Milburn Stone (July 5, 1904 – June 12, 1980) was an American film and television actor, a nephew of actors Fred Stone and Madge Blake, best known as Doc (Dr. Galen Adams) on the CBS western series Gunsmoke. He also played a Dr. Blake in the 1943 film Gung Ho!. Hugh Milburn Stone was born in Burrton, Kansas to Herbert and Laura (née Belfield) Stone. He began his screen career in the 1930s, having been featured in Monogram Pictures series of Tailspin Tommy adventures. In 1940, he appeared with Marjorie Reynolds, Tristram Coffin, and I. Stanford Jolley in the comedy espionage film Chasing Trouble. Also in 1940 Stone co-starred with Roy Rogers in the film Colorado, in which he played Rogerss brother-gone-wrong.[1] He played the liberal minded warden in Monogram Pictures Prison Mutiny in 1943. He was signed by Universal Pictures in 1943 and became a familiar face in its features and serials. One of his film roles was a radio columnist in the Gloria Jean-Kirby Grant musical Ill Remember April. He made such an impression in this film that Universal gave him a starring role (and a similar characterization) in the 1945 serial The Master Key. One of CBS Radios hit series, the western Gunsmoke, was adapted for television in 1955 and recast with experienced screen actors. Howard McNear, radios Doc Adams, was replaced by Milburn Stone, who gave the role a harder edge consistent with his screen portrayals. He stayed with Gunsmoke through its entire run and was often shown sparring in a friendly manner with costars Dennis Weaver and Ken Curtis, who played, respectively, Chester Goode and deputy Festus Haggen.[1] In March 1971,[2] Stone had heart bypass surgery at UAB Hospital, Birmingham, Alabama. Afterward, he had to be revived two times after his heart stopped. He died on June 12, 1980 and was survived by his second wife, the former Jane Garrison (who died in 2002), and their daughter, Shirley Stone Gleason A painting of the Doc Adams character was commissioned from Gary Hawk, a painter from Stones home state of Kansas. When then-President Ronald Reagan, a friend of Milburn Stone, heard about the painting, Gary Hawk was invited to the Oval Office to present the artwork to the President. Stone lived to see Reagan emerge as the likely Republican nominee for President in 1980 but not to witness Reagans election.[citation needed] For his contribution to the television industry, Milburn Stone has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. He died of a heart attack in La Jolla, California. In 1981, he was inducted posthumously into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. After his death he left a legacy for the Performing Arts, in Cecil County, Maryland, by way of the Milburn Stone Theatre in North East, Maryland.
Posted on: Thu, 29 May 2014 01:51:25 +0000
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