Victor Varconi (born Mihály Várkonyi; March 31, 1891 – June 6, 1976) was a Hungarian actor who initially found success in his native country, as well as in Germany and Austria, in

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...

s, before relocating to the United States, where he continued to appear in films throughout the sound era. He also appeared in British and Italian films.

Biography

Born in Kisvárda, Austria-Hungary, Varconi was the first known Hungarian actor to make a film in the United States. He was educated at a commercial school in Hungary, after which he worked for an insurance company as a solicitor. After he developed an interest in acting, he attended the Actor Art High School in Budapest, from which he progressed to acting with the National Theatre in Budapest. While there, he performed in works that included Shakespearean plays and Molnar's ''Liliom'' and ''The Wolf''. He went on to act with a Hungarian film company and in U.F.A. films in Berlin. He worked under contract to Cecil B. DeMille, and played

Pontius Pilate Pontius Pilate (; grc-gre, Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος, ) was the fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official who presided over the trial of ...

in DeMille's 1927 production of ''

The King of Kings King of Kings; grc-gre, Βασιλεὺς Βασιλέων, Basileùs Basiléōn; hy, արքայից արքա, ark'ayits ark'a; sa, महाराजाधिराज, Mahārājadhirāja; ka, მეფეთ მეფე, ''Mepet mepe'' ...

''. That same year, he played Amos Hart, husband of murderess Roxie Hart, in the first film version of ''Chicago''. Victor Varconi in Roberta (1935) trailer

Owing in part to his Hungarian accent, Varconi's popularity reportedly waned with the advent of sound films and he was cast in smaller parts, often playing Hispanic characters. He worked on the

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

stage and wrote for radio.

Death

He died from a heart attack in Santa Barbara, California on June 6, 1976 at the age of 85, survived by his second wife, Lilliane. He was interred at the Calvary Cemetery, East Los Angeles, California.

Selected filmography

*''Márta'' (1913) - A doktor *''

The Yellow Foal ''The Yellow Foal'' (Hungarian: ''Sárga csikó'') is a 1913 Cinema of Hungary, Hungarian silent film, silent drama film directed by Félix Vanyl and starring Lili Berky, Gyula Nagy and Victor Varconi. It is known by several alternative titles incl ...

'' (1914) - Laci, Csorba fia *''

The Exile ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'' (1915) - Miklós *''

Bánk Bán ''Bánk bán'' is an opera in 3 acts by composer Ferenc Erkel. The work uses a Hungarian-language libretto by Béni Egressy which is based on a stage play of the same name by József Katona. (''Bán'' is ban in English, similar to a viceroy, a du ...

'' (1915) - Ottó herceg *''Tetemrehívás'' (1915) *''Éjféli találkozás'' (1915) - Sugár Laci, pásztor *''Havasi Magdolna'' (1915) - Juon, a parasztlegény *''Az ezüst kecske'' (1916) - János, medikus *''A gyónás szentsége'' (1916) - A meggyilkolt fiatalember *''A Nagymama'' (1916) - Kálmán *'' Miska the Magnate'' (1916) - Baracs *''Farkas'' (1917) - Szabó Gyuri *''Csaplárosné'' (1917) - Betyár *''A csikós'' (1917) - Andris, a csikóslegény *''A tanítónö'' (1917) - ifjabb Nagy István *''Mágia'' (1917) - Pál *'' St. Peter's Umbrella'' (1917) - Wibra Gyuri *''A Gyurkovics leányok'' (1917) *''A riporterkirály'' (1917) - Toll Ákos, az ifjú riporter *''Az utolsó éjszaka'' (1917) *''A megbélyegzett'' (1917) - Lévai Kálmán, titkár *''Ciklámen'' (1918) - Lehotai, a férj barátja *''Petöfi dalciklus'' (1918) *'' A 99-es számú bérkocsi'' (1918) - Herr mit vielen Namen *''

The Devil Satan,, ; grc, ὁ σατανᾶς or , ; ar, شيطانالخَنَّاس , also known as the Devil, and sometimes also called Lucifer in Christianity, is an entity in the Abrahamic religions that seduces humans into sin or falsehood ...

