AllMovie

Comedian Milburn Morante began his career in vaudeville, teamed with brother Al and father Joe in a knockabout act called "the Three Morantes." In 1913, Morante launched his film career with Universal's Joker comedy unit, playing a vast array of character roles, usually in support of comedienne Gale Henry. Five years later, he formed his own company, Mercury Pictures, with his family on the payroll. A talented trouper, Morante was never able to latch onto a comic characterization that truly "clicked" with audiences, and by 1922 Mercury Pictures was no more. He spent the rest of the 1920s freelancing, starring in low-budget comedy shorts and essaying supporting parts in more expensive pictures. He also produced and directed several mid-'20s Westerns. In harness well into the 1950s, Milburn Morante made his last appearances in "old geezer" roles on TV's The Cisco Kid.