Don Castle

Don Castle (September 29, 1917 – May 26, 1966) was an American film actor of the 1930s and 1940s. Castle was born in Beaumont, Texas. He went to the University of Texas where he was roommates with Jack Wrather. He resembled Clark Gable and started his acting career as a stage actor, then moved to films, signing with Paramount Pictures, however, World War II stalled his career. Castle was drafted into the Army Air Force, during which he made training films for the First Motion Picture Unit. Upon returning to Hollywood, he found many of his fans had turned to Alan Ladd. He bumped into Wrather again who had become bored of the oil business and Wrather decided to set up as a producer, making The Guilty (1947) starring Castle and Wrather's new wife Bonita Granville. Castle eventually became a television producer for Wrather's Lassie television program. He maintained a home in Palm Springs, California. After a traffic accident in 1966, Castle died of a medication overdose, aged 48.