Harry Allen (actor)

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Harry Allen
HarryAllen(actor)Pic.jpg
Born
Harry Radford Allen

(1883-07-10)10 July 1883
Australia
Died4 December 1951(1951-12-04) (aged 68)
Van Nuys, California, United States
OccupationActor
Years active1923–1949
Spouse(s)
Marjorie Josephine Condon
​
​
(m. 1910; div. 1915)​

Gertrude Dorothea Hyde
(m. 19??; his death 1951)
Children2

Harry Allen (10 July 1883 – 4 December 1951),[1] born in Sydney, New South Wales,[2] was an Australian-born American character actor of the silent and sound film eras.

Career[]

Allen began his acting career on stage with the J. C. Williamson organisation, performing around Australia. In 1912 he left Australia for North America.[3] In the United States, Allen was a member of a touring theater company, known for their popular rendition of The Better 'Ole.[4][5][6] He appeared on Broadway in the early 1920s.[7]

Allen's first film role was in the 1923 silent film, The Last Moment, in a supporting role.[8] In his career Allen appeared in over 100 films, mostly in supporting and smaller roles. Some of the more notable films he appeared in include: Of Human Bondage (1934), starring Bette Davis and Leslie Howard;[9] the Marx Brothers' classic, A Night at the Opera;[10] the original Mutiny on the Bounty (1935), starring Charles Laughton and Clark Gable;[11] William Wyler's 1942 Academy Award-winning film, Mrs. Miniver, starring Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon, and Teresa Wright;[12] Jane Eyre (1944), starring Orson Welles and Joan Fontaine;[13] the Mickey Rooney and Elizabeth Taylor version of National Velvet (1945);[14] and The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945), starring George Sanders.[15] His final appearance on film was in the 1949 film, Challenge to Lassie, starring Edmund Gwenn.

Personal life[]

In 1910, Allen married fellow actor Marjorie Josephine née Condon in Brisbane. The union was not a success and he went to North America without her, in 1912, with an Australian court granting her a divorce for abandonment in 1915.[3] Allen died on 4 December 1951, and was buried in Glen Abbey Memorial Park.[16] He was survived by his second wife, Gertrude Dorothea (née Hyde), and their two children, Harry Jr. and Paula[2]

Filmography[]

(Per AFI database)[17]

References[]

  1. ^ Allen's World War One registration card gives his date of birth as July 10, 1876
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "Obituaries: Harry Radford Allen". The Van Nuys News. December 10, 1951. p. 10. Retrieved May 14, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b The Daily News (Perth, WA : 1882 - 1950), Sat 20 Feb 1915, Page 5, "Objected to Friends" Accessed May 15, 2017
  4. ^ "The Better 'Ole, Sparkling Comedy". Vancouver Daily World. April 3, 1919. p. 3. Retrieved May 14, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  5. ^ "Booker Excels at Columbia in Old Bill Role". The San Francisco Chronicle. May 11, 1919. p. 4. Retrieved May 14, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  6. ^ Edwin Schallert (June 3, 1919). ""Better 'Ole" Radiates Mirth at Orpheum". The Los Angeles Times. p. 28. Retrieved May 14, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  7. ^ Broadway Internet Database - Harry Allen Accessed May 15, 2017
  8. ^ "The Last Moment". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  9. ^ "Of Human Bondage". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  10. ^ "A Night at the Opera". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  11. ^ "Mutiny on the Bounty". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  12. ^ "Mrs. Miniver". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  13. ^ "Jane Eyre". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  14. ^ "National Velvet". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  15. ^ "The Picture of Dorian Gray". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  16. ^ "Harry Radford Allen". Find a Grave. August 1, 2013. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  17. ^ "Harry Allen". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 26, 2014.

External links[]

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