George K. Arthur

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George K. Arthur (* 27. January 1899 in Littlehampton , Sussex as George Brest ; † thirtieth May 1985 in New York City , New York ) was a British - American actor, comedian and writer and film producer.

Life

George Arthur was born as the son of a traveling salesman under poor circumstances and already took on smaller jobs as a child, such as a newspaper boy. Although still a minor, he took part in the First World War. Arthur gained his first experience in the acting business with appearances in Shakespeare plays in his home country England. In 1921 he successfully applied for the leading comedic role in the literary film adaptation of Kipps (1921) based on the novel of the same name by HG Wells , filmed by the American director Harold M. Shaw in London. Then Arthur made the jump to Hollywood in the USA, where he was also mediated by his friend Charlie Chaplinreceived further film roles. Arthur specialized primarily in the comedic portrayal of young men in supporting and leading roles. He signed a promising five-year deal with film producer Pat Powers , but Powers was forced to file for bankruptcy just months after the deal was signed. As a result, Arthur's film career was meanwhile in a crisis.

Arthur made a successful comeback in 1925 with the lead role in the dark drama The Salvation Hunters , in which a young Josef von Sternberg made his directorial debut. Arthur worked as a co-producer and financier of The Salvation Hunters , which was shot as an independent film with a low budget. Arthur signed a studio contract with MGM and then major roles followed in films such as the laboriously produced Bardelys the Magnificent with John Gilbert or alongside Joan Crawford in The Boob of 1926 and Spring Fever , where he appeared alongside William Haines in 1927 . George K. Arthur has also been paired with the Dane Karl Dane in numerous films as a comedian duo . With the appearance of the sound film at the end of the 1920s, Arthur's success waned, also because the comedian duo Dane / Arthur was barely successful because of Dane's Danish accent and finally had to split up. From then on Arthur mostly played supporting roles in B-Movies, for example as Toby Crackit in the 1933 film adaptation of Charles Dickens ' Oliver Twist with Dickie Moore in the title role. In 1935 Arthur made his last of over 60 film appearances in Vanessa: Her Love Story , the film adaptation of Hugh Walpole's novella Vanessa with Helen Hayes and Robert Montgomery in the leading roles.

Arthur's attempts to continue his show career as a songwriter, author or theater producer had little success. Instead, he worked as the editor of a magazine about the New York theater and as a theater critic for a radio station. After serving in the United States Air Force during World War II , Arthur returned to the film business in the 1950s: he produced a number of successful short films, of which The Custom-Made Coat earned him the Oscar for Best Short Film . George K. Arthur died in New York in 1985 at the age of 86. He was married twice.

Filmography (selection)

As an actor

As a producer

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Biography on Karl Dane's website
  2. ↑ Biography at AllMovie
personal data
SURNAME Arthur, George K.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Brest, George (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British-American actor, comedian, and writer and film producer
DATE OF BIRTH January 27, 1899
PLACE OF BIRTH Littlehampton , Sussex
DATE OF DEATH May 30, 1985
Place of death New York City , New York