Henry Corden


Henry Corden was a Canadian-born American actor, best known for assuming the voice of Fred Flintstone after the death of Alan Reed in 1977. His official debut as Fred Flintstone was in a 1965 Hanna-Barbera record, Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble in Songs from Mary Poppins, and he also provided the singing voice for Reed in the 1966 theatrical film The Man Called Flintstone and the Hanna-Barbera specials Alice in Wonderland or What's a Nice Kid like You Doing in a Place like This? and Energy: A National Issue. He took over the role as Fred Flintstone full time in 1977 starting with the syndicated weekday series Fred Flintstone and Friends for which he provided voice-overs on brief bumper clips shown in between segments.

Early years

Corden was born January 6, 1920, in Montreal to Jewish immigrants Max and Emma Cohen. His father was a meat curer who had been born in Romania; his mother was originally from Russia. The family moved to the Bronx, New York when Corden was a child and he arrived in Hollywood in the 1940s.

Career

Corden appeared on the stage in Los Angeles, including a 1947 production of The Message. His film career included The System, where he played a near-sighted gangster named Specs. Corden thought it would be the first time in 25 films he could wear his glasses and see while he was acting, but the lenses gave off too much reflection and he had to substitute them for plain glass after one day of shooting.
Corden's obituary in the Tampa Bay Times noted, "With his deep voice, jet-black hair and ethnic looks, Corden was frequently tapped to play heavies in films and on television." He can be seen in such live-action films as The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The Black Castle, Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion and The Ten Commandments. He also appeared in dozens of TV shows, including Hogan's Heroes, Dragnet, Perry Mason, Peter Gunn, McHale's Navy, Gunsmoke, The Mary Tyler Moore Show and was a regular on The Jerry Lewis Show. Corden also played landlord Henry Babbitt on The Monkees and Mr. Haskell, the owner of an ice cream parlor, in an episode of The Brady Bunch.
Before Reed's death, Corden had been used as Reed's replacement when Fred Flintstone had to sing because Reed could not sing in pitch. Corden gave his voice to a number of Hanna-Barbera productions besides The Flintstones, including The Jetsons, Josie and the Pussycats, The Atom Ant Show, and Paw Rugg on The Hillbilly Bears, The New Tom & Jerry Show and Jonny Quest. Corden also gave voice to the wizard Gemini and Ookla the Mokk in Ruby-Spears Productions' Thundarr the Barbarian as well as the Gorilla General Urko in DePatie-Freleng Enterprises' Return to the Planet of the Apes. He voiced Arnie Barkley, the Archie Bunker-inspired patriarch of DePatie-Freleng's The Barkleys, in 1972.

Personal life

Corden was married four times. His first wife was Thelma Corden, from 1942 to 1969; together they had two children. He and his second wife Shirley W. Cytron were married from 1970 to 1979. After his divorce from Cytron, he married his third wife Charlotte R. Colton Diamond in 1984; they remained married until her death in 1993. Corden's fourth and final marriage was to Angelina Corden in 1995, and they remained married until Corden's death in 2005.

Death

Corden died of emphysema at Sherman Oaks Hospital in Sherman Oaks, California on May 19 2005, at the age of 85. Corden's wife of nine years, Angelina, was with him at the time.
His interment was at San Fernando Mission Cemetery.

Filmography

Film

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty as HendrickBride of Vengeance as ScoutWild Weed as Hugo the club managerAbbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion as Ibrim The Asphalt Jungle as William DoldenHiawatha as OttobangAbbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as Actor in Javanese Costume The Band Wagon as Orchestra Conductor Phantom of the Rue Morgue as Detective Mignaud King Richard and the Crusaders as King Philip of France The Egyptian as Hittite Officer Jupiter's Darling as CarthaloJump Into Hell as Major Lamblin Lust for Life as Waiter The Ten Commandments as Sheik of SinaiThe Shadow on the Window as Louie Cry Tough as Mr. Fuente The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as Mate Blueprint for Robbery as Preacher DocWhen the Clock Strikes as CadyTammy Tell Me True as Captain ArmandIsland of Love Strange Bedfellows as Sheik's Interpreter The Family Jewels as Gasoline Truck Driver McHale's Navy Joins the Air Force as NKVD deputyAlice in Wonderland or What's a Nice Kid like You Doing in a Place like This? as Fred Flintstone The Man Called Flintstone as Fred Flintstone Made in Paris as Bartender The Singing Nun as Truck Driver Frankie and Johnny as Gypsy Don't Worry, We'll Think of a Title as Professor LerowskiHook, Line & Sinker as Kenyon HammercherWhich Way to the Front? as Gangster The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie as Yogi's Ark Lark - Paw Rugg / First Truck DriverC.H.O.M.P.S. as Monster Modern Problems as DubrovnikOmnisphere as Neon City: Screen 1 voice The Greatest Adventure: Stories from the Bible The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones as Fred FlintstoneBeetle Bailey as Sergeant SnorkelI Yabba-Dabba Do! as Fred FlintstoneHollyrock-a-Bye Baby as Fred FlintstoneThe 10th Annual Television Academy Hall of Fame as himselfA Flintstones Christmas Carol as Fred Flintstone

Television

The Life of Riley - Delivery manTerry and the Pirates * - Singdee

Video games

The Flintstones: Bedrock Bowling - Fred Flintstone

Theme parks

The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera - Fred Flintstone