CINEFILER

Allen Swift

Born
January 16, 1924
Died
April 18, 2010
Ira Stadlen (January 16, 1924 – April 18, 2010 ), known professionally as Allen Swift, was an American voice actor,  known for playing characters including Simon Bar Sinister and Riff-Raff on the Underdog cartoon show. He provided the voices of many of the characters in The Bluffers, most of the voices for the 1960s underwater puppet show Diver Dan, and the voices in Gene Deitch's 1960–1962 group of Tom and Jerry cartoons. Swift was a children's television show host on WPIX in New York City as "Captain Allen". He took his professional name from radio comedian Fred Allen and 18th century satirist Jonathan Swift. Swift was an early television star who hosted The Popeye Show from September 10, 1956 to September 23, 1960, until he was forced to leave the program. The reason for his dismissal from "The Popeye Show" was creative differences with station management.(Info can be found in"The Popeye Show"aticle in The NYC Kids Shows Round Up"section of"TV Party.Com") Swift did the majority of the voices in Rankin/Bass's Mad Monster Party?, credited as Alan (sic) Swift in the movie's credits.  He supplied most of the character voices for the NBC Howdy Doody Show, and when Buffalo Bob Smith, who himself did the voice of the lead puppet character Howdy Doody and had many times proclaimed that "nobody else could do Howdy" suffered a heart attack, Swift took home some recordings over the weekend, came back on Monday and did Howdy's voice for more than a year.(Info can be found in Tv Bloq section of TV Party.Com) Swift also served as the second comedy writer for "Howdy Doody." He took on the job, following the abrupt departure of the series' first comedy writer and songwriter, Edward Kean.(info at "TV Bloq"/Past entry #168 at "TV Party.Com") He also wrote the play Checking Out. Swift was married to actress Lenore Loveman, and is the father of character actor, mimic and singer Lewis J. Stadlen, holistic health practitioner, Maxime Stadlen and psychotherapist, Clare A. Stadlen. He lived in Manhattan. Allen had been "suffering with a series of health calamities for several years, since he fell and broke his hip while walking his dog. From that moment, one thing led to another," said personal friend and director Gene Deitch. "Even though [I've been] here for 50 years, hardly a year went by without a visit to his 57th Street apartment, nor a day go by without e-mail and most recently Skype visits," added Deitch, an American expatriate living in the Czech Republic. ​From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Known For
Mad Monster Party?
(1967)
Felix Flankin / Yetch / Dracula / Invisible Man / Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde / Additional Voices
Safe Men
(1998)
Sol
Full Filmography
Acting
Boo Moon
(1954)
Lookout
The Seapreme Court
(1954)
Various Fish (uncredited)
Popeye's 20th Anniversary
(1954)
Audience Members (uncredited)
Depth Study
(1957)
Economist / Communications Expert / Sociologist / Museum Curator / Wife / Bartender (voice)
Gaston Is Here
(1957)
It's a Living
(1957)
(voice)
Camp Clobber
(1958)
Clint Clobber / General / Mr.Lofy (voice)
Old Mother Clobber
(1958)
Gaston, Go Home
(1958)
Gaston's Easel Life
(1958)
Gaston’s Mama Lisa
(1959)
Gaston le Crayon
The Tale of a Dog
(1959)
It's Greek to Me-ow!
(1961)
Tom / Jerry / Clint (voice)
Down and Outing
(1961)
Tom Cat / Jerry Mouse / Clint Clobber (voice)
The Tom and Jerry Cartoon Kit
(1962)
Narrator (voice)
Anatole
(1962)
Francios (voice)
Sorry Safari
(1962)
Tom / Jerry (voice)
Tall in the Trap
(1962)
(voice)
High Steaks
(1962)
(voice)
Dicky Moe
(1962)
(voice)
How to Avoid Friendship
(1964)
Slave Trade in the World Today
(1964)
Narrator
It Happened in Hualfin
(1965)
English Narrator (voice)
Alice of Wonderland in Paris
(1966)
François / Narrator / King (segment "Many Moons") / Lord High Chamberlain (voice)
Mad Monster Party?
(1967)
Felix Flankin / Yetch / Dracula / Invisible Man / Dr. Jekyll / Mr. Hyde / Additional Voices
Robin Hoodwinked
(1967)
Sir Blur / Robin Hood
The Enchanted World of Danny Kaye: The Emperor's New Clothes
(1972)
Musty
The Red Baron
(1972)
Voice
The Mad, Mad, Mad Monsters
(1972)
Dracula / The Monster / Dr. Jekyll / The Invisible Man
The Mad Magazine TV Special
(1974)
'Twas the Night Before Christmas
(1974)
Santa Claus (voice)
Where the Wild Things Are
(1975)
Narrator (voice)
The Little Drummer Boy Book II
(1976)
Simeon / Soldiers (voice)
Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure
(1977)
Maxi-Fixit (voice)
The Easter Bunny Is Comin' to Town
(1977)
Gadzooks / Newsreel announcer / blue engine / Town guard (voice)
A Family Circus Christmas
(1979)
Santa Claus
Pinocchio's Christmas
(1980)
Fox (voice)
Seize the Day
(1986)
Maurice Venice
Safe Men
(1998)
Sol
3-D Rarities
(2015)
Lookout (archive footage)
Writing
Data provided by TMDB