Sean McClory

Sean McClory was born in Dublin, Ireland, but spent his early life in Galway. He was the son of Hugh Patrick, an architect and civil engineer, and Mary Margaret Ball, who had been a model. Sean decided to become an actor and joined Dublin's renowned Abbey Theater (also known as the National Theater of Ireland, opened in 1904). He rose through the ranks playing in productions of the works of such authors as William Butler Yeats and George Bernard Shaw, and soon began to play leads mostly in comedies (popular through most of the 1940s and into the 1950s). When comedies began to fade from the theater after World War II, McClory turned an eye toward film. In early 1947 he decided to make the jump to America and break into Hollywood. His first roles were that of a staple in American films: the Irish cop, which he played in two of the Dick Tracy series in 1947. In 1949 he signed a short contract with 20th Century-Fox. By 1950 he was showing up in more notable films - though uncredited, particularly in The Glass Menagerie (1950). Within a year McClory's talents were being showcased in various small feature roles. John Ford finally began casting - a painstaking process for the finicky director - for his long conceived The Quiet Man (1952) and chose McClory for a small but showy part, in which he was seen throughout the film feature with Charles B. Fitzsimons, the younger brother of the film's star, Maureen O'Hara, playing an Irish villager. Although some of the cast were familiar members of the "John Ford Stock Company", many roles were filled by actual Irish villagers (the film was shot on location) and included a generous helping of Abbey Theater alumni: the Shields brothers (Barry Fitzgerald and Arthur Shields) and Jack MacGowran, in addition to O'Hara McClory. Ford wanted him for roles in several of his subsequent films, however McClory's busy film and TV schedule only allowed him to accept roles in two other Ford films, The Long Gray Line and Cheyenne Autumn. McClory had a cultured, neutral Irish brogue that fit well in small- or big-screen performances, unlike such Irish actors as Barry Fitzgerald who, though very effective and beloved, had a thick brogue that kept him forever cast as an Irishman. As a result, McClory was much more at home in American TV and had many memorable roles from 1953 onward, appearing in a gamut of episodic TV in addition to his feature film work. However, it was his frequent appearances on the small screen that enabled McClory to stand out in viewers' memories, especially in a range of western and adventure series (in which he played a good sprinkling of Irish characters) well into the 1970s. Though not as busy in the 1980s as he was in the '70s, one role in which he truly stood out was in an adaptation by John Huston of Irish writer James Joyce's famous 1907 short story "The Dead" made in 1987 (The Dead (1987)), his final film appearance. McClory's role as Mr. Grace was not a character in the original story but was created by Huston and his son Tony Huston to provide McClory with a reading of the medieval Irish poem "Young Donal", which was very effective to the mood of this look at Irish family remembrance.

Known For

Birth Location Dublin, Ireland
Born 1924-03-08
Died 2003-12-10

Movies

Body Bags as Minister
1993
The Dead as Mr. Grace
1987
My Chauffeur as O'Brien
1986
Roller Boogie as Jammer Delany
1979
1976
Kate McShane as Pat McShane
1975
The Day of the Wolves as The Sheriff
1971
Bandolero! as Robbie O'Hare
1968
The Happiest Millionaire as Police Sgt.
1967
The King's Pirate as Sparkes
1967
The Gnome-Mobile as Horatio Quaxton
1967
Follow Me, Boys! as Edward White, Sr.
1966
Mary Poppins as Hound / Reporter #4 (voice) (uncredited)
1964
Cheyenne Autumn as Dr. O'Carberry
1964
Valley of the Dragons as Michael Denning
1961
The Guns of Fort Petticoat as Emmett Kettle
1957
Diane as Count Michel Montgomery
1956
The King's Thief as Sheldon
1955
Moonfleet as Elzevir Block
1955
I Cover the Underworld as Gunner O'Hara / John O'Hara
1955
The Long Gray Line as Dinny Maher
1955
Ring of Fear as Dublin O'Malley
1954
Them! as Maj. Kibbee
1954
The Child as Reverend Smith
1954
Man in the Attic as Constable #1
1953
Charade as Jack Stuydevant
1953
Island in the Sky as Frank Lovatt, Dooley's co-pilot
1953
Plunder of the Sun as Jefferson
1953
Niagara as Sam (uncredited)
1953
Les Miserables as Bamtasbois (uncredited)
1952
The Quiet Man as Owen Glynn
1952
Anne of the Indies as Hackett
1951
Lorna Doone as Charleworth Doone
1951
Storm Warning as Shore
1951
1950
Roughshod as Fowler (as Shawn McGlory)
1949
Beyond Glory as Barney
1948
Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome as Officer Carney (uncredited)
1947
Dick Tracy's Dilemma as Officer Dillon (uncredited)
1947
Sean McClory hasn't worked on any movies or TV shows