Ron Carey
Actor · Died January 16, 2007, aged 71 · Newark, New Jersey, USA
Ron Carey (December 11, 1935 – January 16, 2007) was an American actor. He was known as a notably short, Italian, nasal-toned and mischievous-looking fellow, a perfect type for the stand-up comedy circuit and for playing Brooklynesque characters in T.V. sitcoms and films. He earned his Bachelor's degree in communications from Seton Hall University in South Orange in 1956, but moved to near-by New York and took to the comedy stage, finding work in such prime clubs as "The Improvisation". He soon earned notice for his "little man" humor, which was built around Italian family and Roman Catholic "guilt" jokes (in reality, he once considered being a priest). Ron finally gained some momentum on T.V. making various funnyman appearances on the talk/variety show formats hosted by the best of the best -- Jack Paar, Merv Griffin, Mike Douglas, Ed Sullivan and Johnny Carson. He also found lucrative work in commercials playing various feisty or hapless characters. Ron finally broke into films with the Jack Lemmon/Sandy Dennis comedy The Out of Towners (1970) as a Boston taxi driver, then continued on with other minor bits in Who Killed Mary Whats'ername? (1971) and the cult film Made for Each Other (1971) starring Joseph Bologna and Renée Taylor. Earlier Ron appeared on Broadway in the couple's 1968 hit comedy "Lovers and Other Strangers." It wasn't until his work as a secondary staple in Mel Brooks' madcap company that he earned even a modicum of success in films. His participation in the zany parodies Silent Movie (1976), High Anxiety (1977) and History of the World: Part I (1981) occurred during the height of his T.V. fame. Likewise, he went on to deliver a substantial role as plus-sized Dom DeLuise's unsympathetic brother Frankie in Fatso (1980), directed by Brooks' wife Anne Bancroft. As for the smaller screen, a regular player on the summer variety series The Melba Moore-Clifton Davis Show (1972) led to his being cast in the New York-area sitcom The Corner Bar (1972) and the ethnic family comedy The Montefuscos (1975). A steady pay-check was not to be had, however, until he was added to the second season ensemble of Barney Miller (1975) headed by Hal Linden and Abe Vigoda. Ron earned sympathy strokes as Carl Levitt, a brown-nosing, eager-beaver patrolman who yearned to be a plainclothes detective in Barney's police agency, but just didn't measure up because of his vertically challenged stature. Ron, whose character finally received a promotion after the long haul, stayed with the popular show until its cancellation in 1982. Ron died of complications from a stroke at 71 years old in Los Angeles and is survived by long-time wife Sharon.
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Biography from TMDB.
- December 11, 1935
- January 16, 2007 (aged 71)
- Newark, New Jersey, USA
- Actor
- 12 on MovieCove · 21 credits in all
What are Ron Carey's films like?
Across their 10 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Morality.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
A split, not a type: Ironic 2 · Wry 1 · Earnest 6
Light 8 · Serious 0 · Dark 1
A split, not a type: Grounded 5 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 2
Gentle 4 · Charged 5 · Intense 0
Steady 3 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 2
Straight-faced 1 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 8
Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 7 · Relentless 0
Casual 7 · Engaged 1 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 8 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 0
Resolved 9 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Roles they play
Usually the Threshold guardian: 2 of 6 analyzed roles.
- Threshold guardianas Cab Driver - Boston in The Out of Towners (1970)
- Threshold guardianas Officer Carl Levitt in Barney Miller (1975)
- Shadowas Devour in Silent Movie (1976)
- Allyas Brophy in High Anxiety (1977)
- Mentoras Swiftus in History of the World: Part I (1981)
- Shadowas Joe Dalton in Lucky Luke (1991)
Moods and endings
- Happy6
- Bittersweet1
- Ambiguous2
- Cyclical1
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Ron Carey's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 2 of their 12 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Ron Carey's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
21 credits, 12 with a MovieCove page; 6 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
The Good Bad Guy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)
Troublemakers(1994)
Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films
Lucky Luke (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)
Lucky Luke 2 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)
Lucky Luke(1991)
Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all filmsHave Faith (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)
Johnny Dangerously(1984)
Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films
Fatso (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1980)
$weepstake$ (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)
Peeping Times (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)
High Anxiety(1977)
Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films
Alice(1976)
Midcredits score: 44th percentile of all shows
Silent Movie(1976)
Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all filmsThe Montefuscos (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)
Barney Miller(1975)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all shows
Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)The Corner Bar (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)
Made for Each Other(1971)
Midcredits score: 47th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films
The Out of Towners(1970)
Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films
Career shape
Star power in the 91st percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 21 titles from 1970 to 1997; peak year 1976.
Film career
Peak 1976 · back in prominent film roles after a quiet stretch. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.
- 1970Screen debut· The Out-of-Towners
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.
How do Ron Carey's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 63rd percentile, the median of all 10; across their 9 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 64th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up2
- 50th to 74th5
- 25th to 49th4
- Below 25th1
Shape of the crowd
5 of their 12 titles are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved1
- Cult Classic1
- Crowd Pleaser5
- Broadly Agreed2
- Mixed3
Reviewers score the acting 67/100 in their films, across 8 reviewed titles; fans 79, detractors 40. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Ron Carey's work okay for kids?
Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.
Who does Ron Carey work with?
People who share at least 2 of Ron Carey's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Mel Brooks shares the most, 3.
Directors
- Mel BrooksShared titles: History of the World: Part I (1981), High Anxiety (1977), Silent Movie (1976)See all 3 shared titles with Mel Brooks
- Terence HillShared titles: Troublemakers (1994), Lucky Luke (1991)See all 2 shared titles with Terence Hill
Writers
- Barry LevinsonShared titles: High Anxiety (1977), Silent Movie (1976)See all 2 shared titles with Barry Levinson
- Ron ClarkShared titles: High Anxiety (1977), Silent Movie (1976)See all 2 shared titles with Ron Clark
- Rudy De LucaShared titles: High Anxiety (1977), Silent Movie (1976)See all 2 shared titles with Rudy De Luca
- Joseph BolognaShared titles: Acts of Love and Other Comedies (1973), Made for Each Other (1971)See all 2 shared titles with Joseph Bologna
Actors
- Fritz SperbergShared titles: Troublemakers (1994), Lucky Luke (1991)See all 2 shared titles with Fritz Sperberg
- Neil SummersShared titles: Troublemakers (1994), Lucky Luke (1991)See all 2 shared titles with Neil Summers
- Cloris LeachmanShared titles: History of the World: Part I (1981), High Anxiety (1977)See all 2 shared titles with Cloris Leachman
- Dom DeLuiseShared titles: History of the World: Part I (1981), Silent Movie (1976)See all 2 shared titles with Dom DeLuise
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- John C. HowardShared titles: History of the World: Part I (1981), High Anxiety (1977), Silent Movie (1976)See all 3 shared titles with John C. Howard
- John MorrisShared titles: History of the World: Part I (1981), High Anxiety (1977), Silent Movie (1976)See all 3 shared titles with John Morris
- Carlo TafaniShared titles: Troublemakers (1994), Lucky Luke (1991)See all 2 shared titles with Carlo Tafani
- Eugenio AlabisoShared titles: Troublemakers (1994), Lucky Luke (1991)See all 2 shared titles with Eugenio Alabiso
