broadcasts of live
plays, which made it easy for stage actors like Fell to make
the transition. Early in his career, Fell had roles in productions
featured on several of these playhouse series including, The
Goodyear Playhouse (1954), Studio One (1954), and
The Philco Television Playhouse (1954). His first
recurring role in a TV series was as Mike on Joe &
Mabel (1955). In 1958, Fell made the move to Hollywood
to pursue a career in film, where he appeared in over 30 feature
films including classic titles like Inherit the Wind
(1960), Oceans Eleven (1960). It's a
Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad, World (1963), The Killers (1964),
and The Graduate (1967). On the small screen, Fell
made a name for himself playing heavies and tough guys, and
in 1976, he won a Golden Globe Award for his portrayal of
Smitty on ground-breaking mini-series, Rich Man, Poor Man.
But it was as uptight landlord Stanly Roper on Three's
Company (1977-1984), and spin-off The Ropers (1979),
that Fell gained his greatest fame. Stuffy Stanley was popular
with the viewers, particularly when he grinned smugly into
the camera after delivering a pithy line to Jack (John Ritter),
or his sex-starved wife Helen (Audra Lindley). After the
Three's Company era, Fell continued to take TV and
film roles, even making an appearance on an episode of Ritter's
sitcom, Hooperman (1989). |
