Hi Joe,
Thanks so much for featuring Frankie Darro in your spotlight. Recently, I had an exchange with Lynn about this irrepressible talent here. When researching some material about Aline MacMahon, Mr. Darro came up several times as well. I found that if you visit YouTube & enter his name, you can see several rarely seen silent and sound sequences with Frankie Darro put together by someone called Darrofan, found here. Included is what may be his last appearance on film, in a funny and sad scene from a movie called Fugitive Lovers(1975).
Thanks again, and the love for his daughter just shines out of that happy photo of Darro with his baby girl, Darlene.
In The Spotlight Redux
-
moira finnie
- Administrator
- Posts: 8024
- Joined: April 9th, 2007, 6:34 pm
- Location: Earth
- Contact:
In the Spotlight: JUDITH ANDERSON
The grand dame was born Frances Margaret Anderson-Anderson on February 10, 1897 in Adelaide, South Australia.
She attended Norwood High School, and began acting on stage at age 17 in Australia. In the company were some American actors who influenced Francee to try her luck in America. Francee went to California but was unsuccessful, so she tried New York, with equal lack of success.
After a period of poverty and illness, she found work with a Stock Company at the 14th Street Theatre in 1918-19. Twelve months later, she had changed her name to Judith and had her first triumph in a play co-starring Louis Calhern.
Anderson beginning stage career
By the early 1930s she had established herself as one of the greatest theatre actresses of her era and she was a major star on Broadway throughout the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.
Anderson, an established stage star
In 1937, she joined the Old Vic Company in London and played Lady Macbeth opposite Laurence Olivier and in 1941, she played Lady Macbeth again in New York opposite Maurice Evans.
Although she made her film debut in the pre-code crime drama "Blood Money" in 1933, it was in Hitchcock's "Rebecca" in 1940 as the housekeeper Mrs. Danvers, who was required to mentally torment the young bride, the "second Mrs. de Winter" (Joan Fontaine), that brought her wide exposure to movie fans. She was considered one of the screen's most memorable and sexually ambiguous female villains and was nominated for an Academy Award in a supporting role.
Anderson in her Oscar nominated role as Mrs. Danvers in "Rebecca" with Joan Fontaine
Her striking, not conventionally attractive features were complemented with her powerful presence, mastery of timing and an effortless style.
In 1943, she played Olga in Chekhov's "Three Sisters", in a production which also featured Katharine Cornell, Ruth Gordon, Edmund Gwenn, Dennis King, Alexander Knox and Kirk Douglas in his Broadway debut. The production was so illustrious, it made it to the cover of Time.
Although her opportunities were limited to supporting character actress work she excelled in such films as "Lady Scarface", "Kings Row", Otto Preminger's "Laura" with Gene Tierney, René Clair's "And Then There Were None" Ben Hecht's "Specter of the Rose", Jean Renoir's "Diary of a Chambermaid", "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers", "Pursued" with Robert Mitchum, "The Red House", and "The Furies" in which Stanwyck throws a pair of scissors in her face.
Anderson as mobster Slade in "Lady Scarface" (1941)
Anderson in a dramatic scene from the 1940s.
Perhaps a member can tell us the name of the film it came from.
In Rene Clair's adaptation of Agatha Christie's "Ten Little Indians", which became And Then There Were None."
On tour, entertaining the troops in WWII.
Screen Captures from some of Judith Anderson's most memorable films:
From "Rebecca":
From "Laura":
From "The Red House":
From "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers":
From "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof":
Judith offstage
"The Furies"(1950) directed by Anthony Mann.
Anderson in a publicity shot as Big Momma in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof"
In 1947, she triumphed as "Medea" in a production by John Gielgud who also played Jason. She won the Tony Award for Best Actress for her performance.
She was made a British Dame in 1959.
In 1970 she realized a long held ambition to play the role of "Hamlet". She did this on a national tour of the United States and at New York's Carnegie Hall at the age of 73.
Anderson holds the unusual distinction of winning two separate Emmy Awards for playing the same role - Lady Macbeth - in two separate productions of "Macbeth".
Her stage and film work continued and by the 1950s she was also appearing in television productions. She played Herodias in "Salome", Memnet in Cecil B. de Mille's "The Ten Commandments", gave a memorable performance as Big Momma in the film of Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", Evil Stepmother in "Cinderfella' with Jerry Lewis, and Buffalo Cow Head in "A Man Called Horse".
Anderson also recorded many spoken word record albums for Caedmon Audio in the 1950s through the 1970s. She received a Grammy nomination for her work on the "Wuthering Heights" recording.
Anderson (front & center) as Minx Lockridge on the soap "Santa Barbara"
In her later years she played two more prominent roles in productions that took her as far away from her Shakespearean origins as possible. In 1984 she appeared in "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" as the Vulcan High Priestess (at the age of 87), and the same year commenced a three-year stint as matriarch Minx Lockridge on the NBC serial "Santa Barbara". She had professed to be a fan, but after signing the contract she bitterly complained about her lack of screen time.
Anderson as the Vulcan High Priestess in
"Star Trek III: The Search for Spock"
Anderson was married and divorced twice, first to Benjamin Harrison Lehmann (from 1937 to 1939) and second to Luther Greene (from 1946 to 1951). Neither marriage, both of which occurred after she turned 40, produced no children, but she did serve as godmother for friends' children. Despite her marriages, Anderson was subject to speculation about her sexuality throughout her career. In his biography "Otto Preminger: The Man Who Would Be King" (2007), Foster Hirsch states matter-of-factly that Anderson was gay.
Anderson loved the city of Santa Barbara, California and spent the remainder of her life there, dying of pneumonia in 1992, aged 94. Cremated, she was survived by several nieces and nephews, both in America and Australia.
Guess what? Miss Anderson does not have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Judith Anderson: There Is Nothing Like a Dame
The grand dame was born Frances Margaret Anderson-Anderson on February 10, 1897 in Adelaide, South Australia.
She attended Norwood High School, and began acting on stage at age 17 in Australia. In the company were some American actors who influenced Francee to try her luck in America. Francee went to California but was unsuccessful, so she tried New York, with equal lack of success.
After a period of poverty and illness, she found work with a Stock Company at the 14th Street Theatre in 1918-19. Twelve months later, she had changed her name to Judith and had her first triumph in a play co-starring Louis Calhern.
Anderson beginning stage career
By the early 1930s she had established herself as one of the greatest theatre actresses of her era and she was a major star on Broadway throughout the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.
Anderson, an established stage star
In 1937, she joined the Old Vic Company in London and played Lady Macbeth opposite Laurence Olivier and in 1941, she played Lady Macbeth again in New York opposite Maurice Evans.
Although she made her film debut in the pre-code crime drama "Blood Money" in 1933, it was in Hitchcock's "Rebecca" in 1940 as the housekeeper Mrs. Danvers, who was required to mentally torment the young bride, the "second Mrs. de Winter" (Joan Fontaine), that brought her wide exposure to movie fans. She was considered one of the screen's most memorable and sexually ambiguous female villains and was nominated for an Academy Award in a supporting role.
Anderson in her Oscar nominated role as Mrs. Danvers in "Rebecca" with Joan Fontaine
Her striking, not conventionally attractive features were complemented with her powerful presence, mastery of timing and an effortless style.
