Syd Saylor

1895–1962 · American comedic and character actor

Biography

Syd Saylor (born Leo Sailor in Chicago, 1895 – Hollywood, 1962) was an American comic actor best known as the funny sidekick of the leading man in comedies and westerns. His career spanned almost four decades, from the silent era into the early 1960s, and he is credited with around 395 films and television series.

Before acting he studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and worked as an artist. He performed as a clown in circuses and as a gymnast in vaudeville. In the 1920s he starred in a series of two-reel comedy shorts, Let George Do It, and he first appeared in feature films in 1926. His prominent Adam's apple and distinctive comic voice set him apart from other character actors.

In the following decades he worked steadily in comedies and westerns, usually as the hero's comic companion. He appeared in Abe Lincoln in Illinois and Yankee Doodle Dandy, and he made brief, sometimes uncredited appearances in many episodes of Maverick alongside James Garner. In the early 1950s he was also the second television Bozo the Clown on KTTV in Hollywood. He died in 1962, aged 67. He is remembered mainly as a dependable supporting player whose voice was instantly recognisable.