Dennis Hoey

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Dennis Hoey (* the thirtieth March 1893 in London as Samuel David Hyams ; † 25. July 1960 in Palm Beach County , Florida ) was a British actor. He became known for his role as Inspector Lestrade in the Sherlock Holmes film series with Basil Rathbone .

Life

Samuel David Hyams initially earned his living as a singer, but this career was not very successful. At the age of 25 he switched to the acting profession and appeared on the London theater stages. He made his first film appearance in 1927 in the British silent film Tiptoes in the role of a hotelier. In the following years, Hoey starred in other British films and became a successful supporting actor. In 1936 he made a film with Uncivilized in Australia and in the late 1930s Hoey moved to the United States . First he was seen there on Broadway in several productions, for example as Mr. Rorchester between 1937 and 1938 in Jane Eyre together with Katharine Hepburn in the title role. In 1939 he played in the US Hay Fever alongside Montgomery Clift , one of the first television films in history.

In the early 1940s, the tall actor moved to Hollywood , where he played mainly British characters such as aristocrats and officers in supporting roles. Hoey was best known for his portrayal of Inspector Lestrade, whom he played in six of the Sherlock Holmes films from Universal Pictures on the side of Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce . His Inspector Lestrade acted as a comic relief in the films and was described as self-important and not particularly intelligent. Apart from these roles, he often played commissioners or civil servants, for example in Frankenstein meets the wolf man and Tarzan and the leopard woman . In the 1950s, Hoey withdrew increasingly from the acting business, his last of over 65 films he shot in 1952, then he took only a few guest roles on television.

Dennis Hoey died of kidney disease in Palm Beach County , Florida in 1960 at the age of 67 . The actor was married to Josephine Hoey from 1933 to 1946, the marriage ended in divorce. His son Michael A. Hoey (1934-2014) later worked as a producer and director of numerous television films. In 2007 he published the book "Elvis, Sherlock and Me: How I Survived Growing Up in Hollywood" about his relationship with his father .

Filmography (selection)

Theater (selection)

  • 1924: Hassan
  • 1926–1927: KatjaOct 18, 1926 - Jan 22, 1927

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Uncivilized: Export of Film banned The Sydney Morning Herald (National Library of Australia). 22 September 1936. p. 11. Retrieved August 10, 2012.
  2. ↑ Michael A. Hoey at the Internet Movie Database
personal data
SURNAME Hoey, Dennis
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Hyams, Samuel David (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British actor
DATE OF BIRTH March 30, 1893
PLACE OF BIRTH London , England
DATE OF DEATH July 25, 1960
Place of death Palm Beach County , Florida