Harry Ellerbe; Stage and Film Actor, Director

Harry Ellerbe, veteran Broadway and Hollywood actor and director who appeared in 19 stage plays, more than a dozen films and more than 80 television programs, has died in a suburban Atlanta nursing home. He was 91.

Ellerbe died Dec. 2 of heart failure, his sister, Marie Hancock, said last week.

He directed five Broadway productions, but worked most extensively in regional theaters such as Gregory Peck’s Actors Playhouse in La Jolla.

Ellerbe made his Broadway debut in the title role of George Kelly’s “Philip Goes Forth.” His initial directing effort was “For Love or Money.”

He traveled regularly between Broadway and Hollywood for more than 30 years, appearing in the stage version of “Desk Set,” with Shirley Booth, and the film version, with Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy.

Ellerbe’s other films included “Young Lions” with Montgomery Clift, “No Man of Her Own” with Lana Turner, “The Man Who Knew Women” with Henry Fonda, and two horror films, “Haunted Palace” and “House of Usher,” both with Vincent Price.

West Coast stage productions directed by Ellerbe included “Hasty Heart,” “Accidentally Yours” and “Tunnel of Love.”

On television, he appeared on four Hallmark Hall of Fame productions, the “Perry Mason” series, and variety shows of Red Skelton and Bob Hope. He also made guest appearances on “The FBI,” and Miss Booth’s series, “Hazel.”

He spent his retirement years in his native Atlanta.