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- Actor
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Famed actor, composer, artist, author and director. His talents extended to the authoring of the novel "Mr. Cartonwine: A Moral Tale" as well as his autobiography. In 1944, he joined ASCAP, and composed "Russian Dances", "Partita", "Ballet Viennois", "The Woodman and the Elves", "Behind the Horizon", "Fugue Fantasia", "In Memorium", "Hallowe'en", "Preludium & Fugue", "Elegie for Oboe, Orch.", "Farewell Symphony (1-act opera)", "Elegie (piano pieces)", "Rondo for Piano" and "Scherzo Grotesque".- Actor
- Soundtrack
Sydney Greenstreet's father was a leather merchant with eight children. Sydney left home at age 18 to make his fortune as a Ceylon tea planter, but drought forced him out of business and back to England. He managed a brewery and, to escape boredom, took acting lessons. His stage debut was as a murderer in a 1902 production of "Sherlock Holmes". From then on he appeared in numerous plays in England and the US, working through most of the 1930s with Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne at the Theatre Guild. His parts ranged from musical comedy to Shakespeare. His film debut, occurring when he was 62 years old and weighing nearly 300 pounds, was as Kasper Guttman in the classic The Maltese Falcon (1941), with Humphrey Bogart and Peter Lorre. He teamed with Lorre in eight more movies after that. In eight years he made 24 films, all while beset by diabetes and Bright's disease. In 1949 he retired from films, and died four years later. He was 75.- Actress
- Soundtrack
The American character actress, Florence Rabe, was the daughter of an antique store owner. She gained a degree in Mathematics from the University of Texas in 1906 and went on to a career in teaching and social work. She changed course after being persuaded by a friend to study law, and, passing her bar exam in 1914, practised for four years in San Antonio. When her parents died, she took over the business and travelled abroad extensively to acquire stock, all the while adding to her knowledge of foreign languages (she was, for instance, a fluent Spanish speaker). After the Wall Street crash of 1929, Florence sold the antique store and married Texan oilman William F. Jacoby. Jacoby eventually went bankrupt and the couple moved to California in the late 1930's, briefly becoming proprietors of a bakery.
At this time, Florence, a heavy-set woman of matronly appearance and well into her middle age, developed an interest in acting and auditioned for the part of Miss Bates in the Pasadena Playhouse production of Jane Austen's 'Emma'. This proved to be a momentous career choice. Her popularity became such, that she went on to leading roles with the same company, changing her name to Florence Bates as a nod to her perceived good fortune. In 1939, she screen tested for Alfred Hitchcock, who was sufficiently impressed to cast her as the demanding, imperious dowager Mrs. Edythe Van Hopper in Rebecca (1940). Her excellent performance was the first in a gallery of memorable characters: wealthy socialites, irritable, henpecking wives, hotel managers (The Moon and Sixpence (1942)), theatre owners (Tonight and Every Night (1945)) and unctuous, gossipy landladies (Portrait of Jennie (1948)). She was equally adept at comedy, appearing to great effect in Heaven Can Wait (1943) and Lullaby of Broadway (1951), with frequent co-star S.Z. Sakall, aka 'Cuddles'. She was enjoyably larger-than-life as Danny Kaye's prospective mother-in-law in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947) and as Vera-Ellen's inebriated Russian dance teacher, Madame Dilyovska, in On the Town (1949). Bates even essayed a murderess in The Brasher Doubloon (1947). Destined never to win any awards, Florence Bates continued in films until her death in 1954. She was pre-deceased by her sister, her only daughter and her husband.- Actor
- Soundtrack
This eminently recognizable, bulbous, beetle-browed character actor left Culver Military Academy and began acting in repertory companies before becoming a Hollywood extra and stunt man. Eugene's father had also been a thespian at one time but eventually ended his career as an insurance salesman. In his younger days, Eugene was apparently of the more slender build since he once managed to hold down a job as a jockey! He spent in total six years with touring companies, briefly worked as a streetcar conductor in Portland and finally found his way to motion pictures. By his own account, he began in films on the East Coast around 1910 or 1911, gravitating to Hollywood by 1913 and appeared in some 100 productions each year for the first four years of his tenure. The majority of this prodigious output was undoubtedly made up of one-reel shorts. Eugene initially played leads in silent feature films and was described as relatively athletic by the time he appeared in D.W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation (1915) and Intolerance (1916). His career was put on hold while he served with the Flying Corps during the First World War, but just a couple of years after his return to films he started to turn into a compulsive gourmand. His vast appetite for food increased his girth manifold and he steadfastly refused to go on a diet. Consequently, he found himself demoted to supporting roles but still managed to make a decent living out of his unusual appearance and his trademark gravelly bullfrog voice. Sometime in the early 1920s, he began to dabble in Texas oil and first amassed and then lost a fortune within the space of a year.
Eugene remained gainfully employed all through the '20s, '30s, and '40s. He played Aramis to Douglas Fairbankss's D'Artagnan in The Three Musketeers (1921) and appeared as a Hal Roach contract player in the classic Laurel & Hardy short The Battle of the Century (1927). In talkies, he was the truculent police sergeant Heath in five installments of the Philo Vance series at Paramount, starring William Powell. When not used as pinstripe-suited authority figures or Runyonesque characters (Nicely-Nicely Johnson in The Big Street (1942)), he was always diverting in screwball comedies, notably in My Man Godfrey (1936) and Topper (1937). A truly versatile, his gallery of characters ranged from garrulous and witty and ingratiating, to brooding loners, from avuncular to cantankerous. Under contract at Warners, he proved to be the very best ever incarnation of Friar Tuck in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) and followed this with another priestly effort as Father Felipe in The Mark of Zorro (1940).
Near the end of World War II, Eugene and a business partner acquired a 3500-acre estate and ranch along the Imnaha River in remote Wallowa County, Oregon, complete with a fallout shelter. Allegedly, he lived the life of a semi-recluse for the next four years, anticipating a nuclear attack by stockpiling all manner of essential items in order to become fully self-sufficient. The aforementioned business partner later denied this as a rumor, implying that the ranch was merely a place where Eugene entertained his actor friends (some came to hunt and fish). Whether true or not, Eugene was ultimately forced to sell the property in 1949 due to ill-health (throat cancer, as it turned out). He made his final return to the screen at Poverty Row studio Monogram in Suspense (1946), rounding out his career with a minor film noir set in the skating rink, starring the 'Ice Maiden' Belita. Eugene died eight years later in Los Angeles at the age of 65.- Actress
- Soundtrack
One of the finest, if relatively short-lived, character actresses of Hollywood, during the 1930s and 1940, Gladys George was born into an acting family who were literally on the road at the time of her birth.
Her parents were actually English and touring with a Shakespearean theater company in Patten, Maine, when she was born (although usually noted as 1900, other sources put it as late as 1904). Her parents stayed in America, and by the time she was 3, they formed a vaudeville family act; The Three Clares (Gladys's middle name).
