Search a film or person :
FacebookConnectionRegistration
Lionel Barrymore is a Actor, Director, Scriptwriter and Sound American born on 28 april 1878 at Philadelphia (USA)

Lionel Barrymore

Lionel Barrymore
If you like this person, let us know!
Birth name Lionel Blythe
Nationality USA
Birth 28 april 1878 at Philadelphia (USA)
Death 15 november 1954 (at 76 years) at Van Nuys (USA)
Awards Academy Award for Best Actor

Lionel Barrymore (April 28, 1878 – November 15, 1954) was an American actor of stage, screen and radio as well as a film director. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in A Free Soul (1931), and remains perhaps best known for the role of the villainous Mr. Potter character in Frank Capra's 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life. He was a member of the theatrical Barrymore family.

Biography

Né Lionel Herbert Blythe dans une célèbre famille d'acteurs de théâtre, il est le premier grand acteur de la dynastie à faire aussi carrière dans le cinéma. Songeant d'abord à se destiner à la peinture, il part à Paris où il étudie l'art. De retour aux États-Unis en 1908, il débute au cinéma en même temps que D. W. Griffith qui l'a engagé dès 1909 dans sa American Mutoscope and Biograph Company. Il est à l'affiche entre autres films de Cœur d'apache (1912) et Judith of Bethulia (1914) . À cette époque, il a déjà réalisé plusieurs films (His Secret, Where is the Baby ?, No place for Father).

À partir de 1926, il signe un contrat avec la Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer avec laquelle il travaille jusqu'à la fin de sa carrière. On le voit régulièrement jouer aux côtés de Pearl White et de Greta Garbo. Il tourne notamment dans Faiblesse humaine de Raoul Walsh (1928). Avec l'avènement du cinéma parlant, Barrymore revient à la mise en scène avec Madame X (1929) et His Glorious Night (1929) pour lequel il compose la musique. La même année, il réalise encore The Unholy Night, puis Le Chant du bandit (The Rogue Song) en 1930. En tant qu'acteur, la transition du muet au parlant s'opère très naturellement pour lui grâce à une diction remarquable qu'il a acquise sur les planches. Il obtient l'Oscar du meilleur acteur en 1931 pour sa composition du père de Norma Shearer, brillant avocat dont la carrière est compromise par l'alcool dans A Free Soul de Clarence Brown. Au cours des années 1930, il joue dans divers films d'intérêts inégaux. Il est Raspoutine en 1932 dans Raspoutine and the Empress de Richard Boleslawski, dont il partage l'affiche avec sa sœur Ethel Barrymore et son frère John Barrymore. Son visage d'une grande expressivité, son regard perçant et son excellente diction conviennent parfaitement aux inquiétants personnages qu'il incarne dans les films La Marque du Vampire (1935) et Les Poupées du diable (The Devil-Doll) (1936) de Tod Browning.

À la fin des années 1930 et au début des années 1940, il est le Dr. Gillespie - personnage irascible comme il en a souvent interprété - dans la fameuse série Dr. Kildare, reprise au début des années 1960 à la télévision.
Au cours des années 1940, affaibli par une mauvaise santé qui le contraint à se déplacer en fauteuil roulant, il tourne néanmoins dans Duel au soleil (Duel in the Sun) de David O. Selznick (1946), La vie est belle de Frank Capra (1946), Key Largo de John Huston (1948) et Les Marins de l'Orgueilleux d'Henry Hathaway (1949). Par la suite, il ne tourne plus qu'un seul film, Main Street to Broadway de Tay Garnett en 1953.

Il meurt en novembre 1954 à l'âge de 76 ans.

Il est inhumé au Calvary Cemetery à Los Angeles.

Best films

Duel in the Sun (1946)
(Actor)
Key Largo (1948)
(Actor)
You Can't Take It with You (1938)
(Actor)
Sadie Thompson (1928)
(Actor)
Captains Courageous (1937)
(Actor)
Grand Hotel (1932)
(Actor)

Usually with

Cedric Gibbons
Cedric Gibbons
(62 films)
D. W. Griffith
D. W. Griffith
(47 films)
Harry Carey
Harry Carey
(46 films)
Claire McDowell
Claire McDowell
(31 films)
Source : Wikidata

Filmography of Lionel Barrymore (202 films)

