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Burt Mustin 1884-1977

The "He-went-that-a-way" guy!

Burt Mustin is one of those actors who's face everyone has seen yet nobody knows his name. Everyone who saw Mr. Mustin in his many TV and movie appearances at work definitely remembers him. He worked as a radio announcer in Pittsburgh on station KDKA and later as a car salesman. It wasn't until he was 67 years old, in the 1950s, that he began his professional acting career and it was an active one. He appeared on more than 350 television shows and in more than 85 films always as a lovable old coot. I will always remember him from the old Twilight Zone episodes, Leave it to Beaver and Andy Griffith in which Barney charged his character "Jed" with disturbing the peace. At his court hearing Burt told Andy, "I aint had the strength to disturb the peace in thirty years!" Hilarious. But one of his funniest appearances to me was on All In The Family as Mr. Quigley. Burt mentioned something about "whoopee." Archie then said to Burt, "Whoopee? At your age sex must be down to a handshake." And with his perfect dead-pan humor Burt responded "Yes, before and after, in between it's still whoopee!" I also remember Burt telling a joke on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson which got such a huge laugh that they went to commercial, came back and the audience was still laughing. Johnny had tears in his eyes and my father almost fell off the sofa. I remember the joke to this day and it always gets a laugh.

Burt Mustin's Filmography on IMDB.Com

Burt Mustin's interment on Findagrave.com  (Interred at Forest Lawn (Hollywood Hills), Los Angeles, California, USA, in the Loving Kindness section, lot #7844.)

Mr. Mustin's Bio from the PMC Website:

Burton Hill Mustin was born February 8, 1884, and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, until being sent to Pennsylvania Military College in 1899. Mustin spent four happy years at PMC, becoming cadet lieutenant of company "D," and graduating in 1903 with a degree in civil engineering and an 88.7 average. He was also the catcher and first baseman on the 1902 and 1903 PMC baseball teams, the goalie on the 1901 and 1902 hockey teams, the editor-in-chief of Porcupine Annual yearbook in 1903, a member of the Soloist Minstrel Club, commander of the signal corps, and recipient of the Eastern Alumni Association Marksmanship Medal for 1903.

After graduation, Mustin toured Europe and planned to begin work at his father's brokerage firm in Pittsburgh until a financial panic ruined the firm. He briefly attempted to work as an engineer, but by his account, "I was the worst engineer the school turned out," so he became a salesman instead. For he next 25 years, Mustin was a mildly successful car salesman in Pittsburgh On the side, Mustin was involved with his true passion, musical theater. He was a member of the Pittsburgh Athletic Club Dramatic Group and the city's leading choral group. In addition, Mustin was a president and honorary life member of the Lions Club of Pittsburgh, president and life member of the Fellows Club of Pittsburgh, and president of the Musicians Club of Pittsburgh. In 1921, Mustin appeared on the first weekly variety show ever broadcast on pioneer station KDKA in Pittsburgh, but was billed as "the worlds worst announcer." He also discovered a love of barbershop quartet singing and joined the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America, in which he served as an officer and remained an active participant for the rest of his life. In 1942, WWII halted car making, and his wife's doctor encouraged the Mustins to move to a warmer climate because of her ailing health. As a result, Burt took a job selling hearing aids, and they moved to Tucson, Arizona.

Once in Tucson, Burt Mustin continued his involvement in theater. While playing a small part in a local production of Detective Story, the director of the movie version of the same play (starring Kirk Douglas) asked Mustin to play the same role in the movie. This experience represented Mustin's entrance into professional acting in 1951 at the age of 67. Mustin and his wife moved to California, and Mustin began to play many bit parts in television and movies. Describing himself as the "he-went-that-a-way guy," Mustin became a well-recognized character actor on television and in the movies during his 20-year career. Perhaps his most famous role was Justin Quigley on All in the Family. Mustin's last role was on the CBS television show Phyllis, in which his character married the character Mother Dexter; the show aired a few months before his death. By the end of his career, Burt Mustin had appeared in nearly 400 television shows, 70 movies, and dozens of commercials.

Throughout his life, Burt Mustin was a proud alumnus of Pennsylvania Military College and remained in close contact with the school. He contributed an article to the Alumni Bulletin in 1961 and an essay to Impact magazine in 1973. In 1961, Mustin was at PMC to lay the cornerstone of the new Alumni Auditorium. Mustin returned to PMC Colleges in February 1970 to see a performance of Detective Story, the play that launched his career. On that night, he was inducted into the PMC chapter of Alpha Pi Omega, the national dramatic fraternity, and was named artist-in-residence at the college. Furthermore, Mustin was given the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1972, and received an honorary degree while delivering the commencement address in 1974. President Clarence Moll recalled that Mustin was "the only individual in my 30 plus years of college experience who ever received a spontaneous standing ovation at the end of his address." Mustin died on January 28, 1977, at the age of 92. He was PMC's oldest surviving alumnus.

Upon his death, Mustin left the college a gift, and it was decided that using his bequest to renovate the theater in Alumni Auditorium would be a fitting tribute to one of the college's most dedicated graduates. The 400-seat theater was given new carpeting, lighting, an improved sound system, better acoustics to reduce echo, and an electronic movie screen. On October 5, 1979, the renovated theater was officially unveiled and renamed the Burton H. Mustin Theatre and Lecture Hall.

What a great life.

Burt Mustin's Filmography on IMDB.Com