In 1943, she played Olga in Chekhov's "Three Sisters", in a production which also featured Katharine Cornell, Ruth Gordon, Edmund Gwenn, Dennis King, Alexander Knox and Kirk Douglas in his Broadway debut. The production was so illustrious, it made it to the cover of Time.
Although her opportunities were limited to supporting character actress work she excelled in such films as "Lady Scarface", "Kings Row", Otto Preminger's "Laura" with Gene Tierney, René Clair's "And Then There Were None" Ben Hecht's "Specter of the Rose", Jean Renoir's "Diary of a Chambermaid", "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers", "Pursued" with Robert Mitchum, "The Red House", and "The Furies" in which Stanwyck throws a pair of scissors in her face.
Anderson as mobster Slade in "Lady Scarface" (1941)
Anderson in a dramatic scene from the 1940s.
Perhaps a member can tell us the name of the film it came from.
In Rene Clair's adaptation of Agatha Christie's "Ten Little Indians", which became And Then There Were None."
On tour, entertaining the troops in WWII.
Screen Captures from some of Judith Anderson's most memorable films:
From "Rebecca":
From "Laura":
From "The Red House":
From "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers":
From "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof":
Judith offstage
"The Furies"(1950) directed by Anthony Mann.
Anderson in a publicity shot as Big Momma in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof"
In 1947, she triumphed as "Medea" in a production by John Gielgud who also played Jason. She won the Tony Award for Best Actress for her performance.
She was made a British Dame in 1959.
In 1970 she realized a long held ambition to play the role of "Hamlet". She did this on a national tour of the United States and at New York's Carnegie Hall at the age of 73.
Anderson holds the unusual distinction of winning two separate Emmy Awards for playing the same role - Lady Macbeth - in two separate productions of "Macbeth".
Her stage and film work continued and by the 1950s she was also appearing in television productions. She played Herodias in "Salome", Memnet in Cecil B. de Mille's "The Ten Commandments", gave a memorable performance as Big Momma in the film of Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", Evil Stepmother in "Cinderfella' with Jerry Lewis, and Buffalo Cow Head in "A Man Called Horse".
Anderson also recorded many spoken word record albums for Caedmon Audio in the 1950s through the 1970s. She received a Grammy nomination for her work on the "Wuthering Heights" recording.
Anderson (front & center) as Minx Lockridge on the soap "Santa Barbara"
In her later years she played two more prominent roles in productions that took her as far away from her Shakespearean origins as possible. In 1984 she appeared in "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" as the Vulcan High Priestess (at the age of 87), and the same year commenced a three-year stint as matriarch Minx Lockridge on the NBC serial "Santa Barbara". She had professed to be a fan, but after signing the contract she bitterly complained about her lack of screen time.
Anderson as the Vulcan High Priestess in
"Star Trek III: The Search for Spock"
Anderson was married and divorced twice, first to Benjamin Harrison Lehmann (from 1937 to 1939) and second to Luther Greene (from 1946 to 1951). Neither marriage, both of which occurred after she turned 40, produced no children, but she did serve as godmother for friends' children. Despite her marriages, Anderson was subject to speculation about her sexuality throughout her career. In his biography "Otto Preminger: The Man Who Would Be King" (2007), Foster Hirsch states matter-of-factly that Anderson was gay.
Anderson loved the city of Santa Barbara, California and spent the remainder of her life there, dying of pneumonia in 1992, aged 94. Cremated, she was survived by several nieces and nephews, both in America and Australia.
Guess what? Miss Anderson does not have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Judith Anderson: There Is Nothing Like a Dame
Last edited by mongoII on April 24th, 2008, 12:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.
In the Spotlight: WENDELL COREY
The dependable, somber actor was born Wendell Reid Corey March 20, 1914 in Dracut, Massachusetts, the son of Milton Rothwell Corey, a Congregationalist clergyman.
Corey was educated in Springfield and in 1934 made his amateur stage debut with the Springfield Repertory Players in "Street Scene".
He Worked in a department store as a washing machine salesman before starting a stage career, doing a number of productions in summer stock. While appearing with a Works Progress Administration theatre company in the late 1930s, he met his future wife, Alice Wiley.
His Broadway debut was in "Comes the Revelation" in 1942. After appearing in a number of supporting roles, he scored his first hit as a cynical newspaperman in Elmer Rice's comedy "Dream Girl" in 1945 winning a Theatre World Award. While appearing in the play, Corey was seen by producer Hal Wallis, who persuaded him to sign a contract with Paramount and pursue a motion picture career in Hollywood.
Corey (top) with John Hodiak, Lizabeth Scott & Burt Lancaster in "Desert Fury" (1947)
His movie debut was playing a gangster in "Desert Fury" in 1947 starring John Hodiak, Lizabeth Scott, and Mary Astor. Corey appeared in "Sorry, Wrong Number" in 1948 starring Barbara Stanwyck and Burt Lancaster, and a year later as Janet Leigh's fiancé in the Robert Mitchum romantic comedy "Holiday Affair".
With Janet Leigh in "Holiday Affair."
He starred opposite Stanwyck in "The File on Thelma Jordon", and opposite Joan Crawford in "Harriet Craig".
Corey with Stanwyck in "The File on Thelma Jordon" (1948)
With Joan Crawford in "Harriet Craig"
Corey with Natalie Wood & Margaret Sullavan in "No Sad Songs for Me" (1950)
Walter Huston, Barbara Stanwyck, & Corey in "The Furies" (1950)
His other movies include, "The Search" with Montgomery Clift, "Man-Eater of Kumaon", "The Accused" with Loretta Young, "Any Number Can Play", "No Sad Songs for Me", "The Furies", "The Wild Blue Yonder", "Carbine Williams", "Hell's Half Acre", Hitchcock's "Rear Window" starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly, "The Big Knife" with Jack Palance, Ida Lupino and Shelley Winters, "The Rainmaker" starring Burt Lancaster and Katharine Hepburn and "Loving You" starring Elvis Presley and Lizabeth Scott.
Corey in "The Man-Eater of Kumaon" (a tiger) 1948
Corey with Vera 'Hruba' Ralston (1951)
A macho Corey in "Jamaica Run" (1953)
Corey with James Stewart as "Carbine Williams" (1952)
Corey with Claire Trevor in "My Man and I" (1952)
Corey (right) at Paramount studios with Gloria Swanson and Bob Hope
Poster for Hell's Half Acre.
Corey in a publicity shot for Hitchcock's "Rear Window" (1954)
Corey with Mickey Rooney in "The Bold and he Brave" (1956)
Corey with his wife Alice Wiley (circa 1953)
Corey and Wiley had one son and three daughters, Jonathan, Jennifer, Bonnie Alice, and Robin.
He starred in the weekly television programs "Harbor Command" and "The Eleventh Hour", and made guest star appearances on a number of popular shows, including "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "The Untouchables", "Burke's Law", "Perry Mason", "The Wild Wild West" etc.
Corey served as president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences from 1961 to 1963 and was a member of the board of directors of the Screen Actors Guild.
A Republican campaigner in national politics since 1956, Corey was elected to the Santa Monica City Council in April 1965. The conservative politician ran for the California seat in the United States Congress in 1966, but lost the primary election.
He died November 8, 1968 at age fifty-four at the Motion Picture & Television Hospital in Woodland Hills, California, of cirrhosis of the liver as a result of alcoholism. He was still a councilman at the time of his death.
He is interred in Washington Cemetery, Washington, Massachusetts.
Wendell Corey has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his work in TV.
