Darren McGavin Net Worth

What is Darren McGavin's Net Worth?

Darren McGavin was an actor and director who had a net worth of $2 million at the time of his death. Darren McGavin's career spanned six decades on the screen and stage. In addition to originating roles in the Broadway plays "My Three Angels" and "The Rainmaker," he appeared in such films as "The Man with the Golden Arm," "The Case Against Brooklyn," "Zero to Sixty," "A Christmas Story," and "Happy Hell Night." McGavin also starred in some television series, including "Casey, Crime Photographer," "Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer," "Riverboat," and "Kolchak: The Night Stalker."

Early Life and Education

Darren McGavin was born as William Richardson on May 7, 1922 in Spokane, Washington to Grace and Reed. After his parents divorced when he was 11, he lived with his father on a farm near Tacoma. McGavin ended up running away from the farm and living with a Native American family on the Nisqually River. After evading the police and welfare workers for a while, he was enrolled in a Catholic boarding school by his father. McGavin ran away from the school, too, and lived under the wharf in San Francisco for some time. He eventually moved in with his mother and stepfather. McGavin attended high school in Galt, California before going to College of the Pacific in Stockton. There, he studied architecture, but never graduated. McGavin later studied theater in New York City at the HB Studio, Actors Studio, and Neighborhood Playhouse.

Career Beginnings

While attending college, McGavin had a job building scenery for a local theater group. He eventually dropped out of college and became a set painter at Columbia Pictures in 1945.

Film Career

While working as a set painter at Columbia Pictures, McGavin landed his first film role, an uncredited part in the 1945 film "A Song to Remember." He subsequently had uncredited roles for Columbia in "Counter-Attack," "Kiss and Tell," and "She Wouldn't Say Yes." McGavin had his first substantial credited role in the 1951 comedy "Queen for a Day," released by United Artists. He later had a supporting role in David Lean's 1955 romantic drama "Summertime," starring Katharine Hepburn. That same year, McGavin appeared in two films directed by Otto Preminger: "The Man with the Golden Arm" and "The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell." Later in the decade, he starred alongside Jerry Lewis in "The Delicate Delinquent" and alongside Margaret Hayes in "The Case Against Brooklyn." McGavin was less prolific on the big screen in the 1960s, with his handful of credits including the Westerns "Bullet for a Badman" and "The Great Sioux Massacre" and the science-fiction film "Mission Mars."

In the early 1970s, McGavin starred in the comedy "Mrs. Pollifax-Spy" and made his feature directorial debut with the mystery film "Happy Mother's Day, Love George." He went on to star in the Disney crime comedy "No Deposit, No Return" in 1976. McGavin appeared in another Disney film, "Hot Lead and Cold Feet," in 1978. Between the two films, he was in "Airport '77" and "Zero to Sixty." Kicking off the 1980s, McGavin starred in the science-fiction action film "Hangar 18." He followed that with another science-fiction film in 1981, "Firebird 2015 AD." McGavin next played Mr. Parker in "A Christmas Story," which would become a holiday classic. His subsequent credits included "Turk 182," "Raw Deal," "From the Hip," and "Dead Heat." In the early 1990s, McGavin was in "Captain America," "Blood and Concrete," and "Happy Hell Night." He went on to play Brian Madison in the Adam Sandler comedy "Billy Madison" in 1995. McGavin's final film credits were "Small Time," "Pros and Cons," and "Still Waters Burn," the lattermost of which was filmed in 1996 but not released until 2008.

Television Career

McGavin had his first major television role from 1951 to 1952, starring as the titular character in the CBS crime drama series "Casey, Crime Photographer," based on the hit radio series of the same name. Over the ensuing years, he appeared in a slew of anthology series, including "Westinghouse Studio One," "Goodyear Television Playhouse," "Suspense," "Armstrong Circle Theater," and "Alfred Hitchcock Presents." McGavin had his next main role from 1958 to 1959, starring as the titular private detective in "Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer." After that, from 1959 to 1961, he starred opposite Burt Reynolds in the NBC Western series "Riverboat." McGavin subsequently had guest roles on such shows as "Rawhide," "Playdate," "The Defenders," "The Nurses," "The Virginian," "Dr. Kildare," and "Gunsmoke." At the end of the decade, he starred in the short-lived NBC detective series "The Outsider."

McGavin starred in several television films in the 1970s, starting with "Tribes" and "The Challenge" at the start of the decade. His other television films during the decade included "The Death of Me Yet," "The Night Stalker," "Something Evil," and "Say Goodbye, Maggie Cole." Particularly successful was "The Night Stalker," which spawned a sequel called "The Night Strangler" and a series called "Kolchak: The Night Stalker." McGavin starred as investigative reporter Carl Kolchak in all three. At the end of the decade, he portrayed George Patton in the miniseries "Ike." McGavin began the 1980s with roles in the miniseries "The Martian Chronicles" and the television film "Waikiki." In 1983, he starred on the short-lived CBS sitcom "Small & Frye." McGavin followed that with a starring role in the television film "The Baron and the Kid."

In the second half of the 1980s, McGavin appeared in episodes of "The Hitchhiker," "Tales from the Darkside," "Worlds Beyond," and "Highway to Heaven." He was also in the 1988 television film adaptation of "Inherit the Wind" and the 1989 miniseries adaptation of "Around the World in 80 Days." From 1989 to 1992, McGavin played Bill Brown on the sitcom "Murphy Brown," and earned an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. During that time, he appeared in the television films "By Dawn's Early Light," "Child in the Night," and "Perfect Harmony." Over the remainder of the decade, McGavin had guest roles on such shows as "Fudge," "Sisters," "Burke's Law," "Fallen Angels," "The Commish," "Grace Under Fire," "Millennium," and "The X-Files."

Theater Career

McGavin began his professional career on stage in a touring production of "Death of a Salesman" from 1949 to 1950. He made his Broadway debut in 1953, originating the role of Alfred in the comedy play "My Three Angels." The next year, McGavin originated the role of Bill Starbuck in the Broadway play "The Rainmaker." His subsequent stage credits were "The Innkeepers," "The Lovers," "The Tunnel of Love," and "Two for the Seesaw." In 1961, McGavin starred alongside Peter Fonda in the original production of the play "Blood, Sweat and Stanley Poole." A few years later, he appeared with his teenage son in a regional production of "A Thousand Clowns." McGavin also played the King in a production of the musical "The King and I." He later appeared in the 1966 Broadway revival of "Dinner at Eight." McGavin didn't return to the stage until 1993, when he appeared in an off-Broadway production of "Greetings!"

Personal Life and Death

McGavin married his first wife, Anita Williams, in 1942. They divorced the following year. In 1944, he wed Melanie York, with whom he had four children. They divorced in 1969. At the end of that year, McGavin married actress Kathie Browne; they remained together until Browne's passing in 2003.

On February 25, 2006, McGavin died from cardiovascular disease at the age of 83. His body was interred at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

Real Estate

In March 2004, Darren listed his Beverly Hills home for sale. He sold the property in June 2004 for $1.4 million.