At the age of seven, he and his family moved to Oregon. After studying at the University of Oregon, he followed in his father's footsteps and became a dentist, graduating from North Pacific Dental College. From 1929 to 1937 he was the head of oral surgery in Eugene, Oregon. He then moved his practice to Altadena, CA. There he joined the Pasadena Community Playhouse, eventually giving up dentistry at the age of 36 to become an actor. He made his film debut in 1939. His chubby face and gravelly voice were featured in over 100 films, but he is perhaps best known for TV roles in "Judge Roy Bean, " "Pettycoat Junction", and "Cade's County."
Was one of only three co-stars of Petticoat Junction (the others being Linda Henning and Frank Cady who remained with the series for its entire seven-year run. Was originally a dentist with his own practice. At age 38, he turned the practice over to his wife and began his acting career. He appeared in a total of 13 different productions with Glenn Ford. Member of Theta Chi Fraternity (Alpha Sigma Chapter, University of Oregon)