Walter Connolly (April 8, 1887 – May 28, 1940) was an American

character actor A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting character (arts), characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrie ...

who appeared in almost 50 films from 1914 to 1939. His best known film is ''

It Happened One Night ''It Happened One Night'' is a 1934 American pre-Code romantic comedy film with elements of screwball comedy directed and co-produced by Frank Capra, in collaboration with Harry Cohn, in which a pampered socialite ( Claudette Colbert) tr ...

'' (1934).

Early years

Connolly was born on April 8, 1887 in Cincinnati, Ohio. His parents were Ella Burke and Walter Joseph Connolly. Connolly attended St. Xavier College and the College of Music of Cincinnati and acted locally in amateur theatrical productions. Several years later, following his service with the U. S. Marines in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, rather than return directly to the United States, Connolly went to Ireland, where he enrolled in a number of non-theatre-related courses at the

University of Dublin The University of Dublin (), corporately named as The Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin, is a research university located in Dublin, Republic of Ireland. It is the degree-awarding body for Trinity College Dublin, whi ...

, reportedly with the intention of abandoning the profession altogether. However, numerous visits to the Abbey Theater evidently rekindled Connolly's acting bug. Within four months of his return to the States, Connolly was being praised for his work alongside Margaret Anglin and others in Paul Kester's adaptation of Henry Kistemaeckers' play, ''The Woman of Bronze''.

Career

Between the years of 1916 and 1935, Connolly was a successful stage actor who appeared in twenty-two Broadway productions, notably revivals of Pirandello's ''

Six Characters in Search of an Author ''Six Characters in Search of an Author'' ( ) is an Italian play by Luigi Pirandello, written and first performed in 1921. An absurdist metatheatric play about the relationship among authors, their characters, and theatre practitioners, it p ...

'' and

Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; ; 29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his b ...

's ''

Uncle Vanya ''Uncle Vanya'' ( rus, Дя́дя Ва́ня, r=Dyádya Ványa, p=ˈdʲædʲə ˈvanʲə) is a play by the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. It was first published in 1897, and first produced in 1899 by the Moscow Art Theatre, directed by Konstan ...

''. His first film appearances came in two silent films, ''The Marked Woman'' (1914) and ''A Soldier's Oath'' (1915), and his first talkie film came in 1930, ''Many Happy Returns'', but his Hollywood film career really began in 1932, when he appeared in four films. His trademark role was that of the exasperated business tycoon or newspaperman, often as the father of the female lead character, as in ''

'' (1934) with

Clark Gable William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American actor often referred to as the "King of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". He appeared in more than 60 Film, motion pictures across a variety of Film genre, genres dur ...

and

Claudette Colbert Claudette Colbert (koʊlˈbɛər/ kohl-BAIR, born Émilie "Lily" Claudette Chauchoin (ʃoʃwɛ̃/ show-shwan); September 13, 1903 – July 30, 1996) was an American actress. Colbert began her career in Broadway theater, Broadway productions dur ...

; ''

Broadway Bill ''Broadway Bill'' is a 1934 American comedy-drama film directed by Frank Capra and starring Warner Baxter and Myrna Loy. Screenplay by Robert Riskin and based on the short story "Strictly Confidential" by Mark Hellinger, the film is about a ...

'' (1934), supporting

Warner Baxter Warner Leroy Baxter (March 29, 1889 – May 7, 1951) was an American film actor from the 1910s to the 1940s. Baxter is known for his role as the Cisco Kid in the 1928 film ''In Old Arizona'', for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor at ...

and

Myrna Loy Myrna Loy (born Myrna Adele Williams; August 2, 1905 – December 14, 1993) was an American film, television and stage actress. As a performer, she was known for her ability to adapt to her screen partner's acting style. Born in Helena, Monta ...

; and ''

Libeled Lady ''Libeled Lady'' is a 1936 American screwball comedy film directed by Jack Conway and starring Jean Harlow, William Powell, Myrna Loy, and Spencer Tracy. The screenplay was written by Maurine Dallas Watkins, Howard Emmett Rogers, and George Opp ...

'' (1936) with

William Powell William Horatio Powell (July 29, 1892 – March 5, 1984) was an American actor, known primarily for his film career. Under contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the ''The Thin Man (film), Thin M ...

and Loy again. Other notable roles included the worthless uncle of

Paul Muni Paul Muni (born Frederich Meshilem Meier Weisenfreund; September 22, 1895 – August 25, 1967) was an American stage and film actor from Chicago. He started his acting career in the Yiddish theater and during the 1930s, he was considered one of ...

's character in '' The Good Earth'' (1937) and one of the two con men encountered by

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Ninnian Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nearly nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last survivi ...

's Huckleberry Finn in ''

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' is a picaresque novel by American author Mark Twain that was first published in the United Kingdom in December 1884 and in the United States in February 1885. Commonly named among the Great American Novels, th ...

'' (1939). Connolly played General Yen's American advisor in ''

The Bitter Tea of General Yen ''The Bitter Tea of General Yen'' is a 1933 American Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code drama (film and television), drama war film directed by Frank Capra and starring Barbara Stanwyck, and featuring Nils Asther and Walter Connolly. Based on the 193 ...

