W.C. Fields

Biography

William Claude Dukenfield was the eldest of five children born to Cockney immigrant James Dukenfield and Philadelphia native Kate Felton. He went to school for four years, then quit to work with his father selling vegetables from a horse cart. At eleven, after many fights with his alcoholic father (who hit him on the head with a shovel), he ran away from home. For a while he lived in a hole in the ground, depending on stolen food and clothing. He was often beaten and spent nights in jail. His first regular job was delivering ice. By age thirteen he was a skilled pool player and juggler. It was then, at an amusement park in Norristown PA, that he was first hired as an entertainer. There he developed the technique of pretending to lose the things he was juggling. In 1893 he was employed as a juggler at Fortescue's Pier, Atlantic City. When business was slow he pretended to drown in the ocean (management thought his fake rescue would draw customers). By nineteen he was billed as "The Distinguished Comedian" and began opening bank accounts in every city he played. At age twenty-three he opened at the Palace in London and played with Sarah Bernhardt at Buckingham Palace. He starred at t…

Movies & TV Shows

1. The Bank Dick (1940) — Egbert Sousé
2. It's a Gift (1934) — Harold Bissonette
3. David Copperfield (1935) — Wilkins Micawber
4. Alice in Wonderland (1933) — Humpty-Dumpty
5. The Fatal Glass of Beer (1933) — Mr. Snavely
6. If I Had a Million (1932) — Rollo La Rue
7. The Dentist (1932) — Dentist
8. Pool Sharks (1915)
9. That's Entertainment, Part II (1976) — (archive footage)
10. Tales of Manhattan (1942) — Professor Pufflewhistle (uncredited)
11. Never Give a Sucker an Even Break (1941) — The Great Man
12. My Little Chickadee (1940) — Cuthbert J. Twillie
13. The Golf Specialist (1930) — J. Effingham Bellweather
14. The Pharmacist (1933) — Mr. Dilweg
15. The Big Broadcast of 1938 (1938) — T. Frothingill Bellows / S.B. Bellows
16. The Barber Shop (1933) — Cornelius O'Hare
17. International House (1933) — Professor Quail
18. Million Dollar Legs (1932) — The President
19. You Can't Cheat an Honest Man (1939) — Larson E. Whipsnade
20. You're Telling Me! (1934) — Sam Bisbee
21. The Movie Orgy (1968) — Self (archive footage)
22. Man on the Flying Trapeze (1935) — Ambrose Wolfinger
23. The Old-Fashioned Way (1934) — The Great McGonigle / Squire Cribbs in 'The Drunkard'
24. Six of a Kind (1934) — Sheriff John Hoxley
25. The Silver Screen: Color Me Lavender (1997) — Self (archive footage)
26. It's the Old Army Game (1926) — Elmer Prettywillie
27. Follow the Boys (1944) — W. C. Fields
28. So's Your Old Man (1926) — Samuel Bisbee
29. Sally of the Sawdust (1925) — Professor Eustance McGargle
30. Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? (1975) — Self (archive footage)
31. Mississippi (1935) — Commodore Jackson
32. Wogan (1982) — Self
33. Poppy (1936) — Eustace McGargle
34. Tillie and Gus (1933) — Augustus Winterbottom
35. Running Wild (1927) — Elmer Finch
36. The Big Parade of Comedy (1964) — Wilkins Micawber in 'David Copperfield' (archive footage)
37. W.C. Fields: 6 Short Films (2000)
38. Sensations of 1945 (1944) — W.C. Fields
39. The Circus: Premiere (1928) — Self
40. Show-Business at War (1943) — Self

Directed

1. Man on the Flying Trapeze (1935) — Director