Acting

Foster H. Phinney

Born 1916-04-29 · Columbus, Ohio, USA

Foster Phinney dedicated much of his life to the motion picture business. Fresh out of high school, his suave and sophisticated appearance made it possible for him to break into the film business. He started appearing in scenes that required dress extras while still collecting an occasional paycheck as a soldier. Phinney faces an unusual problem, his elegant appearance made him an unlikely candidate to appear in the trenches in Hollywood's war time films but it enabled him to appear in socialite scenes that usually required much older men. This led him to garnering work as a stand-in in films in the 1940s and 1950s. By the time the 1950s rolled around, Phinney got his big break. He became the regular stand-in for Kirk Douglas. Douglas was so kind to him that Douglas considered him his good luck charm and gave him little roles in all of his films. While his work was steady, it was Douglas who got Phinney steady work as an assistant director. This began a second career where he worked as the assistant director on many shows including The Beverly Hillbillies where he had a character named after him. In the late 1970s, Phinney decided to retire leaving behind a multifaceted career which included being an extra, a bit part actor, an assistant director, and even a director.

Acting credits

High Society poster
6.8

With socialite Tracy Lord about to remarry, her ex-husband - with the help of a sympathetic reporter - has 48 hours to convince her that she really still loves him.

High Society

1956

All About Eve poster
8.1

From the moment she glimpses her idol at the stage door, Eve Harrington is determined to take the reins of power away from the great actress Margo Channing. Eve maneuvers her way into Margo's Broadway role, becomes a sensation and even causes turmoil in the lives of Margo's director boyfriend, her playwright and his wife. Only the cynical drama critic sees through Eve, admiring her audacity and perfect pattern of deceit.

All About Eve

1950

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes poster
7.3

Lorelei Lee is a beautiful showgirl engaged to be married to the wealthy Gus Esmond, much to the disapproval of Gus' rich father, Esmond Sr., who thinks that Lorelei is just after his money. When Lorelei goes on a cruise accompanied only by her best friend, Dorothy Shaw, Esmond Sr. hires Ernie Malone, a private detective, to follow her and report any questionable behavior that would disqualify her from the marriage.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

1953

Guys and Dolls poster
6.6

In New York, a gambler is challenged to take a Salvation Army missionary to Havana, and unexpectedly they fall for each other. And the bet has a hidden motive ... classic song and dance ensues!

Guys and Dolls

1955

Monsieur Verdoux poster
7.7

The film is about an unemployed banker, Henri Verdoux, and his sociopathic methods of attaining income. While being both loyal and competent in his work, Verdoux has been laid-off. To make money for his wife and child, he marries wealthy widows and then murders them. His crime spree eventually works against him when two particular widows break his normal routine.

Monsieur Verdoux

1947

Living It Up poster
6.5

Homer Flagg is a railroad worker in the small New Mexico town of Desert Hole. One day, he finds an abandoned automobile at an old atomic proving ground. His doctor and best friend, Steve Harris, diagnoses him with radiation poisoning and gives Homer three weeks to live. A big city reporter hears of Homer's plight and convinces her editor to provide an all-expenses paid trip to New York.

Living It Up

1954

The Country Girl poster
7.0

An actor on the skids is given one more chance to regain his stardom, as well as his self-respect, yet his alcoholism may prevent that from happening.

The Country Girl

1954

Don't Bother to Knock poster
6.6

An airline pilot pursues a live-in babysitter at his hotel and gradually realizes she is not as stable as perhaps she should be.

Don't Bother to Knock

1952

The Colossus of New York poster
5.6

A brilliant surgeon encases his dead son's brain in a large robot body, with unintended results...

The Colossus of New York

1958

Affair in Trinidad poster
6.4

A nightclub singer enlists her brother-in-law to track down her husband's killer.

Affair in Trinidad

1952

It's Always Fair Weather poster
6.9

Three World War II buddies promise to meet at a specified place and time 10 years after the war. They keep their word only to discover how far apart they've grown. But the reunion sparks memories of youthful dreams that haven't been fulfilled -- and slowly, the three men reevaluate their lives and try to find a way to renew their friendship.

It's Always Fair Weather

1955

Iron Man poster
6.2

An ambitious coal miner is talked into becoming a boxer by his gambler brother.

Iron Man

1951

The Merry Widow poster
6.3

Marshovia, a small European kingdom, is on the brink of bankruptcy but the country may be saved if the wealthy American Crystal Radek, widow of a Marshovian, can be convinced to part with her money and marry the king's nephew count Danilo. Arriving to Marshovia on a visit, Crystal Radek change places with her secretary Kitty. Following them to Paris, Danilo has a hard time wooing the widow after meeting an attractive young woman at a nightclub, the same Crystal Radek who presents herself as Fifi the chorus girl. Plot by Mattias Thuresson.

The Merry Widow

1952

Bedlam poster
6.7

London, 1761. St. Mary's of Bethlehem, a sinister madhouse, is visited by wealthy people who enjoy watching the patients confined there as if they were caged animals. Nell Bowen, one of the visitors, is horrified by the deplorable living conditions of the unfortunate inhabitants of this godforsaken place, better known as Bedlam.

Bedlam

1946

Deception poster
6.7

After marrying her long lost love, a pianist finds the relationship threatened by a wealthy composer who is besotted with her.

Deception

1946

A Walk in the Sun poster
5.9

It's 1943 and the allied landings in and around the town of Salerno,Italy are underway.A platoon from the U.S 36th Infantry Division is tasked with advancing 6 miles inland to blow a bridge before clearing a nearby farmhouse, with the hope of blocking an expected counter attack on the Division's bridgehead.

A Walk in the Sun

1945

Let's Make It Legal poster
5.7

A woman divorces her husband of 20 years because he gambles too much.

Let's Make It Legal

1951

Humoresque poster
7.0

A classical musician from a working class background is sidetracked by his love for a wealthy, neurotic socialite.

Humoresque

1947

Twilight for the Gods poster
4.7

An alcoholic captain sails a two-master through danger with a call girl and others on board.

Twilight for the Gods

1958

Experiment Perilous poster
5.8

In 1903, Doctor Huntington Bailey meets a friendly older lady during a train trip. She tells him that she is going to visit her brother Nick and his lovely young wife Allida. Once in New York, Bailey hears that his train companion suddenly died. Shortly afterward, he meets the strange couple and gets suspicious of Nick's treatment of his wife.

Experiment Perilous

1944

Two O'Clock Courage poster
6.3

A cab driver nearly hits a man with amnesia, then helps him unravel his past, only to discover he's a murder suspect as she falls for him.

Two O'Clock Courage

1945

The Bamboo Blonde poster
5.6

A pilot of a B 29 meets Louise Anderson, a singer in a New York nightclub. He falls in love with her, but he had to leave next day for action in the Pacific. He lets paint her picture on his bomber, the "Bamboo Blonde" and becomes a hero with his crew sinking a Japanese battleship and shooting down a Japanese fighter wing. Back in New York, he leaves his fiancée and engages him to Louise.

The Bamboo Blonde

1946

Wallflower poster
6.6

Two stepsisters become rivals for the same handsome bachelor. Comedy.

Wallflower

1948

Louisa poster
6.5

Architect Hal Norton and wife Meg invite his widowed mother Louisa to move in with them, only to discover the sweet elderly lady is romantically involved with what seems to be every old coot in town.

Louisa

1950