Beginning then, George would focus herself on developing an acting career.
As George gained experience, she developed an interest in the stage and while still in her teens, she first trod the Broadway boards in 1918 in the original play "The Betrothal", the star being Isadora Duncan. Her experience in stock meshed with her natural talent and a face to frame the emotion of great pathos as well as hard cased and worldly wise. She was in good hands when she worked for the famous Broadway star Pauline Frederick, who made a fortune on ' The Great White Way', and via her touring stock company.
Frederick's career took on new dimension when she turned to film as well (1915), and George was probably influenced to follow her.
George began working in silent films - first as the young female romantic lead in Red Hot Dollars (1919) and would steadily move in lead and good costarring roles through 1921.
Around this time, George was severely burned in an accident which caused a delay in her early film career. She returned to stock and married for the first time.
By 1934, she had a new husband - the millionaire manufacturer, Edward H Fowler who was able to further her career. After only a month into her next show (Queer People)'s run, George abruptly left the company, when Paramount offered her a screen test. After the test, MGM signed her for a contract. Her first film was not surprisingly an adapted play, Straight Is the Way (1934). In this, her first sound picture, George played the mouthy bad girl to good effect, displaying her acting ability.
In her personal life, she had a socialite's talent for partying, and alcohol, and romance on the edge. She had only been married to Fowler about a year when he found her with her leading man from her then-Broadway hit comedy, Personal Appearance (ironically, she played a carousing, man-hungry star, and the press loved the coincidence).
Her next film was not until 1936 and as a loan-out to Paramount, but it was pay-dirt for George, as the mother-against-the-world, in Valiant Is the Word for Carrie (1936),George made her role the film's focus, and she was so good at that she received a Best Actress nomination for that year. It and perhaps her personal life had much to do with her biggest role the next year, Madame X (1937), as the long suffering soap opera-like Jacqueline Floriot.
Though some mark it as the beginning of a downturn to character roles, George pulled out all the stops, and played the role of Madame du Barry, in Marie Antoinette (1938) (starring, Norma Shearer with real gumption
Sadly, over the next year, physical changes caused by her carousing lifestyle were becoming more apparent (as the speakeasy owner, Panama Smith in The Roaring Twenties (1939) with its famous ending of the fatally wounded James Cagney staggering up the church steps after having rubbed out old rival Humphrey Bogart. He staggers back down diagonally and falls professionally face up with George quickly kneeling next to him. 'He used to be a big shot', she says as the police arrive).
In the 1940s, George spent a year-or-so on Broadway,and was cast in several soap opera B-films, where she alternated between sympathetic, or tough-as-nails characters. She was usually right on, but the roles were throwaways, compared to what she was capable of doing.
Her most well-remembered role of this period was as the widow of murdered detective, Miles Archer, in the legendary The Maltese Falcon (1941) (with Humphrey Bogart, once again). One is hard-put to even recognize her in black lace, mourning profiles and the few lines she has.
The same year she had a good comedic lead role, displaying her range - from hard headed to soft hearted with the Dead End Kids in Hit the Road (1941).
But a standout role of the decade was so small, and yet it was subtlety nuanced for showing how she excelled at displaying pathos of the human condition, in the great classic of post-World War II homecoming, The Best Years of Our Lives (1946). As Hortense Derry, she was the second wife of aging failure Pat Derry (played by Roman Bohnen). That they lived near poverty's starkly shown in their 'home'; a hovel under an overpass. George, frowzy with little makeup and clutching her old threadbare robe, eagerly patronizing and quick to speak, with a slight edge in her voice.
Except for showing some of the old fire in her supporting role in Flamingo Road (1949), George only appeared in a few more roles; including a couple of brief TV appearances in the early 1950s.
Sadly, Gladys George was worn out; her hard living lifestyle, having caused her serious afflictions, including cirrhosis of the liver, advancing throat cancer, and cumulative heart disease. Though she's listed as having passed away due to a stroke, there was suspicion that she had taken an overdose of sleeping pills to put an end to her story.- Actor
- Stunts
- Soundtrack
Popular American star of silent and early sound westerns and serials. Raised in Michigan, he went through a number of strenuous jobs (sailor, boxer, lumberjack, coal miner, etc.) before landing in Los Angeles and getting work as a movie extra and stuntman. His good looks and athletic physique (he was a champion weightlifter) led to an offer to play the lead in a series of silent westerns, which he filmed under the stage name Bill Burns. In 1925, FBO signed him and changed his name to Tom Tyler. He became one of the studio's most popular action stars and initially made a smooth transition into talking pictures, for which he worked hard to lose his natural Lithuanian accent. As the '30s progressed, however, he began to face stiff competition in the arena of B-westerns and started taking supporting roles in larger-budget pictures, such as Stagecoach (1939) and Gone with the Wind (1939). In 1941, he took on perhaps his most famous role as the eponymous hero of Adventures of Captain Marvel (1941). This serial and several others brought him new fame, but within three years of playing Captain Marvel, Tyler's career was almost ended when his health failed. Rheumatoid arthritis crippled him and he was reduced to occasional minor supporting roles, often for John Ford, for whom he had worked in a number of films prior to his illness. During the last part of his career 1948-54, though reportedly in poor health, he appeared in supporting roles in over 35 films and TV series, including TV episodes of "The Lone Ranger", "The Cisco Kid", "The Range Rider", "Gene Autry", "Cowboy G-Men", and "Dick Tracy". He also co-starred with Tom Keene in an unsold TV pilot, "Crossroad Avengers" (1953), written and directed by Ed Wood. He eventually returned to live with his sister in the Detroit area and died there of heart failure at the age of 50 in 1954.- Even his more courteous, somewhat friendlier types gave one pause for concern. The tall, beefy, balding, icy-eyed character actor Moroni Olsen was one of Hollywood's more popular and imposing performers of film during the late 1930s, 1940s and early 1950s.
The versatile player was born Moroni Olsen and raised in Utah to Mormon parents (Edward Arenholt Olsen and Marsha Holverholst). Acting in church theatricals, Olsen attended and graduated from Weber State Academy before studying drama and elocution at the University of Utah. The voice training he received there served him quite well in the years to come, both on the Broadway stage and in Hollywood. After scattered performances in stage and tent shows in the East, he spent some time selling war bonds during World War I, then organized The Moroni Olsen Players in his native Ogden. The Utah-formed touring company eventually became one of the better known repertory companies around the county.
Olsen made his Broadway debut portraying Jason in "Medea" in 1920, and continued in NY for the next couple of years with a series of classical plays that included "The Trial of Joan of Arc," "Iphegenia in Aulis," "Mr. Faust" and "Candida". For the next eight seasons he continued to direct and coach his repertory Players, while also handling scenery, staging and choreographing duties. The actor returned to Broadway (after a decade's absence) in 1933 with "Her Man of Wax," which was followed by appearances in "Mary of Scotland" (as John Knox), Katharine Cornell's production of "Romeo and Juliet" (as Lord Capulet) and in 1935's "The Barretts of Wimpole Street" (as Doctor Chambers).
