Kenneth MacDonald

Kenneth MacDonald was born Kenneth Royce Dollins on September 8, 1901 in Portland, Jay County, Indiana.

He grew up in Richmond, Indiana, where he earned seven letters at Richmond High School as a member of its football, basketball and track squads. He was the first President of the Richmond Athletic Association. His last appearance in Richmond was in 1970 when he returned for the fiftieth anniversary of his high school graduating class.

After his 1920 high school graduation, he began an acting career with various stock theater groups. Early stage work included touring in Canada and performances with the Grand Players in Davenport, Iowa and W. B. Patton's vaudeville comedy company in Chicago.

In late 1922, he was in the play "Chasing Sally" in Macomb, Illinois for W. B. Patton. While there, he met Gladys A. Sypherd, and they married on January 12 or 15, 1923 in Mount Sterling, Illinois. Their marriage was short-lived.

In 1930, he was on tour with the Armstrong Players and performing in South Bend, Indiana. There, he met LaMee Nave and they married February 22, 1930, and were together through Ken's death in 1972.

A correction was needed for the following info that was in the initial version of this biography:

He went on stage in the early 1920's but when he decided to try to break into the movies, he found the going rough. He wrote and published a pamphlet which he entitled, "The Case for Kenneth MacDonald". This self-promoting booklet was distributed to all the studios and finally caught the attention of studio executives. His first feature was a western, SLOW AS LIGHTNING in 1923.

Nope! Not true for our Kenneth Dollins / Kenneth MacDonald.

Recent discoveries indicate that tidbit is for 1920s silent film actor George McGinnis who used the screen name "Kenneth McDonald". Among his couple dozen films was starring in SLOW AS LIGHTNING (Sunset Prod., 1923) ... which was not a western. More on him at the bottom of this webpage.

His next stop was Hollywood, and his film and TV career spanned about 35 years, roughly early 1930s - 1967.

Circa 1930, Kenneth Dollins did a name change to Kenneth MacDonald.

His first B oater MAY be the lackluster BORDER VENGEANCE (Willis Kent, 1935) which starred Northwestern University All-American footballer Reb Russell.

He became a regular fixture at Columbia Pictures portraying villains in B westerns starring Bill Elliott (in 9 films) and Charles Starrett (9 films). He also appeared in several Columbia serials and his best was portraying "Dr. Bremmer", the villain trying to build a secret air base in the Lost City of Zoloz, in THE PHANTOM (Columbia, 1943).

Other work at Columbia included two with Boris Karloff, BEFORE I HANG (Columbia, 1940) and THE DEVIL COMMANDS (Columbia, 1941), and ISLAND OF DOOMED MEN (Columbia, 1940) with Peter Lorre; a couple shorts with Hugh Herbert; and he was brains heavy "Bart Randall" vs. Dennis Moore in Columbia's final cliffhanger production, PERILS OF THE WILDERNESS (Columbia, 1956). And we can't forget MacDonald being defeated in over a dozen Three Stooges comedies.

A busy free lancer, he did many A and B grade films at other production companies. And more B westerns - examples: he did seven with Tim Holt at RKO; a half dozen with Allan Lane at Republic Pictures; and four with Johnny Mack Brown at Monogram.

As the B western faded away, MacDonald transitioned to a mix of credited and unbilled roles in films and television. In the 1950s, he was in western features starring Randolph Scott, Rod Cameron, George Montgomery, Gary Cooper, Ronald Reagan, others. He can also be spotted in A grade productions THE CAINE MUTINY (Columbia, 1954), THE TEN COMMANDMENTS (DeMille/Paramount, 1956), and RETURN TO PEYTON PLACE (Wald/20th C Fox, 1961).

Television was coming on strong and, thanks to his work with the Three Stooges, he landed a role as a Superior Court Judge on the popular PERRY MASON TV program. Sam White, whose brother Jules was in charge of many of the Stooges comedies, was an associate producer during the first couple of seasons of PERRY MASON. He remembered MacDonald and suggested him for the judge role. The series ran from 1957 to 1966 and MacDonald was part of it for most of that run. This is his most remembered role.