The dependable, somber actor was born Wendell Reid Corey March 20, 1914 in Dracut, Massachusetts, the son of Milton Rothwell Corey, a Congregationalist clergyman.
Corey was educated in Springfield and in 1934 made his amateur stage debut with the Springfield Repertory Players in "Street Scene".
He Worked in a department store as a washing machine salesman before starting a stage career, doing a number of productions in summer stock. While appearing with a Works Progress Administration theatre company in the late 1930s, he met his future wife, Alice Wiley.
His Broadway debut was in "Comes the Revelation" in 1942. After appearing in a number of supporting roles, he scored his first hit as a cynical newspaperman in Elmer Rice's comedy "Dream Girl" in 1945 winning a Theatre World Award. While appearing in the play, Corey was seen by producer Hal Wallis, who persuaded him to sign a contract with Paramount and pursue a motion picture career in Hollywood.
Corey (top) with John Hodiak, Lizabeth Scott & Burt Lancaster in "Desert Fury" (1947)
His movie debut was playing a gangster in "Desert Fury" in 1947 starring John Hodiak, Lizabeth Scott, and Mary Astor. Corey appeared in "Sorry, Wrong Number" in 1948 starring Barbara Stanwyck and Burt Lancaster, and a year later as Janet Leigh's fiancé in the Robert Mitchum romantic comedy "Holiday Affair".
With Janet Leigh in "Holiday Affair."
He starred opposite Stanwyck in "The File on Thelma Jordon", and opposite Joan Crawford in "Harriet Craig".
Corey with Stanwyck in "The File on Thelma Jordon" (1948)
With Joan Crawford in "Harriet Craig"
Corey with Natalie Wood & Margaret Sullavan in "No Sad Songs for Me" (1950)
Walter Huston, Barbara Stanwyck, & Corey in "The Furies" (1950)
His other movies include, "The Search" with Montgomery Clift, "Man-Eater of Kumaon", "The Accused" with Loretta Young, "Any Number Can Play", "No Sad Songs for Me", "The Furies", "The Wild Blue Yonder", "Carbine Williams", "Hell's Half Acre", Hitchcock's "Rear Window" starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly, "The Big Knife" with Jack Palance, Ida Lupino and Shelley Winters, "The Rainmaker" starring Burt Lancaster and Katharine Hepburn and "Loving You" starring Elvis Presley and Lizabeth Scott.
Corey in "The Man-Eater of Kumaon" (a tiger) 1948
Corey with Vera 'Hruba' Ralston (1951)
A macho Corey in "Jamaica Run" (1953)
Corey with James Stewart as "Carbine Williams" (1952)
Corey with Claire Trevor in "My Man and I" (1952)
Corey (right) at Paramount studios with Gloria Swanson and Bob Hope
Poster for Hell's Half Acre.
Corey in a publicity shot for Hitchcock's "Rear Window" (1954)
Corey with Mickey Rooney in "The Bold and he Brave" (1956)
Corey with his wife Alice Wiley (circa 1953)
Corey and Wiley had one son and three daughters, Jonathan, Jennifer, Bonnie Alice, and Robin.
He starred in the weekly television programs "Harbor Command" and "The Eleventh Hour", and made guest star appearances on a number of popular shows, including "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "The Untouchables", "Burke's Law", "Perry Mason", "The Wild Wild West" etc.
Corey served as president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences from 1961 to 1963 and was a member of the board of directors of the Screen Actors Guild.
A Republican campaigner in national politics since 1956, Corey was elected to the Santa Monica City Council in April 1965. The conservative politician ran for the California seat in the United States Congress in 1966, but lost the primary election.
He died November 8, 1968 at age fifty-four at the Motion Picture & Television Hospital in Woodland Hills, California, of cirrhosis of the liver as a result of alcoholism. He was still a councilman at the time of his death.
He is interred in Washington Cemetery, Washington, Massachusetts.
Wendell Corey has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his work in TV.
Joseph Goodheart
In the Spotlight: MILDRED DUNNOCK
The petite, talented character actress was born Mildred Dorothy Dunnock on January 25, 1901 in Baltimore, Maryland.
After graduating from Western High School in 1918, she enrolled at Goucher College, where she joined Agora, the college's dramatic society.
When a college counselor suggested she study for a master's degree in theater, her father was less than enthusiastic. Dunnock's relatives were cool to her desire for a career in the theater and did their best to discourage her, hoping she would get married and become a homemaker.
After graduating from Goucher, she taught at Friends School while performing in shows.
Dunnock left Baltimore and earned a master's degree in theater at Columbia, and made her Broadway debut in 1932, while teaching at Brearley, a private girls' school in New York City.
Turning to Broadway full time during the 1940s, Dunnock played roles in "Foolish Notion" with Tallulah Bankhead, "Lute Song" with Mary Martin and "The Corn Is Green" with Ethel Barrymore,
and won praise for her performance as a Welsh school teacher. The 1945 film version marked her screen debut opposite Bette Davis.
Dunnock made her screen debut as Miss Ronberry in "The Corn Is Green" (1945)
In 1947 Dunnock co-starred in "Kiss of Death" in a shocking scene with the late Richard Widmark.
Dunnock pushed to her death by Richard Widmark in "Kiss of Death" (1947)
Widmark as psychotic Tommy Udo, an ex-convict, exacts revenge on Ma Rizzo, played by Dunnock, whose son is an underworld informant, by ripping a cord from a lamp, tying her with it into her wheelchair and sending the chair bouncing down the stairs.
During the 1940s Dunnock performed mostly on stage, in such dramas as "Another Part of the Forest" and "Death of a Salesman". She reprised her Salesman role as Linda Loman in the 1951 film version earning an Oscar nomination. She originated the role of Big Mama in Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", although she lost the movie role to Judith Anderson.
Dunnock on stage with Lee J. Cobb, Arthur Kennedy & Cameron Mitchell in "Death of a Salesman" (1949)
Dunnock earned an Oscar nomination for her role as Linda Loman (1951)
New York Times:
As the long-suffering wife, Mildred Dunnock is simply superb, as she was on the stage. Her portrayal of a woman who bears the agony of seeing her sons and husband turn out failures supports the one pretension of this drama to genuine tragedy.
Her films include, "Viva Zapata!" (Golden Globe nominee best support), "Bad for Each Other" with Lizabeth Scott, Hitchcock's "The Trouble with Harry", "Love Me Tender" as Elvis' mom, "Baby Doll" earning another Oscar nomination, "Peyton Place" as teacher Elsie Thornton (Golden Globe nominee best support), "The Nun's Story", "BUtterfield 8", and "Sweet Bird of Youth" as Aunt Nonnie whose last line in the film is a dilly.
Dunnock (center) with Marjorie Rambeau & director Irving Rapper
on the set of "Bad for Each Other" (1953)
In Hitchcock's "The Trouble with Harry"
Neville Brand, Debra Paget & Dunnock as Elvis' ma in "Love Me Tender" (1956)
Oscar nominee Dunnock as Aunt Rose Comfort (above & below) with Carroll Baker as "Baby Doll" (1956)
Golden Globe nominee Dunnock played teacher Elsie Thornton in the potboiler
Dunnock as Aunt Nonnie with Ed Begley & Shirley Knight in "Sweet Bird of Youth"
In "Sweet Bird of Youth" with Paul Newman (back to camera).
