Personal Info
Known For:
Acting
Birthday:
August 11, 1911
Place of Birth:
Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, USa
Social Media
Henry Kulky
Biography
Henry Kulky (born Henry Kulakowich; August 11, 1911 – February 12, 1965) was an American actor and professional wrestler from Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, probably best remembered as Chief Petty Officer Curly Jones from season 1 of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.
Kulky began boxing in his teenage years. After six bouts, he stopped boxing when he was offered a position training wrestlers at St. Matthew's Lyceum in his native Hastings-on-Hudson.
Stanislaus Zbyszko convinced Kulky to compete professionally in 1939. Moving to Argentina, Kulky competed throughout South America under the ring name Bomber Kulkavich. The number of matches in which he competed is uncertain; one claim states that he won 172 of 175 matches. Kulky, however, claims that he won nearly all of 7,000 matches. While in South America, he is also said to have won the continent's judo crown.
Like most wrestlers who turned to acting in the 1950s he owed his big break to Mike Mazurki. The two appeared in several parts in the 1940s and 1950s, with Mazurki's agent getting him a part in Call Northside 777.
Because of his rather tough guy image, Kulky became typecast as military men, thugs, gangsters, bartenders, wrestlers and other "strong guys" who were at times quite friendly and lovable characters contrasting strongly with the tough guy image. From 1953 to 1958, he played Otto Schmidlap in the television series The Life of Riley. In the series, Kulky portrayed a co-worker of series character Chester Riley, a wing riveter at an aircraft plant. In 1952 he appeared in an episode (#11) of Adventures of Superman, as a wrestler working for a crooked promoter. In 1954 he appeared in an episode (#141) of The Lone Ranger. From 1959 to 1962, Kulky was cast in the recurring role as Chief Max Bronsky in forty-six episodes of Jackie Cooper's CBS military sitcom-drama television series Hennesey. The role was close to Kulky's heart because during World War II, he was a boatswain's mate in the United States Navy.
Kulky's last role was as Chief Curley Jones in the television series Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. He died on February 12, 1965, in Oceanside, California, of a heart attack suffered while he was studying a script.
Known For
Filmography
| Year | Movie | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Guns of the Timberland | Logger |
| 1959 | Up Periscope | Chief Petty Officer York |
| 1957 | Sierra Stranger | Bartender Matt |
| 1957 | Bombers B-52 | Calvin (uncredited) |
| 1956 | Army Daze | Sergeant Bonebreaker |
| 1955 | New York Confidential | Gino |
| 1955 | Illegal | Taylor |
| 1955 | Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops | Brakeman (uncredited) |
| 1955 | It's Always Fair Weather | Drunk in Bar (uncredited) |
| 1955 | I'll Cry Tomorrow | Man in Bar (uncredited) |
| 1955 | The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing | Prisoner (uncredited) |
| 1955 | Love Me or Leave Me | Bouncer |
| 1954 | The Human Jungle | Matty |
| 1954 | Fireman Save My Child | Harry |
| 1954 | Tobor the Great | Paul (Spy Henchman) |
| 1954 | A Star Is Born | Cuddles (uncredited) |
| 1954 | Phantom of the Rue Morgue | Maurice |
| 1954 | Hell and High Water | McCrossin (uncredited) |
| 1954 | Yukon Vengeance | Schmidt |
| 1954 | New Faces | Mr. Dee (uncredited) |
| 1953 | The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T. | Stroogo (uncredited) |
| 1953 | Target Hong Kong | Dutch Pfeifer |
| 1953 | Down Among the Sheltering Palms | First Sergeant Jones |
| 1953 | The Glory Brigade | Sgt. 'Smitty' Smitkowsky |
| 1952 | No Holds Barred | Mike the Mauler |
| 1952 | Aim, Fire, Scoot | Sgt. Bonebreaker |
| 1952 | Red Skies of Montana | Dawson (uncredited) |
| 1952 | The World in His Arms | Peter, Russian Servant |
| 1951 | Fixed Bayonets! | Vogl (uncredited) |
| 1951 | You Never Can Tell | Gorilla / Prisoner (uncredited) |
| 1951 | The Guy Who Came Back | Wizard, Wrestler |
| 1951 | Love Nest | George Thompson |
| 1950 | Jiggs and Maggie Out West | 'Bomber' Kulkowich (as Henry Kulkowich) |
| 1950 | A Snitch in Time | Steve (uncredited) |
| 1950 | South Sea Sinner | Bartender |
| 1949 | Alias the Champ | Bomber Kulkovich - Wrestler |
| 1949 | Mighty Joe Young | Strong Man (uncredited) |
| 1949 | Tarzan's Magic Fountain | Vredak |
| 1949 | The Red Danube | Russian Officer at Camp 12 Deportation |
| 1948 | Call Northside 777 | First Bartender (uncredited) |
| 1948 | To the Ends of the Earth | Giant Chinese Man (uncredited) |
| 1948 | A Foreign Affair | Russian Sergeant (uncredited) |
| 1947 | A Likely Story | Tremendo |