Edmund Willard
Edmund Willard (19 December 1884 – 6 October 1956) was a British actor of the 1930s and 1940s. Born in Brighton, Sussex in 1884, the nephew of Victorian era actor Edward Smith Willard, in 1920 Willard appeared in the plays of William Shakespeare at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon. He appeared in ''Hamlet'', ''Twelfth Night'', ''The Merchant of Venice'', ''Richard III'', and ''The Taming of the Shrew''. Willard's first film role was as the Fourth Party in ''A Window in Piccadilly'' (1928). His other film appearances include ''The Private Life of Don Juan'' (1934) with Douglas Fairbanks and Merle Oberon, ''The Scarlet Pimpernel'' (1934) with Leslie Howard and Raymond Massey, ''The Mystery of the Mary Celeste'' (1935) with Bela Lugosi, Van Zeeland in ''Rembrandt'' (1936) with Charles Laughton and Gertrude Lawrence, the Chief Steward in '' Underneath the Arches'' (1937) with Bud Flanagan, Chesney Allen and The Crazy Gang, the Chief of German Intelligen ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Actor Edmund Willard
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), literally "one who answers".''Hypokrites'' (related to our word for hypocrite) also means, less often, "to answer" the tragic chorus. See Weimann (1978, 2); see also Csapo and Slater, who offer translations of classical source material using the term ''hypocrisis'' (acting) (1994, 257, 265–267). The actor's interpretation of a rolethe art of actingpertains to the role played, whether based on a real person or fictional character. This can also be considered an "actor's role," which was called this due to scrolls being used in the theaters. Interpretation occurs even when the actor is "playing themselves", as in some forms of experimental performance art. Formerly, in ancient Greece and the medieval world, and in England at the time of Wil ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Leslie Howard (actor)
Leslie Howard Steiner (3 April 18931 June 1943) was an English actor, director and producer.Obituary '' Variety'', 9 June 1943. He wrote many stories and articles for '' The New York Times'', '' The New Yorker'', and '' Vanity Fair'' and was one of the biggest box-office draws and movie idols of the 1930s. Active in both Britain and Hollywood, Howard played Ashley Wilkes in '' Gone with the Wind'' (1939). He had roles in many other films, often playing the quintessential Englishman, including '' Berkeley Square'' (1933), '' Of Human Bondage'' (1934), '' The Scarlet Pimpernel'' (1934), '' The Petrified Forest'' (1936), '' Pygmalion'' (1938), '' Intermezzo'' (1939), ''"Pimpernel" Smith'' (1941), and '' The First of the Few'' (1942). He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for ''Berkeley Square'' and ''Pygmalion''. Howard's World War II activities included acting and filmmaking. He helped to make anti-German propaganda and shore up support for the Allies—two ye ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Conrad Veidt
Hans Walter Conrad Veidt (; 22 January 1893 – 3 April 1943) was a German film actor who attracted early attention for his roles in the films '' Different from the Others'' (1919), ''The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'' (1920), and '' The Man Who Laughs'' (1928). After a successful career in German silent films, where he was one of the best-paid stars of UFA, he and his new Jewish wife Ilona Prager left Germany in 1933 after the Nazis came to power. The couple settled in Britain, where he took British citizenship in 1939. He appeared in many British films, including '' The Thief of Bagdad'' (1940), before emigrating to the United States around 1941, which led to his being cast in what may be his best remembered role as Major Strasser in ''Casablanca'' (1942). This was Veidt's last film role to be released during his lifetime. Early life Hans Walter Conrad Veidt was born on 22 January 1893 in his parents' home at Tieckstraße 39 in Berlin to Amalie Marie (née Gohtz) and Philipp Hein ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Vivien Leigh
