Claude Thomas Hull

Claude Thomas Hull, an actor who appeared in theater, film and television, died April 18th in Wilmington, NC, after a long illness. Born in Durham, NC, he graduated from Bragtown High School and East Carolina University. He served in the U.S. Army and was stationed in Augsburg, Germany, where he directed community theater. He attended graduate school at UNC-Chapel Hill, where he performed with the Carolina Playmakers. Hull was widely known for his portrayal of Old Tom, the comical Cockney character in the outdoor musical drama The Lost Colony, where he performed for more seasons than any actor in the role. He also performed in the NC outdoor dramas The Liberty Cart and Strike at the Wind. He was a member of Actor’s Equity, and while living in New York, toured nationally with children’s theater and appeared in the Washington, D.C., production of One Mo’ Time. In North Carolina, he appeared in Camelot and Oklahoma with the N.C. Theater in Raleigh. He came to Wilmington in 1983 to play Oscar Wilde in Remembered Nights for Thalian Hall’s 125th anniversary. His last of many performances in Thalian Hall was in 2006 in the role of Gus the Theater Cat in Cats. His films credits include Raw Deal with Arnold Schwarzenegger, Little Monsters with Fred Savage and Nicholas Roeg’s Track 29 with Gary Oldham. He also appeared in One Christmas, a Truman Capote story adapted for television, with Henry Winkler and Katherine Hepburn. He is survived by brothers Charles, Bill and Sam, and two nieces.