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You are here: Home / Archives for character actors

Guy Kibbee Biography – Character Actor Played Sugar Daddies, Goofballs, and Patriarchs

January 11, 2016 By Cliff Aliperti 3 Comments

Guy Kibbee in Big Hearted Herbert

Biography of 1930s and 1940s character actor Guy Kibbee, who starred in over one hundred Hollywood films. Lovable Kibbee could play lecherous sugar daddies and folksy patriarchs with equal skill.

Filed Under: Movie Star Biographies Tagged With: character actors, Guy Kibbee, what a character

Arthur Hohl – Broadway to Hollywood, Double-Dealers All the Way

May 21, 2015 By Cliff Aliperti 4 Comments

Arthur Hohl in Jimmy the Gent

A biography of character actor Arthur Hohl, whose Broadway stardom typed him as cowardly villains and humorless prosecutors throughout Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Filed Under: Movie Star Biographies Tagged With: Arthur Hohl, character actors

Ralf Harolde, Expert Portrayer of Lowlifes and Junkies

May 17, 2015 By Cliff Aliperti 7 Comments

Ralf Harolde in Picture Snatcher

Appraisal of Ralf Harolde’s talents as ultimate pre-Code lowlife with biographical bits assembled where possible. Busy character actor of the 1930s-40s, who made his mark in films such as Night Nurse, Safe in Hell, and Picture Snatcher.

Filed Under: Movie Star Biographies Tagged With: character actors, Ralf Harolde

Grant Mitchell – WHAT A CHARACTER! – Broadway to Hollywood, 1902-1948

November 19, 2014 By Cliff Aliperti 17 Comments

Grant Mitchell in Wild Boys of the Road

Biography of prolific Hollywood character actor Grant Mitchell. His great-uncle was a US President and his father a famed Civil War General. Mitchell tried careers in law and the military, but eventually took to the stage where he began a slow rise to stardom in 1902.

Filed Under: Movie Star Biographies Tagged With: character actors, Grant Mitchell, what a character

Eugene Pallette – Brief Biography with Additional Trivia

July 8, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti 10 Comments

Eugene Pallette 1930s Aguila Chocolate Trading Card

A look at Eugene Pallette, the heavyset character actor with the gravelly voice. Did he retire due to ill health or did charges of racism run him out of the movies? A brief biography includes a look at Pallette’s ranch in Oregon.

Filed Under: Movie Star Biographies Tagged With: character actors, Eugene Pallette, madame sul-te-wan, otto preminger, Wallace Reid

Louise Beavers – Biography of Imitation of Life’s Aunt Delilah

March 11, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti 12 Comments

Louise Beavers in Imitation of Life

A 4,000 word biography of the African American actress Louise Beavers whose greatest fame came as Aunt Delilah in 1934’s Imitation of Life. She enjoyed a long career in mostly maid roles including a starring role on early 1950s television series Beulah.

Filed Under: Movie Star Biographies, News - Notes Tagged With: Beulah, black actors, bullets or ballots, character actors, coquette, Imitation of Life, ladies of the big house, Louise Beavers, no time for comedy, the beulah show

Robert McWade – Brief Biography of the Grouchy Character Actor

January 25, 2013 By Cliff Aliperti Leave a Comment

Robert McWade in I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang

A brief look at the career of 1930s character actor Robert McWade including images of him in some of his more famous movies. Son of a stage legend, he managed to upstage his father at the very end.

Filed Under: Movie Star Biographies Tagged With: 42nd Street, character actors, cimarron, grand hotel, heroes for sale, i am a fugitive from a chain gang, rip van winkle, Robert McWade, the phantom of crestwood

Sara Haden – Charlotte Walker’s Daughter and Andy Hardy’s Aunt Milly

December 17, 2012 By Cliff Aliperti 1 Comment

Sara Haden and Minor Watson 1939 A and M Wix Film Favourites Tobacco Card

Character actress Sara Haden was stage and screen star Charlotte Walker’s daughter. Originally famed for playing cranks became Andy Hardy’s Aunt Milly in 14 of the Hardy Family movies.

Filed Under: Movie Star Biographies Tagged With: aunt millie, aunt milly, character actors, Charlotte Walker, Hardy Family, Sara Haden

Una Merkel – Biographical Notes and Quotes

December 10, 2012 By Cliff Aliperti 10 Comments

Una Merkel early 1930s 5x7 Fan Photo

A critique of the 2012 TCM Una Merkel birthday schedule along with highlights of her biography and several quotes attributed to her throughout her career.

Filed Under: Movie Star Biographies Tagged With: Birthdays, Broadway, character actors, schedules, TCM, Turner Classic Movies, Una Merkel

Edward Ellis – A Biography of The Thin Man, an Actor to Remember

November 13, 2012 By Cliff Aliperti 4 Comments

Edward Ellis in A Man to Remember

A biography of actor Edward Ellis, best remembered for playing the title role in 1934’s The Thin Man. But Ellis, an acting pro since the 1870s, became a full fledged movie star with 1938’s A Man to Remember.

Filed Under: Movie Star Biographies Tagged With: a man to remember, Anne Shirley, character actors, Edward Ellis, fury, i am a fugitive from a chain gang, josephine stevens, Mr Smith Goes to Washington, The Thin Man, three sons

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About Cliff

I write about old movies and movie stars from the 1920s to the 1950s. I also sell movie cards, still photos and other ephemera. Immortal Ephemera connects the stories with the collectibles. Read More…

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Helen Twelvetrees Perfect Ingenue by Cliff Aliperti

Helen Twelvetrees, Perfect Ingenue

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11 Pre Code Hollywood Movie Histories book

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Praise for Helen Twelvetrees, Perfect Ingenue

Recommended BooksJames L. Neibaur of Examiner.com calls it: "One of the most interesting and important film books of the young year," adding, "the documentation is original and significant." Full review.

Recommended BooksJacqueline T. Lynch, author of Ann Blyth: Actress. Singer.Star., says: "A prime example of a classic film fan taking the reins to produce a scholarly study of a neglected figure from the Golden Age of classic films in a way that I feel is refreshing, infinitely helpful to fans and students of old movies." Full review.

Recommended BooksSilver Screenings says: "A fascinating account of an ambitious and hard-working woman ... Aliperti’s book is well written and incredibly well researched." Full review.

Recommended BooksSpeakeasy says: "Despite her decline, this is not a sad or bleak book but an enjoyable history ... Any fan of the collectible Citadel “Films of” book series will appreciate the modern twist on that format, a full biography followed by an expanded filmography." Full review.

Recommended BooksA Classic Movie Blog says: "I think this is a good format for performers with short lives and brief careers ... I went into it with only mild curiosity about Twelvetrees and now I find my self pining for copies of unavailable, but intriguing films." Full review.

Helen Twelvetrees, Perfect Ingenue is available in paperback or Kindle edition at Amazon.com.


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