Vivien Leigh ( ; 5 November 1913 – 8 July 1967; born Vivian Mary Hartley), styled as Lady Olivier after 1947, was a British actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress twice, for her definitive performances as Scarlett O'Hara in ''Gone with the Wind (film), Gone with the Wind'' (1939) and Blanche DuBois in the film version of A Streetcar Named Desire (1951 film), ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' (1951), a role she had also played on stage in London's West End theatre, West End in 1949. She also won a Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical, Tony Award for her work in the Broadway theatre, Broadway musical version of ''Tovarich (musical), Tovarich'' (1963). Although her career had periods of inactivity, in 1999 the American Film Institute ranked Leigh as AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars, the 16th greatest female movie star of classic Hollywood cinema. After completing her drama school education, Leigh appeared in small roles in four films in 1935 and progressed to the r ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dark Journey (film)
''Dark Journey'' is a 1937 British spy film directed by Victor Saville and starring Conrad Veidt and Vivien Leigh. Written by Lajos Bíró and Arthur Wimperis, the film is about two secret agents on opposite sides during World War I who meet and fall in love in neutral Stockholm. It was shot at Denham Studios, with sets designed by the art director Andrej Andrejew assisted by Ferdinand Bellan. The film's costumes were by René Hubert. Plot In the spring of 1918, a German U-boat stops a Dutch freighter on its way to Stockholm, Sweden during the final year of World War I. The Germans board the ship, identify one man as a Belgian spy, and take him prisoner. One of the passengers questioned is an attractive Swiss dress shop owner named Madeleine Goddard (Vivien Leigh) who is returning to Stockholm from a business trip to Paris, where she purchased dresses for her boutique. After returning to Stockholm, Madeleine, who is a German spy, meets with her contacts and provides inform ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Crazy Gang (comedy Group)
The Crazy Gang were a group of British entertainers, formed in the early 1930s. In the mature form the group's six men were Bud Flanagan, Chesney Allen, Jimmy Nervo, Teddy Knox, Charlie Naughton and Jimmy Gold. The group achieved considerable domestic popularity and were a favourite of the Royal Family, especially King George VI. Formation Although George Black is often credited with the formation of the Crazy Gang, the start was more complicated. In 1931, three double acts (Nervo and Knox, Naughton and Gold and Billy Caryll and Hilda Mundy) were tentatively booked at the London Palladium. This caused Black to consider cancelling one of the couples. Nervo and Knox had a technique of entering other acts and Black was persuaded to overcome the difficulty by letting this happen. The show, which was called ''Crazy Week'' opened on 30 November 1931. Other Crazy Weeks followed with Flanagan and Allen added. The name Crazy Gang was introduced in a show called "The Big Crazy Gang ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chesney Allen
William Ernest Chesney Allen (5 April 1894 – 13 November 1982) was a popular English entertainer of the Second World War period. He is best remembered for his double act with Bud Flanagan, Flanagan and Allen. Life and career Allen was born in Brighton, Sussex, in 1894, married Aleta Cosette Turner in Leeds in 1926 and died in Midhurst, West Sussex, in 1982. He began his career in straight acting, making his debut in stock at the Wimbledon Theatre, London, in 1912. Serving in Flanders in the First World War, he made friends with Bud Flanagan, and but they did not work together until 1926, touring with a Florrie Forde show called "Here's to You". As music hall comedians they would often feature a mixture of comedy and music in their act and this led to a successful recording career and roles in film and television. Flanagan and Allen were also members of the Crazy Gang and worked together in that team for many years. Flanagan and Allen's songs featured the same, usual ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bud Flanagan
Bud Flanagan, (born Chaim Reuben Weintrop, 14 October 1896 – 20 October 1968) was a British music hall and vaudeville entertainer and comedian, and later a television and film actor. He was best known as a double act with Chesney Allen. Flanagan was famous as a wartime entertainer and his achievements were recognised when he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1959. Family background Flanagan was born in Whitechapel, in the East End of London. His parents, Wolf Weintrop (1856–1932) and Yetta (Kitty) Weintrop (1856–1935) were Polish Jews who were married in the city of Radom, Poland, and fled to Łódź on their wedding day to avoid a pogrom. Wolf and Yetta Weintrop intended to escape to the " New World" from Eastern Europe – they paid for a ticket to New York, but a dishonest ticket agent gave them a ticket to London. In London, Wolf learned to be a shoe and bootmaker, earning extra money singing as a part-time cantor (Hazzan) ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Underneath The Arches (film)