In addition to 30+ judge roles on PERRY MASON, MacDonald did many television shows, including episodes of BRONCO, COLT .45, LARAMIE, SUGARFOOT, CISCO KID, RAMAR OF THE JUNGLE, WAGON TRAIN, KIT CARSON, RANGE RIDER, LONE RANGER, and COWBOY G-MEN.

His last movie was a bit part in the Jerry Lewis comedy WHICH WAY TO THE FRONT? (Warner Bros., 1970). Earlier, he had unbilled roles in three other Lewis films: THE DELICATE DELINQUENT (Paramount, 1957), THE ERRAND BOY (Paramount, 1961), and THE LADIES MAN (Paramount, 1961). In THE LADIES MAN, he played Jerry's father. Was Ken friendly with Lewis ... or knew someone on Lewis' production team? Most likely, he got employed in those by answering a casting call.

MacDonald appeared in over 150 films during his long career and at least a third were westerns. Les Adams has him in about 65 westerns and 9 cliffhangers.

A quick summary of his personal life and family - there was that brief marriage to Gladys A. Sypherd in 1923; his 1930 marriage to LaMee Kathryn Nave was a success and they had three children, all born in California: Kenneth (1931 - 1977), Marilyn (born 1934), and George (born 1942).

Suffering from brain and lung cancer, MacDonald died May 5, 1972 at the Motion Picture Country Hospital in Woodland Hills, California and interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills, California.

Kenneth MacDonald had a suave demeanor, an excellent, rich voice, and was a great con man, crooked lawyer, and gang boss. I was always impressed with his dialog delivery, perfected from years on stage. And he could handle comedy. Definitely one of my favorites.

Comments and remembrances from
Kenneth MacDonald, courtesy of Wally Seeley.

Wally Seeley is a fan of the old film and TV western, and we connected in late 2024. For many years, Wally corresponded with Kenneth MacDonald, and he sent me scans of several photos and typewritten letters from Ken. Great responses and remembrances from MacDonald. Thanks Wally!

(Courtesy of Wally Seeley)
Kenneth MacDonald with lots of grey hair. Guessing this was
from his later years as a judge on the PERRY MASON TV show.

Some MacDonald quotes:

He was a busy guy at Columbia Pictures and was asked whether he was among Columbia's stable of contract players. Ken replied that he was "never anything but a freelance actor".

"Regarding my own doubles, I was most fortunate to have: Yakama [sic] Canutt, Ben Johnson (yes, the present featured player), Reed [sic] Morgan, Ted Mapes and Francis Walker. All of these were the finest the industry ever had." (Reed Morgan is Boyd 'Red' Morgan.)

The closing of another letter reads: "I hope this information permits you to transport yourself into a portion of our way of life. It is difficult; it demands the utmost of discipline. The compensations, as far as I am concerned, have always matched the efforts required. It has been a grand life."

Hopes unfulfilled in another letter with several words underlined by Ken: "... thinking of oneself pleasureably as a replacement for a performer who has passed on. But I surely would like sometime ... by someone, to be considered worthy of the type of assignment carried out so well by Walter Huston and Charles Bickford. It's frightful to know you have the tools and be denied their use."

In another letter, Ken mentioned his favorite B western role:

"Believe it or not - it was in a most unimportant western release, starring Charles Starrett; the title - MANHATTAN BUCKEROO.

Now - as to the WHY? It was by far the most demanding in character creation. You have never heard of a "triple role" - for the reason that they are just never written. This was the only one, to my knowledge. I played -

Main Character - A Western State Senator (Good Man).
Secondary Character - His derelict, identical twin brother.
Impersonation - The derilect, attempting (and with real success) to pass himself off as the Senator.

... quite a challenge - and I had FUN."

That film was COWBOY FROM LONESOME RIVER (Columbia, 1944), not MANHATTAN BUCKEROO, and the plot summary is below. Sadly, COWBOY FROM LONESOME RIVER is on our lost / missing / unavailable westerns list. Internet Movie Database link to that film: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036726/)

Review from a trade publication at the Internet Archive.

Although some of the data is incomplete or inaccurate, the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) has information on Kenneth MacDonald: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0531810/

The Three Stooges Net website includes a listing of the various cast members in the Stooges' shorts, and here's Kenneth MacDonald with the zany trio: https://threestooges.net/cast/actor/175/

A short video with scenes of MacDonald and the Stooges: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCRBS6tkriE

Daniel Neyer's "The Files of Jerry Blake" serial website has a webpage on Kenneth MacDonald in serials: https://filesofjerryblake.com/serial-villains/kenneth-macdonald/

A listing of MacDonald's 30+ appearances as a judge is at D. M. Brockman's PERRY MASON website: https://www.perrymasontvseries.com/M_Actors.htm

The Jay County, Indiana Visitor and Tourism Bureau in Portland, Indiana has a brief bio on Kenneth MacDonald: https://visitjaycounty.com/famous-faces-of-jay-county/kenneth-macdonald/

On the trail of Kenneth MacDonald.

The Family Search website, Ancestry.com, newspapers, California Death Index, Social Security Death Index (SSDI), Richmond, Indiana High School yearbooks, death certificate, and other sources provide more on Kenneth MacDonald and family.

Couple of tidbits in the information below. It looks like Kenneth's parents divorced and mother Mary had re-married at the time of the 1920 census. In that 1920 census, her son Kenneth R. Dollins is with her in Moline, Illinois. Yet Kenneth R. Dollins is also listed in the 1920 Richmond, Indiana High School yearbook. Perhaps he was living in Richmond, Indiana with a friend or family member and finishing high school. Driving distance between Moline, Illinois and Richmond, Indiana is about 375 miles.

Marriage license of Kenneth MacDonald's parents, John W. Dollins and Mary E. Tate, in Jay County, Indiana on June 13, 1896: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9392-HB9T-N3?i=125&wc=Q8SH-568%3A962982701%2C963012101%3Fcc%3D1410397&cc=1410397
1910 census summary and census takers worksheet - John W. Dollins (no age listed; born Indiana), 38 year old wife Mary E. (born Indiana), 13 year old daughter Olive I. (born Indiana), 11 year old son Roland C. (born Indiana), and 9 year old son Kenneth R. (born Indiana) were living in Portland, Jay County, Indiana. Father John's occupation was "Traveling Salesman" and Mary's occupation was "Hair Dresser - At Home": https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MKPW-T8P
appears that mother Mary re-married. 1920 census summary and census takers worksheet - owning their home at 717 22nd Street, Moline, Rock Island County, Illinois were 44 year old John P. Reynolds (born Kansas), 44 year old wife Mary (born Indiana), 19 year old son Forest (born Nebraska), 17 year old daughter Ardis E. (born Nebraska), and 18 year old stepson Kenneth R. Dollins (born Indiana): https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MJCC-HMG
January 12, 1923 Macomb, Illinois Daily By-Stander and January 21, 1923 Richmond, Indiana Item had announcement of the January 12th or January 15th, 1923 marriage of Gladys A. Sypherd and former Richmond, Indiana native and high-schooler Royce K. Dollins in Mount Sterling, Brown County, Illinois. He was an actor, toured in Canada, had performed with the Grand Players in Davenport, Iowa, and was now in Chicago with comedian W. B. Patton's company. They met when he was in a play in Macomb, Illinois:
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-macomb-daily-by-stander-marriage-of/162993817/
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-richmond-item-marriage-announcement/162952247/
Ancestry.com had Illinois County Marriage Records - Gladys A. Sypherd and Royce K. Dollins married January 15, 1923 in Mount Sterling, Brown County, Illinois. Her parents were Allen B. Sypherd and Alice Pointer. (In the 1930 census, she's divorced and living with her parents in Macomb, McDonough County, Illinois.)
January 29, 1930 South Bend, Indiana Tribune has an article and photo of Kenneth MacDonald, of the Armstrong Players, appearing in the Progress Club Follies: https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-south-bend-tribune-kenneth-macdonald/161111473/
February 16, 1930 South Bend, Indiana Tribune has photo and engagement announcement of Lamee Nave to stage actor Kenneth MacDonald: https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-south-bend-tribune-engagement-announ/163721446/
February 23, 1930 South Bend, Indiana Tribune had an announcement of the February 22, 1930 marriage of LaMee Nave and Kenneth MacDonald at the Epworth Memorial Methodist Episcopal church. Mentions MacDonald with the Armstrong Players: https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-south-bend-tribune-lamee-nave-and-ke/161060664/
1930 census summary and census takers worksheet - 28 year old Kenneth Mac Donald (born Indiana), his 18 year old wife La Mee K Mac Donald (born Kentucky) and 42 year old lodger Oscar L. Prather (born Nebraska) were renting in Los Angeles. Occupation of Kenneth and Oscar were "Actor Pro - Stage and Picture", and La Mee's occupation was "Stenographer - Motion Picture Studio". Kenneth was not a military veteran: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XCJB-7LQ
California Birth Index - Kenneth Mills MacDonald was born March 6, 1931 in the Los Angeles area: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V2RZ-MZM
California Birth Index - Marlyn MacDonald was born October 3, 1934 in the Los Angeles area: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VGX6-JDM
1940 census summary and census takers worksheet - renting in Los Angeles were 38 year old Kenneth McDonald [sic] (born Indiana), his 28 year old wife K. Lamae [sic] (born Kentucky), 9 year old son Kenneth M. (born California), and 5 year old daughter Marylin G. (born California). His occupation was "Actor - Motion Pictures", and in 1939, he worked 20 weeks and earned $1640.00: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K9ZW-7SL
California Birth Index - George Roland MacDonald was born May 27, 1942 in the Los Angeles area: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V2Q1-4DN
World War II draft registration - 40 year old Kenneth Royce Mac Donald was born September 8, 1901 in Portland, Indiana. He and wife Lamee Mac Donald lived at 2217 Juliet Street, Los Angeles, California. He was 6 foot tall and 182 pounds; employer was Mitchel J. Hamilburg Agency, Hollywood, California; and place of employment was Columbia Pictures, 714 North Gower Street, Hollywood, California: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QGXY-257Q
1950 census summary and census takers worksheet - living at 2912 Raymond Street, Los Angeles were 48 year old Kenneth R. MacDonald (born Indiana; occupation "Actor - Movie Industry"), his 37 year old wife LaMee K. (born Kentucky; occupation "Secretary - Auto Recovery Agency"), 7 year old son George R. (born California), 15 year old daughter Marilyn J. (born California), and 19 year old son Kenneth M. (born California): https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6XGH-RDFV
May 22, 1954 California Marriage Certificate for 23 year old Kenneth Mills MacDonald and 25 year old Jo Giggi in Glendale, California: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K86D-6JR
Death certificate - 70 year old Kenneth Royce MacDonald was born September 8, 1901 in Indiana to John Wesley Dollins (born Kentucky) and MaryTate Portland (born Indiana). Death certificate informant was wife La Mee MacDonald, and they lived at 217 North Griffith Park Drive, Burbank, California. He suffered from metastatic brain and lung tumors for about a year and passed away from metastases of tumors on May 5, 1972 at the Motion Picture Country Hospital, Woodland Hills, California. Burial at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills.
There is an error on the death certificate - his mother is listed as MaryTate Portland from Indiana. Her correct name was Mary Tate ... and she hailed from Portland, Indiana.
The California Death Index mirrors the death certificate - Kenneth R. MacDonald was born 9/8/1901 in Indiana and passed away on 5/5/1972. There is a corresponding record in the Social Security Death Index (SSDI):
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VPHN-HDV
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JGW3-FZ7
A syndicated death announcement from the Associated Press was published in many newspapers and listed Richmond, Indiana as the location/source of the death report ... which would imply to the reader that Kenneth MacDonald passed away there. No mention of his passing at the Motion Picture Home and Hospital or in California: https://www.newspapers.com/article/oakland-tribune-death-notice-for-actor-k/161358212/
May 7, 1972 Richmond, Indiana Palladium newspaper had a more detailed obit on their former resident and Richmond High School athlete. It does mention his death at the Motion Picture Home and Hospital ... but they spelled his real surname as "Rollins", not "Dollins": https://www.newspapers.com/article/palladium-item-death-notice-for-actor-ke/161358683/

