Erskine Sanford (November 19, 1885 – July 7, 1969) was an American actor on the stage, radio and motion pictures. Long associated with the

Theatre Guild The Theatre Guild is a theatrical society founded in New York City in 1918 by Lawrence Langner, Philip Moeller, Helen Westley and Theresa Helburn. Langner's wife, Armina Marshall, then served as a co-director. It evolved out of the work of ...

, he later joined

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

Mercury Theatre The Mercury Theatre was an independent repertory theatre company founded in New York City in 1937 by Orson Welles and producer John Houseman. The company produced theatrical presentations, radio programs and motion pictures. The Mercury also r ...

company and appeared in several of Welles's films, including ''

Citizen Kane ''Citizen Kane'' is a 1941 American Drama (film and television), drama film directed by, produced by and starring Orson Welles and co-written by Welles and Herman J. Mankiewicz. It was Welles's List of directorial debuts, first feature film. ...

'' (1941), in which he played Herbert Carter, the bumbling, perspiring newspaper editor.

Biography

Erskine Sanford was born in

Trinidad, Colorado Trinidad is the List of cities and towns in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality that is the county seat of and the List of cities and towns in Colorado, most populous municipality in Las Animas County, Colorado, United Stat ...

, and was educated at the

Horace Mann School Horace Mann School (also known as Horace Mann or HM) is an American private, independent college-preparatory school in the Bronx, founded in 1887. Horace Mann is a member of the Ivy Preparatory School League, educating students from the New Yo ...

in New York City. Beginning his acting career with

Minnie Maddern Fiske Minnie Maddern Fiske (born Marie Augusta Davey; December 19, 1865 – February 15, 1932), but often billed simply as Mrs. Fiske, was one of the leading American actresses of the late 19th and early 20th century. She also spearheaded the fig ...

's company, he made his professional debut in '' Leah Kleschna''. He appeared in ''The Blue Bird'' and ''The Piper'' (1910–11) at the New Theatre in New York City, and in

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

an repertory with

Ben Greet Sir Philip Barling Greet (24 September 1857 – 17 May 1936), known professionally as Ben Greet, was a British William Shakespeare, Shakespearean actor, director, impresario and actor-manager. Early life The younger son of Captain William Gre ...

. For some 15 years, he was associated with the

, playing roles on Broadway and on tour, including performances of '' Porgy'' and ''

Strange Interlude ''Strange Interlude'' is an experimental play in nine acts by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. It won the 1928 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. ''Strange Interlude'' is one of the few modern plays to make extensive use of a soliloquy technique, in ...

'' on the London stage. In

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in Kenosha County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Wisconsin, fourth-most populous city in Wisconsin, with a population of 99,986 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. S ...

, Sanford first met Orson Welles in 1922, when the seven-year-old boy came backstage to meet him after a touring performance of '' Mr. Pim Passes By''. Years later, Sanford left the Theatre Guild to join Welles's

company, and made his Mercury debut in the 1938 stage production of ''

Heartbreak House ''Heartbreak House: A Fantasia in the Russian Manner on English Themes'' is a play written by Bernard Shaw during the First World War, published in 1919 and first performed in November 1920 at the Garrick Theatre, New York, followed by a West ...

''. Appearing as Mazzini Dunn, Sanford reprised the role he had created 18 years before in the Theatre Guild's world premiere production. In 1941, Sanford married psychiatric nursing pioneer Adele Poston, but the marriage lasted only a short time. Sanford died in 1969.https://www.newspapers.com/image/684674792/?match=1&terms=erskine%20sanford

Theatre credits

Filmography

Radio credits

References

External links

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Photograph of Erskine Sanford as Alan Archdale
in '' Porgy'' (1927) — New York Public Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Sanford, Erskine 1885 births 1969 deaths American male film actors American male radio actors American male stage actors Male actors from California 20th-century American male actors Horace Mann School alumni