Dunnock as Elizabeth Taylor's mother (1960)
Also in "Behold a Pale Horse", John Ford's "7 Women", "What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice", etc.
Dunnock (center) with Eddie Albert & Anne Bancroft in John Ford's "7 Women" (1966)
Geraldine Page giving Dunnock a deadly hand in "What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice?"
In addition to her successful career as a character actress in film and theater, Dunnock appeared frequently in numerous TV series in guest roles, and later in her career, several made-for-television movies, including a remake of "Death of a Salesman" in which she played Linda Loman for the third time, earning an Emmy Award nomination.
Her final film was "The Pick-up Artist" in 1987, which starred Robert Downey, Jr. and Molly Ringwald.
Dunnock was married to bank executive Keith Urmy from 1933 until her death, and had two daughters Linda and Mary.
The petite powerhouse died in Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts, of natural causes at the age of 90 on July 5, 1991. .
"She was small and slight with a thin, mobile mouth, and she excelled at playing the parts of mothers and eccentric ladies of various kinds," The New York Times wrote at her death in 1991. "Her admirers praised her power to move audiences by making them care for the characters she portrayed."
Quoted: "I like to play parts that are not like myself," she said. "I'm not the least bit exciting. I'm an ordinary person in an ordinary life, but in my imagination there's no stopping me."
Dunnock has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contribution to motion pictures.
The petite, talented character actress was born Mildred Dorothy Dunnock on January 25, 1901 in Baltimore, Maryland.
After graduating from Western High School in 1918, she enrolled at Goucher College, where she joined Agora, the college's dramatic society.
When a college counselor suggested she study for a master's degree in theater, her father was less than enthusiastic. Dunnock's relatives were cool to her desire for a career in the theater and did their best to discourage her, hoping she would get married and become a homemaker.
After graduating from Goucher, she taught at Friends School while performing in shows.
Dunnock left Baltimore and earned a master's degree in theater at Columbia, and made her Broadway debut in 1932, while teaching at Brearley, a private girls' school in New York City.
Turning to Broadway full time during the 1940s, Dunnock played roles in "Foolish Notion" with Tallulah Bankhead, "Lute Song" with Mary Martin and "The Corn Is Green" with Ethel Barrymore,
and won praise for her performance as a Welsh school teacher. The 1945 film version marked her screen debut opposite Bette Davis.
Dunnock made her screen debut as Miss Ronberry in "The Corn Is Green" (1945)
In 1947 Dunnock co-starred in "Kiss of Death" in a shocking scene with the late Richard Widmark.
Dunnock pushed to her death by Richard Widmark in "Kiss of Death" (1947)
Widmark as psychotic Tommy Udo, an ex-convict, exacts revenge on Ma Rizzo, played by Dunnock, whose son is an underworld informant, by ripping a cord from a lamp, tying her with it into her wheelchair and sending the chair bouncing down the stairs.
During the 1940s Dunnock performed mostly on stage, in such dramas as "Another Part of the Forest" and "Death of a Salesman". She reprised her Salesman role as Linda Loman in the 1951 film version earning an Oscar nomination. She originated the role of Big Mama in Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", although she lost the movie role to Judith Anderson.
Dunnock on stage with Lee J. Cobb, Arthur Kennedy & Cameron Mitchell in "Death of a Salesman" (1949)
Dunnock earned an Oscar nomination for her role as Linda Loman (1951)
New York Times:
As the long-suffering wife, Mildred Dunnock is simply superb, as she was on the stage. Her portrayal of a woman who bears the agony of seeing her sons and husband turn out failures supports the one pretension of this drama to genuine tragedy.
Her films include, "Viva Zapata!" (Golden Globe nominee best support), "Bad for Each Other" with Lizabeth Scott, Hitchcock's "The Trouble with Harry", "Love Me Tender" as Elvis' mom, "Baby Doll" earning another Oscar nomination, "Peyton Place" as teacher Elsie Thornton (Golden Globe nominee best support), "The Nun's Story", "BUtterfield 8", and "Sweet Bird of Youth" as Aunt Nonnie whose last line in the film is a dilly.
Dunnock (center) with Marjorie Rambeau & director Irving Rapper
on the set of "Bad for Each Other" (1953)
In Hitchcock's "The Trouble with Harry"
Neville Brand, Debra Paget & Dunnock as Elvis' ma in "Love Me Tender" (1956)
Oscar nominee Dunnock as Aunt Rose Comfort (above & below) with Carroll Baker as "Baby Doll" (1956)
Golden Globe nominee Dunnock played teacher Elsie Thornton in the potboiler
Dunnock as Aunt Nonnie with Ed Begley & Shirley Knight in "Sweet Bird of Youth"
In "Sweet Bird of Youth" with Paul Newman (back to camera).
Dunnock as Elizabeth Taylor's mother (1960)
Also in "Behold a Pale Horse", John Ford's "7 Women", "What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice", etc.
Dunnock (center) with Eddie Albert & Anne Bancroft in John Ford's "7 Women" (1966)
Geraldine Page giving Dunnock a deadly hand in "What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice?"
In addition to her successful career as a character actress in film and theater, Dunnock appeared frequently in numerous TV series in guest roles, and later in her career, several made-for-television movies, including a remake of "Death of a Salesman" in which she played Linda Loman for the third time, earning an Emmy Award nomination.
Her final film was "The Pick-up Artist" in 1987, which starred Robert Downey, Jr. and Molly Ringwald.
Dunnock was married to bank executive Keith Urmy from 1933 until her death, and had two daughters Linda and Mary.
The petite powerhouse died in Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts, of natural causes at the age of 90 on July 5, 1991. .
"She was small and slight with a thin, mobile mouth, and she excelled at playing the parts of mothers and eccentric ladies of various kinds," The New York Times wrote at her death in 1991. "Her admirers praised her power to move audiences by making them care for the characters she portrayed."
Quoted: "I like to play parts that are not like myself," she said. "I'm not the least bit exciting. I'm an ordinary person in an ordinary life, but in my imagination there's no stopping me."
Dunnock has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contribution to motion pictures.
-
Lzcutter
- Administrator
- Posts: 3149
- Joined: April 12th, 2007, 6:50 pm
- Location: Lake Balboa and the City of Angels!
- Contact:
Joe,
I know this is belated but thank you so much for shining your spotlight on Frankie Darro. I thought he was wondeful in "Wild Boys" and now I keep an eye out for him.
Thank you, Joe!
I know this is belated but thank you so much for shining your spotlight on Frankie Darro. I thought he was wondeful in "Wild Boys" and now I keep an eye out for him.
Thank you, Joe!
Lynn in Lake Balboa
"Film is history. With every foot of film lost, we lose a link to our culture, to the world around us, to each other and to ourselves."
"For me, John Wayne has only become more impressive over time." Marty Scorsese
Avatar-Warner Bros Water Tower
"Film is history. With every foot of film lost, we lose a link to our culture, to the world around us, to each other and to ourselves."
"For me, John Wayne has only become more impressive over time." Marty Scorsese
Avatar-Warner Bros Water Tower
In the Spotlight: STEPHEN BOYD
The dashing Irishman was born William Millar on July 4, 1931 in Glengormley, Northern Ireland,
from a family of nine children who lived in the poorest part of Belfast.
He was 8 when he was chosen, among a gang of street kids, to take part in a radio show. Under the maiden name of his mother, Martha Boyd, he got some theatre parts.