Olsen made a tepid film debut as Porthos in The Three Musketeers (1935), a rather dull version of the classic Dumas story that starred an uninspired Walter Abel as D'Artagnan. His strong, regal bearing and classically trained voice, however, was not to be denied and he proved quite suitable for movies in the ongoing years. Staying in Hollywood, he played a formidable Buffalo Bill opposite Barbara Stanwyck's Annie Oakley (1935) and, in other key historical supports, was quite good in the Katharine Hepburn vehicle Mary of Scotland (1936) (again as John Knox, the role he played on Broadway), The Plough and the Stars (1936) (as Gen. Connolly), Santa Fe Trail (1940) (as Robert E. Lee) and Lone Star (1952) as Sam Houston. He played a much older Porthos (at age 63) in At Sword's Point (1952) opposite Cornel Wilde's D'Artagnan and Alan Hale Jr. as the younger, more limber Athos. Olsen's voice will be forever recognized from the Disney animated movie classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) as the prophetic baritone voice of the Magic Mirror ("Mirror, mirror, on the wall...). The actor's intimidating, unsympathetic features were very much in demand during the 40s and 50s and he proved quite at home portraying corrupt villains, dogged inspectors, no-nonsense doctors, barnstorming preachers, powerful attorneys and other men of distinction.
In between film assignments Olsen was active with the Pasadena Playhouse as both director and performer. For several years, the character actor and devout Mormon also directed the Pilgrimage Play, Hollywood's great passion play that predated the arrival of motion pictures. One of his last film assignments was as Pope Leo I in Sign of the Pagan (1954). The never-married actor died of a heart attack in Los Angeles on November 22, 1954, and was survived by a nephew, Edward Olsen (of Los Angeles). Funeral services were held back in his native Ogden, Utah, and was buried there at the Ogden City Cemetery. - Actor
- Director
- Producer
Irving Pichel was born on 24 June 1891 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor and director, known for Destination Moon (1950), Dracula's Daughter (1936) and Tomorrow Is Forever (1946). He was married to Violette Wilson. He died on 13 July 1954 in Hollywood, California, USA.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Harry Cording was born on 26 April 1891 in Wellington, Somerset, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Narcotic (1933) and Gypsy Wildcat (1944). He was married to Margaret Fiero. He died on 1 September 1954 in Sun Valley, California, USA.- Magdalena Carmen Frieda Kahlo y Calderon was born on July 6, 1907 in Mexico City, Mexico. She was the seventh daughter of Guillermo Kahlo (born Carl Wilhelm Kahlo), a successful German photographer who emigrated to Mexico from Pforzheim, and of a mestiza mother, Matilde Calderón y González. Her father encouraged her interest in art, photography and archaeology; her mother was not so well educated, and also very religious.
At the age of 6, Frida suffered an attack of poliomyelitis, which left her with a deformed leg, although exercise and determination helped her to make a good recovery. At 14, she enrolled into one of Mexico's best schools hoping to forge a career in medicine; however, on September 17, 1925, she suffered serious injury in a traffic accident in Mexico City, breaking her spinal column and pelvis in three places, as well as her collar bone and two ribs. Her right leg, already deformed by polio, was shattered and fractured in 11 places and her right foot was dislocated. Frida spent the next month in hospital, and another 2 months at home recuperating, followed by 32 operations during her life-time. Her first prolonged hospitalization gave her the opportunity to rethink her life and become a painter, in spite of constant pain and discomfort.
She met her future husband, painter Diego Rivera, when he painted a mural at her school in 1923; they re-met in 1927 and began an affair. Although her mother objected to Frida dating Diego mostly because of their age differences (he was exactly 20 years older) and their awkward appearance together (she was 5' 3" tall and weighed only 100 lbs, he was 6' and weighed nearly 300 lbs), they were married in a traditional Catholic civil ceremony in 1929.
Melancholia, illness, separation, divorce, and re-marriage marked their relationship; Diego Rivera was a womanizer and their marriage was stormy. Frustrated by his philandering, Frida (a closet lesbian/bisexual) had affairs with both men and women, including a fling with exiled Russian revolutionary Lev Trotskiy in 1938. Her career as an artist was highly successful and took her around Mexico, New York and Europe.
Frida and Diego divorced early in 1940, and soon after, Frida's health deteriorated. Her moderate to heavy drinking, chain-smoking, and a steady diet of candy exacerbated her infirmity. In the early 1930s, she developed an atrophic ulcer on her right foot, from which several gangrenous toes were amputated in 1934.
Frida and Diego Rivera reconciled and were re-married on his 54th birthday, in December 1940, in San Francisco, California. Following the amputation of her right leg in 1953, Frida became a recluse and more deeply depressed, finally losing the will to live. She was found dead at home in Mexico City on July 13, 1954, allegedly from kidney, liver and heart failure, although some believe she committed suicide by taking an overdose of pills. - Writer
- Director
Thea von Harbou was born on 27 December 1888 in Tauperlitz, Döhlau, Bavaria, Germany. She was a writer and director, known for Metropolis (1927), M (1931) and Woman in the Moon (1929). She was married to Fritz Lang and Rudolf Klein-Rogge. She died on 1 July 1954 in Berlin, Germany.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Phyllis Barry was born Gertrude Hillyard on December 7, 1908, in Leeds, England. She was a gifted dancer and at the age of fourteen she joined an Australian cabaret troupe. Phyllis starred in many stage musicals including No No Nannette and Lady Be Good. She made her film debut in the 1925 Australian film Painted Daughters. At the time her stage name was Phyllis DuBarry. In 1930 she toured America in a production of Rio Rita. Producer Samuel Goldwyn saw her on stage and offered her a part in the drama Cynara starring Kay Francis. Unfortunately the movie flopped and her performance got mixed reviews. She married vaudeville performer Albert Nordlund (also known as Al Nord) in 1932. The following year she landed the lead role in the comedy What - No Beer? opposite Buster Keaton. She had supporting roles in the films Blind Adventure and Forbidden Heaven.
