Farewell to Charles Lane - Crankiness as a Career

You'd know his face in an instant, but probably not his name. In dozens of movies and countless television roles, Charles Lane made his series of brief moments on the screen shine, each and every time.

He died peacefully in Santa Monica on July 9 at the age of 102, after a rich, 60-year career as a character actor. He appeared in so many productions that he would occasionally see himself on television and have no memory of playing that particular role.

With his thin frame, long face and dry delivery, he was the master of acerbic bit parts as a clerk or a cranky business type, yet never an out-and-out villain. Classic movie fans will recognize him instantly from Mr. Deeds Goes to Town and It's a Wonderful Life. TV fans of a certain age will know him as the railroad executive trying to shut down the tiny station in the old "Petticoat Junction" series.

The San Francisco Chronicle pens a spot-on tribute to this enduring, endearing charater actor.

Lane accepts a TV Land award in 2005/Getty Images