Gil Lamb, a lean and lanky individual, was an eccentric dancer and comedian who came from a vaudeville background. He had an extraordinary ability to bend and contort his body, often incorporating his long and lugubrious face into his comedy routine. His signature move was a "fish-eyed" double-take, and he was also known for pretending to have swallowed a harmonica, which he would then retrieve from his neck and Adam's apple.
Gil began his career in films as a character named Homer Clinker in a slapstick radio segment of the "Rudy Vallee Show" in 1942. He was then signed by Paramount and went on to enliven several musicals of the 1940s as a comic relief and specialty dancer. Some of his most notable roles during this time were in "The Fleet's In" (1942),"Star Spangled Rhythm" (1942),and "Rainbow Island" (1944),a Technicolor romp starring Dorothy Lamour.
Between 1949 and 1953, Gil starred in his own series of eight two-reel comedies for RKO, playing an accident-prone goofball named Slim who consistently leaves disaster in his wake. This was true slapstick in the old style, but well-made and entertaining. In the 1950s, Gil entered the world of television, often appearing in supporting roles or cameos as drunks, party guests, or janitors, allowing him to revive some of his old routines in episodes of popular shows like "Pistols 'n' Petticoats" (1966) and "The Ghost & Mrs. Muir" (1968).
On stage, Gil played Ichabod Crane in a 1949 Broadway run of "Sleepy Hollow," although the production was unfortunately short-lived. However, that same year, Disney animators used his looks and movement as inspiration for Ichabod in "The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad" (1949).