Phyllis and Albert had a rocky marriage and they separated several times. She divorced him in 1936 and said "he told me he didn't think my career meant anything". Phyllis continued to make movies but by 1939 her career had stalled. She appeared in The Three Stooges short Three Little Sew and Sews and had a bit part in the drama Waterloo Bridge. On August 20, 1939 she married decorator Gilbert M. Caldwell. The couple moved to a small house in West Hollywood. Her last film role was playing a waitress in the 1947 drama Love From A Stranger. Phyllis quit acting and tried to settle into life as a housewife. Unfortunately she became increasingly addicted to prescription drugs. On July 1, 1954 she died after accidentally overdosing of phenobarbital. Phyllis was only forty-five years old. She was buried at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, California.- Director
- Writer
- Editor
Dziga Vertov was born on 2 January 1896 in Bialystok, Grodno Governorate, Russian Empire [now Podlaskie, Poland]. He was a director and writer, known for Man with a Movie Camera (1929), Three Songs About Lenin (1934) and The Sixth Part of the World (1926). He was married to Elizaveta Svilova. He died on 12 February 1954 in Moscow, RSFSR, USSR [now Russia].- Actor
- Soundtrack
Maurice Cass was born on October 12, 1884, in Vilnius, Lithuania (then Vilno, Russian Empire). He emigrated to the USA, and in his pursuit of an acting career, he began as announcer and comedian in New York. Cass had a pleasant face, a small body and a big voice.
With his nearsightedness and his inevitable pince-nez adding weight to his intelligent face, Cass was destined to play professors, doctors, writers, and managers with his special brand of genial, slightly absent-minded officiousness. He started playing bit parts, often uncredited, and made a career as a character actor in more than 120 film and television productions. His best known work was Professor Newton, a supporting role in a series of space adventure movies made for TV and shown over the period from 1954 to 1956. Cass's snow-white haired Professor Newton could always be counted on to provide the scientific explanation for all the fantastic events that unfolded before the viewer. Professor Newton had his own observatory (which was filmed at the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles) and although elderly, he would often accompany the astronauts on their adventurous space flights.
Maurice Cass's character, Professor Newton, was replaced by Professor Mayberry upon Cass's death of a heart attack, at the age of 69, on June 8, 1954, in Hollywood, California.- Maurice Tillet, better known by his Professional wrestling name, "The French Angel". Maurice was born in St. Petersburg, Russia on October 23, 1903 of French parents. His father was an engineer involved in the construction of the Trans-Siberian railroad and his mother was a teacher of languages. By age 8 Maurice had lost his father. Sometime afterwards Maurice's mother moved him to Moscow Russia, where she taught at a St. Philip Neri Catholic School where Maurice attended classes.
With the Russian Revolution underway in 1917, his mother decided to move to Rheims, France. She found employment teaching languages at a local girl's college. Probably due to his mother's influence, Maurice learned to speak many languages. Maurice was a devout Catholic and attended church every Sunday. Once in 1947 he was even given an audience with the Pope.
By age 17, Maurice's head, chest, hands, and feet started to expand. By age 19, he was diagnosed with acromegaly. Acromegaly is a disease caused by a tumor on the pituitary gland that then causes bones to thicken to abnormal proportions. It took an angelic young man and turned him into what the public perceived as a monster.
Maurice received his secondary education at St. Stanislaus, a Catholic school in Paris. Once complete he went onto his post-secondary education at Toulouse University of Law.
He was always the athlete, enjoying rugby in particular. Once in 1926 he was named to an all-France rugby team. After a game in London, he received the distinction of shaking the hand of King George V., a distinction he would often mention.
Maurice completed his law degree however chose not to practice.
In the French Navy, Maurice worked as an engineer aboard many battleships eventually achieved the rank of Chief Petty Officer serving a total of 5 years. He eventually got bored with Navy life and rejoined the civilian population.
It was in this time-frame he tried his hand at a number of occupations, and acted in the French cinema. When in the course of WWII he heard the French Navy sunk his ship to avoid capture by the Nazi's, he wept.
Maurice was discovered in Paris, France in 1936 by Lithuanian light-heavyweight champion amateur wrestler Karl Pojello. Karl knew Maurice's interesting look could make him a professional wrestling sensation. At that time Maurice was working for a local Paris studio as an actor and as a doorman. 1939 saw Maurice wrestle in England as, "The Angel", a nickname given to him by his mother. Other names given to him were not as kindly including "Ugliest Man in the World". The bear hug became his signature move.
By late 1939, Maurice had a proven track record and was ready to invade professional wrestling in the United States. Maurice made his American debut on January 24, 1940 at Boston Garden against Luigi Bacigaiupi. Maurice walked down the aisle, entered the ring, leaned over the ropes, and roared at the crowd.
At his American debut were Harvard scientists anticipating the sight of Maurice. They asked him if he would submit to be measured for science and Maurice agreed. They were curious about Maurice as acromegalics often did not live past their 30th year. Acromegalics would often get weak, where-as Maurice was still very strong, and healthy at his current 37 years of age. Maurice was 5 foot 8.5 inches in height, 276 pounds, 47 inch chest. Maurice had a head almost twice that of normal for a man of his size, and hands that could shuffle three decks of cards. He was declared to be the closest living specimen to that of Neanderthal man known to exist.
The crowds flocked to see this monster of a man who was a throwback to prehistoric times. Maurice proved incredibly strong and staged events where he would pull a bus or street car. He wrestled and won against all the greatest wrestlers of his day. His persona was fierce, and although he was sold as a heel, he was kind, gentle, educated, and well-mannered.
On May 13, 1940 Maurice defeated Steve Casey by disqualification for the American Wrestling Association World Title in Boston, and beat him clean again two weeks later. Maurice reinvigorated professional wrestling as crowds dramatically increased to witness his body and his ability. He remained unbeaten for nineteen months but on May 13, 1942, Maurice lost the AWA title back to Steve Casey.
Although no longer billed as unbeatable, "The Angel" remained a very popular draw. Maurice held the AWA World Title (Boston) from May 13, 1940 to May 13, 1942 and the Montreal World Title March 30, 1942 to June 25, 1942. He was also the AWA champion from August 1, 1944 until August 15, 1944.
Maurice reported to the U.S. Army in 1942 to serve in the war effort but was told that he would be a curiosity and distraction and was denied service. In February of 1947, Maurice took his oath of citizenship to the United States.
Wrestling promoter Jack Pfefer recognized the genius in the wrestling nickname "Angel" and started importing other "Angels" with physical abnormalities. This influx forced Maurice to change his nickname "Angel to "The French Angel." With the "theft" of his very personal nickname it likely explains why Maurice's first face-to-face meeting with Pfefer ended with him slapping Jack across the face.
Maurice's appearance drew significant attention when he was in public. This is likely why he chose to live a very private life and was particular about his friends.
Karl, his wife Olga, and Maurice went in together on a mansion at 726 W. Garfield Blvd in Chicago. The three of them were living at that location together in 1954. In 1954, Karl had lung cancer and Maurice had recently recovered from bought of pneumonia. Maurice was also suffering from an enlarged heart caused by his acromegaly.
Karl died on September 4, 1954. When informed of Karl's passing, Maurice became ill and was taken to county hospital where he passed away thirteen hours after his friend. They were buried side by side in the Pojello family plot in the Lithuanian National Cemetery in Justice, Illinois.