Display filmography as detailed form
YearNameJobRoles
1990Home AloneActor
1976That's Entertainment, Part IIActor(archive footage)
1974That's Entertainment!Actor(archive footage) (uncredited)
1956Our Mr. SunActorFather Time (voice)
1953Main Street to BroadwayActorSelf
1952Lone StarActorAndrew Jackson
1951BannerlineActorHugo Trimble
1950Right CrossActorSean O'Malley
1949MalayaActorJohn Manchester
1949Down to the Sea in ShipsActorBering Joy
1948Key LargoActorJames Temple
1947Dark DelusionActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1946Duel in the SunActorSen. Jackson McCanles
1946It's a Wonderful LifeActorMr. Potter
1946The Secret HeartActorDr. Rossiger
1946Three Wise FoolsActorDr. Richard Gaunght
1945The Valley of DecisionActorPat Rafferty
1945Between Two WomenActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1944A Guy Named JoeActorThe General
1944Since You Went AwayActorClergyman
1944Dragon SeedActorNarrator (voice) (uncredited)
19443 Men in WhiteActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
19443 Men in WhiteActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1943Dr. Gillespie's Criminal CaseActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1942Tennessee JohnsonActorThaddeus Stevens
1942Dr. Gillespie's New AssistantActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1942Dr. Kildare's VictoryActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1942Calling Dr. GillespieActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1941The Bad ManActorUncle Henry Jones
1941Dr. Kildare's Wedding DayActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1941Lady Be GoodActorJudge Murdock
1941The People Vs. Dr. KildareActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1941The PenaltyActor'Grandpop' Logan
1940Dr. Kildare Goes HomeActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1940Dr. Kildare's CrisisActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1940Dr. Kildare's Strange CaseActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1940A New Romance of Celluloid: The Miracle of SoundActorSelf
1940The Stars Look DownActorNarrator (U.S. release only) (voice)
1939On Borrowed TimeActorJulian Northrup aka Gramps
1939The Secret of Dr. KildareActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1939Calling Dr. KildareActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1939Let Freedom RingActorThomas Logan
1938Test PilotActorHoward B. Drake
1938A Yank at OxfordActorDan Sheridan
1938You Can't Take It with YouActorGrandpa Martin Vanderhof
1938Young Dr. KildareActorDr. Leonard Gillespie
1937CamilleActorMonsieur Duval
1937Captains CourageousActorCaptain Disko Troop
1937A Family AffairActorJudge Hardy
1937Navy Blue and GoldActorCaptain 'Skinny' Dawes
1937SaratogaActorGrandpa Clayton
1936The Road to GloryActorPapa La Roche / Pvt. Morin
1936The Devil-DollActorPaul Lavond
1936The Gorgeous HussyActorAndrew Jackson
1936The Voice of Bugle AnnActorSpringfield Davis
1935David CopperfieldActorDan Peggotty
1935The Little ColonelActorColonel Lloyd
1935Public Hero Number 1ActorDr. Josiah Glass
1935Ah, Wilderness!ActorNat Miller
1935Mark of the VampireActorProfessor Zelin
1935The Return Of Peter GrimmActorPeter Grimm
1934CarolinaActorBob Connelly
1934The Girl from MissouriActorT.R. Paige
1934Treasure IslandActorBilly Bones
1934This Side of HeavenActorMartin Turner
1933Rasputin and the EmpressActorGrigori Rasputin
1933Dinner at EightActorOliver Jordan
1933Looking ForwardActorTim Benton
1933Night FlightActorRobineau
1933One Man's JourneyActorEli Watt
1933The Stranger's ReturnActorGrandpa Cyrus Tatum Storr
1933SweepingsActorDaniel Pardway
1933Christopher BeanActorDr. Milton Haggett
1933Should Ladies BehaveActorAugustus Merrick
1933Looking ForwardActorTim Benton
1932Grand HotelActorOtto Kringelein
1932Arsène LupinActorDetective Guerchard
1932Broken LullabyActorDr. H. Holderlin
1931Mata HariActorGeneral Serge Shubin
1931Ten Cents a DanceDirector
1931A Free SoulActorStephen Ashe
1931Guilty HandsActor, DirectorRichard Grant
1931The Yellow TicketActorBaron Igor Andreeff
1930The Rogue SongDirector
1930OlympiaSound
1930RedemptionDirector
1930The Sea BatDirector
1930Free and EasyActorBedroom Scene
1930EstrelladosActorHimself (Guest Appearance)
1930The Green SpecterDirector
1929The Hollywood Revue of 1929ActorSelf - Director of 'Romeo and Juliet' (uncredited)
1929The Mysterious IslandActorAndre Dakkar
1929His Glorious NightDirector, Music
