Robert Bruce Mantell (7 February 1854 – 27 June 1928) was a Scottish-born stage actor who made several silent films. He used the name Robert Hudson early in his career, as his mother objected to her son becoming an actor. Born in Scotland and raised in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, he travelled to the United States in 1874, but stayed only two weeks with no theatrical success. He returned in 1878 in support of

Helena Modjeska Helena Modrzejewska (; born Jadwiga Helena Mizel; October 12, 1840 – April 8, 1909), known professionally in the United States as Helena Modjeska, was a Polish-American actress who specialized in Shakespearean and tragic roles. She was success ...

but did not stay. In 1883 he found success on Broadway supporting Fanny Davenport as her leading man in ''Fedora''. For the remainder of his theatrical career he played

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 ...

and high class drama. He married several times, and often performed with his wives in Shakespearean productions. His last wife, Genevieve Hamper (1888–1971), was 35 years his junior. He began acting in films in 1915, aged 61, working at

Fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...

Studios with J. Gordon Edwards, who directed all of his films except the last. '' Under the Red Robe'' (1923) was directed by

Alan Crosland Frederick Alan Crosland (August 10, 1894 – July 16, 1936) was an American stage actor and film director. He is noted for having directed the first feature film using spoken dialogue, ''The Jazz Singer'' (1927) and the first feature movie with s ...

and distributed through

Goldwyn Pictures Goldwyn Pictures Corporation was an American motion picture production company that operated from 1916 to 1924 when it was merged with two other production companies to form the major studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was founded on November 19, ...

. As with most early ''Fox'' films, all of Mantell's films from that studio are lost. Elements of ''Under the Red Robe'' are held at George Eastman House in

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

Early life

Robert Bruce Mantell was born on 7 February 1854 in

Irvine, Scotland Irvine ( ;
; ) is a town and former

Robert the Bruce Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (), was King of Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329. Robert led Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence against Kingdom of Eng ...

. He was born at the Wheatsheaf Inn, which his parents owned and operated. When "Bobbie", as he was known, was five years old, his parents sold the Wheatsheaf and moved to

to take over management of a larger public house, which they named the Eglington-Winton. He attended five different schools and was dismissed from each for disciplinary problems. It was not until he was enrolled at McClinton's Seminary that he finally obtained something of a formal education. Robert Bruce Mantell was the great-uncle of

Angela Lansbury Dame Angela Brigid Lansbury (October 16, 1925 – October 11, 2022) was an Irish-British and American actress, producer, and singer. In a career spanning 80 years, she played various roles on stage and screen. Among her numerous accolades wer ...

Career

In Dublin, according to Mantell's biographer Clarence J. Bulliet, "there was a dramatic club, which young Bob Mantell, semi-clandestinely, because of parental objections, was one of the burning tapers". While his mother approved of such amateur stage productions, she had a "horror of the professional stage". When he resolved to pursue a career on the stage, his mother refused to assist him until he swore to change his name to Robert Hudson, and to go to America to ply his craft. With this assurance given, his mother presented Robert with "the same little sum of money she had given his older brothers when they started out into the world". However, after a mere 10 days in Boston, with no job and no prospects, Robert was down to exactly enough money to purchase a return ticket. He bought a ticket on the ''Hecla'' and returned home to Ireland. His first theatrical job (still using the name Robert Hudson) was with a stock company at the Theatre Royal, in

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England, and the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. In the United Kingdom 2021 Census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 111,261, compared to 223,773 for the wid ...

, Lancashire, where, on 21 October 1876, he made his stage debut in

Dion Boucicault Dionysius Lardner "Dion" Boucicault (né Boursiquot; 26 December 1820 – 18 September 1890) was an Irish actor and playwright famed for his melodramas. By the later part of the 19th century, Boucicault had become known on both sides of the ...

's '' Arrah-na-Pogue''. The company disbanded after one year, and Mantell joined the Heffernan company, performing abridged versions of ''Macbeth'', ''Othello'', ''Richard III'' and ''Hamlet'' that were "so hydraulically condensed that he could give ten or a dozen performances a day". He joined the company of Alice Marriott, and remained until 1878 when he set sail again for America. Using his real name for the first time, he won the part of

Tybalt Tybalt () is a fictional character and the principal antagonist in William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet''. He is the son of Lady Capulet's brother, Juliet's short-tempered first cousin, and Romeo's rival. Tybalt shares the same name ...

in the Leyland Opera House production of ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

''. There he joined George S. Knight's company, portraying Iago in Shakespeare's ''

Othello ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'', often shortened to ''Othello'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare around 1603. Set in Venice and Cyprus, the play depicts the Moorish military commander Othello as he is manipulat ...