'' (1918) - Száki János, festõmüvész *''Sergius Panin'' (1918) - Sergius Panin *''Hotel Imperial'' (1918) - Almássy fõhadnagy *''A szerzetes'' (1918) - Majthényi László gróf *'' A skorpió I.'' (1918) - Jean Morell *'' Magic Waltz'' (1918) - Niki hadnagy *''A Métely'' (1918) - George Dupont, a beteg *'' Baccarat'' (1919) - Robert de Chanceroy *''Sappho'' (1919) - Jean Gaussin *''

White Rose The White Rose (german: Weiße Rose, ) was a Nonviolence, non-violent, intellectual German resistance to Nazism, resistance group in Nazi Germany which was led by five students (and one professor) at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, ...

'' (1919) - Halil Patrona *''Kutató Sámuel'' (1919) - Sámuel *''A Legnagyobb bün'' (1919) *''A víg özvegy'' (1920) - Danilo *''Die sieben Todsünden'' (1920) *''Der Mann mit den drei Frauen'' (1920) *''A számüzött'' (1920) *''

The Asian Sun ''The Asian Sun'' (german: Die Sonne Asiens) is a 1921 German silent film directed by Edmund Heuberger and starring Henry Sze, Paul Otto and Irena Marga. Cast *Henry Sze as Kuen-Li *Paul Otto as Head of the prison *Irena Marga as white girl *Vic ...

'' (1921) - Sekretär *''Aus den Tiefen der Großstadt'' (1921) *''Junge Mama'' (1921) - Prinz Egon *''Nachtbesuch in der Northernbank'' (1921) *'' The Red Peacock'' (1921) - Alfred Germont *''Serpolette'' (1922) - Péter herceg *''

The Blood The Blood are an English, London-based punk rock band, formed in 1982. Led by Cardinal Jesus Hate and JJ Bedsore (AKA Colin Smith and Jamie Cantwell), the band formed in the early 1980s under the name "Coming Blood". Their music is a blend of ...

'' (1922) - Dr. Robert Kargert, Advokat *'' Masters of the Sea'' (1922) - Captain Scott *''

A Vanished World ''A Vanished World'' (German: ''Eine versunkene Welt'') is a 1922 Austrian silent adventure film directed by Alexander Korda and starring Alberto Capozzi, Victor Varconi, María Corda and Olga Lewinsky. It was based on the novel ''Serpoletto'' by ...

'' (1922) - Matrose Vannoni *''

Sunken Worlds ''Sunken Worlds'' (German: ''Versunkene Welten'') is a 1922 German silent film directed by Siegfried Philippi and starring Victor Varconi, Ria Jende and Hans Albers.Bock & Bergfelder p.8 Cast * Victor Varconi * Ria Jende * Max Devrient * Hans ...

'' (1922) *''

Sodom and Gomorrah Sodom and Gomorrah () were two legendary biblical cities destroyed by God for their wickedness. Their story parallels the Genesis flood narrative in its theme of God's anger provoked by man's sin (see Genesis 19:1–28). They are mentioned frequ ...

'' (1922) - Priester des Lyzeums - Engel des Herrn *'' Der Junge Medardus'' (1923) - Medardus Klähr *'' Die Lawine'' (1923) - George Vandeau *'' Namenlos'' (1923) - Jean Moeller *'' Poisoned Paradise: The Forbidden Story of Monte Carlo'' (1924) - Dr. Bergius *''

Triumph The Roman triumph (Latin triumphus) was a celebration for a victorious military commander in ancient Rome. For later imitations, in life or in art, see Trionfo. Numerous later uses of the term, up to the present, are derived directly or indirectl ...

'' (1924) - William Silver *''

Changing Husbands ''Changing Husbands'' is a 1924 American silent comedy film starring Leatrice Joy and Victor Varconi, directed by Paul Iribe and Frank Urson, and written by Sada Cowan and Howard Higgin. The runtime of the film is 70 minutes. Cast Preservat ...