Maurice is widely believed to have been the inspiration for the cartoon character "Shrek", although DreamWorks has never confirmed precisely from where Shrek's inspiration arose. The film was originally written and animated to fit actor Chris Farley. When Farley died, a whole new film was written. In a rush to create a new film, it is presumed Dreamworks found in Maurice the perfect representation of an older, wiser, grumpier ogre, yet possessing a noble character of a hero. The physical characteristics, as well personality traits of Maurice, and his wrestling persona "The French Angel", appear to be evident throughout the film.
Maurice was found in the 1935 French Film Princesse Tam Tam, starring Josephine Baker. - Alan Turing was born on 23 June 1912 in Maida Vale, London, England, UK. He was a writer, known for Turochamp (1948). He died on 7 June 1954 in Wilmslow, Cheshire, England, UK.
- Actor
- Director
- Writer
The son of a German father and a Jewish mother, Schünzel was born in St. Pauli -- the best known, but also the poorest part of Hamburg. His father started off as an actor but economic circumstances forced him to turn towards commerce. For a while, the son followed in his footsteps. He undertook business studies and then began his professional career in the publishing business. After first acting on stage in 1912 he became enamoured with the profession, honing his thespian skills with theatrical companies in Switzerland and Berlin for another three years. 1916 marked Schünzel's first appearance on screen. Soon after, he diversified into directing.
Alternating directing with being in front of the camera, Schünzel proved a versatile performer -- equally at home in light comedy or in dramatic roles, often as irredeemable villains or as suave, powerful men of a dubious or corruptible nature. As a director he made his mark with epic historical dramas like Katharina die Große (1920) which were popular enough to allow him to set up his own production company. He was greatly influenced by established film makers Richard Oswald (a mentor and frequent collaborator from 1916) and Ernst Lubitsch (for whom he had worked as an actor in Passion (1919)). Schünzel's satirical, mythologically-themed musical farce Amphitryon (1935) , in particular, had all the hallmarks of the ironic, feather-light and slightly risqué 'Lubitsch touch'. It also boasted above-average production values. "Amphitryon" was Ufa's number one box office hit in its year.
Schünzels other notable directorial efforts included the original drag comedy Victor and Victoria (1933) -- a spoof of British music hall impersonators -- and the social satire Die englische Heirat (1934). His work was so popular in Germany that the Nazi regime bestowed upon him the title of 'Ehrenarier' (honorary Aryan) and permitted him to continue to work despite his Jewish background. This was later to prove detrimental to his career, even though he did eventually leave Germany in 1937, increasingly frustrated with governmental interference in his projects. Like so many other exiles, he turned up in Hollywood. Signed by MGM, he directed three films among which stand out the glossy operetta Balalaika (1939), a star vehicle for Nelson Eddy (for once, without Jeanette MacDonald). His other films, particularly The Ice Follies of 1939 (1939) and the romanticised and inaccurate biopic of composer Franz Schubert, New Wine (1941) (an independent production released by United Artists), suffered from a severe case of miscasting. The former was possibly the biggest flop of Joan Crawford's long career in the film business.
As a result of these setbacks, Schünzel returned to acting. He was predictably typecast as academics or Nazis, his most memorable performance being the sinister scientist Dr. Anderson in Alfred Hitchcock's excellent thriller Notorious (1946). Sometime after 1949, he returned to Germany but found work opportunities scarce. Schünzel died in November 1954 of a heart ailment following a visit to the cinema.- Henry Hall was born on 5 November 1876 in Washington Township, Buchanan County, Missouri, USA. He was an actor, known for Hot Curves (1930), The Ape Man (1943) and Feet First (1930). He was married to Emma S.. He died on 11 December 1954 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Eager young James (aka Jimmy) Cardwell had an auspicious beginning and showed great promise in 1940s films. Dark-haired and thick-browed with an earnest, boyish look and set-jawed handsomeness that could remind someone of a John Garfield type, he couldn't have started off much better than by playing a young, heroic war casualty as one of The Fighting Sullivans (1944) (aka "The Fighting Sullivans"). By the end of the decade, however, James' film career did not advance and he ended things negligibly on TV. Despondency overwhelmed him and on January 31, 1954, he became another tragic Hollywood statistic, The victim of suicide at age 32, he has become completely forgotten save for film trivia enthusiasts.
The son of Raymond and Bessie (McCarroll) Cardwell, he was christened Albert Paine Cardwell after his grandfather, a Philadelphia publishing editor. Born in Camden, New Jersey, on November 21, 1921 (several sources give 1920) and raised there, young Cardwell attended Alfred Cramer Junior High School before transferring to Woodrow Wilson High School. While there he found himself drawn to acting and, after appearing in a sophomore play, served as president of the school's drama club. He also showed athletic prowess on the football field, as well as in track and field.
Following his graduation in 1940, he toiled about in a few odd jobs (clerk, laborer, etc.) but continued to prod his interest in acting by joining the Camden Drama Guild. Committed by this time, he later joined the Hedgerow Theater Group in Pennsylvania. While there he may ends meet by working in the shipping department for RCA Victor, meeting and marrying Esther Borton in June of 1942.
In the summer of 1943, while in New York looking for representation/work, James was seen by agents scouting out fresh faces for an upcoming WWII picture about five patriotic soldier-brothers. He won one of the brothers' roles. His wife, however, had no shared interest in his fledgling career or move to Los Angeles, and the marriage quickly ended. Signed up for seven years with Twentieth Century-Fox, he was renamed James Cardwell for the movies and the young hopeful made a heart-tugging debut in the war drama The Fighting Sullivans (1944), a somewhat fictionalized and sentimental, but nevertheless inspiring true-life story of five brothers from Iowa (Cardwell played George Sullivan) who served together (by request) and died on the same torpedoed ship during WWII.
After this film, James appeared in second leads as various reporters, rookies and private eye types in Charlie Chan mysteries and other various "B" level dramas, working throughout the post-war era of the 1940s. Despite his capabilities, he did not move to the top lead status and many of the films he did appear in were dismissed by the critics. For every engaging appearance in a strong quality film such as A Walk in the Sun (1945) or He Walked by Night (1948), one could count twice as many forgettable ones in lesser pictures (The Devil on Wheels (1947), Robin Hood of Texas (1947), King of the Gamblers (1948), Down Dakota Way (1949)). His single male lead in a movie may have dimmed any chances of further growth after co-starring with Lois Hall in the absurd Monogram adventure Daughter of the Jungle (1949), a distaff Tarzan movie complete with swinging vine scenes and female animal calls.
Unable to grasp the necessary momentum to advance, he fell further down the credits list while working on primarily "Poverty Row" studio movie projects. In the light comedy And Baby Makes Three (1949) and the Bogart war drama Tokyo Joe (1949), James received no billing at all, and he was completely overlooked in his last billed film appearance, a supporting role in the assembly-line Rex Allen western, The Arizona Cowboy (1950). Forced to look at TV as a possible medium, few opportunities came his way with the exception of a couple of guest parts on a Rod Cameron crime series. An uncredited role in the horror film Them! (1954) occurred shortly before his death.
