Alan Mowbray
Born
Alfred Ernest Allen

(1896-08-18)18 August 1896
London, England
Died25 March 1969(1969-03-25) (aged 72)
Resting placeHoly Cross Cemetery, Culver City
OccupationActor
Years active19221969
Spouse
Lorraine Carpenter
(m. 1927)
Children2

Alan Mowbray MM (born Alfred Ernest Allen; 18 August 1896 – 25 March 1969) was an English stage and film actor who found success in Hollywood.

Early life

Mowbray was born in London, England. He served with distinction in the British Army in World War I, being awarded the Military Medal and the French Croix de Guerre for bravery in action. He applied for transfer to the Royal Air Force, which was granted just six days before the war ended. This placed him in London on Armistice Day. His service came to an end when the Royal Air Force wanted another seven years from him.[1]

Career

Mowbray began his stage career in London in 1922, as an actor and stage manager. In 1923 he arrived in the United States[2] and was soon acting with New York stock companies. He debuted on Broadway in The Sport of Kings (1926); in 1929 he wrote, directed and starred in the unsuccessful Dinner Is Served.[3]

Mowbray made his film debut in God's Gift to Women (1931) playing a butler, a role in which he was thereafter often cast. In a contemporary pulp magazine story, Raymond Chandler lampooned Mowbray's distinctive clipped speech in these roles: a butler is described as having "a wing collar and an accent like Alan Mowbray."[4]

Mowbray appeared in five more pictures in 1931, notably portraying George Washington in Alexander Hamilton. In 1935, he played one of the male leads in Becky Sharp, the first feature-length film in full-colour Technicolor, as well as playing the lead in the farcical Night Life of the Gods, based on a Thorne Smith novel. It was for another Thorne Smith–derived film, Topper (1937), that Mowbray may be best remembered; he played Topper's butler Wilkins, a role he reprised the following year in Topper Takes a Trip. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Mowbray worked steadily, appearing in over 120 films including the Oscar-nominated My Man Godfrey (1937).[5]

In the 1950s, Mowbray's film roles decreased, and he began to appear on television. He played the title role in the DuMont TV series Colonel Humphrey Flack, which first aired in 1953–54 and was revived in 1958–59. In the 1954–55 television season, Mowbray played Mr. Swift, the drama coach of the character Mickey Mulligan, in NBC's short-lived The Mickey Rooney Show: Hey, Mulligan. He portrayed the character Stewart Styles, a maitre d with a checkered past in the 1960-1961 adventure/drama series Dante, reprising a role he had originally played in several episodes of Four Star Theatre. Mowbray appeared in the titular role as a crooked astrologer in the 1959 episode "The Misfortune Teller" of the Maverick television series starring James Garner and Kathleen Crowley, and as Cranshaw in the episode "Quite a Woman" of the 1961 series The Investigators starring James Franciscus.

In 1956, Mowbray appeared in three major films, The King and I, The Man Who Knew Too Much and Around the World in 80 Days.[5] His final film role was as Captain Norcross in A Majority of One in 1961. In 1963, he returned to Broadway in the successful comedy Enter Laughing, playing Marlowe, the unscrupulous mentor to David Kolowitz (played by Alan Arkin).

Mowbray was a founding member of the Screen Actors Guild in 1933, writing a personal check to fund the group's incorporation and serving as the first vice president.[3][6]

Personal life

Mowbray married Lorraine Carpenter in 1927. Together they had two children, including daughter Patricia, who, at age 28 married her father's friend, 70-year-old Canadian actor Douglass Dumbrille, in 1960.[7]

Unusually for a Hollywood star, Mowbray was less of a fan of seeing himself on the screen, but enjoyed working behind the scenes. In addition to helping found the Screen Actors Guild,[8] he was among the founders of the Hollywood Cricket Club. He was a prominent early member of the Masquers Club, and donated to the group's long-time clubhouse at 1765 N. Sycamore Street in Hollywood. He also was a founder of the British United Services Club,[9] a club for ex British Military members in Hollywood that met at the Masquers.

Mowbray cooperated heavily with the FBI in the investigation of Japanese Spy Frederick Rutland,[10] keeping it secret for the rest of his life, even though he ironically played a spy in the original The_Man_from_U.N.C.L.E.

Mowbray died of a heart attack in 1969 in Hollywood, survived by his wife and children. His body is interred in the Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.