'' (1924) - Oliver Evans *'' Feet of Clay'' (1924) - Bookkeeper *'' Worldly Goods'' (1924) - Clifford Ramsay *''L'uomo più allegro di Vienna'' (1925) - William * ''

Ballettratten ''Ballettratten'' is a 1925 German silent drama film directed by Arthur Günsburg and starring Carl de Vogt, Cläre Lotto, and Victor Varconi Victor Varconi (born Mihály Várkonyi; March 31, 1891 – June 6, 1976) was a Hungarian actor w ...

'' (1925) - Intendant Holberg *'' Dancing Mad'' (1925) - Edmund Chauvelin *'' The Last Days of Pompeii'' (1926) - Glauco *'' The Volga Boatman'' (1926) - Prince Dimitri *''

Silken Shackles ''Silken Shackles'' is a 1926 American silent drama film produced and distributed by Warner Bros. The film was directed by Walter Morosco, the son of theater owner Oliver Morosco, and based on a play by Charles Harris. Irene Rich leads the c ...

'' (1926) - Tade Adrian * ''

For Wives Only ''For Wives Only'' is a 1926 American silent comedy film directed by Victor Heerman and starring Marie Prevost, Victor Varconi and Charles K. Gerrard.Munden p.265 Cast * Marie Prevost as Laura Rittenhaus * Victor Varconi as Dr. Rittenhaus ...

'' (1926) - Dr. Rittenhaus * ''

Fighting Love ''Fighting Love'' is a 1927 American silent drama film directed by Nils Olaf Chrisander and starring Jetta Goudal, Victor Varconi and Henry B. Walthall. The film survives complete. It is based on the 1925 novel '' If the Gods Laugh'' by the B ...

'' (1927) - Gabriel Amari * '' The Little Adventuress'' (1927) - George La Fuente *''

'' (1927) - Pontius Pilate - Governor of Judea *''

The Angel of Broadway ''The Angel of Broadway'' was a 1927 American silent drama film produced by Cecil B. DeMille and distributed by Pathé Exchange. It was directed by Lois Weber and starred Leatrice Joy. The film is now considered lost. Cast * Leatrice Joy - Ba ...

'' (1927) - Jerry Wilson *'' The Forbidden Woman'' (1927) - Col. Gautier *''

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

'' (1927) - Amos Hart *'' Tenth Avenue'' (1928) - Bob Peters *''

Sinner's Parade ''Sinner's Parade'' is a lost 1928 American silent crime film directed by John G. Adolfi and starring Victor Varconi, Dorothy Revier, and John Patrick.Langman & Finn p. 249 The film's sets were designed by the art director Harrison Wiley. Ca ...

'' (1928) - Al Morton *''

The Divine Lady ''The Divine Lady'' is a 1929 American pre-Code Vitaphone sound film with a synchronized musical score, sound effects, and some synchronized singing, but no spoken dialogue. It stars Corinne Griffith and tells the story of the love affair betwe ...

'' (1929) - Horatio Nelson *''

Eternal Love Eternal(s) or The Eternal may refer to: * Eternity, an infinite amount of time, or a timeless state * Immortality or eternal life * God, the supreme being, creator deity, and principal object of faith in monotheism Comics, film and television ...

'' (1929) - Lorenz Gruber *'' Kult ciala'' (1930) - Czeslaw *'' You'll Be in My Heart'' (1930) *'' The Citadel of Warsaw'' (1930) *'' Doctors' Wives'' (1931) - Dr. Kane Ruyter *'' The Black Camel'' (1931) - Robert Fyfe *''

Men in Her Life ''Men in Her Life'' is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film directed by William Beaudine and starring Lois Moran, Charles Bickford and Victor Varconi. It was based on a 1930 novel by Warner Fabian (Samuel Hopkins Adams)."AT THE PALACE 'Men in H ...

