During the pandemic, I was surfing through the TV trying to find something to distract my mind from worrying — about my family and friends, about the museum, about what the world might look like when things finally started to turn around — and I came across a channel that airs classic television shows. “Perry Mason,” “Matlock,” “Father Knows Best,” “Mannix” — stuff like that.
I found that these old shows, some of which I remember watching with my grandparents (reruns, of course), were comforting. “Perry Mason” is a particular favorite. Every so often they switch up the line-up, and recently they’ve added “Highway Patrol” into the mix. And this got me thinking about our own local connection to the show’s star, Broderick Crawford. There are quite a few folks who know that he’s buried in Ferndale Cemetery, alongside his parents, Lester Crawford Pendergast and Helen Broderick.
The Pendergast family arrived in Gloversville from Boston in the early 20th century, when Lester’s father operated a felt mill on Cayadutta Street. After his death in 1904, he was buried in Ferndale Cemetery and the family moved back to Boston. Lester performed under the name Lester Crawford, starring in seven films between 1930 and 1933 and performing in a vaudeville duet with Helen Broderick as Broderick and Crawford. The two eventually married.
Helen was known for her comedic roles, especially the wise-cracking side-kick type. She began her career on Broadway as a chorus girl in Follies of 1907. By the late 1920s, Helen was landing leads and featured roles in stage plays, most notably Cole Porter’s Fifty Million Frenchmen. When the play was adapted for film, Helen was cast as Violet and she packed off to Hollywood (Lester also had a role in this film). She found success there, earning supporting roles in several films including the Astaire-Rogers Top Hat (as Madge Hardwick) and Swing Time (Mabel Anderson).
Broderick Crawford, named for both his parents, was born in 1911 in Philadelphia. He joined his parents on stage, working for producer Max Gordon, until vaudeville started to go out of style. Broderick was accepted to Harvard University but dropped out and found work instead on the New York docks. But acting was in his genes, and eventually he returned to the stage. He received his first major recognition as Lenny in the Broadway production “Of Mice and Men” (1937-38). Unfortunately, he would miss out on reprising his role in the film, which went to Lon Chaney, Jr. instead.
Crawford, having found success in acting, moved to Hollywood. He made his film debut in “Woman Chases Man” (1939) for Sam Goldwyn (who had his own connection to Gloversville, having come here from Warsaw as Sam Goldfish). Crawford starred in several B-movies at Paramount before signing with Universal, where he held a string of supporting roles and leads in “South of Tahiti and North to the Klondike” (1941).
When the US entered WWII, Crawford enlisted with the U.S. Army Air Corps and was assigned to the Armed Forces Network. In 1944 he was sent to England as a sergeant and served as the announcer for the Glenn Miller American Band, as well as one of the announcers on “I Sustain the Wings.” The latter was Miller’s radio program broadcast on CBS and NBC from 1944-45.
The next several years saw Crawford working as a freelance actor. He did films for Paramount, King Brothers, the Warner Brothers, and James Cagney. Co-stars included David Niven, Jane Wyman, Ronald Reagan, and Paulette Goddard. He also filmed with Peter Lorre and Yvonne De Carlo — who you may know better for her role as Lily Munster.
Broderick Crawford got his “big break” in 1949 when he was cast as Willie Stark in “All the King’s Men.” Adapted from the Robert Penn Warren book of the same name, Stark was based on the Louisiana politician Huey Long. The role secured Crawford the Oscar win for Best Actor. He was put under contract with Columbia and borrowed by MGM, Warner Bros., and 20th Century Fox.
Crawford was known as a drinker, but his problems with alcoholism increased when he was hired to play Dan Matthews on TV’s “Highway Patrol” in 1955. The show dramatized the activities of the California Highway Patrol, led by fast-talking hard-as-nails boss, Matthews. During filming, Crawford was arrested several times for DUI. On set, Crawford met fellow actor Stuart Whitman and they became close friends.
When Whitman was low on cash, Crawford would ask him to play the Matthews character; Whitman would do the dialog while Crawford was drinking. In 1959, Crawford quit the show, claiming that he could no longer handle the hectic shooting schedule.
On September 25, 1959, Helen Broderick died in LA. Funeral services were held there, but she was to be buried in the Pendergast family plot in Ferndale Cemetery in Johnstown. The Leader-Herald reported that Crawford was expected to attend the burial, scheduled for October 1st and open only to immediate family. Local arrangements were handled by the Eugene Hollenbeck, Jr. Funeral Home. Crawford gave an interview to Edward Cloos, Jr. at the Leader-Herald the day after the burial: “Crawford sat In the Johnstown Treadway Inn. He was dressed in an old sport jacket and sport shirt, faded slacks . . . ‘It was a terrible shock to all of us, we were a very close family,’ he said.”
After a stint in Europe, Crawford returned to the US and to television in the 1970s. Roles included J.Edgar Hoover in “The Private Files of J. Edgar Hoover,” a guest host spot on “Saturday Night Live” (which included a spoof of Highway Patrol), and a cameo as himself in an episode of “CHiPs.”
In 1986, Crawford suffered a series of strokes. He died at age 74 in Rancho Mirage, California. He, too, was buried in Ferndale Cemetery, alongside his parents. The plot is in Section B. Though Crawford spent little time in Gloversville, his family’s connection to the area ensured that Fulton County would be his final resting place.
I’ll leave you with a couple of interesting bits of trivia that illustrate Broderick Crawford’s legacy. There are, of course, two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Broderick Crawford — one for television and one for film. The Texas Hold ‘Em starting hand of 10-4 is nicknamed “Broderick Crawford” because of his role as Dan Matthews on “Highway Patrol.” And, the one I found most interesting, is that television presenter Steve Harvey’s full name is Broderick Stephen Harvey — named specifically after Crawford.
