Roland Young

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Roland Young (born November 11, 1887 in London , England , † June 5, 1953 in New York City , New York ) was an American film and stage actor of British origin. He was best known for the role of Cosmo Topper in the three Topper film comedies.

Life

Roland Young, the son of an architect , was educated at Sherborne College and later London University before he decided to become an actor. Young acquired the necessary knowledge at the well-known Royal Academy of Dramatic Art . In 1908, at the age of 21, Young appeared on stage for the first time in London before making his debut on Broadway just four years later in December 1912 . Until the mid-1910s, Young was still working in England, so he was often on the move from one theater performance to another. 1918 Young received the American citizenship, and then served for a short time on the side of the Americans as a soldier in the First World War . Young made his film acting debut in 1922 as Doctor Watson in Sherlock Holmes , opposite John Barrymore . Shortly before, in September 1921, he had married his first wife, Marjorie Kummer, with whom he was married until October 1940.

Young's role offers were mostly limited to British characters, in which he embodied the stereotypical image of an aristocratic Englishman. His best-known film was the 1937 comedy Topper - Das blonde Gespenst , for which Young received an Oscar nomination in 1938 for Best Supporting Actor . In both 1938 and 1941, Young was also in front of the camera in sequels to the film. With the exception of the Topper series, Young's films are mostly only known to film lovers today. Also known are his appearance as the villain Uriah Heep in George Cukor's Dickens adaptation David Copperfield (1935) and the 1936 fantasy film The Man Who Wanted to Change the World . He played more eccentric characters, such as an earl in A Butler in America (1935) or Katharine Hepburn's rich uncle in The Night Before the Wedding (1940).

Roland Young, who divorced his wife Marjorie in October 1940, found his second wife, Dorothy Patience May DuCroz, in April 1948, with whom he was together for the last years of his life. Roland Young had no children. He died a natural death at the age of 65. Today two stars on the Walk of Fame bear his name.

Filmography (selection)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Young, Roland
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American-British actor
DATE OF BIRTH November 11, 1887
PLACE OF BIRTH London , England
DATE OF DEATH 5th June 1953
Place of death New York City , New York