Albert Austin (13 December 1882 – 17 August 1953) was an English actor,

film star A movie star (also known as a film star or cinema star) is an actor who is Celebrity, famous for their starring, or leading, roles in Film, movies. The term is used for performers who are marketable stars as they become popular household names ...

, director, and script writer, remembered for his work in

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is considered o ...

films.

Biography

Austin was born in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, and was a

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850, through the World War I, Great War. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as Varie ...

performer before going to the United States with Chaplin, both as members of the Fred Karno troupe in 1910. Known for his painted handlebar

moustache A moustache (; mustache, ) is a growth of facial hair grown above the upper lip and under the human nose, nose. Moustaches have been worn in various styles throughout history. Etymology The word "moustache" is French language, French, and i ...

and acerbic manner, he worked for Chaplin's stock company and played supporting roles in many of his films, often as a foil to the star and working as his assistant director. After the development of sound films, he moved into scriptwriting, directing, and acting, chiefly in comedy shorts. Among other things, he assisted Chaplin in developing the plot of '' The Adventurer'' (1917). However, he only received screen credit as a collaborator once, for '' City Lights'' (1931). As an actor, he appeared in Chaplin's comedies for the Mutual Film Corporation. Later he had two brief, uncredited roles in one of Chaplin's 'silent' comedies made in the sound era, ''City Lights''. Austin is also seen very briefly (as a cab driver) at the beginning of Chaplin's short film '' One A.M.'' (1916). He also appeared in films starring Jackie Coogan and Mack Sennett. Austin's best known performance may be in Chaplin's short '' The Pawnshop'' (1916). Austin enters the shop with an alarm clock, hoping to pawn it. To establish the clock's value, Chaplin dissects it. Austin maintains a deadpan expression as Chaplin progressively destroys his clock, then hands the pieces back to Austin. He had the leading role in

Mary Pickford Gladys Louise Smith (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian-American film actress and producer. A Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood, pioneer in the American film industry with a Hollywood care ...

's '' Suds'' (1920), where he co-stars as a customer leaving his shirt at her laundry. In that film he appears without his comic moustache. In his final years he worked as a police officer at the Warner Brothers studios, according to a ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' obituary. He died on 17 August 1953, and was interred at Grand View Memorial Park Cemetery in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city located primarily in the Verdugo Mountains region, with a small portion in the San Fernando Valley, of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located about north of downtown Los Angeles. As of 2024, Glendale ha ...

Filmography

References

* ''The New York Times'' obituary, 19 August 1953 (accessed via http://select.nytimes.com, 10 November 2008)
Charlie Chaplin's Collaborators, British Film Institute, accessed 10 November 2008

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Austin, Albert 1881 births 1953 deaths English emigrants to the United States English male film actors English film directors English male silent film actors Male actors from Birmingham, West Midlands 20th-century English male actors English expatriate male actors in the United States Burials at Grand View Memorial Park Cemetery