'' (1931) - Count Ivan Karloff *''

Safe in Hell ''Safe in Hell'' is a 1931 American pre-Code thriller film directed by William A. Wellman and starring Dorothy Mackaill and Donald Cook, with featured performances by Morgan Wallace, Ralf Harolde, Nina Mae McKinney, Clarence Muse, and Noble Joh ...

'' (1931) - General Emmanuel Jesus Maria Gomez *''

Doomed Battalion ''Doomed Battalion'' is a 1932 American drama film directed by Cyril Gardner and written by Karl Hartl, Patrick Kearney, Paul Perez and Luis Trenker. The film stars Luis Trenker, Tala Birell, Albert Conti, Victor Varconi, Henry Armetta and Gust ...

'' (1932) - Artur Franchini *'' The Rebel'' (1932) - Kapitän Leroy, Oberkommandant von St. Vigil *'' The Song You Gave Me'' (1933) - Karl Linden *'' Menace'' (1934) - Stephen Ronsart *'' Roberta'' (1935) - Prince Ladislaw *'' Mister Dynamite'' (1935) - Jarl Dvorjak *''

A Feather in Her Hat ''A Feather in Her Hat'' is a 1935 melodrama film starring Pauline Lord as a working-class woman with ambitions for her son. It is based on the 1934 novel of the same name by I. A. R. Wylie. Plot In 1925 London, middle-aged, widowed shopkeeper ...

'' (1935) - Paul Anders *'' The Three-Cornered Hat'' (1935) - The Miller *'' Dancing Pirate'' (1936) - Don Balthazar *'' The Plainsman'' (1936) - Painted Horse *''

Trouble in Morocco ''Trouble in Morocco'' is a 1937 American adventure war film directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack and starring Jack Holt. Cast * Jack Holt ... Paul Cluett *Mae Clarke ... Linda Lawrence *Paul Hurst ... Tiger Malone *C. Henry Gordon ... Captain Nard ...

'' (1937) - Kamaroff *''

Men in Exile ''Men in Exile'' is a 1937 film directed by John Farrow. A "B" movie from Warner Bros, it was the first feature Farrow directed. It is essentially a remake of their 1931 melodrama ''Safe in Hell'', albeit with the lead switched from female to male ...

'' (1937) - Colonel Emanuel Gomez *'' Big City'' (1937) - Paul Roya *'' King of the Newsboys'' (1938) - Wire Arno *''

Suez Suez ( ar, السويس '; ) is a seaport city (population of about 750,000 ) in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez (a branch of the Red Sea), near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same bou ...

'' (1938) - Victor Hugo *'' Submarine Patrol'' (1938) - Vanzano - Italian Naval Chaplain *'' The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle'' (1939) - Grand Duke *'' Mr. Moto Takes a Vacation'' (1939) - Paul Borodoff *''

Disputed Passage ''Disputed Passage'' is a 1939 American drama war film directed by Frank Borzage and starring Dorothy Lamour, Akim Tamiroff, John Howard, Judith Barrett and William Collier, Sr. Set in war-torn China, the film was described by ''The New York Ti ...

'' (1939) - Dr. LaFerriere *'' Everything Happens at Night'' (1939) - Cavas *''

The Man from Dakota ''The Man from Dakota'' is a 1940 American Civil War film directed by Leslie Fenton and starring Wallace Beery and Dolores del Río. The film was adapted by Laurence Stallings from the novel ''Arouse and Beware'' by MacKinlay Kantor. Francis ...

'' (1940) - Col. Kuragen (uncredited) *'' Strange Cargo'' (1940) - Fisherman *''

The Sea Hawk ''The Sea Hawk'' is a 1915 novel by Rafael Sabatini. The story is set over the years 1588–1593 and concerns a retired Cornish seafaring gentleman, Sir Oliver Tressilian, who is villainously betrayed by a jealous half-brother. After being ...

'' (1940) - Gen. Aguirre *''

Federal Fugitives ''Federal Fugitives'' (a.k.a. ''International Spy'') is a 1941 American film noir directed by William Beaudine. The film stars Neil Hamilton, Doris Day, Victor Varconi, and Charles C. Wilson.

