Lowell Sherman

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Lowell Sherman with Alice Brady in The New York Idea (1920)

Lowell Sherman (born October 11, 1885 or 1888 in San Francisco , California , † December 28, 1934 in Hollywood , California) was an American actor and film director. During the silent film era and early sound film era, he was able to achieve greater success in both professions.

life and career

Lowell Sherman's date of birth is controversial, he was born in San Francisco in 1885 or 1888, the son of a theater agent and an actress. As a child, Sherman was already on the stage, his first appearance on Broadway in 1904 in Judith von Bethulien . Sherman quickly built a reputation as a popular stage actor and starred in numerous Broadway productions. In Morphia with him in the lead role Sherman in 1923 also led directing. In parallel, the actor appeared regularly in silent films from 1914 . In the course of his career he played alongside stars such as Mabel Normand , Florence Vidor , Alice Brady , Norma Shearer and Irene Dunne , where he appeared regularly in the role of the playboy . He is most likely remembered by movie audiences for his portrayal of the wealthy villain Lennox Sanderson in David Wark Griffith's 1920 silent film classic Far East .

The switch to the sound film in the late 1920s was easy for him, but Sherman was a bit bored with acting. Producer William LeBaron then gave the star the chance to direct a film - Sherman subsequently proved to be a competent filmmaker whose works were mostly successful with critics and audiences. From 1928 Sherman worked as a director of many films, in which he also appeared mostly in leading or major supporting roles. This combination of actor and director was still unusual in Hollywood at the time. The last time he was directed by someone else, namely George Cukor , he was in What Price Hollywood? at the side of Constance Bennett . Here he played a film director whose life in Hollywood is broken by alcohol. The film later served partially as a template for the four A Star is Born films, in which Sherman's role as the alcoholic star was played by Fredric March ( 1937 ), James Mason ( 1954 ), Kris Kristofferson ( 1976 ) and Bradley Cooper ( 2018 ) has been.

After 1932 Sherman was exclusively behind the camera, where he slowly developed into one of the most important Hollywood directors. He recorded his greatest successes as a director in 1933: On the one hand, he led Katharine Hepburn the film drama Dawn of Fame about a young actress to her first of a total of four Oscars ; on the other hand, the daring pre-code comedy you did him wrong with Mae West and Cary Grant was created under his direction , a big hit at the box office at the time. Lowell Sherman was then given the important task of directing Becky Sharp - the first full-length feature film to be shot entirely in the newly developed 3-color Technicolor . His death in December 1934 at the age of 46 from pneumonia tore him from the preparations for this film. Rouben Mamoulian then took over the direction of Becky Sharp , Sherman's last film Night Life of the Gods only appeared in cinemas posthumously.

The actor married three times, all marriages ended in divorce: from 1915 to 1922 with Evelyn Booth, from 1926 to 1930 with Pauline Garon , and from 1930 to 1932 with Helene Costello . Lowell Sherman was buried in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California .

Filmography (selection)

As an actor

As a director

  • 1928: Nearly Divorced (also actor)
  • 1930: Lawful Larceny (also actor)
  • 1930: The Pay-Off (also actor)
  • 1931: Bachelor Apartment (also actor)
  • 1931: High stakes (also actors)
  • 1931: The Royal Bed (also actor)
  • 1932: The Greeks Had a Word for Them (also actor)
  • 1932: Ladies of the Jury
  • 1932: False Faces (also actor and producer)
  • 1933: Dawn of Glory (Morning Glory)
  • 1933: They did him wrong (She Done Him Wrong)
  • 1933: Broadway Thru a Keyhole
  • 1934: Born to Be Bad
  • 1935: Night Life of the Gods
  • 1935: Becky Sharp (replaced by Rouben Mamoulian due to death )

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Lowell Sherman in the Find a Grave database . Retrieved April 20, 2017.
personal data
SURNAME Sherman, Lowell
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American actor and film director
DATE OF BIRTH October 11, 1885 or 1888
PLACE OF BIRTH San Francisco , California
DATE OF DEATH December 28, 1934
Place of death Hollywood , California