At the age of 17, he went to Liverpool and then to London. He found some little jobs to survive and sang some Irish ballads for people queueing in front of cinemas and theatres in the West End.
Boyd was discovered by Michael Redgrave while working as a hotel doorman.
He began in British films with "Lilacs in the Spring", "Born for Trouble", "An Alligator Named Daisy" with Diana Dors, "The Man Who Never Was" with Clifton Webb and "Abandon Ship!" with Tyrone Power. But it was his role in a 1958 French film "The Night Heaven Fell" opposite Brigitte Bardot that got him noticed.
Boyd with Gloria Grahame on right in "The Man Who Never Was"(1956).
Tyrone Power & Boyd saving a life in "Abandon Ship!" (1957)
Boyd romancing Brigitte Bardot in "The Night Heaven Fell" (1958)
Stephen Boyd on the subject of Brigitte Bardot: "All I can say is that when I'm trying to play serious love scenes with her, she's positioning her bottom for the best angle shots."
He went to Hollywood and appeared as second leads in a variety of films, including "Island in the Sun", "The Bravados" with Gregory Peck, "Woman Obsessed" with Susan Hayward, and the glossy soap "The Best of Everything".
Boyd with Joan Collins in "Island in the Sun" (1957)
Boyd is confronted by Gregory Peck in "The Bravados"
Bad boy Boyd with Kathleen Gallant in "The Bravados" (1958)
Boyd in the great outdoors in "Woman Obsessed" and with the star Susan Hayward (below).
Boyd with Joan Crawford on the set of "The Best of Everything"
Boyd on the town with date Hope Lange
Boyd with Hope Lange and Diane Baker in "The Best of Everything" (1959).
It was his role as Messala in "Ben-Hur" in 1959 that propelled him to international fame and he was thereafter fated to play roles wearing breastplates and Roman togas, as in Samuel Bronston's "The Fall of the Roman Empire" in 1964, in which he co-starred with Sophia Loren. He received a Golden Globe best support for his performance in "Ben-Hur" but was surprisingly bypassed on Oscar night.
Golden Globe winner Stephen Boyd as Messala in "BEN-HUR" (1959)
Old friends Boyd and Charlton Heston as "BEN-HUR" reunite
Boyd as Messala during the spectacular chariot race in "BEN-HUR" (1959)
Heston & Boyd trading in a chariot for a scooter on the set of "BEN-HUR"
He later decided to become an American citizen in 1963.
He was originally chosen to play Mark Antony opposite Elizabeth Taylor in 20th Century-Fox's epic production of "Cleopatra", but eventually withdrew from the problem-plagued production when he committed to star in "The Fall of the Roman Empire", (the role of Mark Antony went to Richard Burton and the rest is history).
Boyd with Sophia Loren (1964)
Boyd also appeared in John Huston's Biblical epic "The Bible...in the Beginning" (1966) and was top-billed in another costumed epic "Genghis Khan" (1965), filmed in Yugoslavia. He appeared in the French-produced Napoleonic epic "Imperial Venus" (1962), playing opposite Gina Lollobrigida. His non-epic roles included the musical Billy Rose's "Jumbo" (1962) opposite Doris Day, the drama "Lisa" with Dolores Hart, the Hollywood melodrama "The Oscar" (1966), the sci-fi special effects extravaganza "Fantastic Voyage" with Raquel Welsh (1966), the spy thriller "Assignment K" (1969) and the international Western, "Shalako" (1969), shot in Spain.
Boyd with Doris Day in "Jumbo" (1962)
Boyd as Jamuga in "Genghis Khan" (1965)
Boyd with Raquel Welch in "Fantastic Voyage" (1966)
His career declined in the 1970s and he appeared in several European potboilers before making a comeback in Michael Apted's British gangster thriller "The Squeeze" in 1977.
Boyd in the Sci-Fi action film "The Big Game" (1972)
He had many love affairs with famous actresses but preferred to remain a bachelor for most of his life.
Boyd was married twice - briefly (7 months) in 1958 to Italian-born MCA executive Mariella di Sarzana, and subsequently to Elizabeth (Liz) Mills, who was a secretary at the British Arts Council and whom he had known since 1955 and helped him when he was starving in London.
Mills followed Boyd to the USA in the late fifties and was his personal assistant and secretary for many years before marrying him about 10 months before his death.
Sadly, Boyd died of a heart attack at the age of 45 while playing golf at the Porter Valley Country Club in Northridge, California. He was in talks to play the role of the Regimental Sergeant Major in "The Wild Geese" before his death.
Stephen Boyd was cremated and interred in Oakwood Memorial Park Cemetery in Chatsworth, California. His wife Elizabeth is also laid to rest there.
In 1976, in what would be his final interview, Boyd expressed regret at concentrating so heavily on movies and said he wished he had acted more on stage and on television. His final role was in an episode of "Hawaii Five-0" playing a priest.
The dashing Irishman was born William Millar on July 4, 1931 in Glengormley, Northern Ireland,
from a family of nine children who lived in the poorest part of Belfast.
He was 8 when he was chosen, among a gang of street kids, to take part in a radio show. Under the maiden name of his mother, Martha Boyd, he got some theatre parts.
At the age of 17, he went to Liverpool and then to London. He found some little jobs to survive and sang some Irish ballads for people queueing in front of cinemas and theatres in the West End.
Boyd was discovered by Michael Redgrave while working as a hotel doorman.
He began in British films with "Lilacs in the Spring", "Born for Trouble", "An Alligator Named Daisy" with Diana Dors, "The Man Who Never Was" with Clifton Webb and "Abandon Ship!" with Tyrone Power. But it was his role in a 1958 French film "The Night Heaven Fell" opposite Brigitte Bardot that got him noticed.
Boyd with Gloria Grahame on right in "The Man Who Never Was"(1956).
Tyrone Power & Boyd saving a life in "Abandon Ship!" (1957)
Boyd romancing Brigitte Bardot in "The Night Heaven Fell" (1958)
Stephen Boyd on the subject of Brigitte Bardot: "All I can say is that when I'm trying to play serious love scenes with her, she's positioning her bottom for the best angle shots."
He went to Hollywood and appeared as second leads in a variety of films, including "Island in the Sun", "The Bravados" with Gregory Peck, "Woman Obsessed" with Susan Hayward, and the glossy soap "The Best of Everything".
Boyd with Joan Collins in "Island in the Sun" (1957)
Boyd is confronted by Gregory Peck in "The Bravados"
Bad boy Boyd with Kathleen Gallant in "The Bravados" (1958)
Boyd in the great outdoors in "Woman Obsessed" and with the star Susan Hayward (below).
Boyd with Joan Crawford on the set of "The Best of Everything"
Boyd on the town with date Hope Lange
Boyd with Hope Lange and Diane Baker in "The Best of Everything" (1959).
It was his role as Messala in "Ben-Hur" in 1959 that propelled him to international fame and he was thereafter fated to play roles wearing breastplates and Roman togas, as in Samuel Bronston's "The Fall of the Roman Empire" in 1964, in which he co-starred with Sophia Loren. He received a Golden Globe best support for his performance in "Ben-Hur" but was surprisingly bypassed on Oscar night.
Golden Globe winner Stephen Boyd as Messala in "BEN-HUR" (1959)
Old friends Boyd and Charlton Heston as "BEN-HUR" reunite
Boyd as Messala during the spectacular chariot race in "BEN-HUR" (1959)
Heston & Boyd trading in a chariot for a scooter on the set of "BEN-HUR"
He later decided to become an American citizen in 1963.
