William Tracy

William Tracy was an American character actor, born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, who was best known for playing the errand boy Pepi Katona in the 1940 comedy The Shop Around the Corner. His early credits included Brother Rat (1938), and he went on to appear in Tobacco Road (1941), directed by John Ford, and in Mr. and Mrs. Smith (1941), an Alfred Hitchcock film. In 1940 he began a recurring part as Sgt. Dorian Doubleday, paired with Joe Sawyer in eight service comedies that started with Tanks a Million (1941), which brought an Academy Award nomination for Best Musical Score, and ended with Mr. Walkie Talkie (1952). He also appeared opposite Randolph Scott in To the Shores of Tripoli (1942). In the 1950s he worked largely in television, most notably as Hotshot Charlie in Terry and the Pirates, the 1953 series, after playing Terry Lee in a 1940 serial of that title. He died in 1967.