Lionel Barrymore | |
|---|---|
 Barrymorec. 1910 | |
| Born | Lionel Herbert Blyth (1878-04-28)April 28, 1878 Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | November 15, 1954(1954-11-15) (aged 76) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1893–1954 |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent(s) | Maurice Barrymore Georgiana Drew |
| Family | Barrymore |
Lionel Barrymore (bornLionel Herbert Blyth; April 28, 1878 – November 15, 1954) was an American actor of stage, screen and radio as well as a film director.[1] He won anAcademy Award for Best Actor for his performance inA Free Soul (1931) and is known to modern audiences for the role of villainousMr. Potter inFrank Capra's 1946 filmIt's a Wonderful Life.
He is also particularly remembered asEbenezer Scrooge in annual broadcasts ofA Christmas Carol during his last two decades. He is also known for playing Dr. Leonard Gillespie inMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer's nineDr. Kildare films, a role he reprised in a further six films focusing solely on Gillespie and in a radio series titledThe Story of Dr. Kildare. He was a member of the theatricalBarrymore family.
Lionel Barrymore was bornLionel Herbert Blyth inPhiladelphia, the son of actorsGeorgiana Drew Barrymore andMaurice Barrymore (born Herbert Arthur Chamberlayne Blyth). He was the elder brother ofEthel andJohn Barrymore, the uncle ofJohn Drew Barrymore andDiana Barrymore and the great-uncle ofDrew Barrymore, among other members of theBarrymore family. He attended private schools as a child, including theArt Students League of New York.[2] While raised aRoman Catholic,[3] Barrymore attended theEpiscopal Academy in Philadelphia.[4] Barrymore graduated fromSeton Hall Preparatory School, the Roman Catholic college prep school, in the class of 1891.[5]
Reluctant to follow his parents' career,[6] Barrymore appeared together with his grandmotherLouisa Lane Drew on tour and in a stage production ofThe Rivals in 1893 at the age of 15.[2][7] He later recounted that "I didn't want to act. I wanted to paint or draw. The theater was not in my blood, I was related to the theater by marriage only; it was merely a kind ofin-law of mine I had to live with."[6] Nevertheless, he soon found success on stage in character roles and continued to act, although he still wanted to become a painter and also to compose music.[8] He appeared onBroadway in his early twenties with his uncleJohn Drew Jr. in such plays asThe Second in Command (1901) andThe Mummy and the Hummingbird (1902), the latter of which won him critical acclaim.[2]The Other Girl in 1903–04 was a long-running success for Barrymore.[2] In 1905, he appeared with John and Ethel in apantomime, starring as the title character inPantaloon and playing another character in the other half of the bill,Alice Sit-by-the-Fire.[9]
In 1906, after a series of disappointing appearances in plays, Barrymore and his first wife, the actressDoris Rankin, left their stage careers and travelled to Paris, where he trained as an artist. Lionel and Doris were in Paris in 1908 when their first baby, Ethel, was born. Lionel confirms in his autobiography,We Barrymores, that he and Doris were in France whenBleriot flew theEnglish Channel on July 25, 1909. He did not achieve success as a painter and in 1909 he returned to the US.[10][11] In December of that year he returned to the stage inThe Fires of Fate, in Chicago, but left the production later that month after suffering an attack of nerves about the forthcoming New York opening. The producers gaveappendicitis as the reason for his sudden departure.[8] Nevertheless, he was soon back on Broadway inThe Jail Bird in 1910 and continued his stage career with several more plays. He also joined his family troupe, from 1910, in theirvaudeville act, where he was happy not to worry as much about memorizing lines.[12]
From 1912 to 1917 Barrymore was away from the stage again while he established his film career, but after the First World War he had several successes on Broadway, where he established his reputation as a dramatic and character actor, often performing with his wife. He returned to the stage inPeter Ibbetson (1917) with his brother, John, and achieved star billing inThe Copperhead (1918) (with Doris).[1] He retained star billing for the next 6 years in plays such asThe Jest (1919) (again with John) andThe Letter of the Law (1920).[1] Lionel gave a short-lived performance as MacBeth in 1921 opposite veteran actressJulia Arthur as Lady MacBeth, but the production encountered strongly negative criticism.[8] His last stage success was inLaugh, Clown, Laugh, in 1923, with his second wife, Irene Fenwick; they met while acting together inThe Claw the previous year, and after they fell in love he divorced his first wife.[2] He also received negative notices in three productions in a row in 1925. After appearing inMan or Devil in 1926, he signed a film contract withMGM and after the advent of sound films in 1927, he never again appeared on stage.[1][8]
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Barrymore joinedBiograph Studios in 1909 and began to appear in leading roles by 1911 in films directed byD. W. Griffith. Barrymore madeThe Battle (1911),The New York Hat (1912),Friends, andThree Friends (1913). In 1915, he co-starred withLillian Russell in a movie calledWildfire, one of the legendary Russell's few film appearances. He also was involved in writing and directing at Biograph. The lastsilent film he directed,Life's Whirlpool (Metro Pictures, 1917), starred his sister, Ethel. He acted in more than 60 silent films with Griffith.[2]
In 1920, Barrymore reprised his stage role in the film adaptation ofThe Copperhead.[2] Also in 1920, he starred in the lead role ofThe Master Mind, withGypsy O'Brien co-starring.
