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(February 16, 1895, in San Jose, CA -
November 5, 1963, in Hollywood, CA)
 Vernon
Bruce Dent was a comic actor who co-starred in many short films for
Columbia Pictures. He was frequently cast as the irascible foil to
the Three Stooges' comic antics.
In the early 1920s Dent was a fixture at the Mack Sennett studio,
working with comedians Billy Bevan, Andy Clyde, and especially Harry
Langdon. Dent alternately played breezy pals and blustery authority
figures opposite Langdon's timid character.
Sennett voided all contracts when it came time to retool his studio
for sound, and Dent moved to Educational Pictures in 1929. Dent's
supporting performances were frequently funnier than the sometimes
uninspired antics of the nominal stars. When Educational hired Harry
Langdon for a series of two-reelers in 1932, Vernon Dent resumed his
place as Langdon's co-star.
Dent joined Columbia Pictures' short-subject department in 1936 and
went on to work with practically every star on the payroll,
including fellow Sennett alumni Harry Langdon, Andy Clyde, Charley
Chase, and Eddie Quillan; The Three Stooges, Buster Keaton, El
Brendel, Vera Vague, Hugh Herbert, Schilling and Lane, Harry von
Zell, and Bert Wheeler. Dent appeared very occasionally in feature
films, including Million Dollar Legs, Chip Off the Old Block, and
Kill the Umpire, but was much more visible in two-reel comedies.
Dent went blind in the early 1950s but, amazingly, he continued to
act in Columbia shorts (in a stationary or seated position) through
1954. He participated in the nationally televised This Is Your Life
tribute to Mack Sennett. |