'' (1933). Connolly mostly played supporting roles, but starred occasionally, as

Nero Wolfe Nero Wolfe is a brilliant, obese and eccentric fictional armchair detective created in 1934 by American mystery (fiction), mystery writer Rex Stout. Wolfe was born in Principality of Montenegro, Montenegro and keeps his past murky. He lives in a ...

in '' The League of Frightened Men'' (1937), in RKO's '' 5th Ave Girl'' (1939), opposite

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...

, and as the

title character The title character in a narrative work is one who is named or referred to in the title of the work. In a performed work such as a play or film, the performer who plays the title character is said to have the title role of the piëce. The title o ...

in '' The Great Victor Herbert'' (1939), his last film. On radio, Connolly starred as the title character in ''The Adventures of

Charlie Chan Charlie Chan is a fictional Honolulu Police Department, Honolulu police detective created by author Earl Derr Biggers for a series of mystery novels. Biggers loosely based Chan on Hawaiian detective Chang Apana. The benevolent and heroic Chan ...

'' on NBC Radio from 1932 to 1938.

Death

Connolly died on May 28, 1940 in Beverly Hills, following a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

, and was buried in St. Joseph New Cemetery in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

.Wilson, Scott (2016).
Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed.
'. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 152. .

Complete filmography

*''The Marked Woman'' (1914) - Prince Ching *'' A Soldier's Oath'' (1915) - Raoul de Reyntiens *''Many Happy Returns'' (1930, Short) *'' Washington Merry-Go-Round'' (1932) - Wylie *'' Man Against Woman'' (1932) - Mossie Ennis *'' No More Orchids'' (1932) - Bill Holt *''

'' (1933) - Jones *'' Plainclothes Man'' (1932) *'' Paddy the Next Best Thing'' (1933) - Major Adair *'' Lady for a Day'' (1933) - Count Romero *'' Man's Castle'' (1933) - Ira *'' East of Fifth Avenue'' (1933) - John Lawton *'' Master of Men'' (1933) - Sam Parker *'' Eight Girls in a Boat'' (1934) - Storm *''

'' (1934) - Alexander Andrews *'' Once to Every Woman'' (1934) - Dr. Selby *'' Twentieth Century'' (1934) - Webb *'' Whom the Gods Destroy'' (1934) - John Forrester aka Eric Jann aka Peter Korotoff *'' Servants' Entrance'' (1934) - Viktor Nilsson *'' Lady by Choice'' (1934) - Judge Daly *'' The Captain Hates the Sea'' (1934) - Capt. Helquist *''

'' (1934) - J. L. Higgins *'' Father Brown, Detective'' (1934) - Father Brown *'' So Red the Rose'' (1935) - Malcolm Bedford *'' She Couldn't Take It'' (1935) - Daniel Van Dyke *'' One Way Ticket'' (1935) - Captain Bourne *'' White Lies'' (1935) - John Frank Mitchell *'' Soak the Rich'' (1936) - Humphrey Craig *''

The Music Goes 'Round ''The Music Goes 'Round'' is a 1936 American musical comedy film directed by Victor Schertzinger and starring Harry Richman, Rochelle Hudson and Walter Connolly.Monaco p.559 It was produced and distributed by Columbia Pictures. Plot A famed B ...

'' (1936) - Hector Courtney *'' The King Steps Out'' (1936) - Maximilian, Duke of Bavaria *''

'' (1936) - Mr. James B. Allenbury *'' The Good Earth'' (1937) - Uncle *'' Nancy Steele Is Missing!'' (1937) - Michael Steele *'' Let's Get Married'' (1937) - Joe Quinn *'' The League of Frightened Men'' (1937) - Nero Wolfe *'' Nothing Sacred'' (1937) - Oliver Stone *'' First Lady'' (1937) - Carter Hibbard *''

Penitentiary A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state, usually ...

'' (1938) - Dist. Atty. Thomas Mathews *'' Start Cheering'' (1938) - Sam Lewis *''

Four's a Crowd ''Four's a Crowd'' is a 1938 American screwball comedy, screwball comedy film directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Rosalind Russell and Patric Knowles. The picture was written by Casey Robinson and Sig Herzig fr ...

'' (1938) - John P. Dillingwell *'' Too Hot to Handle'' (1938) - 'Gabby' MacArthur *'' The Girl Downstairs'' (1938) - Mr. Brown *''

'' (1939) - The 'King' *'' Bridal Suite'' (1939) - Doctor Grauer *'' Good Girls Go to Paris'' (1939) - Olaf Brand *''

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a Maritime Security Regimes, maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with cust ...

'' (1939) - Tobias Bliss *'' Fifth Avenue Girl'' (1939) - Timothy Borden *'' Those High Grey Walls'' (1939) - Dr. MacAuley *'' The Great Victor Herbert'' (1939) - Victor Herbert (final film role)

Notes

External links

* * * *
Literature on Walter Connolly
{{DEFAULTSORT:Connolly, Walter 1887 births 1940 deaths 20th-century American male actors American male film actors American male radio actors American male silent film actors American male stage actors American people of Irish descent Catholics from Ohio Male actors from Cincinnati Xavier University alumni