Before the formation ofMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1924, Barrymore forged a good relationship withLouis B. Mayer early on atMetro Pictures. He made several silent features for Metro, some of which are now lost. In 1923, Barrymore and Fenwick went to Italy to filmThe Eternal City for Metro Pictures in Rome, combining work with their honeymoon. He occasionally freelanced, returning to Griffith in 1924 to filmAmerica. In 1925, he left New York forHollywood.[2]
Prior to his marriage to Irene, Barrymore and his brother John engaged in a dispute over the issue of Irene's chastity in the wake of her having been one of John's lovers. The brothers didn't speak again for two years and weren't seen together until the premiere of John's filmDon Juan in 1926, by which time they had patched up their differences. Barrymore signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1926 and his first picture there wasThe Barrier.[1] His first talking picture wasThe Lion and the Mouse; his stage experience allowed him to excel in delivering the dialogue in sound films.[2]
On the occasional loan-out, Barrymore had a big success withGloria Swanson in 1928'sSadie Thompson and the aforementioned Griffith film,Drums of Love. In 1929, he returned to directing films. During this early and imperfect sound film period, he directed the controversialHis Glorious Night, with John Gilbert;Madame X, starringRuth Chatterton; andThe Rogue Song,Laurel and Hardy's first color film. He was credited with being the first director to move a microphone on a sound stage.[1] Barrymore returned to acting in front of the camera in 1931. In the following year, he won anAcademy Award for his role as an alcoholic lawyer inA Free Soul (1931), after being considered in 1930 forBest Director forMadame X. He played alongside Greta Garbo in the 1931 film “Mata Hari”. He could play many characters, like the evilRasputin in the 1932Rasputin and the Empress (in which he co-starred for the only time with siblings John and Ethel)[1] and the ailing Oliver Jordan inDinner at Eight (1933 — also with John, although they had no scenes together). He played Professor Zelen, the Occultist expert, in the classic horrorMark of the Vampire (1935).
On April 27, 1939, Louis B. Mayer threw Barrymore a 61st birthday party (the day before his actual birthday), broadcast live onGood News of 1939, and required all MGM employees to attend.[13] This was likely intended to distract from, and prevent MGM attendance of, theConfessions of a Nazi Spy premiere that occurred simultaneously.[13] The film was highly controversial due to its anti-Nazi message.[13]
During the1930s and1940s, he became stereotyped as a grouchy but sweet elderly man in such films asThe Mysterious Island (1929),Grand Hotel (1932, with John Barrymore),Little Colonel (1935, with Shirley Temple and Bill "Bojangles" Robinson),Captains Courageous (1937),Saratoga (1937, with Jean Harlow),You Can't Take It with You (1938),On Borrowed Time (1939, withCedric Hardwicke),Duel in the Sun (1946),Three Wise Fools (1946), andKey Largo (1948).
In a series ofDoctor Kildare movies in the1930s and1940s, he played the irascible Doctor Gillespie, a role he repeated in anMGM radio series that debuted in New York in 1950 and was later syndicated. Barrymore had broken his hip in an accident, hence he played Gillespie in a wheelchair. Later, his worsening arthritis kept him in the chair.[14] The injury also precluded his playingEbenezer Scrooge in the 1938 MGM film version ofA Christmas Carol, a role Barrymore played every year but two (replaced by brother John Barrymore in 1936 and replaced by Orson Welles in 1938) on the radio from 1934 through 1953. He also played the title role in the 1940s radio seriesMayor of the Town.
He is well known for his role asMr. Potter, the miserly and mean-spirited banker inIt's a Wonderful Life (1946) oppositeJames Stewart.
He had a role withClark Gable inLone Star in 1952. His final film appearance was a cameo inMain Street to Broadway, an MGM musical comedy released in 1953. His sisterEthel also appeared in the film.
Barrymore was married twice, to actressesDoris Rankin andIrene Fenwick, a one-time lover of his brother, John. Doris's sister Gladys was married to Lionel's uncleSidney Drew, which made Gladys both his aunt and sister-in-law. Doris Rankin bore Lionel two daughters, Ethel Barrymore II[15] and Mary Barrymore.[16] Neither child survived infancy.[17][18] Barrymore never truly recovered from the deaths of his girls and their loss undoubtedly strained his marriage to Doris Rankin, which ended in 1922. Years later Barrymore developed a fatherly affection forJean Harlow, who was born about the same time as his daughters. When Harlow died in 1937, Barrymore andClark Gable mourned her as though she had been family.
