Dick Elliott
Elliott in Dangerous Money (1946)
Born	Richard Damon Elliott (1886-04-30)April 30, 1886 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	December 22, 1961(1961-12-22) (aged 75) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting place	Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1933–1961
Spouse	Esther Claud ​ ​ (m. 1907; died 1949)​
Children	1

Richard Damon Elliott (April 30, 1886 – December 22, 1961) was an American character actor who played in over 240 films from the 1930s until the time of his death.

Early years

Elliott was born in Boston, Massachusetts.^[1]

Career

Elliott played many different roles, typically as a somewhat blustery sort, such as a politician. A short, fat man, Elliott played Santa Claus on the Jimmy Durante, Red Skelton, and Jack Benny programs. Elliott had a couple of memorable lines in It's a Wonderful Life (1946), notably when he scolded James Stewart's character, who was trying to say goodnight to Donna Reed, advising him: "Why don't you kiss her instead of talking her to death?"

He also had a few memorable appearances in episodes of the Adventures of Superman television series. He appeared three times as Stanley on the CBS sitcom December Bride, as well as on two of ABC/Warner Brothers' western series, Sugarfoot and Maverick. He was cast as the prospector Peter Cooper and then as Sheriff Tiny Morris in two segments of CBS's Tales of the Texas Rangers. He appeared twice as Doc Thornton on ABC's The Real McCoys. Elliott is perhaps best known as Mayberry's Mayor Pike in early episodes of CBS's The Andy Griffith Show, one of his last screen works. In two of the eleven episodes featuring Elliot as mayor, actress Josie Lloyd portrayed his daughter.

Death

On December 22, 1961, the 75-year-old Elliott died from complications of severe cardiovascular disease.^[2]

Selected filmography