In anticipation of his fading career, James started attending UCLA at night and taking up pre-med courses. At one point he toured Australia with Joe E. Brown in the top comedian's vaudeville act and joined a circus comedy acrobatic act called the Coleano Troupe that toured throughout the U.S. and Europe. Returning to the States in 1953, depression set in when he couldn't find TV work. On January 31, 1954, at age 32, with no prospects in sight and debts mounting, James shot himself in the head in an automobile he borrowed from a friend in a parking lot near his two-room West Los Angeles bungalow. He was survived by his parents and buried in his native Camden.- Sôjin Kamiyama was born on 30 January 1884 in Sendai, Miyagi, Japan. He was an actor, known for Seven Samurai (1954), The Crimson City (1928) and The Sea Beast (1926). He was married to Ura Mita. He died on 28 July 1954 in Tokyo, Japan.
- Joan Dowling had a passion for acting and as an aspiring young actress she would take roles in plays, pantomimes and other works simply to be on the stage. Her first recognised role was at the tender age of 14 and she signed her first film contract at 17. She had natural talent and did not have any coaching, voice or other lessons before being 'discovered'. She was well known for her roles in Ealing Studios productions and met her husband, Harry Fowler, on the set of the 1947 Ealing comedy Hue and Cry (1947). Sadly, Joan's life did not have a happy ending and she committed suicide in 1954 - a mere 26 years old.
- Mabel Paige was born on 19 December 1880 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for Someone to Remember (1943), Johnny O'Clock (1947) and Johnny Belinda (1948). She was married to C.W. Ritchie. She died on 9 February 1954 in Van Nuys, California, USA.
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- Soundtrack
Ernest Whitman was born on 21 February 1893 in Fort Smith, Arkansas, USA. He was an actor, known for The Green Pastures (1936), Road to Zanzibar (1941) and Maryland (1940). He died on 5 August 1954 in Hollywood, California, USA.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Frank Austin was born on 9 October 1877 in Mound City, Missouri, USA. He was an actor, known for The Monster (1925), Court-Martial (1928) and Snowed In (1926). He was married to Kathryn Anne (Kelly) Gutshall. He died on 13 May 1954 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Leona Roberts was born on 26 July 1879 in Monroe Center, Ohio, USA. She was an actress, known for Gone with the Wind (1939), Bringing Up Baby (1938) and The Blue Bird (1940). She was married to Walter Beck and Charles James Hutchinson. She died on 29 January 1954 in Santa Monica, California, USA.
- Blackjack Ward was born on 3 May 1891 in Franklin, Louisiana, USA. He was an actor, known for Texas Stampede (1939), Rainbow Riders (1934) and Lighting Bill (1934). He was married to Madeline J.. He died on 29 April 1954 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
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- Director
Theodor Loos was born on 18 May 1883 in Zwingenberg, Hesse, Germany. He was an actor and director, known for M (1931), Metropolis (1927) and Die Nibelungen: Siegfried (1924). He died on 27 June 1954 in Stuttgart, Germany.- Writer
- Actor
British novelist James Hilton was born in Leigh, Lancashire, England, in 1900. His father was a schoolmaster. Hilton graduated from Cambridge University in 1921, having already written his first novel, "Catherine Herself" (written in 1918, it wasn't published until 1920). After graduation he wrote a twice-weekly column for "The Dublin Irish Independent", which he continued to do for several years. In 1931 he wrote the novel "And Now Good-Bye", which was quite successful and brought him, as he once said, "a good return". In 1933 he was approached by the editor of "The British Weekly" magazine and asked to write a short-story for the magazine's Christmas issue, for which he had a deadline of just two weeks. As the deadline approached he still hadn't a clue as to what kind of story to write, so one night he decided to take a bicycle ride to clear his head. When he came back he had the inspiration to write what eventually became the international best-seller "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" (a story based on the career of his father). He finished the story in four days. His editor at the magazine was so impressed with it that he recommended the magazine's parent company, a major publishing house, publish the story in the American market, which was much more profitable than the British market. The company arranged for the story to be published in the American magazine "The Atlantic Monthly" in its April 1934 issue. It garnered such attention from both readers and reviewers--noted critic Alexander Woollcott effusively praised it in his "New Yorker" column and on his radio show--that just two months later it was published in book form and became a huge international hit, and was later made into a movie now regarded as one of the classics of modern cinema, Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939).
Hilton turned out a string of highly regarded novels that were turned into highly regarded films--Knight Without Armor (1937), Lost Horizon (1937), Random Harvest (1942)--and eventually moved to the US. He died in Long Beach, CA, in 1954 of liver cancer.- John L. Balderston was an American playwright, screenwriter, and journalist from Philadelphia. He specialized in creating horror and fantasy stories. He is primarily remembered for the time travel-themed play "Berkeley Squarte" (1926), the 1927 American adaptation of the play "Dracula", the screenplays for the horror films "The Mummy" (1932), "Bride of Frankenstein" (1935), and "Dracula's Daughter" (1936), the screenplay for the adventure film "The Prisoner of Zenda" (1937), and the screenplay for the psychological thriller "Gaslight" (1944).
Balderston received his college education at Columbia University, a private research university located in New York City. In 1912, he was hired as a journalist by the daily newspaper "The Philadelphia Record" (1877-1947). He served as the newspaper's New York City correspondent.
During World War I, Balderston served as a war correspondent for the for the McClure Newspaper Syndicate. He also served as a director of information in England and Ireland for the United States Committee on Public Information. In 1916, Balderston co-wrote "The Brooke Kerith", a biography of Jesus. In 1919, he wrote his debut play, "The Genius of the Marne".
From 1920 to 1923, Balderston served as a magazine editor for the London-based publication "The Outlook" (1898-1928). The magazine was founded by the British Conservative politician George Wyndham (1863-1913), and was closely aligned with the Conservative Party for most of its existence.
From 1923 to 1931, Balderston was the head of the London bureau for the daily newspaper "New York World" (1860-1931). The newspaper was owned at the time by the Pulitzer family, heirs of its former publisher Joseph Pulitzer (1847-1911). In 1931, the Pulitzer family sold the newspaper to their competitor Roy W. Howard (1883-1964). The new owner decided to shut down the newspaper, and to fire its 3,000 employees. Balderston decided at the time to retire as a journalist, in order to work as a full-time screenwriter.
Balderston had written several plays in the early 1920s, to little success. His first major hit was "Berkeley Squarte" (1926). Its main plot concerned a 20th-century man who time travels back to late 18th-century London and interacts with his own ancestors. The plot was loosely based on the unfinished novel "The Sense of the Past" (1917) by Henry James, though most of the characters were originally created by Balderston. The play enjoyed 179 performances at London's West End theaters, and 229 performances in Broadway.