The Internet Archive has the 1919 - 1920 "Pierian Yearbooks" from his Richmond, Indiana High School. They include photos and articles on Senior, football player, basketball player Kenneth R. Dollins whose nickname was "Dollie". One blurb notes that he was a "noted soloist". The yearbook links below will open in a separate window / tab - on those webpages, click on the 🔍 magnifier icon in the upper left and enter "Dollins" (with quote marks) to search:

     1920 yearbook: https://archive.org/details/pierian_1920rich
     1920 yearbook: https://archive.org/details/pierian00rich_7/page/n11
     1919 yearbook: https://archive.org/details/pierian00rich_1/page/n9

Find A Grave website has interment info:

Kenneth MacDonald and his second wife LaMee Kathryn Nave MacDonald are interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills:
Kenneth MacDonald (1901 - 1972): https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/19770/kenneth-macdonald
LaMee Kathryn Nave MacDonald (1912 - 1988): https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/6649617/lamee-kathryn-macdonald

Ken's first wife Gladys Avonelle Sypherd Elting (1895 - 1969) is interred at Oakwood Cemetery, Macomb, McDonough County, Illinois: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/109937917/gladys-avonelle-elting

Kenneth MacDonald's parents are interred at Green Park Cemetery, Portland, Jay County, Indiana:
John W. Dollins (1858 - 1923): https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/62628906/john-wesley-dollins
Mary E. 'Mollie' Tate (1859 - 1948): https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/67418711/mary-e-tate

Son Kenneth M. MacDonald (1931 - 1977) and his second wife, Georgia Welch Hileman (1929 - 2007), are interred at Hillcrest Memorial Park, Ardmore, Carter County, Oklahoma: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/110255483/kenneth-m-macdonald

In biographies, silent screen actor Kenneth McDonald is often confused with Kenneth MacDonald.

Above is a 1923 trade publication ad for Kenneth McDonald starring in six "COMEDY-THRILL-O-DRAMAS" for Anthony J. Xydias' Sunset Productions company.

Not much on him - he did have the lead in some low budget silents ... then some character roles ... and then disappears. His last - or one of his last - screen appearances MAY be the lost / missing silent THE LITTLE BUCKAROO (FBO, 1928) with Buzz Barton.

The March or April, 1925 Motion Picture Classic had a column about various independent productions and mentioned Poverty Row producer Bud Barsky: "The Barsky stars are Kenneth McDonald, a handsome young giant who was a Fox electrician, and Geno Carrado ..."

And there was some legal activities in 1925 - George McGinnis was using the screen name of "Kenneth McDonald". In January, 1925, Variety trade publication and Los Angeles Times newspaper reported that his request for a legal name change from George McGinnis to Kenneth McDonald was approved by the Los Angeles Superior Court.
LA Times article: https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-actor-george-mcgin/161123521/

Was hoping to find George McGinnis at Family Search and Ancestry.com. But only found one possibility - the 1920 census has 22 year old George A. McGinnis, born 1898 in Washington, and living in Los Angeles. He was a lodger; single; and occupation was Electrician - I.A.T.S.E. (which kinda matches that "Fox electrician" mention above). Found nothing else on a McGinnis who may have been an actor. And no family trees.

Although some of the data is incomplete or inaccurate, the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) has information on Kenneth McDonald / Kenneth MacDonald. IMDb has him in 30 films from 1923 - 1928: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1129390/

YouTube and the Library of Congress have four of Kenneth McDonald's silents:
SLOW AS LIGHTNING (Sunset, 1923): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2G7PjKPv_Q4
DYNAMITE DAN (Sunset, 1924) (with Boris Karloff): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ep708XIaTfQ
THE COAST PATROL (Bud Barsky Prod., 1925) (with Fay Wray): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCbyrW_jfNs
THE SUNSHINE OF PARADISE ALLEY (Chadwick, 1926): https://www.loc.gov/item/2024601076/

I have screen captures of Kenneth McDonald in three of those silents. If you'd like those, send the Old Corral webmeister an e-mail.

Fay Wray and very tall Kenneth McDonald working for producer Bud Barsky. In
the April, 1925 Motion Picture Classic magazine, available at the Internet Archive.