Filmography

Year Film Role Director Notes
1931God's Gift to WomenAuguste, Toto's ButlerMichael Curtiz
1931The Man in PossessionSir Charles CartwrightSam Wood (uncredited)
1931Guilty HandsGordon RichLionel Barrymore
1931Alexander HamiltonGeorge WashingtonJohn G. Adolfi
1931Left Over LadiesJerryErle C. Kenton
1931Honor of the FamilyTony RevereLloyd Bacon
1931Nice WomenMark ChandlerEdwin H. Knopf
1932Lovers CourageousLamoneRobert Z. Leonard
1932The Silent WitnessArthur DrintonMarcel Varnel
1932Hotel ContinentalWalter UnderwoodChristy Cabanne
1932The World and the FleshDimitriJohn Cromwell
1932Man About TownIvan BorisJohn Francis Dillon
1932The Man from YesterdayDr. WaiteBerthold Viertel
1932Winner Take Allthe Etiquette TeacherRoy Del Ruth
1932The Man Called BackKing's CounselRobert Florey
1932Jewel RobberyDetective FritzWilliam Dieterle
1932Two Against the WorldGeorge 'Georgie' WaltonArchie Mayo
1932The Phantom PresidentGeorge WashingtonNorman Tauroguncredited
1932Sherlock HolmesColonel Gore-KingWilliam K. Howard
1933Our BettersLord George GraystonGeorge Cukor
1933A Study in ScarletInspector LastradeEdwin L. Marin
1933Peg o' My HeartCapt. Christopher 'Chris' BrentRobert Z. Leonard (uncredited)
1933The Midnight ClubArthur Bradley
1933VoltaireCount De SarnacJohn G. Adolfi
1933Berkeley SquareMajor ClintonFrank Lloyd
1933The World ChangesSir Phillip IvorMervyn LeRoy
1933Roman ScandalsMajordomoFrank Tuttle
1933Her SecretNils NortonWarren Millais
1934Long Lost FatherSir Tony GeldingErnest B. Schoedsack
1934The House of RothschildPrince MetternichMaude T. Howell (asst.)
1934Where Sinners MeetNicholasJ. Walter Ruben
1934Little Man, What Now?Franz Schluter
1934CheatersPaul SouthernPhil Rosen
1934The Girl from MissouriLord DouglasJack Conway
1934One More RiverForsytheJames Whale
1934Embarrassing MomentsAheamEdward Laemmle
1934Charlie Chan in LondonGeoffrey RichmondEugene Forde
1935Night Life of the GodsHunter HawkLowell Sherman
1935Becky SharpRawdon CrawleyRouben Mamoulian
1935Lady TubbsElyot WembsleighAlan Crosland
1935The Gay DeceptionLord CleweWilliam Wyler
1935She Couldn't Take ItAlan BartlettTay Garnett
1935In PersonJay HolmesJames Anderson
1936Rose-MariePremier
1936Muss 'em UpPaul HardingCharles Vidor[11]
1936Give Us This NightForcelliniAlexander Hall
1936DesireDr. Maurice PauquetFrank Borzage
1936The Case Against Mrs. AmesLawrence WatersonWilliam A. Seiter
1936Fatal LadyUberto MallaEdward Ludwig
1936Mary of ScotlandThrockmortonJohn Ford
1936My Man GodfreyTommy GrayGregory La Cava
1936Ladies in LovePaul SandorEdward H. Griffith
1936Four Days' WonderArchibald Fenton
1936Rainbow on the RiverRalph LaytonGeorge Sherman
1937On the AvenueFrederick SimsWilliam Seiter (fill-in)
1937The King and the Chorus GirlDonald TaylorMervyn LeRoy
1937As Good as MarriedWallyEdward Buzzell
1937Marry the GirlDr. Hayden StrykerWilliam C. McGann
1937TopperWilkinsNorman Z. McLeod
1937Walter Wanger's Vogues of 1938Henry MorganCharles Kerr
1937On Such a NightProfessor Ricardo Montrose CandleEwald André Dupont
1937Music for MadameLeon RodowskyJohn G. Blystone
1937Stand-InKoslofskiCharles Kerr (assistant)
1937Hollywood HotelAlexander DupreyBusby Berkeley
1938Merrily We LiveButlerNorman Z. McLeod
1938There Goes My HeartPennypepper E. PennypepperNorman Z. McLeod
1938Topper Takes a TripWilkinsNorman Z. McLeod
1939Never Say DiePrince SmirnovElliott Nugent
1939Way Down SouthJacques BoutonBernard Vorhaus
1939The Llano KidJohn TraversEdward Venturini
1940Music in My HeartCharles GardnerJoseph Santley
1940Curtain CallDonald AveryFrank Woodruff
1940ScatterbrainJ.R. RussellGus Meins
1940The Boys from SyracuseAngeloA. Edward Sutherland
1940The Villain Still Pursued HerSilas CribbsEdward F. Cline
1940The QuarterbackProfessor HobbsH. Bruce Humberstone
1941Footlight FeverMr. Don AveryIrving Reis
1941That Hamilton WomanSir William HamiltonAlexander Korda
1941That Uncertain FeelingDr. VengardErnst Lubitsch
1941The Cowboy and the BlondePhineas JohnsonRay McCarey
1941Ice-CapadesPete Ellis
1941Moon Over Her ShoulderGrover SloanAlfred L. Werker
1941I Wake Up ScreamingRobin RayH. Bruce Humberstone
1941The Perfect SnobFreddie BrowningRay McCarey
1942Yokel BoyMovie ProducerJoseph Santley
1942We Were DancingGrand Duke BasilRobert Z. Leonard
1942The Mad MartindalesHugo MartindaleAlfred L. Werker
1942Panama HattieJay Jerkins, Dick's ButlerNorman Z. McLeod
1942A Yank at EtonMr. DuncanNorman Taurog
1942Isle of Missing MenDr. Henry BrownRichard Oswald
1942The Devil with HitlerGesatanGordon Douglas
1943The Powers GirlJohn Robert PowersNorman Z. McLeod
1943Slightly DangerousEnglish GentlemanBuster Keaton
1943Stage Door CanteenAlan MowbrayFrank Borzage
1943So This Is WashingtonChester W. MarshallRay McCarey
1943Holy MatrimonyMr. PenningtonJohn M. Stahl
1943His Butler's SisterBuzz JenkinsFrank Borzage
1944The DoughgirlsBreckenridge DrakeJames V. Kern
1944Ever Since VenusJ. Webster HackettArthur Dreifuss
1944My Gal Loves MusicRodney Spoonyer
1945Bring on the GirlsAugustSidney Lanfield
1945Earl Carroll VanitiesGrand Duke PaulJoseph Santley
1945The Phantom of 42nd StreetCecil MooreAlbert Herman
1945Where Do We Go from Here?General George Washington
1945Tell It to a StarColonel Ambrose MorganFrank McDonald
1945Men in Her DiaryDouglas Crane
1945Sunbonnet SueJonathan
1946Terror by NightMaj. Duncan-BleekRoy William Neill
1946Idea GirlJ.C. CrowWill Jason
1946My Darling ClementineGranville ThorndykeJohn Ford
1947The Pilgrim LadyClifford LatimerLesley Selander
1947LuredLyle MaxwellDouglas Sirk
1947Merton of the MoviesFrank MulvaneyRobert Alton
1947Captain from CastileProf. BotelloHenry King
1948The Main Street KidThe Great MartineR. G. Springsteen
1948The Prince of ThievesThe FriarHoward Bretherton
1948An Innocent AffairKen St. ClairLloyd Bacon
1948My Dear SecretaryDevenyCharles Martin
1948Every Girl Should Be MarriedMr. SpitzerDon Hartman
1949The Lone Wolf and His LadyJamison, Lanyard's ValetJohn Hoffman
1949The Lovable CheatJustinRichard Oswald
1949You're My EverythingJoe BlantonWalter Lang
1949Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris KarloffMeltonCharles Barton
1950Wagon MasterDr. A. Locksley HallJohn Ford
1950The JackpotLeslieWalter Lang
1951Dick Turpin's RideLord Charles WilloughbyRalph Murphy
1951CrosswindsSir Cecil DaubreyLewis R. Foster
1952Just Across the StreetDavisJoseph Pevney
1952Androcles and the LionEditor of GladiatorsNicholas Ray (uncredited)
1952Blackbeard the PirateNollRaoul Walsh
1954Ma and Pa Kettle at HomeAlphonsus ManneringCharles Lamont
1954The Steel CageLee Filbertsegment "The Chef"
1955The King's ThiefSir Gilbert TalbotHugo Fregonese (uncredited)
1956The Man Who Knew Too MuchVal ParnellAlfred Hitchcock
1956The King and ISir John HayWalter Lang
1956Around the World in 80 Daysthe British Consul at SuezMichael Anderson
1956Once Upon a HoneymoonGordonGower ChampionShort
1961A Majority of OneCaptain Norcross

