Leon Errol

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Lupe Vélez and Leon Errol in the series Mexican Spitfire (1940)

Leon Errol (* 3. July 1881 in Sydney , New South Wales as Leonce Errol Sims ; † 12. October 1951 in Los Angeles , California ) was an Australian comedian and actor in theater and film. Active primarily in the USA , he appeared with the Ziegfeld Follies , among others , had his own “Leon Errol” short film series at RKO Pictures from 1935 until his death and was a co-star of the “Mexican Spitfire” series from the same studio. Errol is rather unknown in German-speaking countries. In the 1980s, a few of his short films ran in the ZDF series Hands up, the master is coming! and fathers of clothes .

life and career

Leonce Errol Sims was born in Sydney in 1881. At the university there, he first studied medicine before giving in to his interest in acting. Using the stage name Leon Errol , he performed in various variety shows, operettas, Shakespeare and circus performances in Australia and New Zealand .

In 1905 Errol emigrated to the United States. There he was initially head of his own burlesque troupe, with which he helped the later film comedian Fatty Arbuckle to his first professional appearances in the same year . In 1911, the entertainer first appeared on Broadway in New York, where he starred in a variety of productions, mostly musical comedies, in the 1910s and 1920s. Among other things, he worked with the legendary Broadway producer Florenz Ziegfeld junior and his legendary actors Bert Williams , Fanny Brice and WC Fields . Errol made his film debut in 1916 in three short film comedies for George Kleine Productions, which only hit cinemas in 1920/21 and in whose best-known, Nearly Spliced , Arthur Housman was his partner. Overall, his film appearances remained rather sparse until the end of the silent film era around 1930.

With the start of the talkie, like many other theater actors, Errol came to Hollywood in order to concentrate fully on the new medium. After appearing as a protagonist in short films from various studios from 1933, including Service with a Smile , the first with Technicolor Process No. 4 released real short film, the comedian received his own series of films from RKO Pictures in 1935: Of the "Leon Errol Comedies", the signature tune of which was a quick version of London Bridge is Falling Down , a total of 91 were made in the period from 16 years until his death Produced short films which, along with Edgar Kennedy's “Average Man Comedies”, were the studio's most popular. From 1944 onwards, Errol's wife was mostly played by Dorothy Granger in the short films .

The almost bald actor often played fallible husbands in mostly authoritarian positions, for example business people who unexpectedly got into compromising situations and increasingly hoarse babbling. His characteristic gait, mostly used in connection with drunkenness, made him known as a "rubber-legged comedian" (German: "rubber-legged comedian"). His film character was reminiscent of Louis de Funès (minus his diabolical traits) and Theo Lingen , a mixture of hectic choleric and snappy idiot.

In addition to these short films, Errol is best known for the feature-length film series "Mexican Spitfire", also produced by RKO, in which he mimed the characters Uncle Matt Lindsay and Lord Epping in a double role alongside the title heroine Lupe Vélez . Between 1939 ( The Girl from Mexico ) and 1943 a total of eight films were made. Another series in which the comedian took part were the films about the boxer "Joe Palooka" produced by the Poverty Row studio Monogram Pictures , based on the Ham Fisher comic strip of the same name . As its manager Knobby Walsh , Errol appeared in a total of 11 films between 1946 and 1951. In other feature films, however, the comedian usually had to be content with supporting roles, for example as Uncle Gilbert in Alice in Wonderland , as a love rival of his former Ziegfeld colleague WC Fields in Don't give a fool a chance, or as a guest star in Abbott and Costello's Knitted Neck . Occasionally, Errol also appeared in more serious films, such as the second leading role in the horror film The Invisible Man Takes Vengeance (1944).

Leon Errol, who had been married to Stella Chatelaine († 1946) since 1906, worked as an actor in a total of 165 films until his death. He died of a heart attack in 1951 at the age of 70 and was buried in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale .

Filmography (selection)

  • 1916/20: Nearly Spliced ​​(short film)
  • 1927: The Lunatic on Large
  • 1930: Paramount Parade (Paramount on Parade)
  • 1933: Alice in Wonderland (Alice in Wonderland)
  • 1934: The Captain Hates the Sea
  • 1934: Shipwreck under palm trees (We're Not Dressing)
  • 1934: Service with a Smile (short film)
  • 1935–1951: Own "Leon Errol" film series (91 short films)
    • 1937: Should Wives Work?
    • 1938: The Jitters
    • 1941: Man-I-Cured
    • 1942: Pretty Dolly
    • 1943: Gem jams
    • 1943: Radio Runaround
    • 1943: Wedtime Stories
    • 1945: Beware of Redheads
    • 1946: Twin Husbands
    • 1951: Lord Epping Returns
    • 1951: Too Many Wives
  • 1937: Make a Wish
  • 1939: Dancing Co-Ed
  • 1939–1943: "Mexican Spitfire" film series (8 films)
  • : 1941 no chance Give a Sucker an (Never Give a Sucker to even break)
  • 1943: Higher and Higher
  • 1944: The Invisible Man's Revenge (The Invisible Man's Revenge)
  • 1946–1951: "Joe Palooka" film series (11 films)
  • 1948: The Noose Hangs High

Awards

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Leon Errol at Fandango
  2. ↑ Leon Errol at the Los Angeles Times
personal data
SURNAME Errol, Leon
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Sims, Leonce Errol (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Australian comedian and actor in the USA
DATE OF BIRTH July 3, 1881
PLACE OF BIRTH Sydney , New South Wales , Australia
DATE OF DEATH October 12, 1951
Place of death Los Angeles , California , United States