How tall was Burgess Meredith

Brandon Churchill said on 24/Apr/23
There was no way he was above 5'3"

Brandon Churchill said on 24/Apr/23
He was between 5'3" and 5'4"

Sandy Cowell said on 29/Jan/23
I saw Burgess star in one of the very first episodes of The Twilight Zone last night. He played a guy, Henry, with a horrible, domineering - and taller! - wife, and all the little fellow wanted to do was read his books. His nasty wife scribbled all over his book of classic poems, criticising him for how he spent his time, rather than appreciating his artistic side.

The next thing we knew was that Henry wakes up in a post nuclear world. At first, he thinks that at last he can read to his heart’s content, but then the glass from his specs falls out!

What a rotten ending! 😝

He looked a tiny little guy, so I am going with 5ft5.5.

Sandy Cowell said on 21/Sep/22
Burgess was just so, so good in both ‘The Sentinel’ and ‘Magic’; it sure does bare out the fact that you DON’T necessarily have to be tall to pull off a menacing part, especially the one he played in ‘The Sentinel’. Furthermore, I found him rather freaky and scary in ‘Batman’ when I was a tiny kid! 🐧

5ft5.5.

Alan mctavish said on 20/Dec/21
When i saw burgess stand next to sylvester stallone in rocky 1, they were both flat footed in the ring with no heels on. And i knew sylvester was about 5'9" tops, but burgess was only 2 inches shorter, and maybe a 2 and a half inches. But that would make him 5'7" i just couldnt see him as being only 5'5" but he is classesd as 5'6"05 as well so thats more like it. In rocky sylvestar was in 2 inch heels to make him look 6ft with his wavy hair and hat. Even in the ring standing toe to toe with 6'2" carl weathers hes in 3 inch heels becouse he looke an easy 6ft, but the directors had to do that becouse this is the big heavy weight fight in america. So one guy isnt going to be 6'2" and his oppenant only 5'8"05. But thats where it ends becouse i first saw this film and them all when i was age 9 and believed what i saw. It isnt till 40 years later you see how it changes lol. Like when the fight starts rocky is looking up to at least 5 inches and carl is looking down at least 5 inches and the two together the height difference is so clear to see. A thinck carl trys his best to appear smaller than he is? Thats obvoius to make rocky appear taller, at a few stages even the camera couldnt help but look down at rocky from what looked like 7 inches higher as if they were carls eyes lol but it was a great film. My favourite was rocky 3.

Daycringeothon said on 4/Oct/21
Pauly aka Burt Young always held up well with Rocky. I know it’s a movie but Rocky was supposed to be 6 foot and 200+ pounds. Pauly would have to be 5’11”ish. In all seriousness if was Stallone 5’8”-5’8.5” that would put Burt at about 5’7”.

Miss Sandy Cowell said on 24/Dec/20
I'm watching 'Santa Claus - The Movie' which I find one of the most enchanting Christmas films ever. Burgess plays the elderly elf and has a big, long beard, so long that it has to be held by two of the little elves. Dudley Moore plays an elf and at 5ft2.5, he is considerably taller than most of the others, so Burgess is positively TALL with his 5ft5.5/5ft6!

I'd never noticed that Burgess was in this film before. It's his height that threw me because he looks tall next to the other elves and I'd always regarded him as fairly short. So from the many 'Rocky' films he starred in with Sly Stallone to the scary likes of 'The Sentinel' and 'Magic', I found it utterly charming to find him in the ultimate Christmas movie. 🎅🎄⛄

5ft5.75 😁👍

Rampage(-_-_-)Clover said on 3/Sep/20
If he was 5ft8 then Stallone was 6ft at least!

Miss Sandy Cowell said on 20/Jan/20
Come to think of it, I found his Penguin really scary as a small kid! I still do, casting my mind back!

😫🐧

Miss Sandy Cowell said on 20/Jan/20
⭐ Add a couple of years to each figure. 'The Sentinel' was made in '76, and not '74. I checked at the end, which takes some beating on the scariness front. I think it's the scariest ending I've ever seen! 😩

Miss Sandy Cowell said on 19/Jan/20
I've worked out that Burgess was 66-67 when he starred in the movie 'The Sentinel'. He does look rather little standing next to high-heeled beauty Cristina Raines, but he's so cute, arriving at her door with a canary on his shoulder and a cat in his arms, that he gets away with inviting himself into her apartment and having a thoroughly good nose, criticising away! If he'd been taller, he'd very possibly have have come across as threatening!

5ft5.5. 😄👍😂😂😂🐧

Miss Sandy Cowell said on 16/Nov/19
Burgess Meredith was born 112 years ago today.

Best remembered for playing 'The Penguin' in the 1960s Batman series, there was far more to him than that! My favourites of his were 'The Sentinel' and 'Magic', in which he starred with Anthony Hopkins and Ann-Margret. Then, of course, there were the Rocky films, which were enjoyable to watch even if you weren't boxing-mad! A possible candidate for the Classical Actors section, Rob? 😉👍

5ft5.75 - peak.

RIP Burgess XXX 🕯️

Ian C. said on 21/Jul/19
Here is an actor who was cast (at least) twice because he was short, because his height served to make other actors look taller than they were. He makes Sylvester Stallone look like a six footer in the Rocky movies, and Lon Chaney Jr. look suitably huge as Lennie in Of Mice and Men.

In a parallel way, notice how many female stars are shorter than average. This would be a handy attribute in an actress, because they could work well with less-than-tall leading men. Tall girls have a certain handicap. Michael Douglas declined to work with Geena Davis in Cutthroat Island, and Tom Hanks rejected Uma Thurman as a leading lady in Bonfire of the Vanities.

Rampage(-_-_-)Clover said on 25/Feb/18
If he was 5ft8 then Stallone was over 6ft!

JJAK said on 8/Jan/18
Seems a fair guess at peak say the 40s by rocky he was likely 5 4 or so.
He looked surprisingly average in clash must have been a short cast he was over 70.
Good actor, amazing voice over man from serious to funny could do it all.

Sandy Cowell said on 10/Jan/17
I think Burgess was a little smaller in his later years! In the film 'Magic', he looked possibly as small as 5ft4.5!
I had no idea it was him in the 'Batman' series playing 'the Penguin', but I was so young when I watched those that I would be jumping off chairs afterwards and trying to fly!

the shredder said on 12/Feb/12
Rob , I was watching old episode of Batman and guess what ? Burt ward looked 3 " on him ... So I guess its time to add Burt at 5'8 ish !

the shredder said on 5/Apr/07
His 5'8 claim is pretty funny though ! ... Never anywhere near that !

the shredder said on 5/Apr/07
Rob , what made you guess 5'5.5 ? that would have made Burt Young 5'9 and Sly near 6'0 !

guyfrommars said on 19/Feb/07
In a 1961 episode of The Twilight Zone 5'6ish Don Rickles was taller than Meredith.