House Peters Jr.

American actor (1916–2008)

House Peters Jr.

Peters in Under California Stars (1948)

Born|

Robert House Peters Jr.

(1916-01-12)January 12, 1916

New Rochelle, New York, U.S.

Died| October 1, 2008(2008-10-01) (aged 92)

Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Occupation| Actor
Years active| 1935–1966
Spouse|

Lucy Pickett

(m. 1946)​

Children| 3

Robert House Peters Jr. (January 12, 1916 – October 1, 2008) was an American character actor most noted for his roles in 1950s B movies and westerns. He is perhaps best remembered as the face and body of Mr. Clean in the Procter and Gamble cleaning product commercials of the era.

## Biography

[edit]

Peters was born in New Rochelle, New York to actors House Peters, a major leading man in the silent era, and Mae King. He grew up in Beverly Hills, California and graduated from Beverly Hills High School.

In a career that spanned 1935–1967, he appeared in many films, primarily as the "heavy," or villain. He appeared in television series including Perry Mason, Bat Masterson, Gunsmoke, The Twilight Zone and Lassie.

From the late 1950s into the 1960s, Peters Jr. played Mr. Clean in television commercials for the product.[1][2]

Peters served in the United States Army Air Forces' Air Sea Rescue section as a small-boat operator during World War II.[3][4][5][6] He was married to Lucy Pickett from 1946 until his death; they had three children. He died of pneumonia at the Motion Picture and Television Fund Hospital in Los Angeles, California.[1][7]

Peters wrote a book, "Another Side of Hollywood" an autobiography by actor House Peters Jr. published by Empire Publishing of Madison, North Carolina in the year 2000. It is an entertaining, interesting look at the early days of Hollywood movie and television production with many black and white photos.

## Filmography

[edit]

