Comments on: J. Carrol Naish, Changeling

By: Barb Dublin Ireland

Barb Dublin Ireland — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 17:38:43 +0000

Good evening from Dublin Ireland.
I at present tracing my family tree on my Mothers side-her maiden name was Caren.. this has nothing to do with J Carroll Naish, except all my life I have been told about the ‘great american actor’ who was a distant ‘cousin’..I have found a connection with him from relatives in Shanagolden Limerick. Now i have discovered that in my great great grandmothers generation the surname Heaney keeps coming up. I’m wondering if anyone can tell me where Gladys Heaney’s family originates from.

As we grew up here we watched all J Carroll Naish movies, my Mom and her sisters took great pride in seeing him on the television.

Any information would be appreciated
Regards

By: EMO/Santa Barbara

EMO/Santa Barbara — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 07:04:32 +0000

My uncle was Yul Brynner and various ocassions I had the pleasure of meeting many giants in film who were stars!but yet we know what makes them stars,the supporting cast. When I would meet the caliber of an actors like Claude Rains,Victor Mature, Judy Garland, Ava Gardener, Robert Mitchum and many others, my uncle would always tell me that he is who he is because of the great character actors such as Mr. Naish who helped him pretend and play his part better!!!!!! remember folks acting is pretending and its an art!!!!!!!!! these people can pretend better than you or me. Their were 2 occasions when I had the opportunity and the honor to meet Mr. Naish. Thanks EMO, Montecito,Calif

By: Una Barry

Una Barry — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 15:58:27 +0000

Hi, this is the Irish side of the J. Carrol Naish family. I too have enjoyed your facinating, indepth piece on J C. I am always astonished at how much information is available about him online but this has to be the most interesting. If you have the contact details for Patrick Carrol Naish could you pass this on to him. Our common connection is that the maternal grandmother of J Carrol Naish is my great,great grandmother. Patricks age doesn’t seem to fit the time line and I am just wondering if he is Herbert’s grandson? Kind regards. Úna Barry

By: Thomas Pflimlin

Thomas Pflimlin — Sun, 02 May 2010 23:58:24 +0000

If Patrick Naish receives this, I wanted to tell him that his father,Herb,was one of my co’s in the 109th USASA Battalion in Los Angeles. He and Max Schwartz were both majors in the reserve. They would ride around in a jeep and keep us highly entertained during summer camps. If J.Carroll was as sweet a guy as Herb Naish, then he must have been a terrific uncle. And he was, of course, one of the greatest character actors in film history.

By: moirafinnie

moirafinnie — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 00:24:39 +0000

Patrick, I am so touched to see your response to my attempt to honor your Uncle Carrol. He is one of my favorite actors and his presence in any movie always enhances any story that I happen to see him in. As you can see from the affectionate remarks of the commentators above, the enjoyment of his life work continues to this day.

Thank you so much for taking the time to respond to this blog.

By: Patrick Carrol Naish

Patrick Carrol Naish — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 23:37:05 +0000

What a wonderful article. This has got to be one of the most in-depth pieces written in a very long time. I was named after my Uncle, who was my Father’s oldest brother. In fact my Dad, Herbert Naish, often times was a double for Uncle Carrol (Honestly, I had never known him to be referred to as “Joe”; my Dad always called him “Carrol”. But that very well could have been the case, in some circles.). I was 11 years old when he passed in 1973 and about 16 when my Aunt Gladys (formerly Gladys Heaney) passed many years later. But I do remember many visits to and by them.

It’s truly great to hear all of the comments and that he is still remembered.

By: moirafinnie

moirafinnie — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 04:39:35 +0000

Hi Al, Though I've never seen the series 'Guestward Ho!', the book by Patrick Dennis (the author of Auntie Mame) was something I consumed as a kid on the hunt for humor in book form. From what I've heard about this series in the past, I wonder if J. Carrol Naish was really laying the groundwork for the satire on Cowboys and Indians that emerged in F Troop some years after this short lived series? Btw, your fascination with Joanne Dru is quite understandable. I agree completely about Lloyd Nolan. He is one of my favorite actors in anything, making even prosaic movies a pleasure to see, as did Naish. Hi Patricia, Thanks for those references, and I think that we all might feel as though we "know" Joe Naish due to the sheer number of performances that underpin so many movies that we love from Charlie Chan movies to dramas such as Sahara to the short, Star of the Night, one of the discoveries uncovered by TCM in the last 15 years. I should mention that Star of the Night is included on the DVD of Christmas in Connecticut (1945). Hi Bronxie and Suzi, Thanks for your kind words. I'm so glad that you enjoyed this attempt at a tribute to an essential character actor. Jbryant, I would love to see King of Alcatraz too as well as many Robert Florey movies as are available on TCM. King of Alcatraz was a Paramount film, and, as you know, many of their films from the studio era are not in release, though there seem to be incremental additions to available for broadcast films in recent years. Florey's films almost always have moments of great flair to recommend them.

By: Suzi Doll

Suzi Doll — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 21:14:12 +0000

J. Carrol Naish deserved the Moira treatment. Magnificent job.

By: jbryant

jbryant — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 19:57:21 +0000

Naish is pretty great in Robert Florey’s KING OF ALCATRAZ (1938). I wish TCM would dust that one off, if they have it.

By: Bronxgirl

Bronxgirl — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 08:37:04 +0000

One of my favorite character actors gets the brilliant moira treatment.