William Austin (actor)

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William Crosby Pierce Austin (born June 12, 1884 in Georgetown , British Guiana , † June 15, 1975 in Newport Beach , USA ) was a British actor. Between 1920 and 1947 he played in over 90 films, mostly in comedic roles. His brother was the actor Albert Austin .

Life

William Austin was born to wealthy British parents on a sugar plantation in the British colony of Guiana. His older brother was the future filmmaker Albert Austin . After the death of his father, William moved from Guiana to Great Britain, where he completed his schooling. As a postal worker he worked in Shanghai and later in San Francisco . It was there that he discovered his interest in acting and decided to stay in California and become an actor. This decision to change jobs may also have something to do with his brother Albert, who was successful as a regular supporting actor for Charlie Chaplin during this time . After three years as a stage actor, William Austin made his film debut in the silent film Common Sense in 1920 . In 1923 he appeared in two plays on Broadway , but soon returned to the film business.

William Austin specialized in the impersonation of weird upper-class men, often with a British background. He played his most famous silent film role in 1927 as the sidekick of Clara Bow in the comedy That Certain Something . He also shot twice with Laurel and Hardy : In Easy Loot , Austin played an English lord who wants to rent a villa with his wife; and in At the Hospital he was seen as Ollie's freaky roommate. With the start of talkies in the late 1920s, Austin increasingly had to be content with minor supporting roles, although there were exceptions such as the Gryphon in Alice in Wonderland (1933). Occasionally Austin played instead of US productions in British films, including as Duke of Cleves in The Private Life of Henry VIII alongside Charles Laughton .

One of his last notable roles was butler Alfred Pennyworth in Batman and Robin (1943), the first Batman film adaptation. Austin was a tall, thin man with a mustache; in contrast was the figure of the corpulent, beardless Pennyworth from the comics. Because of Austin's portrayal in the film, however, the appearance of the butler in the comics changed, so that Austin is Pennyworth's visual role model to this day. After only receiving minor roles in the end, Austin retired from the acting business in 1947 after having made more than 90 films. He died in 1975 at the age of 91 years and was on the Pacific View Memorial Park in Corona del Mar buried. He was apparently married to Dora Mae Austin (1891-1989), who was buried at his side.

Filmography (selection)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ William Austin at Famous Guyanese People
  2. ^ William Austin in the Find a Grave database . Retrieved January 7, 2015.
personal data
SURNAME Austin, William
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Austin, William Crosby Pierce (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British actor
DATE OF BIRTH June 12, 1884
PLACE OF BIRTH Georgetown , British Guiana
DATE OF DEATH 15th June 1975
Place of death Newport Beach , California