He was originally chosen to play Mark Antony opposite Elizabeth Taylor in 20th Century-Fox's epic production of "Cleopatra", but eventually withdrew from the problem-plagued production when he committed to star in "The Fall of the Roman Empire", (the role of Mark Antony went to Richard Burton and the rest is history).
Boyd with Sophia Loren (1964)
Boyd also appeared in John Huston's Biblical epic "The Bible...in the Beginning" (1966) and was top-billed in another costumed epic "Genghis Khan" (1965), filmed in Yugoslavia. He appeared in the French-produced Napoleonic epic "Imperial Venus" (1962), playing opposite Gina Lollobrigida. His non-epic roles included the musical Billy Rose's "Jumbo" (1962) opposite Doris Day, the drama "Lisa" with Dolores Hart, the Hollywood melodrama "The Oscar" (1966), the sci-fi special effects extravaganza "Fantastic Voyage" with Raquel Welsh (1966), the spy thriller "Assignment K" (1969) and the international Western, "Shalako" (1969), shot in Spain.
Boyd with Doris Day in "Jumbo" (1962)
Boyd as Jamuga in "Genghis Khan" (1965)
Boyd with Raquel Welch in "Fantastic Voyage" (1966)
His career declined in the 1970s and he appeared in several European potboilers before making a comeback in Michael Apted's British gangster thriller "The Squeeze" in 1977.
Boyd in the Sci-Fi action film "The Big Game" (1972)
He had many love affairs with famous actresses but preferred to remain a bachelor for most of his life.
Boyd was married twice - briefly (7 months) in 1958 to Italian-born MCA executive Mariella di Sarzana, and subsequently to Elizabeth (Liz) Mills, who was a secretary at the British Arts Council and whom he had known since 1955 and helped him when he was starving in London.
Mills followed Boyd to the USA in the late fifties and was his personal assistant and secretary for many years before marrying him about 10 months before his death.
Sadly, Boyd died of a heart attack at the age of 45 while playing golf at the Porter Valley Country Club in Northridge, California. He was in talks to play the role of the Regimental Sergeant Major in "The Wild Geese" before his death.
Stephen Boyd was cremated and interred in Oakwood Memorial Park Cemetery in Chatsworth, California. His wife Elizabeth is also laid to rest there.
In 1976, in what would be his final interview, Boyd expressed regret at concentrating so heavily on movies and said he wished he had acted more on stage and on television. His final role was in an episode of "Hawaii Five-0" playing a priest.
In the Spotlight: EDNA MAY OLIVER
The wonderful character actress was born Edna May Nutter on November 9, 1883 in Malden, Massachusetts, the daughter of Ida May and Charles Edward Nutter.
She was a descendant of the 6th American president John Quincy Adams.
She quit school at age fourteen in order to pursue a career on stage. Despite abandoning traditional schooling, Edna continued to study the performing arts, including speech and piano. One of her first jobs was as pianist with an all female orchestra which toured America around the turn of the century.
She achieved her first success in 1917 on Broadway in Jerome Kern's musical comedy "Oh, Boy!", playing the hero's comically dour Quaker Aunt Penelope.
Oliver in an early stage role.
Oliver's most notable stage appearance was as Parthy, wife of Cap'n Andy Hawks, in the original 1927 stage production of the famous musical "Show Boat". She repeated the role in the 1932 Broadway revival.
Her film debut occurred in 1923 in the film "Wife in Name Only" with a number of silent films to follow. Oliver first gained major notice in films for her appearances in several comedy films starring the team of Wheeler & Woolsey including "Half Shot at Sunrise", her first film under her RKO Radio contract in 1930.
With her long "horse-face" and demanding voice she was perfect for playing droll or sarcastic characters, most often tart-tongued spinsters.
Her most popular star vehicles were mystery-comedies starring Oliver as spinster sleuth Hildegarde Withers beginning with "Penquin Pool Murder" from the popular Stuart Palmer novels. The series ended prematurely when Oliver left RKO Radio to sign with MGM; the studio attempted to continue the series with Helen Broderick and then ZaSu Pitts as Withers, but these later films were not well-received.
Oliver frequently appeared in film versions of classic British literature, including "Alice in Wonderland" as the Red Queen, "A Tale of Two Cities" as Miss Pross, "David Copperfield" as Aunt Betsey Trotwood, and "Pride and Prejudice" as Lady Catherine de Bourgh.
Oliver as Hildegarde Withers in the comical mystery series
She turned down the chance to play Parthy in the 1936 film version of "Show Boat" so that she could play the Nurse in that year's film version of "Romeo and Juliet". Oliver's role as the Nurse was her only part in a Shakespeare film or play.
She received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress in 1939 for her appearance in John Ford's "Drums Along the Mohawk" as the funny and sympathetic Widow McKlennar.
Other films included, "Cimarron", "Laugh and Get Rich", "Ann Vickers", "Little Women" as Aunt March, "No More Ladies" with Robert Montgomery, "Parnell" with Clark Gable, "Little Miss Boadway" with Shirley Temple, "The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle" with Astaire & Rogers, and "Lydia" her final flm in 1941.
Oliver with Hugh Herbert in "Laugh and Get Rich" (1931)
In the role of Aunt March in "Little Women" (1933)
Oliver with Irene Dunne in "Ann Vickers" (1933)
Miss Oliver became so well known in the 1930s that she was caricatured repeatedly in cartoons.
An amusing 1934 comedy in which Edna played a polo-playing grandmother.
Oliver with Reginald Denny and Robert Montgomery in "No More Ladies" (1935)
Ronald Colman, Elizabeth Allan & Oliver as Miss Pross in "A Tale of Two Cities" (1935).
Elizabeth Allan, Donald Woods & Oliver as Miss Pross in "A Tale of Two Cities."
With Frank Lawton in "David Copperfield" (1935),
Oliver as Aunt Betsey, Freddie Bartholomew, and Lennox Pawle in "David Copperfield" (1935).
Oliver (left) with Eleanor Powell in "Rosalie" (1937).
Sharing the screen with fellow scene-stealer Shirley Temple in 1938.
Oscar nominee Oliver as the widow McKlennar in "Drums Along the Mohawk" (1939).
Oliver in "Drums Along the Mohawk" with Ward Bond.
Oliver as Lady Catherine de Bourgh in "Pride and Prejudice" (1940).
Oliver reprimanding George 'Superman' Reeves in "Lydia" her final film (1941).
Edna May Oliver married stock broker David Pratt in 1928, but the marriage ended in divorce five years later. There were no children.
Miss Oliver was struck ill with an intestinal disorder in August of 1942. Although she seemed to recover briefly, she was re-admitted to Los Angeles's Cedars of Lebanon hospital in October. Her dear friend actress Virginia Hammond flew out from New York to stay by her bedside. Edna May Oliver died on her 59th birthday, November 9, 1942. Virginia Hammond was with her and said, "She died without ever being aware of the gravity of her condition. She just went peacefully asleep."
She is interred at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale, California.
The lady has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The wonderful character actress was born Edna May Nutter on November 9, 1883 in Malden, Massachusetts, the daughter of Ida May and Charles Edward Nutter.
She was a descendant of the 6th American president John Quincy Adams.
