There is an interesting 2013 book entitled "the Entertainer - Movies, Magic and My Father's Twentieth Century," about the surprisingly fascinating life of actor Lyle Talbot, written by his daughter Margaret, a staff writer for The New Yorker.
Lyle Talbot
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Talbot was a second-lead actor at Warner Bros. in the 1930's, then usually appeared as an authority-type figure in B movies and television in the 1940's and 50's until landing his long-running roll as affable neighbor Joe Randolph in "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet."
In the mid 50's, he was a busy middle-aged actor on his fifth marriage and with a serious drinking problem. His fifth and last wife was 25 years younger than Lyle, and they had four children. For a time the family lived at The Highland Towers apartments at 1922 North Highland near Franklin.
Daughter Margaret describes The Highland Towers in 1954 as "a hulking apartment building in the heart of Hollywood that had been put up in the Silent Era with an eye to grandeur but was now rather tatty." Her brother Stephen remembered the building as "a literally dark, sort of seedy place, full of weird actors and magicians. In retrospect, it was very film noir." Stephen also recalled that his father took him to see "Prince Valiant" at Grauman's Chinese Theatre and they walked home together. In addition, the eccentric "psychic" and local character "The Amazing Criswell" lived at The Highland Towers at the same time. Stephen said that when they ran into Criswell in the elevator he was "always in character, with a frothy platinum coiffure and speaking in those stentorian tones." Criswell and Lyle Talbot later appeared together in Ed Wood's immortal "Plan 9 From Outer Space."
Highland Towers in distance, 1944
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Highland Towers Hotel-Apartments, 1940's
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Lyle Talbot's last marriage lasted 40 years and his wife helped him sober up by the late 1950's. He died at age 94 in San Francisco, where he had moved after her death. It is remarkable how successful his children have been. Writer Margaret's sister Cynthia is a physician in Portland, Oregon. Brother Stephen was a successful child actor, well-known as Beaver Cleaver's friend Gilbert Bates on TV, and is today an Emmy-winning documentary producer. Son David is a best-selling author of political books and founder of the website, "Salon."
Stephen Talbot as Gilbert Bates in "Leave it To Beaver"
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