Film

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes
1935  | Hot Tip | Racetrack Spectator  | Uncredited
1935  | Three Kids and a Queen | Reporter  | Uncredited
1936  | The Adventures of Frank Merriwell | House Peters  | Serial
1936  | Flash Gordon | Shark Man  | Serial, [Chs. 3-4]
1936  | Yellowstone | Ranger  | Uncredited
1936  | Ace Drummond | Pete - Second Pilot / Clipper Pilot  | Serial, [Ch. 1], [Ch. 8] Uncredited
1936  | Four Days' Wonder | Chauffeur  | Uncredited
1937  | Windjammer | Bob - Sailor  | Uncredited
1937  | Public Cowboy No. 1 | Jim Shannon  |
1937  | Life Begins in College | Reporter  | Uncredited
1937  | All American Sweetheart | Eddie  | Uncredited
1937  | Wells Fargo | Minor Role  | Uncredited
1938  | Start Cheering | Football Playing Student  | Uncredited
1939  | Frontier Pony Express | Lieutenant Trent  | Uncredited
1941  | Sea Raiders | Agent Burke  | Serial, [Ch. 4], Uncredited
1947  | Danger Street | Magazine Staffer  | Uncredited
1948  | Oklahoma Badlands | The Dude  |
1948  | Dangers of the Canadian Mounted | Ford - Henchman  | Uncredited
1948  | Under California Stars | Henchman Ed  |
1948  | Desperadoes of Dodge City | Henry  |
1948  | Adventures of Frank and Jesse James | Sheriff Towey  | Serial, [Chs. 1–2, 5–6, 11]
1948  | The Plunderers | Sentinel  | Uncredited
1948  | Gunning for Justice | Kirk Wheeler - Henchman  |
1948  | Courtin' Trouble | Burt Larsen  |
1948  | Renegades of Sonora | Courier  |
1949  | Rose of the Yukon |  | Uncredited
1949  | Outlaw Country | Cal Saunders  |
1949  | Sheriff of Wichita | Deputy Jack Thorpe  |
1949  | Son of Billy the Kid | Yantis Henchman  | Uncredited
1949  | Batman and Robin | Henchman Earl  | Serial, [Chs. 7-15]
1949  | King of the Rocket Men | Burt Winslow  | Serial
1949  | The Gal Who Took the West | Trooper  | Uncredited
1949  | Love Happy | Clergyman in Sadie Thompson Number  | Uncredited
1950  | Over the Border | Wade Shelton  |
1950  | Cow Town | Gill Saunders  |
1950  | Twilight in the Sierras | Jim Williams  |
1950  | Hi-Jacked | Hank  |
1950  | Border Treasure | Rod  |
1951  | Three Desperate Men | Dick Cable  |
1951  | Gene Autry and the Mounties | Henchman Hogan  | Uncredited
1951  | Spoilers of the Plains | Henchman Scheller  |
1951  | Man from Sonora | Ed Hooper  |
1951  | Blazing Bullets | Bill Grant  |
1951  | Lorna Doone | Patrol Leader  | Uncredited
1951  | The Dakota Kid | Sam Dawson  |
1951  | The Day the Earth Stood Still | MP captain  | Uncredited
1951  | The Red Badge of Courage | Passing Soldier - Veteran  | Uncredited
1952  | The Old West | Henchman Mike  |
1952  | Waco | Doctor  |
1952  | Oklahoma Annie | Jim Tullett  |
1952  | Kansas Territory | Ralph Carruthers  |
1952  | Red Planet Mars | Dr. Boulting  | Uncredited
1952  | The Lion and the Horse | 'Rocky' Steuber  |
1952  | And Now Tomorrow |  |
1952  | Carson City | Miner  | Uncredited
1952  | Hellgate | Witness  | Uncredited
1952  | Fargo | Bill Martin's Brother  | Uncredited
1952  | Kansas City Confidential | Policeman  | Uncredited
1952  | Wyoming Roundup | Kent Randolph  |
1953  | Winning of the West | Marshal Jim Hackett  |
1953  | The Man Behind the Gun | Sheldon's Henchman at Hideout  | Uncredited
1953  | Port Sinister | Jim Garry  | Alternative title: Beast of Paradise Isle
1954  | Highway Dragnet | Steve  |
1954  | Overland Pacific | Perkins  | Uncredited
1954  | Target Earth | Technician  |
1955  | Strategic Air Command | Captain  | Uncredited
1955  | Rebel Without a Cause | Officer at Police Station  | Uncredited
1956  | The Women of Pitcairn Island | Coggins  |
1957  | Man Afraid | Detective  | Uncredited
1957  | Johnny Tremain | Patriot Commander at Lexington  | Uncredited
1957  | House of Numbers | Patrolman  | Uncredited
1957  | Black Patch | Holman  |
1958  | Man from God's Country | Curt Warren  |
1959  | Inside the Mafia | Marty Raven  | Uncredited
1959  | Ordeal at Dry Red |  |
1960  | The Big Night | Robert Shaw  |
1962  | Terror at Black Falls | Sheriff Cal  |
1962  | Who's Got the Action? | Cop in Elevator  | Uncredited
1964  | Rio Conchos | Major Johnson  |
1965  | The Great Sioux Massacre | Reporter  |
Television
Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes
1950  | The Gene Autry Show | Various roles  | 3 episodes
1953  | Death Valley Days |  | Season 1, Episode 18 "Land of the Free"
1950–1957  | The Lone Ranger | Various roles  | 12 episodes
1951–1953  | The Range Rider | Various roles  | 6 episodes
1954–1956  | Annie Oakley | Various roles  | 4 episodes
1955  | The Adventures of Champion | Ote Bledsoe  | 1 episode
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp | Dave Bennett  | 4 episodes
You are There | Bruce Greeves  | 1 episodes
1957  | The Gray Ghost | Hollingshead  | 1 episode
1958  | Broken Arrow | Captain Rowan  | 1 episode
1959  | Bat Masterson | Town Marshall  | "Shakedown at St. Joe"
1959  | Buckskin | Pat Devlin  | 1 episode
1959  | Gunsmoke | Nat Swan  | “The Coward” (S4E26)
1960  | The Twilight Zone | Policeman  | 1 episode
1961  | Lawman | Joe Poole  | 1 episode
1962  | 77 Sunset Strip | Sheriff Goodson  | 1 episode
1956–1966  | Lassie | Sheriff Jim Billings  | 12 episodes, (final appearance)

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Dillon, Raquel Maria (October 1, 2008). "Mr. Clean actor House Peters Jr. dead at 92". The Associated Press. Archived from the original on October 5, 2008. Retrieved October 2, 2008.
2. ^ "House Peters Jr., the original Mr. Clean, dies". Hollywood Reporter. October 2, 2008. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
3. ^ Actor House Peters Jr. dies at 92 Variety. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
4. ^ Actor House Peters Dies www.emmys.com. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
5. ^ House Peters Jr.; Actor Amazon.com. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
6. ^ House Peters Jr. at www.historyforsale.org. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
7. ^ Variety Staff (October 1, 2008). "Actor House Peters Jr. dies at 92". Variety. Retrieved October 1, 2008.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to House Peters Jr..

* House Peters Jr. at IMDb

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* FAST
* WorldCat

National|

* Germany
* United States

Other|

* SNAC

*[m.]: married