In 1927, Balderston was retained by stage producer Horace Liveright (1884-1933) to write a revised version of the play "Dracula" (1924) by Hamilton Deane. Balderston reduced the total cast from eleven characters to eight, combined the main female characters Lucy Westenra and Mina Murray into a single character, and revised the origin of Dracula himself. He clearly identified the fictional vampire with the historical ruler Vlad the Impaler, something only hinted at the original novel by Bram Stoker. Balderston's version enjoyed 261 performances at Broadway, and turned lead actor Bela Lugosi into a rising star.
At a later point, actor-producer Hamilton Deane hired Balderston to write a revised version of the play "Frankenstein" (1927) by Peggy Webling. Balderston's version never made it to Broadway, but Balderston sold the film rights to the film studio Universal Pictures. Balderston's plays served as the basis for the hit horror films "Dracula" (1931) and "Frankenstein" (1931). Universal decided to directly hire Balderston as a screenwriter for the horror film "The Mummy" (1932). Balderston in turn decided to move the film's setting to Egypt, figured that the main villain should be motivated by immortal love (rather than revenge), and invented the concept of the magical Scroll of Thoth (loosely based on the historical "Book of the Dead").
Throughout the 1930s, Balderston worked as a screenwriter for various film studios. He was one of the team of writers who collaborated on the film adaptation of "Gone with the Wind" (1939). He wrote screenplays for several films in the early 1940s, but his only major success in this period was "Gaslight" (1944). With his screenwriter career at its end, he tried his hand at writing his own novels. He wrote the novel "A Goddess to a God" (1948), which depicted the relationship of Julius Caesar and Cleopatra VII.
In 1952, Balderston was appointed as a lecturer in drama at the University of Southern California. In 1953, he settled a law suit with Universal Pictures over the "Frankenstein" sequels. Based on his original contract, Balderston should have received part of the revenue of any sequel to the original "Frankenstein". Universal had reneged on the deal, and Balderston had sued them.
In March 1954, Balderston suffered a heart attack at his residence in Beverly Hills. He died shortly after, at the age of 64. His enduring fame since then is based mostly on his screenplays to popular films. Several of his works received new adaptations following his death. He is considered one of the most successful screenwriters of the interwar period. - Director
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Gilbert Pratt was born on 16 February 1892 in Providence, Rhode Island, USA. He was a director and writer, known for Partners in Crime (1928), Saps at Sea (1940) and The Big Killing (1928). He died on 10 December 1954 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Kathleen Key was born Kitty Lanahan. Her great-great grandfather was Francis Scott Key who composed The Star Spangled Banner. When she was a baby her family moved to ranch in Southern California. In 1920 she made her acting debut opposite Snowy Baker in the Australian film The Jackeroo of Coolabong. Then producer Thomas Ince offered her a contract. Kathleen was given supporting roles in The Rookie's Return and The Beautiful And The Damned. The lovely brunette was chosen as one of the Wampas Baby Stars of 1923. She was signed by MGM and cast as Tirzah in the drama Ben Hur. Her performance got rave reviews and she seemed destined for stardom. Kathleen appeared in several westerns including The Flaming Frontier, Under Western Skies, and The Desert's Toll. Off screen she became known for having a fiery temper.
In an interview she said "I think I'm a little bit crazy. Not much, you understand, but just a little nutty in the head." She was briefly engaged to Ottavio Prochet, an Italian doctor. Then she began a passionate affair with married actor Buster Keaton. When he ended their romance in 1931 she beat him up and ransacked his dressing room. Kathleen was arrested and the bad publicity destroyed her career. Her final role was a bit part in the 1936 film One Rainy Afternoon. By this time she was suffering from alcoholism and nearly bankrupt. She was arrested in November of 1938 for public intoxication. Three years later she was arrested for drunk driving. Eventually was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver and moved into the Motion Picture Country House. On December 22, 1954 she died from a hepatic coma at the age of fifty-one. Kathleen was buried at Valhalla Memorial Park in North Hollywood, California. - Steve Clark was born on 26 February 1891 in Davis County, Indiana, USA. He was an actor, known for Durango Valley Raiders (1938), Haunted Ranch (1943) and Saddle Mountain Roundup (1941). He was married to Emily Margaret Clark and Ruth. He died on 29 June 1954 in Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California, USA.
- She was born Ruth Wilcox, the sister of director Fred McLeod Wilcox, who directed "Lassie, Come Home" (1943) and "Forbidden Planet" (1956), and former showgirl Pansy Wilcox, who was married to Loew's Inc. President Nicholas M. Schenck, one of the pioneers of the film industry. Ruth and her siblings were the children of James Wilcox, a Kentucky optometrist and drugstore owner, who was married six times, twice to one woman. His six children were from his first wife.
Ruth married former playwright and movie producer-director-writer Edgar Selwyn, for whom she appeared in his "Men Must Fight" (1933). A contract player at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, she made her first two movie appearances in Marion Davies pictures, "Five and Ten" (1931), her uncredited debut, and "Polly of the Circus" (1932), for which she received her first credit. Her most memorable role was as Pansy Peets in "Speak Easily" (1933), in which she supported Buster Keaton and Jimmy Durante and received third-billing.
She made only two more movies after appearing in "Men Must Fight," retiring after Raoul Walsh's "Baby Face Harrington" (1935), which was produced by her husband.
