Dave Willock was born on August 13, 1909, in The Bronx, New York, and grew up during an era when vaudeville and the early days of film comedy were shaping the entertainment landscape. Little is documented about his formal education, but from a young age he displayed a talent for humor and timing that led him into performance work. By the late 1930s he had begun carving out a place for himself in show business, first on stage and then in film.
His early career saw him form a comedy partnership with Tommy Noonan, with the pair creating an act that drew on slapstick and witty banter, sometimes compared to the stylings of Abbott and Costello. Willock’s easygoing manner and sharp delivery soon brought him to Hollywood, where he became a familiar face in supporting and character roles across film and television for more than four decades. He appeared in a wide range of movies,
including Ball of Fire (1941), The Pride of the Yankees (1942), My Favorite Brunette (1947), Monkey Business (1952), and Funny Girl (1968). On television, his appearances were equally varied, encompassing guest roles on series such as The Twilight Zone, Green Acres, The Beverly Hillbillies, and Wanted Dead or Alive.
Movies
- Three Texas Steers (1939)
- S.O.S. Tidal Wave (1939)
- Good Girls Go to Paris (1939)
- Blondie Takes a Vacation (1939)
- Golden Boy (1939)
- Three Sons (1939)
- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
- Little Accident (1939)
- Legion of Lost Flyers (1939)
- The Amazing Mr. Williams (1939)
- Brother Rat and a Baby (1940)
- Granny Get Your Gun (1940)
- Honeymoon Deferred (1940)
- Framed (1940)
- Black Friday (1940)
- Too Many Husbands (1940)
- Argentine Nights (1940)
- Honeymoon for Three (1941)
- The Monster and the Girl (1941)
- Mr. District Attorney (1941)
- A Shot in the Dark (1941)
- The People vs. Dr. Kildare (1941)
- She Knew All the Answers (1941)
- Caught in the Draft (1941)
- Cracked Nuts (1941)
- Never Give a Sucker an Even Break (1941)
- Great Guns (1941)
- Niagara Falls (1941)
- The Chocolate Soldier (1941)
- Louisiana Purchase (1941)
- Hellzapoppin’ (1941)
- Playmates (1941)
- The Fleet’s In (1942)
- Frisco Lil (1942)
- The Mad Doctor of Market Street (1942)
- The Male Animal (1942)
- To the Shores of Tripoli (1942)
- Two Yanks in Trinidad (1942)
- This Time for Keeps (1947)
- Take a Letter, Darling (1942)
- Sunday Punch (1942)
- Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)
- The Affairs of Martha (1942)
- Wings for the Eagle (1942)
- Priorities on Parade (1942)
- Flying Tigers (1942)
- For Me and My Gal (1942)
- Lucky Jordan (1942)
- You Were Never Lovelier (1942)
- Ice-Capades Revue (1942)
- Over My Dead Body (1942)
- The Hard Way (1943)
- Dixie Dugan (1943)
- He Hired the Boss (1943)
- She Has What It Takes (1943)
- Action in the North Atlantic (1943)
- Let’s Face It (1943)
- Princess O’Rourke (1943)
- The Gang’s All Here (1943)
- Four Jills in a Jeep (1944)
- Pin Up Girl (1944)
- Wing and a Prayer (1944)
- She’s a Sweetheart (1944)
- Bring on the Girls (1945)
- It’s a Pleasure (1945)
- It’s in the Bag! (1945)
- Pride of the Marines (1945)
- This Love of Ours (1945)
- Spellbound (1945)
- Joe Palooka, Champ (1946)
- The Runaround (1946)
- The Searching Wind (1946)
- The Fabulous Dorseys (1947)
- Stork Bites Man (1947)
- State of the Union (1948)
- So This Is New York (1948)
- Sealed Verdict (1948)
- Chicago Deadline (1949)
- No Man of Her Own (1950)
- Belle of Old Mexico (1950)
- Louisa (1950)
- Call Me Mister (1951)
- Let’s Go Navy! (1951)
- Darling, How Could You! (1951)
- Roadblock (1951)
- A Girl in Every Port (1952)
- Love Is Better Than Ever (1952)
- Just This Once (1952
- Rodeo (1952)
- Jet Job (1952)
- The Merry Widow (1952)
- Just for You (1952)
- Battle Zone (1952)
- Flat Top (1952)
- Ma and Pa Kettle on Vacation (1953)
- Remains to Be Seen (1953)
- It Came from Outer Space (1953)
- Roar of the Crowd (1953)
- Half a Hero (1953)
- Revenge of the Creature (1955)
- The Delicate Delinquent (1957)
- The Buster Keaton Story (1957)
- Queen of Outer Space (1958)
- The Geisha Boy (1958)
- Ten Seconds to Hell (1959)
- The Ladies Man (1961)
- What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
- The List of Adrian Messenger (1963)
- The Nutty Professor (1963)
- Wives and Lovers (1963)
- 4 for Texas (1963)
- The Patsy (1964)
- Send Me No Flowers (1964)
- Hush…Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964)
- The Disorderly Orderly (1964)
- Frankie and Johnny (1966)
- The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin (1967)
- The Legend of Lylah Clare (1968)
- The Barefoot Executive (1971)
- The Grissom Gang (1971)
- Now You See Him, Now You Don’t (1972)
- Emperor of the North (1973)
- Hustle (1975)
His long career was marked less by starring roles than by his reliability as a comic character actor, the kind whose presence enlivened countless scenes with humor and humanity. In his personal life, Willock was married and had two sons, including actor Bart Willock, who also worked in television.
