Karl Swenson
Born in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA — Jul 23 1908• Died Oct 08 1978
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Biography
Karl Swenson (July 23, 1908 – October 8, 1978) was an American theatre, radio, film, and television actor. Swenson is remembered for his role as the doomsayer in the diner in Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds (1963) and as the voice of Merlin in Disney's The Sword in the Stone (1963). On television, he had numerous credits in guest roles on various shows, especially Westerns, including episodes of Bonanza, The Virginian, and Gunsmoke. He had a major recurring role as Walnut Grove founder Lars Hanson on Little House on the Prairie (1974 - 1978). Swenson also…
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Karl Swenson's Credits
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The Fugitive
Axel Nielsen - Service station owner
Perry Mason
Axel Norstaad
Bonanza
Carl Harris
Mission: Impossible
Colonel Dubov
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
George Sherston
Ironside
Vet
The Andy Griffith Show
Mr. McBeevee
Emergency!
Gus
Have Gun, Will Travel
Hawaii Five-O
Abel Morgan
Little House on the Prairie
Lars Hanson
Lassie
Robert Montgomery Presents
Maverick
The Virginian
Col. Theodore Roosevelt
Hogan's Heroes
Dr. Karl Svenson
Happy Days
Dr. Kildare
Judge
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
Lee Willis
The Rifleman
Chris Manse
Cannon
Hawaiian Eye
Ben Casey
Rawhide
The Big Valley
Bert Hadley
Leave It to Beaver
George Haskell
The Odd Couple
Captain Potter
77 Sunset Strip
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Ed Holland
Bat Masterson
Jim Pate
Trackdown
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
Col. Harper
Black Saddle
Dr. Wyle
The Mod Squad
Gunsmoke
Hank Luz
Surfside 6
The Texan
Bronco
Tarzan
Judd for the Defense
Johnny Ringo
Kramer
Tightrope
Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse
Mr. Novak
Mr. Haskell
Sam Benedict
Sugarfoot
Andy Burke
Lock-Up
The Rebel
Lew Bussey
Ghost Story
Ed Barnes
The Guns of Will Sonnett
Outlaws
Mr. Lucky
The Rat Patrol
Colonel Seidner
The Adventures of Jim Bowie
Andre Rochambeau
Riverboat
Ansel Torgin
Cimarron Strip
The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters
Coley Bishop
The Dakotas
The Lieutenant
The Greatest Show on Earth
The Wonderful World of Disney
Laredo Marshal (uncredited)
The Immortal
The Westerner
Ben Potts
CBS Playhouse
The Amazing Spider-Man
The Young Rebels
The Outcasts
Profiles in Courage
Chynoweth
Hong Kong
John Olwine
General Electric True
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Humpty Dumpty
The Walter Winchell File
Portia Faces Life
The Sword in the Stone
Merlin (voice)
How the West Was Won
Train Conductor (uncredited)
The Birds
Le prophète de malheur ivre au bar
Judgment at Nuremberg
Heinrich Geuter
Playwrights '56
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Asmussen
Doc Elliot
Walk on the Wild Side
Schmidt
No Name on the Bullet
Stricker
The Bill Dana Show
The Prize
Hilding
Hour of the Gun
Dr. Charles Goodfellow
Seconds
Dr. Morris
The Court of Last Resort
Vanishing Point
Clerk
North to Alaska
Lars Nordqvist
The Sons of Katie Elder
Doc Isdell
Ulzana's Raid
Rukeyser
Major Dundee
Captain Waller
The Cincinnati Kid
Mr. Rudd
Klondike
Judge Frank Weinstock
Lonely are the Brave
Rev. Hoskins
Flaming Star
Dred Pierce
The Spiral Road
Insp. Bevers
The Man from Galveston
Sheriff
Ice Palace
Scotty Ballantyne
The Wild Country
Jensen
… tick… tick… tick…
Frank Braddock Sr.
Kings Go Forth
The Colonel
A Howling in the Woods
Apperson
The Gallant Hours
Bill Bailey
The Hanging Tree
Tom Flaunce
The Sunrise Gun
Lud Greening
Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night
Dr. Keller
December 7th
Machine-Gunner (uncredited)
The New Healers
Mr. Fisherman
Alice in Wonderland
Humpty Dumpty
Disney's Greatest Villains
Merlin (voice) (archive footage)
Strangers All
Protester at Communist Meeting
Disney's Halloween Treat
Merlin (voice) (archive footage)
The Gun and the Pulpit
Adams
One Foot in Hell
Sheriff Ole Olson
Four Boys and a Gun
Mr. Badek
Gateways to the Mind
Hal - the Cameraman (uncredited)
Brighty of the Grand Canyon
Theodore Roosevelt
Disney's Sing-Along Songs: Under the Sea
Merlin (archive footage) (voice)
Disney Sing-Along Songs: Colors of the Wind
(voice) (archive footage)