''Underneath the Arches'' is a 1937 British comedy film directed by Redd Davis and starring Bud Flanagan, Chesney Allen, Stella Moya, Lyn Harding and Edmund Willard. Flanagan and Allen formed part of the comedy ensemble known as the Crazy Gang (comedy group), Crazy Gang. It was made by Julius Hagen's Twickenham Studios as part of its ambitious production schedule following its abandonment of quota quickies. Synopsis Two down-on-their-luck Englishmen travel by ship to a South American country where they foil one revolution, and then accidentally start another. Cast * Bud Flanagan as Bud * Chesney Allen as Ches * Stella Moya as Anna * Lyn Harding as Pedro * Edmund Willard as Chief Steward * Enid Stamp Taylor, Enid Stamp-Taylor as Dolores * Edward Ashley as Carlos * Aubrey Mather as Professor References Bibliography * Low, Rachael. ''Filmmaking in 1930s Britain''. George Allen & Unwin, 1985. * Wood, Linda. ''British Films, 1927-1939''. British Film Institute, 1986. External l ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gertrude Lawrence
Gertrude Lawrence (4 July 1898 – 6 September 1952) was an English actress, singer, dancer and musical comedy performer known for her stage appearances in the West End Theatre, West End of London and on Broadway theatre, Broadway in New York. Early life Lawrence was born Gertrude Alice Dagmar Klasen, Alexandra Dagmar Lawrence-Klasen, Gertrude Alexandra Dagmar Klasen or some variant (sources differ), of English and Danes, Danish extraction, in Newington, London. Her father was a Bass (voice type), basso profondo who performed under the name Arthur Lawrence. His heavy drinking led her mother Alice to leave him soon after Gertrude's birth. In 1904, her stepfather took the family to Bognor Regis, Bognor on the Sussex coast for the August bank holiday. While there, they attended a concert where audience members were invited to entertain. At her mother's urging, young Gertrude sang a song and was rewarded with a Sovereign (British coin), gold sovereign for her effort. It was her f ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Charles Laughton
Charles Laughton (1 July 1899 – 15 December 1962) was a British actor. He was trained in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and first appeared professionally on the stage in 1926. In 1927, he was cast in a play with his future wife Elsa Lanchester, with whom he lived and worked until his death. He played a wide range of classical and modern parts, making an impact in Shakespeare at the Old Vic. His film career took him to Broadway and then Hollywood, but he also collaborated with Alexander Korda on notable British films of the era, including ''The Private Life of Henry VIII'', for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of the title character. He portrayed everything from monsters and misfits to kings. Among Laughton's biggest film hits were '' The Barretts of Wimpole Street'', ''Mutiny on the Bounty'', '' Ruggles of Red Gap'', '' Jamaica Inn'', '' The Hunchback of Notre Dame'', '' The Big Clock'', and ''Witness for the Prosecution'' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rembrandt (1936 Film)
''Rembrandt'' is a 1936 British biographical film made by London Film Productions of the life of 17th-century Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn. The film was produced and directed by Alexander Korda from a screenplay by June Head and Lajos Bíró based on a story by Carl Zuckmayer. The music score was by Geoffrey Toye and the cinematography by Georges Périnal. Plot Cast * Charles Laughton as Rembrandt van Rijn * Gertrude Lawrence as Geertje Dircx * Elsa Lanchester as Hendrickje Stoffels * Edward Chapman as Carel Fabritius * Walter Hudd as Frans Banning Cocq * Roger Livesey as Beggar Saul * John Bryning as Titus van Rijn * Sam Livesey as Auctioneer * Herbert Lomas as Gerrit van Rijn * Allan Jeayes as Dr. Tulp * John Clements as Govert Flinck * Raymond Huntley as Ludwick * Abraham Sofaer as Dr. Menasseh * Laurence Hanray as Heertsbeeke * Austin Trevor as Marquis de Grand-Coeur * Edmund Willard as Van Zeeland * Henry Hewitt as Jan Six * Marius Goring as Baron Leiven ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |