 1.19) 31 March 1985
11. "Tales from the Darkside" (1984) playing "Grandpa Tolliver" in episode: "A Case of the Stubborns" (episode # 1.9) 2 December 1984
12. "Ellery Queen" (1975) playing "Horace Manley" in episode: "The Adventure of the Hard-Hearted Huckster" (episode # 1.21) 21 March 1976
13. "New Dick Van Dyke Show, The" (1971) 12 November 1973
14. "Burke's Law" (1963) playing "Sidney Quatraine" in episode: "Who Killed the Card?" (episode # 2.32) 5 May 1965
15. "Rawhide" (1959) in episode: "Incident of the Pied Piper" (episode # 6.19) 6 February 1964
16. "Burke's Law" (1963) playing "Hatton" in episode: "Who Killed April?" (episode # 1.19) 31 January 1964
17. "Rawhide" (1959) in episode: "Incident of the Clown" (episode # 5.24) 29 March 1963
18. "Studio One" (1948) in episode: "The Award Winner" (episode # 10.25) 24 March 1958
19. "Kraft Television Theatre" (1947) in episode: "The Old Ticket" (episode # 10.51) 11 September 1957
20. "Studio One" (1948) in episode: "My Mother and How She Undid Me" (episode # 9.42) 5 August 1957
21. "Alcoa Hour, The" (1955) in episode: "Awake with Fear" (episode # 2.19) 23 June 1957
22. "Studio One" (1948) in episode: "A Likely Story" (episode # 8.3) 3 October 1955
23. "Goodyear Television Playhouse" (1951) in episode: "Suit Yourself" (episode # 5.1) 11 September 1955

[Publius]

Thanks for posting the link and that picture. Bracken and Bill Demerest worked beautifully together in that film.

I ought to go out and rent it this weekend.

[chance33_98]

I don't recall the film, but I am guessing it and others will be on TCM or some other channel soon. I do own the vacation series and will watch it in his honor.

[EllaMinnow]

Do yourself a favor and watch every Preston Sturgis movie you can find. They're still the funniest and best-written movies ever made.

[ArcLight]

LOL, PBR!

Nice handle too!

[Gumlegs]

Yeah. I looked it up. It was CBS Salutes Lucy: The First 25 Years in 1976. Who knew?

[Peter Libra]

Nice gesture, your listings. Remember as a kid in wartime England- never even dreamed I would see America. The film was Rainbow Island. Absolutely good light hearted fun. Today in Canada would be politically incorrect- headhunters and all.

What a real "smasher" Dorothy Lamour was. Remember the film as a flashback and at the end the man showing pictures of the chiefs daughter(Lamour) to the navy rescuers. Someones says hey, you are kidding- that is Dorothy Lamour. The deadpan reply is- " I know, that's how she got in pictures"- the gobs all gently hit him over the head with their caps. (Exit).

[Larry Lucido]

- THE WALLY WORLD NATIONAL ANTHEM:

Who's the moosiest moose we know?
Marty Moose!
Who's the star of our favorite show?
Marty Moose!
"M" is for merry, we're merry, you see
"O" is for o-gosh, o-golly, o-gee!
"S" is for super-swell family glee
"E" is for everything you want to be
M-A-R-T-Y M-O-O-S-E
What's that spell?
Marty Moose! Marty Moose! Marty Moose!
MARTY: "E-yuck! That's me! Huh! Huh! Huh!"

[buffyt]

That vacation movie where they were going to Wally World is one of our favorites. We were there twice this year (Magic Mountain, Valencia Calif.) we love that place!!!!