After growing up in a small Arkansas town, Bob Burns qualified as a civil engineer, but also worked as a salesman, farmed peanuts, and in World War I was a Marine sergeant and champion rifleman. His great interest from boyhood was music, and from 1911 his main career was in entertainment. He played musical instruments including his trademark "bazooka", led bands, and did blackface comedy in vaudeville, carnivals, and appeared in early talking films. In 1931 he began a long career in radio, his first real success in 1935 leading to a six year stint on Bing Crosby's Kraft Music Hall show and ultimately . His film character was a slow talking, philosophical, bazooka-playing hillbilly or bumpkin who may have looked gullible, but eventually outwitted the city slickers. Despite this stereotyped character, Bob did draw the line somewhere; he and Paramount parted ways after he refused to appear in a proposed 1941 film which he felt would ridicule "the people of his native hills". He made a few films for other studios, then retired from the entertainment field in 1947. Land investment had made Bob rich, and he spent his last years on his 200-acre model farm in Canoga Park, California.
His birth year is sometimes cited as 1893 or 1896; 1890 is correct. His birthplace sometimes given as Greenwood, Arkansas.
Father, William Robert Burn, civil engineer; mother, nee Emma Needham.
Bob Burns coined the word bazooka (which he copyrighted in 1920) for the homemade musical instrument he invented in 1905 from two gas pipes and a whiskey funnel. The weapon of the same name was named after Burns device during World War II.
Some published filmographies wrongly credit Bob with roles in several Gene Autry films which should be credited to Bob Burns , a character actor in westerns.
His four children: Robert Jr. (first marriage); Barbara Ann, William Robin, Stephen (second marriage).
His hobbies included farming, astronomy, shooting, fishing, and a private aviary.
Biography in: "Whos Who in Comedy" by Ronald L. Smith. Pg. 78. New York: Facts on File, 1992. ISBN 0816023387
Not to be confused with Western actor Bob Burns , or comedy actor Bobby Burns , some of whose credits occasionally pop up in the filmographies of Bob Burns.
He was awarded 2 Stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Motion Pictures at 1601 Vine Street and for Radio at 6541 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
Uncle of Forest Burns , brother of Fred Burns.
Brother of Edward Burns.
A Western actor who played leads in early silents, supporting roles, often uncredited, in sound films; not to be confused with comedy actor Bobby Burns or Bob Burns.
Located with the help of a friend the original Time Machine from the George Pal classic The Time Machine in a thrift shop in Orange, California. The Time Machine was in pretty bad shape, but was restored with the help of a young Dennis Muren (later an Academy Award-winning SFX pioneer at ILM), D.C. Fontana (one of the original "Star Trek" writers) and motion picture art and SFX directors Michael Minor ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture , Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan ) and Tom Scherman.
Staged elaborate theatrical Halloween shows in his front and back yards, based on classic science-fiction and horror films. These Halloween shows were more than just "walk-through haunted house-spook shows", as many shows were created and performed by Academy Award-winning special effects artists and technicians. Rick Baker , Dennis Muren , Robert Skotak , Dennis Skotak , Greg Nicotero of KNB FX and Walter Koenig (of the original "Star Trek" series cast), and film and TV actor Daniel Roebuck were just some of the talent involved in creating and performing these shows.
Was a close friend of Glenn Strange , the last actor to portray the classic Universal Studios Frankenstein Monster.
Was credited on "The Ghost Busters" as the one who "trained" Tracy the Gorilla (he was actually the one in the gorilla costume).
Owns one of the largest collections of film memorabilia from sci-fi/horror films. His collection includes, but is not limited to, the original time machine prop from The Time Machine , the wolfs cane handle from The Wolf Man , an original replica of The Creature suit from Creature from the Black Lagoon and make-up pieces from The Mummys Curse (the only still existing work of Jack P. Pierce ).
Round-the-world sailor who is the subject of the book "Roamer Round the World" (Roamer Books, 2010), compiled and edited by Terry Burns.
At 37 years old at the time, he was the oldest member of the crew on English Rose VI, skippered by John Ridgway , in the 1977-78 around-the-world sailing event "Whitbread Round the World Race". After some disagreements with Ridgway, Burns left the boat after the first two legs of the race in December 1977 in Auckland, New Zealand.
The former oil industry executive and Whitehawk (part of the English city of Brighton and Hove) resident who has been sailing the seas for the past 30 years. As of 1985, he has earned a living as a sailing instructor and marine manager.
