Robert Sterling

 Robert Sterling (born William Sterling Hart; November 13, 1917 – May 30, 2006)

He was best known for starring in the television series Topper (1953–1955). After signing with Columbia Pictures in 1939, he changed his name to Robert Sterling to avoid confusion with silent western star William S. Hart. Sterling appeared in small parts for Columbia movies, often uncredited: Blondie Meets the Boss (1939), Romance of the Redwoods (1939), First Offenders (1939), Outside These Walls (1939), and The Chump Takes a Bump (1939), among others. He was in Only Angels Have Wings (1939), Missing Daughters (1939), and a short with Buster Keaton, Golden Boy (1939), The Gates of Alcatraz (1939), A Woman is the Judge (1939), The Story of Charles Goodyear (1939), Scandal Sheet (1939), Mr Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Beware Spooks! (1939), and Blondie Brings Up Baby (1939), and more. He had a supporting role in Two-Faced Woman (1941) with Greta Garbo and Johnny Eager (1941) with Robert Taylor. Sterling could also be see in Dr. Kildare's Victory (1942) and This Time for Keeps (1942).

Sterling served in World War II as a United States Army Air Corps flight instructor. He got out of the army in October 1945 and MGM announced him for The Last Time I Saw Paris but the film would not be made for several years, without Sterling. In the 1950's he was a guest star on shows like The Loretta Young Show, Lux Video Theatre, Star Stage, The 20th Century-Fox Hour, The Ford Television Theatre, Cavalcade of America, and Telephone Time. In 1963, Sterling starred in The Twilight Zone episode "Printer's Devil" alongside Burgess Meredith. Sterling was married twice, to Ann Sothern from 1943 to 1949 and Anne Jeffreys from 1951 until his death. He and Jeffreys starred in the series Topper, as well as in Love that Jill, which ran in 1958 on ABC. In the 1970's Sterling was a vice president and the spokesman for a company that implemented the software for one of the first supermarket barcoding and computer inventory systems. He later launched Sterling & Sons, a Santa Monica company that manufactured custom golf clubs.

In 1960, Sterling was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the television industry. He had one daughter, actress Patricia Sterling, from his marriage to Sothern. He had three sons from his marriage to Jeffreys. Sterling died on May 30, 2006 at age 88 from natural causes.