Tol Avery (August 28, 1915 – August 27, 1973) was an American film and television character actor with more than a hundred screen appearances between 1950 and 1974.
Early in his career, Avery appeared as "Dennison" in an episode of the 1953-1954 ABC situation comedy, The Pride of the Family. Fay Wray played Catherine Morrison, and Paul Hartman portrayed her husband, Albie Morrison. Natalie Wood and Robert Hyatt played their children, Ann and Junior Morrison, respectively. Larry J. Blake filled the role of Frank.
Noted for his enormous girth and cultured voice, Avery usually played sophisticated and articulate villains, including the featured nemesis in seven episodes of the ABC/Warner Brothers western television series, Maverick between 1957 and 1962. He was cast twice during this time in another ABC/WB series, Colt .45, starring Wayde Preston. He played the role of Archer Belgrade in "Circle of Fear" (1958) and Barnes in "Queen of Dixie" (1959). In the latter episode, he was cast with Andy Clyde in the role of Captain Gibbs. In 1960, he was cast as Theodore and John Nichols, respectively, in the episodes "Key to the City" and "False Identity" of the ABC/WB crime drama, Bourbon Street Beat, starring Andrew Duggan andRichard Long. He also guest starred on the CBS sitcom, Pete and Gladys with Harry Morgan and Cara Williams.
As one of several appearances in different roles on CBS's The Andy Griffith Show, Avery in 1964 played Ben Weaver in the episode "The Shoplifters." That same year, he was cast as "Speaker Bert Metcalf" on the CBS drama series Slattery's People, starring Richard Crenna. He appeared five times during the 1960s on the long running NBCwestern series The Virginian.
In 1966, Avery appeared twice on the syndicated western anthology series, Death Valley Days, as Frank Brenner in "The Resurrection of Deadwood Dick" and as Walter Benson in "Doc Holliday's Gold Bars". About this time, he appeared three times each on ABC's Batman and CBS's Mannix.
Among his last appearance was as Justice Redding in the 1973 episode "The Marcus-Nelson Murders" of the CBS detective series, Kojak, starring Telly Savalas.
Source: Wikipedia