TV
- Private Detective (1956)
- Zane Grey Theatre (1956)
- Boots and Saddles (1956)
- Whirlybirds (1957)
- The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1957-1961) 2 episodes
- The Donna Reed Show (1958)
- Buckskin (1958)
- The Real McCoys (1958-1960) 2 episodes
- Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1959)
- The David Niven Show (1959)
- Dennis the Menace (1959)
- Wanted Dead or Alive (1959-1961) 3 episodes
- Wichita Town (1960)
- The Tom Ewell Show (1960)
- The Jim Backus Show (1960) 6 episodes
- Johnny Midnight (1960)
- Not For Hire (1960)
- Twilight Zone (1960)
- The Loretta Young Show (1960)
- The Defenders (1961)
- Harrigan and Son (1961)
- Westinghouse Preview Theatre (1961)
- Stagecoach West (1961) 2 episodes
- The Jack Benny Program (1961-1963) 6 episodes
- Bonanza (1961-1964) 3 episodes
- Perry Mason (1961-1965) 2 episodes
- Father of the Bride (1962)
- Gunsmoke (1963-1964) 2 episodes
- The Tycoon (1964)
- Mr. Ed (1964)
- The Danny Thomas Show (1964)
- The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (1965)
- The Munsters (1965)
- Karen (1965)
- Burke’s Law (1965)
- The Virginian (1965)
- My Mother the Car (1965-1966) 3 episodes
- Petticoat Junction (1965-1968) 2 episodes
- Green Acres (1965–1970) 9 episodes
- The Beverly Hillbillies (1965-1970) 2 episodes
- My Three Sons (1966)
- Run Buddy Run (1966) 2 episodes
- Dragnet (1967)
- The Lucy Show (1967)
- Gomer Pyle:USMC (1967)
- The Beautiful Phyllis Diller Show (1968) regular
- Wacky Races (1968-1969) 17 episodes
- The Queen and I (1969) 3 episodes
- Love, American Style (1969-1971) 3 episodes
- That Girl (1970)
- Adam-12 (1970)
- Hogans Heroes (1970)
- Nanny and the Professor (1971)
- The Roman Holidays (1972) 13 episodes
- The Magical World of Disney (1972) 2 episodes
- Police Story (1974)
- The Streets of San Francisco (1975)
- Lou Grant (1979)
He remained active in the entertainment industry well into his later years, continuing to take small parts and voice work as the business evolved. Although he never achieved major award recognition, his career represented the quintessential Hollywood journeyman’s life — one of steady work, professionalism, and a deep understanding of comic timing that earned him the respect of colleagues and audiences alike.
Dave Willock died on November 12, 1990, a Monday, in Woodland Hills, California, at the age of eighty-one. He was survived by his sons and left behind a long record of appearances that remain part of classic film and television history.
Further Reading
Sources
- Wikipedia “Dave Willock” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Willock
- Los Angeles Times “Dave Willock, 81; 5 Decades of Sidekick Roles” https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-11-14-mn-4173-story.html
- IMDB “Dave Willock(1909-1990)” https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0932565/