'' (1941) - Otto Lieberman aka Dr. Frederic Haskell *''

Forced Landing A forced landing is a landing by an aircraft made under factors outside the pilot's control, such as the failure of engines, systems, components, or weather which makes continued flight impossible. For a full description of these, see article on ' ...

'' (1941) - Hendrick Van Deuren *'' Reap the Wild Wind'' (1942) - Lubbock *'' My Favorite Blonde'' (1942) - Miller *'' They Raid By Night'' (1942) - Col. Otto von Ritter *''

For Whom the Bell Tolls ''For Whom the Bell Tolls'' is a novel by Ernest Hemingway published in 1940. It tells the story of Robert Jordan, a young American volunteer attached to a Republican guerrilla unit during the Spanish Civil War. As a dynamiter, he is assigne ...

'' (1943) - Primitivo *''

Undercover To go "undercover" (that is, to go on an undercover operation) is to avoid detection by the object of one's observation, and especially to disguise one's own identity (or use an assumed identity) for the purposes of gaining the trust of an ind ...

'' (1943) - Enemy Security Officer (uncredited) *''

The Hitler Gang ''The Hitler Gang'' is a 1944 American pseudo-documentary film directed by John Farrow, which traces the political rise of Adolf Hitler. Described as a "documentary-propaganda" film by its studio, Paramount Pictures, the historical drama is based ...

'' (1944) - Rudolph Hess *''

The Story of Dr. Wassell ''The Story of Dr. Wassell'' is a 1944 American World War II film set in the Dutch East Indies, directed by Cecil B. DeMille, and starring Gary Cooper, Laraine Day, Signe Hasso and Dennis O'Keefe. The film was based on a book of the same name by ...

'' (1944) - Captain of the 'Janssen' (uncredited) *''

Scotland Yard Investigator ''Scotland Yard Investigator'' is a 1945 American crime film directed by George Blair and starring C. Aubrey Smith, Erich von Stroheim and Stephanie Bachelor. Following the outbreak of the Second World War the Mona Lisa is moved to a London gal ...

'' (1945) - Jules *'' Dakota'' (1945) - Frenchman (uncredited) *''

Unconquered Unconquered or The Unconquered may refer to: Films * ''Unconquered'' (1917 film), a drama film by Frank Reicher * ''Unconquered'' (1947 film), an adventure film by Cecil B. DeMille * ''The Unconquered'' (documentary) or ''Helen Keller in Her Sto ...

'' (1947) - Captain Simeon Ecuyer *''

Where There's Life ''Where There's Life'' is a 1947 American thriller comedy film directed by Sidney Lanfield.''Harrison's Reports'' film review; October 11, 1947, page 162. The film's title derives from a line in ''Don Quixote'' ("Where there's life, there's hope" ...

'' (1947) - Finance Minister Zavitch *'' Pirates of Monterey'' (1947) - Capt. Cordova *'' Samson and Delilah'' (1949) - Lord of Ashdod *''

The Man Who Turned to Stone ''The Man Who Turned to Stone'' (a.k.a. ''The Petrified Man'') is a 1957 American black-and-white horror science fiction film directed by László Kardos and starring Victor Jory, Ann Doran and Charlotte Austin. The screenplay was written by Be ...

'' (1957) - Dr. Myer *''

The Atomic Submarine ''The Atomic Submarine'' is a 1959 independently made, American black-and-white science-fiction film directed by Spencer Gordon Bennet and starring Arthur Franz, Dick Foran, Brett Halsey, Joi Lansing and Jean Moorhead, with John Hilliard as ...

'' (1959) - Dr. Clifford Kent (final film role)

References

External links

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Photographs and literature
{{DEFAULTSORT:Varconi, Victor 1891 births 1976 deaths People from Kisvárda Hungarian male silent film actors 20th-century Hungarian male actors American male film actors American male silent film actors American male television actors Hungarian emigrants to the United States Austro-Hungarian emigrants to the United States 20th-century American male actors Burials at Calvary Cemetery (Los Angeles)