Seth Arnold (1885 – January 3, 1955) was an American theater and film character actor.
Early life
Arnold was born in 1885 in London, England to American parents. His father represented the American Tobacco Company in London. After his family moved back to the United States, Seth joined the Castle Square Stock Company in Boston in 1901.
Career
Arnold's first role consisted of a single line in "Quo Vadis" in 1901. During World War I, he did intelligence work for the government, afterwards becoming a theatrical director. He directed productions in Boston, Chicago, St. Louis, and
Jersey City
Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.The Arabian Nightmare'' at the Cort Theatre in New York City. He played another physician in 1928's ''Quicksand'' and starred in ''Steel'' (1931), '' Mourning Becomes Electra'' (1932), '' Pursuit of Happiness'', ''Tommy'' and ''Unto the Third'' (1933), ''Symphony'' (1935) and '' Ah, Wilderness!'' (1935), where in the road production he played Nat Miller, one of the play's key roles. He also starred in ''Lady Lucky'' in 1936 and as
Doremus Jessup
''It Can't Happen Here'' is a 1935 dystopian political novel by American author Sinclair Lewis. It describes the rise of a United States dictator similar to how Adolf Hitler gained power. The novel was adapted into a play by Lewis and John C. Mo ...
Helen Hayes
Helen Hayes MacArthur ( Brown; October 10, 1900 – March 17, 1993) was an American actress whose career spanned 80 years. She eventually received the nickname "First Lady of American Theatre" and was the second person and first woman to have w ...
in '' What Every Woman Knows''. He was in ''Conquest'' in 1940 and in '' Clash By Night'' in 1941. He again appeared with Hayes in ''Harriet'' (about
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Elisabeth Beecher Stowe (; June 14, 1811 – July 1, 1896) was an American author and abolitionist. She came from the religious Beecher family and became best known for her novel ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' (1852), which depicts the harsh ...
) in 1943. He also starred in ''Last Stop'' (1944), ''A Place of Our Own'' (1945), ''A Joy Forever'' (1945), ''I Like It Here'' (1946), ''Years Ago'' (1946). In 1947, he left Broadway to appear in the Hollywood version of '' Mourning Becomes Electra'' but was forced out of the cast by illness. He appeared in other films, including ''
Lost Boundaries
''Lost Boundaries'' is a 1949 American film starring Beatrice Pearson, Mel Ferrer (in his first leading role), and Susan Douglas Rubeš. Directed by Alfred L. Werker, it is based on William Lindsay White's story of the same title, a nonficti ...
Arnold was married to a fellow actor who was known professionally as Laurie McVicker. He died in his home at the Marie Antoinette Hotel in New York City on January 3, 1955.