MILTON PARSONS

May 19, 1904

Ernest Milton Parsons was born in Gloucester, Massachusetts, in 1904. He appeared in more than 160 films and television shows between 1939 and 1978. He attended Boston University, where he participated in dramatics and me this future wife, Collette Humphrey. It was at Boston University where he also began writing, specializing in drama and journalism. Parsons appeared in four Broadway plays between 1930 and 1950, the last directed by Hume Cronyn.

He made his screen debut in 1939′s When Tomorrow Comes, playing (uncredited) Mr. Henderson, the organist. He was seen in four films with William Frawley (from 1941 to 1955), the most popular of which was 1942’s Roxie Hart starring Lucy’s pal Ginger Rogers. It was later the basis for the hit musical Chicago.

From 1948, Parsons and Lucille Ball shared something in common off screen: the community of Chatsworth, California, in the San Fernando Valley outside of Los Angeles. Around the same time the Anazes moved to Chatasworth, so did the Parsons’, who settled on Farralone Avenue in a home they wittily called “The Parsonage”.  Parsons and his wife established a Chatsworth children’s theatre called the Cookie Jar Theatre. Parsons wrote and directed all their productions, even holding rehearsals (and sometimes performances) in his home. Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz were also residents, dubbing their home on Devonshire Drive “The Desilu Ranch.” The Cookie Jar Theatre closed around 1963, by which time Lucy and Desi had left Chatsworth for Beverly Hills. Parsons and his family remained as residents for the rest of his life.

Parsons made his television debut in April 1951 with an episode of “The Philco Television Playhouse” on NBC.

His very next project for television was playing Mr. Thurlow on “I Love Lucy” in “Ricky Thinks He’s Getting Bald” (ILL S1;E34) filmed on April 25, 1952, and first aired on June 2, 1952. “I’m not only the Hair Club president but I’m also a client!”

In 1957, he returned to Desilu for a day on their hit sitcom “December Bride” guest-starring Rudy Vallee.

A year later he was back for an episode of Desilu’s “Whirlybirds”.

In January 1960, he played a hotel clerk in an episode of Desilu’s “The Untouchables” titled “The St. Louis Story.”

In April 1961, he was seen on an episode of “The Jack Benny Program” which was filmed at Desilu.

In 1962, he made a brief appearance in the film version of The Music Man.  Credited as ‘Farmer,’ it was his resemblance to the man in Grant Wood’s iconic painting “American Gothic” that got him the role. Robert Preston played the title character, and would play the male lead again when the musical film of Mame was made in 1974 starring Lucille Ball. The film also featured Ralph Hart (”The Lucy Show”), Charles Lane, Mary Wickes, Jesslyn Fax, Barbara Pepper, Ray Kellogg, and Max Showalter.

In September 1964, he appeared as a mysterious caretaker on an episode of “The Dick Van Dyke Show” which was filmed by Desilu.

His final screen appearance was in the 1977 TV movie “A Love Affair: The Eleanor and Lou Gehrig Story.” 

He died on May 15, 1980 at age 75.

In 2014, a short documentary of his life was created titled “The Face Is Familiar: Milton Parsons”.