Charles Butterworth
Charles Edward Butterworth (July 26, 1896 – June 14, 1946) was an American actor specializing in comedic roles, often in musicals. His distinctive voice was the inspiration for the Cap'n Crunch commercials created by the Jay Ward studio: voice actor Daws Butler.
Also recorded as Charlie Butterworth · Charles Edward Butterworth
Charles Butterworth

film screenshot (PRC Pictures) · Public domain
- Name
- Charles Butterworth
- Born
- 26 July 1896
- Birthplace
- South Bend, Indiana, U.S.
- Died
- 14 June 1946
- Place of death
- Los Angeles, California, U.S.
- Occupation
- Stage and film actor
- Nationality
- United States
- Honours
- star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
- Languages
- English
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Charles Edward Butterworth (July 26, 1896 – June 14, 1946) was an American actor specializing in comedic roles, often in musicals. His distinctive voice was the inspiration for the Cap'n Crunch commercials created by the Jay Ward studio: voice actor Daws Butler.
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Documentary evidence
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Authority files
wikidata · Q1063863
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Charles Butterworth • Born — 26 July 1896 • Birthplace — South Bend, Indiana, U.S. • Died — 14 June 1946 • Place of death — Los Angeles, California, U.S. • Resting Place — St. Joseph Valley Memorial Park, Granger, Indiana • Other Names — Charlie Butterworth • Occupation — Stage and film actor • Years Active — 1926–1944
Early life
Early life
Butterworth was the son of a physician in South Bend, Indiana. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1924 with a law degree.
Career
Career
After graduating, Butterworth became a newspaper reporter at the South Bend News-Times and subsequently Chicago. One of Butterworth's more memorable film roles was in the Irving Berlin musical This Is the Army (1943) as bugle-playing Private Eddie Dibble. He was generally a supporting actor, though he had top billing in We Went to College (1936) and the title role in Baby Face Harrington (1935), and shared top billing (as the Sultan) with Ann Corio in The Sultan's Daughter (1944). In his obituary, he was described as "characterizing the man who could not make up his mind". He is credited with the quip "Why don't you slip out of those wet clothes and into a dry martini?" from Every Day's a Holiday. In Forsaking All Others, when Clark Gable, quoting Benjamin Franklin, said, "Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise," Butterworth replied, "Ever take a good look at a milkman?"
Death
Death
Butterworth had a home in Palm Springs, California. He was killed in an automobile accident on June 13, 1946, when he lost control of his car on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. He died en route to the hospital.
Partial filmography
Partial filmography
• Vital Subjects (1929, Short) • Ladies of Leisure (1930) – Party Guest (uncredited) • The Life of the Party (1930) – Colonel Joy • Illicit (1931) – Georgie Evans • The Bargain (1931) – Geoffrey • Side Show (1931) – Sidney • The Mad Genius (1931) – Karimsky • Manhattan Parade (1931) – Herbert T. Herbert • Beauty and the Boss (1932) – Ludwig Pfeffer Jr. • Love Me Tonight (1932) – Count de Savignac • The Nuisance (1933) – Floppy Phil Montague • Penthouse (1933) – Layton • My Weakness (1933) – Gerald Gregory • The Cat and the Fiddle (1934) – Charles • Hollywood Party (1934) – Harvey Clemp • Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back (1934) – Algy 'Mousey' Longworth • Student Tour (1934) – Ethelred Lippincott – Professor of Philosophy • Forsaking All Others (1934) – Shemp • The Night Is Young (1935) – Willy Fitch • Baby Face Harrington (1935) – Willie • Orchids to You (1935) – Teddy Stuyvesant • Magnificent Obsession (1935) – Tommy Masterson • The Moon's Our Home (1936) – Horace Van Steedan • Half Angel (1936) – Doc Felix • We Went to College (1936) – Glenn Harvey • Rainbow on the River (1936) – Barrett • Swing High, Swing Low (1937) – Harry • Every Day's a Holiday (1937) – Larmadou Graves • Thanks for the Memory (1938) – Biney • Let Freedom Ring (1939) – The Mackerel • The Boys from Syracuse (1940) – Duke of Ephesus • Second Chorus (1940) – Mr. Chisholm • There's Nothing to It (1941) • Blonde Inspiration (1941) – 'Bittsy' Conway • Road Show (1941) – Harry Whitman • Sis Hopkins (1941) – Horace Hopkins • What's Cookin'? (1942) – J. P. Courtney • Night in New Orleans (1942) – Edward Wallace • Give Out, Sisters (1942) – Prof. Woof • This Is the Army (1943) – Eddie Dibble • Always a Bridesmaid (1943) – Col. Thaddeus Winchester • The Sultan's Daughter (1944) – Sultan of Araband • Follow the Boys (1944) – Louie Fairweather • Bermuda Mystery (1944) – Dr. Randolph Tilford • Dixie Jamboree (1944) – Professor (final film role)
Works and production
Works and production
The following works and productions are recorded by name or by count.

Photo of Winnie Lightner and Charles Butterworth in a scene from the 1930 film The Life of the Party.
Warner Bros Vitaphone · eBay front back

Left to right: Charles Butterworth, Almira Sessions, and Guy Kibbee in the American film Dixie Jamboree (1944) - lobby card (cropped)
unknown (PRC) · eBay
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
South Bend.
Birth place
Los Angeles.
Death place
Legacy
For his contributions to the film industry, Butterworth was posthumously inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960 with a motion pictures star at 7036 Hollywood Boulevard.
Collections and holdings
Where the work is held
Collections and holdings
Institutional holdings are recorded as follows.
Documents and archives
Primary material
Documents and archives
scholarly publication
- Butterworth, Charles (1896-1946), character actor, American National Biography Online, 2000
Scholarly · Crossref registry · 2000
reference work
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q1063863: Charles Butterworth
Reputable secondary · Wikidata
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
scholarly publication
Butterworth, Charles (1896-1946), character actor, American National Biography Online, 2000Crossref registry
Institutional witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
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