TV appearances

The Beverly Hillbillies Season 7,Episode 1, September 25, 1968, A Bundle for Britain Episode 199. Played Montrose, hired by Mr Drysdale to pretend to be the queen of Englands financial servant..

References

  1. Wearing, J.P. (2014). The London Stage 1920–1929: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 190–200. ISBN 978-0-8108-9302-3.
  2. Moreno, Barry (2008). Ellis Island's Famous Immigrants. Arcadia. p. 98. ISBN 978-1-4396-2003-8.
  3. 1 2 Mank, Gregory W. (2007). Hollywood's Hellfire Club: The Misadventures of John Barrymore, W.C. Fields, Errol Flynn and the "Bundy Drive" Boys. Feral House. pp. 152–53. ISBN 978-1-932595-24-6.
  4. Chandler, Raymond T. 1937. 'Mandarin's Jade' originally published in Dime Detective Magazine, November, 1937. Republished in Raymond Chandler: Collected Stories. 2002. Everyman's Library, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, p. 667.
  5. 1 2 Monush, Barry (2003). Screen World Presents the Encyclopedia of Hollywood Film Actors: From the silent era to 1965. Hal Leonard Corporation. pp. 531–32. ISBN 978-1-55783-551-2.
  6. Prindle, David F. (2012). The Politics of Glamour: Ideology and Democracy in the Screen Actors Guild. Univ of Wisconsin Press. pp. 21–22. ISBN 978-0-299-11813-6.
  7. Kear, Lynn; Rossman, John (2016). The Complete Kay Francis Career Record: All Film, Stage, Radio and Television Appearances. McFarland. p. 243. ISBN 9781476602875. Retrieved 26 April 2021 via Google Books.
  8. IMDB https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0610253/
  9. "History". British United Services Club. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  10. Drabkin, Ronald (2024). Beverly Hills Spy. New York: William Morrow. ISBN 978-0063310070. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  11. "Muss 'Em Up: Detail View". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on 29 March 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2022.
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