Barrymore was aRepublican. In1944, he attended the massive rally organized byDavid O. Selznick in theLos Angeles Coliseum in support of theDewey-Bricker ticket as well asGovernorEarl Warren of California, who would become Dewey's running mate in 1948 and later theChief Justice of the United States. The gathering drew 93,000, withCecil B. DeMille as themaster of ceremonies and with short speeches byHedda Hopper andWalt Disney. Among the others in attendance wereAnn Sothern,Ginger Rogers,Randolph Scott,Adolphe Menjou,Gary Cooper,Edward Arnold,William Bendix, andWalter Pidgeon.[19][20]
Barrymore registered for the draft during World War II, despite his age and disability, to encourage others to enlist in the military.[21]
He loathed theincome tax, and by the time he was appearing onMayor of the Town, MGM withheld a sizable portion of his paychecks, paying back theIRS the amount he owed.[22][23][24]
Several sources argue that arthritis alone confined Barrymore to a wheelchair.[25][26] Film historianJeanine Basinger says that his arthritis was serious by at least 1928, when Barrymore madeSadie Thompson.[27] Film historian David Wallace says it was well known that Barrymore was addicted to morphine due to arthritis by 1929.[28] A history of Oscar-winning actors, however, says Barrymore was only suffering from arthritis, not crippled or incapacitated by it.[29]Marie Dressler biographer Matthew Kennedy notes that when Barrymore won his Best Actor Oscar award in 1931, the arthritis was still so minor that it only made him limp a little as he went on stage to accept the honor.[30] Barrymore can be seen being quite physical in late silent films likeThe Thirteenth Hour andWest of Zanzibar, where he can be seen climbing out of a window.
Paul Donnelly says Barrymore's inability to walk was caused by a drawing table falling on him in 1936, breaking Barrymore's hip.[31] Barrymore tripped over a cable while filmingSaratoga in 1937 and broke his hip again.[32] (Film historianRobert Osborne says Barrymore also suffered a broken kneecap.)[33] The injury was so painful that Donnelly, quoting Barrymore, says thatLouis B. Mayer bought $400 worth ofcocaine for Barrymore every day to help him cope with the pain and allow him to sleep.[31] Author David Schwartz says the hip fracture never healed, which was why Barrymore could not walk,[34] and MGM historian John Douglas Eames describes the injury as "crippling".[35] Barrymore himself said in 1951, that it was breaking his hip twice that kept him in the wheelchair. He said he had no other problems, and that the hip healed well, but it made walking exceptionally difficult.[36] Film historian Allen Eyles reached the same conclusion.[37]
Lew Ayres biographer Lesley Coffin and Louis B. Mayer biographer Scott Eyman argue that it was the combination of the broken hip and Barrymore's worsening arthritis that put him in a wheelchair.[38][39] Barrymore family biographerMargot Peters saysGene Fowler and James Doane said Barrymore's arthritis was caused bysyphilis, which they say he contracted in 1925.[40] Eyman, however, explicitly rejects this hypothesis.[39]
Whatever the cause, Barrymore's performance inCaptains Courageous in 1937 was one of the last times he would be seen standing and walking unassisted.[41] On his next picture,Saratoga, Barrymore tripped over a cable on set, breaking his hip for the second time in two years and reportedly breaking his knee cap. Afterward, Barrymore was able to get about for a short period of time on crutches even though he was in great pain.[33] During the filming of 1938'sYou Can't Take It With You, the pain of standing with crutches was so severe that Barrymore required hourly shots of painkillers.[26] By 1938, Barrymore's disability forced him to relinquish the role of Ebenezer Scrooge (a role he made famous on the radio) to British actorReginald Owen in the MGM film version ofA Christmas Carol. From then on, Barrymore used a wheelchair exclusively and never walked again.[42] He could, however, stand for short periods of time such as at his brother's funeral in 1942.[39]
Barrymore also composed music.[8] His works ranged from solo piano pieces to large-scale orchestral works, such as "Tableau Russe,"[43] which was performed twice inDr. Kildare's Wedding Day (1941) as Cornelia's Symphony, first on piano byNils Asther's character and later by a full symphony orchestra.[44] His piano compositions, "Scherzo Grotesque" and "Song Without Words", were published by G. Schirmer in 1945. Upon the death of his brother John in 1942, he composed a work "In Memoriam", which was performed by thePhiladelphia Orchestra. His orchestral Partita was given multiple performances.[45] He also composed the theme song of the radio programMayor of the Town.[2]
Barrymore had attended art school in New York and Paris and was a skillful illustrator, creating etchings and drawings and was a member of theSociety of American Etchers, now known as the Society of American Graphic Artists.[1] For years, he maintained an artist's shop and studio attached to his home in Los Angeles.[46] Some of his etchings were included in theHundred Prints of the Year.[2]
He wrote a historical novel,Mr. Cantonwine: A Moral Tale (1953).[2]
He was also a horticulturalist, growing roses on his Chatsworth Ranch.[1]
Barrymore died on November 15, 1954, aged 76, from aheart attack in theVan Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles.[47] He was entombed in theCalvary Cemetery inEast Los Angeles.[48]
Barrymore received two stars on theHollywood Walk of Fame in 1960—amotion pictures star and a radio star. The stars are located at 1724Vine Street for motion pictures, and 1651 Vine Street for radio.[49] He was also inducted into theAmerican Theater Hall of Fame, along with his siblings,Ethel andJohn.[50]
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