Hero of The Month: Lee Phelps
The bit player was a specialized actor, someone who could appear in one scene, make an impression with the audience, but not overshadow the main players. Lee Phelps was one such player, during a thirty year career he appeared in countless films, popping up for one scene, exchanging a few lines of dialog or just reacting to something the star does, and then disappearing from the film. Starting as an extra in the silent era, his distinctive chubby and balding appearance allowed him to work up to speaking roles when sound came along.
Phelps usually was cast as bartenders, policemen, western townfolk and sundry other working class characters. Phelps is famously the bartender slapped around by James Cagney in Public Enemy (1931).
Phelps’ biggest role was the Republic serial Desperadoes of the West (1950). He played Rusty, star Richard Powers’ sidekick, helping him bring in an oil well while fighting I Standford Jolley’s henchmen who are out to steal it from them.