'' opposite Frank Clement, who played the title character. In Knight's company he played several roles in Shakespeare's ''Romeo and Juliet'', ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

'', and ''

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

''. In 1883 he again headed to America. His first leading role in America was as Sir Clement Huntingford in ''The World''. He attained critical and popular acclaim in the role of Loris Ipanoff in Fanny Davenport's 1883–84 production of ''Fedora''. After that, leading roles came quickly and steadily. He starred in John Keller's ''Tangled Lives'' in 1886, starred in ''The Marble Heart'' in 1887, and in ''Monbars'' in 1887–88. By 1890, "MantQell believed himself strong enough to venture on a tour on his own account, after the fashion of the English actor-managers and pocket all the profits". In 1892, he opened at New York's Proctors Theatre in Charles Osborne's ''The Face in the Moonlight'', with Caroline Miskel, a young actress who was just at the beginning of her brief career on Broadway. In the last 5 years of the 19th century he toured extensively, putting on performances of ''Monbars'', ''Othello'', ''Hamlet'' and ''The Corsican Brothers'' in town after town, state after state—everywhere but New York. When the lawyers finally resolved his alimony difficulties, Mantell – now significantly older – returned to New York, but not as a romantic lead, as he had been known for so many years, but as a classic tragedian. One of his first leading roles after his return to New York was as

Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...

, where he demonstrated that "the line of great tragedians on the American stage had not ended with

Edwin Booth Edwin Thomas Booth (November 13, 1833 – June 7, 1893) was an American stage actor and theatrical manager who toured throughout the United States and the major capitals of Europe, performing Shakespearean plays. In 1869, he founded Booth's Th ...

". Work came easily after that. At one point, he was starring in ''Richard III'' one week, ''Richelieu'' the second week, ''Othello'' the third week, and ''Hamlet'' the fourth week in rotation. Mantell played Cawdor in ''Macbeth'' many times over, but ''King Lear'' was by far his "masterwork". He played the role over and over, refining and perfecting it from the 1910s almost until his death. Robert B. Mantell died at his home in

Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey Atlantic Highlands is a borough in Monmouth County in the U.S. state of New Jersey, in the Bayshore Region. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 4,414, an increase of 29 (+0.7%) from the 2010 census count of 4,38 ...

on 27 June 1928.

Filmography

*Select Scenes from ''Monbars'' (1896 short film) *''

The Blindness of Devotion ''The Blindness of Devotion'' is a lost 1915 silent film drama directed by J. Gordon Edwards and starring Robert B. Mantell and Genevieve Hamper. It was produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation. Cast *Robert B. Mantell - Count de Carn ...

'' (1915) *''

The Unfaithful Wife ''The Unfaithful Wife'' () is a 1969 French–Italian erotic thriller film written and directed by Claude Chabrol and starring Stéphane Audran and Michel Bouquet. The story follows a businessman who discovers his wife has been unfaithful. Plo ...

'' (1915) *'' The Green-Eyed Monster'' (1916) *'' A Wife's Sacrifice'' (1916) *'' The Spider and the Fly'' (1916) *'' Tangled Lives'' (1917) *'' Under the Red Robe'' (1923)

Personal life

Mantell was known for having had several marriages, and often performed with his wives in Shakespearean productions. He married Marie Sheldon, who bore him two sons, Robert Shand and Jack Mantell, but the couple soon divorced. Alimony demands and arrest warrants for nonsupport kept Mantell out of New York for years. He subsequently married Charlotte Behrens who bore him a daughter, Ethel Mantell, in 1895. His third wife was Marie Booth Russell who had a child from a previous relationship and who died in 1911. His last wife, Genevieve Hamper (1888–1971), was 35 years his junior, and bore him a son, Robert Bruce Mantell Jr. (1912–1933). He was close friends with professional wrestler, Alfred "Dutch" Mantell who took on Robert's last name as his real life last name was too difficult to pronounce.

References

Cited works

External links

* *
Robert B. Mantell profile on ''North American Theatre Online'' websiteRobert B. Mantell photo gallery New York Public Library Billy Rose Collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mantell, Robert B. 1854 births 1928 deaths Scottish male stage actors Scottish male silent film actors 20th-century Scottish male actors