She quit school at age fourteen in order to pursue a career on stage. Despite abandoning traditional schooling, Edna continued to study the performing arts, including speech and piano. One of her first jobs was as pianist with an all female orchestra which toured America around the turn of the century.
She achieved her first success in 1917 on Broadway in Jerome Kern's musical comedy "Oh, Boy!", playing the hero's comically dour Quaker Aunt Penelope.
Oliver in an early stage role.
Oliver's most notable stage appearance was as Parthy, wife of Cap'n Andy Hawks, in the original 1927 stage production of the famous musical "Show Boat". She repeated the role in the 1932 Broadway revival.
Her film debut occurred in 1923 in the film "Wife in Name Only" with a number of silent films to follow. Oliver first gained major notice in films for her appearances in several comedy films starring the team of Wheeler & Woolsey including "Half Shot at Sunrise", her first film under her RKO Radio contract in 1930.
With her long "horse-face" and demanding voice she was perfect for playing droll or sarcastic characters, most often tart-tongued spinsters.
Her most popular star vehicles were mystery-comedies starring Oliver as spinster sleuth Hildegarde Withers beginning with "Penquin Pool Murder" from the popular Stuart Palmer novels. The series ended prematurely when Oliver left RKO Radio to sign with MGM; the studio attempted to continue the series with Helen Broderick and then ZaSu Pitts as Withers, but these later films were not well-received.
Oliver frequently appeared in film versions of classic British literature, including "Alice in Wonderland" as the Red Queen, "A Tale of Two Cities" as Miss Pross, "David Copperfield" as Aunt Betsey Trotwood, and "Pride and Prejudice" as Lady Catherine de Bourgh.
Oliver as Hildegarde Withers in the comical mystery series
She turned down the chance to play Parthy in the 1936 film version of "Show Boat" so that she could play the Nurse in that year's film version of "Romeo and Juliet". Oliver's role as the Nurse was her only part in a Shakespeare film or play.
She received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress in 1939 for her appearance in John Ford's "Drums Along the Mohawk" as the funny and sympathetic Widow McKlennar.
Other films included, "Cimarron", "Laugh and Get Rich", "Ann Vickers", "Little Women" as Aunt March, "No More Ladies" with Robert Montgomery, "Parnell" with Clark Gable, "Little Miss Boadway" with Shirley Temple, "The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle" with Astaire & Rogers, and "Lydia" her final flm in 1941.
Oliver with Hugh Herbert in "Laugh and Get Rich" (1931)
In the role of Aunt March in "Little Women" (1933)
Oliver with Irene Dunne in "Ann Vickers" (1933)
Miss Oliver became so well known in the 1930s that she was caricatured repeatedly in cartoons.
An amusing 1934 comedy in which Edna played a polo-playing grandmother.
Oliver with Reginald Denny and Robert Montgomery in "No More Ladies" (1935)
Ronald Colman, Elizabeth Allan & Oliver as Miss Pross in "A Tale of Two Cities" (1935).
Elizabeth Allan, Donald Woods & Oliver as Miss Pross in "A Tale of Two Cities."
With Frank Lawton in "David Copperfield" (1935),
Oliver as Aunt Betsey, Freddie Bartholomew, and Lennox Pawle in "David Copperfield" (1935).
Oliver (left) with Eleanor Powell in "Rosalie" (1937).
Sharing the screen with fellow scene-stealer Shirley Temple in 1938.
Oscar nominee Oliver as the widow McKlennar in "Drums Along the Mohawk" (1939).
Oliver in "Drums Along the Mohawk" with Ward Bond.
Oliver as Lady Catherine de Bourgh in "Pride and Prejudice" (1940).
Oliver reprimanding George 'Superman' Reeves in "Lydia" her final film (1941).
Edna May Oliver married stock broker David Pratt in 1928, but the marriage ended in divorce five years later. There were no children.
Miss Oliver was struck ill with an intestinal disorder in August of 1942. Although she seemed to recover briefly, she was re-admitted to Los Angeles's Cedars of Lebanon hospital in October. Her dear friend actress Virginia Hammond flew out from New York to stay by her bedside. Edna May Oliver died on her 59th birthday, November 9, 1942. Virginia Hammond was with her and said, "She died without ever being aware of the gravity of her condition. She just went peacefully asleep."
She is interred at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale, California.
The lady has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Joseph Goodheart
) 
In the Spotlight: MARC LAWRENCE
The tough guy actor was born Max Goldsmith on February 17, 1910 in the Bronx, the son of a Polish Jewish mother, and Russian Jewish father. He participated in plays in school, then attended the City College of New York.
In 1930, Lawrence befriended another young actor, John Garfield. The two appeared in a number of plays before Lawrence was given a film contract with Columbia Pictures. Lawrence appeared in films beginning in 1932 with "If I Had a Million".
Lawrence's pock-marked complexion and brooding appearance made him a natural for heavies, and he played scores of gangsters and mob bosses over the next six decades, including "Dr. Socrates" with Muni, "The Shadow", "Dust Be My Destiny" with Garfield", "Johnny Apollo", "Charlie Chan at the Wax Museum", and "Blossoms in the Dust".
Nevertheless, he could turn in fine performances in very different kinds of roles as well, such as his bewildered mountain boy in The "Shepherd of the Hills" with John Wayne in 1941.
Lawrence with Sidney Toler as "Charlie Chan in the Wax Museum" (1940)
According to the New York Times in Shepherd of the Hills (1941): "Marc Lawrence gives an occasionally surprising performance as the dumb-stricken boy."
He also appeared in "Lady Scarface", "Hold That Ghost" as Charlie in a hilarious sequence with Lou Costello, "This Gun for Hire", "The Ox-Bow Incident", and "Dillinger".
Lawrence as the ghoulish Tommy in "This Gun for Hire" (1942)
Lawrence (extreme right) in "The Ox-Bow Incident" (1943)
Lawrence, Arthur Lake in "Life with Blondie" (1945)
In "Cloak and Dagger" Lawrence's hand to hand fight with Gary Cooper is one of the best, most vicious, and most realistic ever filmed.
With Gary Cooper in "Cloak and Dagger."
Lawrence & Tyrone Power in "Captain from Castile" (1947)
Also in, "Key Largo", "Black Hand", and "The Asphalt Jungle".
A jolly Lawrence with Edward G. Robinson and Claire Trevor in "Key Largo" (1948).
Lawrence (2nd from left) as Caesar X. Serpi in "Black Hand" (1950).
Lawrence chewing the fat with Marlon Brando (1950's).
With Brad Dexter (above) & Sam Jaffe (below) in "The Asphalt Jungle" (1950).
In the 1950s, Lawrence found himself under scrutiny for his political leanings. When called before the House Un-American Activities Committee, he admitted he had once been a member of the Communist Party. He Named actor Jeff Corey, a former Communist Party member. Corey, who was subsequently blacklisted from 1951 through 1962, was bitter over Lawrence's action for the rest of his long life.
Lawrence a bit ruffled at HUAC hearings.
Lawrence also testified that actor Lionel Stander told him that joining the Communist Party would make him more attractive to women. During his testimony, Stander denounced Lawrence as a psychopath and presented a letter that gave Lawrence's mental history and revealed that he had been hospitalized after a mental breakdown just prior to his HUAC testimony.
Lawrence was blacklisted (anyway) and departed for Europe, where he continued to make films. Following the demise of the blacklist, he returned to America and resumed his position as a familiar and talented purveyor of gangland types, in "Johnny Cool", "Marathon Man", "Foul Play", "The Big Easy", "Ruby", etc.
Columbia Pictures chief Harry Cohn once told Lawrence that Johnny Roselli, a notorious gangster, had said that he was the best hood in films. Lawrence himself was often told by Italian hoods in his native New York that he played them better than anyone else; ironically, Lawrence is Jewish.
Lawrence & Laurence Olivier in "Marathon Man" (1976).
Lawrence as Rupert Stiltskin in "Foul Play" (1978)
Lawrence has directed over 30 television episodes and acted in even more including "Gotti".
Lawrence as Carlo Gambino in the TV movie "Gotti".
One of his last roles was as Mr. Zeemo in the "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" episode "Badda-Bing Badda-Bang". Notably, he played the elderly Gatherer Volnoth in the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episode "The Vengeance Factor".
Lawrence was married to writer Fanya Foss for 53 years until her death and produced two children, a daughter Toni and a son Lawrence. He would marry again two years before his death.
Lawrence died of heart failure on November 28, 2005 at the age of 95.
He was buried at Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles.
Quoted: "I had this effect on people. I remember walking along the street and seeing Eddie Cantor's name up on one of the theaters, so I stopped by the ticket seller and asked him, 'When does Eddie go on?' He looked at me and went pale and said, 'You-you-you-you're the guy in that picture up the street!' He was petrified of me. So I went and watched that movie again and thought to myself 'Christ Almighty, what an ugly [expletive]!' Holes in my face, black eyes that pierce right through you. Here I thought I looked like Ronald Colman and the ticket seller was right."
The tough guy actor was born Max Goldsmith on February 17, 1910 in the Bronx, the son of a Polish Jewish mother, and Russian Jewish father. He participated in plays in school, then attended the City College of New York.
In 1930, Lawrence befriended another young actor, John Garfield. The two appeared in a number of plays before Lawrence was given a film contract with Columbia Pictures. Lawrence appeared in films beginning in 1932 with "If I Had a Million".
Lawrence's pock-marked complexion and brooding appearance made him a natural for heavies, and he played scores of gangsters and mob bosses over the next six decades, including "Dr. Socrates" with Muni, "The Shadow", "Dust Be My Destiny" with Garfield", "Johnny Apollo", "Charlie Chan at the Wax Museum", and "Blossoms in the Dust".
Nevertheless, he could turn in fine performances in very different kinds of roles as well, such as his bewildered mountain boy in The "Shepherd of the Hills" with John Wayne in 1941.
Lawrence with Sidney Toler as "Charlie Chan in the Wax Museum" (1940)
According to the New York Times in Shepherd of the Hills (1941): "Marc Lawrence gives an occasionally surprising performance as the dumb-stricken boy."
He also appeared in "Lady Scarface", "Hold That Ghost" as Charlie in a hilarious sequence with Lou Costello, "This Gun for Hire", "The Ox-Bow Incident", and "Dillinger".
Lawrence as the ghoulish Tommy in "This Gun for Hire" (1942)
Lawrence (extreme right) in "The Ox-Bow Incident" (1943)
Lawrence, Arthur Lake in "Life with Blondie" (1945)
In "Cloak and Dagger" Lawrence's hand to hand fight with Gary Cooper is one of the best, most vicious, and most realistic ever filmed.
With Gary Cooper in "Cloak and Dagger."
Lawrence & Tyrone Power in "Captain from Castile" (1947)
Also in, "Key Largo", "Black Hand", and "The Asphalt Jungle".
A jolly Lawrence with Edward G. Robinson and Claire Trevor in "Key Largo" (1948).
Lawrence (2nd from left) as Caesar X. Serpi in "Black Hand" (1950).
Lawrence chewing the fat with Marlon Brando (1950's).
With Brad Dexter (above) & Sam Jaffe (below) in "The Asphalt Jungle" (1950).
In the 1950s, Lawrence found himself under scrutiny for his political leanings. When called before the House Un-American Activities Committee, he admitted he had once been a member of the Communist Party. He Named actor Jeff Corey, a former Communist Party member. Corey, who was subsequently blacklisted from 1951 through 1962, was bitter over Lawrence's action for the rest of his long life.
Lawrence a bit ruffled at HUAC hearings.
Lawrence also testified that actor Lionel Stander told him that joining the Communist Party would make him more attractive to women. During his testimony, Stander denounced Lawrence as a psychopath and presented a letter that gave Lawrence's mental history and revealed that he had been hospitalized after a mental breakdown just prior to his HUAC testimony.
Lawrence was blacklisted (anyway) and departed for Europe, where he continued to make films. Following the demise of the blacklist, he returned to America and resumed his position as a familiar and talented purveyor of gangland types, in "Johnny Cool", "Marathon Man", "Foul Play", "The Big Easy", "Ruby", etc.
Columbia Pictures chief Harry Cohn once told Lawrence that Johnny Roselli, a notorious gangster, had said that he was the best hood in films. Lawrence himself was often told by Italian hoods in his native New York that he played them better than anyone else; ironically, Lawrence is Jewish.
Lawrence & Laurence Olivier in "Marathon Man" (1976).
Lawrence as Rupert Stiltskin in "Foul Play" (1978)
Lawrence has directed over 30 television episodes and acted in even more including "Gotti".
Lawrence as Carlo Gambino in the TV movie "Gotti".
One of his last roles was as Mr. Zeemo in the "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" episode "Badda-Bing Badda-Bang". Notably, he played the elderly Gatherer Volnoth in the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episode "The Vengeance Factor".
Lawrence was married to writer Fanya Foss for 53 years until her death and produced two children, a daughter Toni and a son Lawrence. He would marry again two years before his death.
Lawrence died of heart failure on November 28, 2005 at the age of 95.
He was buried at Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles.
Quoted: "I had this effect on people. I remember walking along the street and seeing Eddie Cantor's name up on one of the theaters, so I stopped by the ticket seller and asked him, 'When does Eddie go on?' He looked at me and went pale and said, 'You-you-you-you're the guy in that picture up the street!' He was petrified of me. So I went and watched that movie again and thought to myself 'Christ Almighty, what an ugly [expletive]!' Holes in my face, black eyes that pierce right through you. Here I thought I looked like Ronald Colman and the ticket seller was right."
Joseph Goodheart
-
moira finnie
- Administrator
- Posts: 8024
- Joined: April 9th, 2007, 6:34 pm
- Location: Earth
- Contact:
Kudos on the revealing profile of Marc Lawrence, Mongo. Who knew people allegedly joined the communist party to get girls--I thought that's why guys became actors (and heavy metal rock stars). 
I'd no idea he was in The Ox-Bow Incident or Captain From Castile, though he was indelibly creepy in This Gun For Hire, (Alan Ladd's great intro as a different leading man, and which really should be broadcast on TCM, along with The Blue Dahlia!
Btw, some time ago, I came across a photo of Edna May Oliver, but haven't figured out how or when to use it. Maybe others would find it amusing too. What a great, expressive face!
I'd no idea he was in The Ox-Bow Incident or Captain From Castile, though he was indelibly creepy in This Gun For Hire, (Alan Ladd's great intro as a different leading man, and which really should be broadcast on TCM, along with The Blue Dahlia!
Btw, some time ago, I came across a photo of Edna May Oliver, but haven't figured out how or when to use it. Maybe others would find it amusing too. What a great, expressive face!