Ruth and Edgar Selwyn eventually divorced. They had one son, Rusty, who was born during Ruth's previous marriage to a man surnamed Snyder, and who was adopted by Edgar during their marriage. - Camera and Electrical Department
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- Cinematographer
Robert Capa was born on 22 October 1913 in Budapest, Austria-Hungary [now Hungary]. He was a cinematographer, known for Temptation (1946), Paris Cavalcade of Fashions (1948) and The 400 Million (1939). He died on 25 May 1954 in Thai Binh, Vietnam.- Actor
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Bert Lytell was born on 24 February 1885 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Alias the Lone Wolf (1927), Obey the Law (1926) and A Message from Mars (1921). He was married to Grace Menken, Claire Windsor and Evelyn Vaughn. He died on 28 September 1954 in New York City, New York, USA.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Adia Kuznetzoff was born on 6 April 1889 in Rostov-on-Don, Russian Empire [now Russia]. He was an actor, known for Pacific Liner (1939), The Princess and the Pirate (1944) and Arabian Nights (1942). He died on 10 August 1954 in Port Washington, Long Island, New York, USA.- Actor
- Writer
Robert Walker was born on 18 June 1888 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for Pueblo Terror (1931), The Fair Pretender (1918) and The Gates of Eden (1916). He was married to Ruth R., Cora J. and Vera. He died on 4 March 1954 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Actor
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Arthur Towle was in show business from when he left school in1900 until his dying day. He started as an Irish character comedian in British music halls. Touring Ireland with this act in 1913, he met Kitty McShane and married her later that year (she was 16, he 28). They gradually evolved the act of "Old Mother Riley and her Daughter" (Arthur, in drag, playing the former), which maintained popularity for nearly 40 years, and Arthur adopted the stage name Lucan to sound more Irish. The fame of Lucan and McShane did not go much beyond provincial music halls until the first Old Mother Riley film was released. Cheaply made and highly profitable, 17 films (1937-1952) starred Lucan in the richly comic role of Mrs. Riley, making him a Top Ten star in England in 1942. The gangly Mother Riley was usually a charwoman or laundress, but some entries found her running a shop or pub with the aid of her daughter, Kitty. Lucan's comedy came from Mother Riley's absurd predicaments, eccentric ways, facial and bodily contortions, and malapropism-filled tirades against all who displeased her, seasoned with "knockabout" slapstick. By 1951, Lucan and McShane had separated, and Kitty did not appear in Arthur's last film, though he continued to support her. He was struggling with a large tax debt in 1954 when he unexpectedly collapsed and died in a Yorkshire theatre before his stage show.- Kitty McHugh was born on 3 October 1902 in Harmony, Pennsylvania, USA. She was an actress, known for The Grapes of Wrath (1940), Blonde Trouble (1937) and Wife Insurance (1937). She was married to Ned Glass. She died on 3 September 1954 in North Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA.
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Debonair Viennese thespian Siegfried Breuer specialized in portraying elegant, charming rogues and profligates. The son of a Wagnerian singer, he was trained from 1924 as an actor at Vienna's Academy for Music and the Performing Arts, studying alongside Paula Wessely and Käthe Gold. He performed on the stage in Berlin under the direction of Max Reinhardt in 'The Prince of Homburg', his first leading role. In 1935, he became a member of the ensemble cast of the Deutsches Theater.
From the late 1930's, Breuer was increasingly in demand for movie roles and began to develop his particular style of suave, but shifty, bon vivant. He gave his best performance in Gustav Ucicky's classic Der Postmeister (1940), as Minskij, and in Helmut Käutner's Romanze in Moll (1943). He was occasionally seen in operatic parts which required that special Viennese charm, as in Immortal Waltz (1939) and the remake of Die Fledermaus (1946). Carol Reed cast him (for added continental flavour) alongside several other noted Austrian players in The Third Man (1949). His part, as Popescu, was quite small but integral to the progression of the story. A chain smoker, Breuer died young -- aged just 47 -- from complications due to pneumonia. In that short life, he was married six times. His wives included the Austrian star actress Maria Andergast.- Al Hill was born on 14 July 1892 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for The Last Mile (1932), A Man's World (1942) and Call of the Prairie (1936). He was married to Rene Boucicault. He died on 14 July 1954 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Lillie Mae Capote was born on 29 January 1905 in Monroeville, Alabama, USA. She was married to Joseph Capote and Augustus Archilus Persons Jr.. She died on 4 January 1954 in New York City, New York, USA.
- Actor
- Soundtrack
Murray Kinnell was born on 24 July 1889 in London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for The Public Enemy (1931), The Three Musketeers (1935) and Charlie Chan in Paris (1935). He was married to Henrietta Goodwin. He died on 11 August 1954 in Santa Barbara, California, USA.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Tommy Coats was born on 26 November 1900 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He was an actor, known for The Phantom Rider (1946), Fugitive from Sonora (1943) and San Antone Ambush (1949). He was married to Thelma L. Frith. He died on 6 June 1954 in Jackson, Oregon, USA.- Gordon De Main was born on 28 September 1886 in Washington, Iowa, USA. He was an actor, known for The Western Code (1932), The Mad Monster (1942) and The Toll of Mammon (1914). He was married to Octavia Handworth. He died on 5 March 1954 in Los Angeles County, California, USA.
- English silent screen siren Lillian Rich was 19 when she arrived in New York, courtesy of her Canadian husband Lionel Edward Nicholson. The couple had met while "Leo" was on active duty as a fighter pilot with the Royal Naval Air Service during World War I. He came from a well-to-do middle-class family and was both able and keen to bankroll Lillian's entry into Hollywood with a stake of $1000. Prior to entering films, the dimple-chinned, auburn-haired Londoner had briefly made a name in musical comedy on the stage. In 1919, she started out on the screen playing sultry leads in westerns opposite stalwart sagebrush heroes like Jack Hoxie and Harry Carey. By the end of 1922, Lillian had already amassed 19 feature film credits on her resume. Following a divorce from Leo, she took a year's sabbatical from the screen before resuming her career with renewed vigor in 1924. The next year she was cast by the ever-extravagant Cecil B. DeMille in her defining role, as an aristocratic social-climbing, impecunious vamp in Paramount's The Golden Bed (1925). Attired in sables and bedecked with diamond bracelets, Lillian added to the general opulence (and excess) of the proceedings. She then gave what is considered her other notable performance, opposite H.B. Warner in the western railroad drama Whispering Smith (1926). There was also a minor Christie comedy, Seven Days (1925), a crime thriller with Boris Karloff and a host of low-budget B-pictures for independent producers and Poverty Row outfits like Chesterfield and Tiffany.
Between 1928 and 1930, Lillian unsuccessfully attempted a comeback in sound pictures, filming in England at Beaconsfield and at Nettlefold Studios (Walton-on-Thames, Surrey). Alas, these low-budget "quota quickies" were made for the mass market and did nothing to reboot her career. Back in the States she found herself relegated to the bottom of the bill in "Our Gang" shorts. She saw out the rest of the 1930's in uncredited, no-name bits as "nurse", "nun", "telephone operator", and so on, before fading into relative obscurity. - Actor
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Harald Paulsen was born on 26 August 1895 in Elmshorn, Germany. He was an actor and director, known for Genuine: The Tragedy of a Vampire (1920), Ave Maria (1936) and Die Stimme aus dem Äther (1939). He was married to Hilla Höfer. He died on 4 August 1954 in Hamburg, West Germany.- Tom McGuire was born on 1 September 1873 in Lancashire, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928), City Girl (1930) and The Reckless Age (1924). He died on 6 May 1954 in Hollywood, California, USA.
- Rita Page was born on 5 August 1905 in London, England, UK. She was an actress, known for Bulldog Drummond Comes Back (1937), Vigil in the Night (1940) and Let's Love and Laugh (1931). She was married to Melville Cooper. She died on 19 December 1954 in London, England, UK.
- Simone Mareuil was born on 25 August 1903 in Périgueux, Dordogne, France. She was an actress, known for Polish Jew (1931), Un chien andalou (1929) and Genêt d'Espagne (1927). She was married to Philippe Hersent. She died on 24 October 1954 in Périgueux, Dordogne, France.