1929Madame XDirector
1929The Unholy NightDirector
1928Sadie ThompsonActorAlfred Davidson
1928Alias Jimmy ValentineActorDoyle
1928Drums of LoveActorDuke Cathos de Alvia
1928The Lion and the MouseActorJohn Ryder
1928West of ZanzibarActorCrane
1928The River WomanActorBill Lefty
1927Body and SoulActorDr. Leyden
1927The ShowActorThe Greek
1927The Thirteenth HourActorProf. Leroy
1927Women Love DiamondsActorHugo Harlan
1926The BarrierActorStark Bennett
1926The BellsActorMathias
1926The Lucky LadyActorCount Ferranzo
1926The TemptressActorCanterac
1926Paris at MidnightActorVautrin
1925Ben-Hur: A Tale of the ChristActorChariot Race Spectator (uncredited)
1925Fifty-FiftyActorFrederick Harmon
1925The Woman Who DidActorAllan Merrick
1925The Girl Who Wouldn't WorkActorGordon Kent
1925A Man of IronActorPhilip Durban
1924AmericaActorCapt. Walter Butler
1924Decameron NightsActorSaladin
1924Meddling WomenActorEdwin Ainsworth / John Wells (duel role)
1923Enemies of WomenActorPrince Lubimoff
1923The Eternal CityActorBaron Bonelli
1923Unseeing EyesActorConrad Dean
1922The Face in the FogActorBoston Blackie Dawson
1922Boomerang BillActorBoomerang Bill
1921The Great AdventureActorPriam Farll
1921Jim the PenmanActorJames Ralston
1920The CopperheadActorMilt Shanks
1920The Devil's GardenActorWilliam Dale
1920The Master MindActorHenry Allen
1917Life's WhirlpoolDirector, Writer
1917The Millionaire's DoubleActorBide Bennington
1917National Red Cross PageantActor
1916The Brand of CowardiceActorCyril Hamilton
1916The QuitterActorHappy Jack Lewis
1915The Romance of ElaineActorMarcus Del Mar / Mr. X
1915WildfireActorJohn Keefe
1914Brute ForceActor
1914The Exploits of ElaineActorUndetermined Role
1914Her Father's Silent PartnerActor
1914Judith of BethuliaActorExtra (uncredited)
1914ClassmatesActorBubby Dumble
1914Men and WomenActorStephen Rodman / Robert Stevens
1914Under the GaslightActorWilliam Byke
1913The Telephone Girl and the LadyActorThe Desk Sergeant
1913Three FriendsActorSecond Friend
1913An Adventure in the Autumn WoodsActorThe Father
1913All for ScienceActorDetective
1913The Battle at Elderbush GulchActor
1913A Chance DeceptionActor2nd Policeman
1913The Crook and the GirlActorThe Nephew
1913Death's MarathonActorThe Financial Backer
1913The Enemy's BabyActorPostmaster Ben Brown
1913A Gamble with DeathActorJim Benton, the Bartender
1913A Girl's StratagemActor
1913The House of DarknessActorThe Doctor
1913I Was Meant for YouActorLavina's Father
1913In Diplomatic CirclesActorThe Japanese Ambassador
1913An Indian's LoyaltyActorThe Cattle Buyer
1913Just GoldActorThe Stay-at-Home Brother
1913The Lady and the MouseActorThe Father
1913Love in an Apartment HotelActorIn Hotel Lobby
1913The MirrorActorDaisy's Father
1913A Misunderstood BoyActorThe Father
1913Near To EarthActorGato
1913Oil and WaterActorIn First Audience/In Second Audience/Visitor
1913The Ranchero's RevengeActorThe Ranchero
1913Red Hicks Defies the WorldActorThe Referee
1913The Sheriff's BabyActorThird Bandit
1913So Runs the WayActorUndetermined Role (unconfirmed)
1913The Stolen TreatyActorThe Japanese Diplomat
1913The Strong Man's BurdenActorJohn - the Elder Brother
1913The SwitchtowerActorFirst Counterfeiter
1913A Timely InterceptionActorUncle James - The Farmer's Brother
1913Under the Shadow of the LawActorCharles Darnton - the Employer
1913The Unwelcome GuestActorAt Auction (uncredited)
1913The Vengeance of GaloraActor, Writer(unconfirmed)
1913The WandererActorThe Male Lover
1913The WellActorThe Farmer
1913The Wrong BottleActorThe Father
1913The Work HabitActorThe Father
1913The House of DiscordActorThe Husband
1913The Perfidy of MaryActorMary's Father
1913FateActorFather, Loving Family
1912The Burglar’s DilemmaActor, WriterThe Householder
1912The New York HatActorMinister
1912BrutalityActorAt Wedding
1912The Chief's BlanketActorThe Young Man
1912A Cry for HelpActorThe Tramp
1912FriendsActorGrizzley Fallon - Dandy Jack's Friend
1912The God WithinActorThe Woman of the Camp's Lover
1912Gold and GlitterActorThe Lover
1912HeredityActorWoodsman
1912The InformerActorUnion Soldier
1912The MassacreActor
1912The Musketeers of Pig AlleyActorThe Musician's Friend
1912My BabyActorAt table
1912My HeroActor
1912The One She LovedActorThe Neighbor
1912The Painted LadyActorAt Ice Cream Festival
1912So Near, Yet So FarActorIn Club
1911The BattleActorWagon Driver (uncredited)
1911Fighting BloodActor
1911The Miser's HeartActorJules - the Thief