Baby Boomer Alert: How Many Remember Walter Brennan From The Real McCoys?

Walter Brennan was a New Englander who made his name in Hollywood playing grizzled old coots, usually from the south.  In 1932 he was in a serious car accident which resulted in the loss of all of his teeth.  From then on, he would pop out his false teeth and was signed to play roles sometimes ten, or even twenty years older than he actually was.

Brenna won three Oscars for Best Supporting Actor, a total which ties Jack Nicholson.  Brennan's honored films were "Come and Get It' (1936), "Kentucky" (1938) and "The Westerner" (1940).  He was also nominated in 1941 for "Sgt. York."

The actor made the successful transition to television starring in The Real McCoys from 1957 to 1963.  Despite his grizzled persona, Walter Brennan was somewhat of a Renaissance man.  He branched out into recordings and his song, "Old Rivers," peaked at #5 on the rock and pop charts in 1962.

Brennan was a millionaire many times over and was a strict political conservative.  He was one of the first celebrity backers of Barry Goldwater during the presidential campaign of 1964.