1871-1949
Though Seymour Hicks is most immediately identifiable as a British actor, and one closely associated with the character of Ebenezer Scrooge from 1935 (he was first filmed in that role in 1913), which he played when he was 64, Hicks was actually born in the Channel Islands. Precisely: St. Hélier, Jersey. This may seem like a difference without a distinction, but in Hicks' case it meant that he also had a very successful acting career in France, as well as the UK. Born Edward Seymour Hicks on this day; by the end of his career, he was not just a highly regarded and knighted actor, he had also produced both films and plays, was an accomplished musician and writer of both plays are screenplays. Hicks started acting as a child while at school in England and he made his professional debut on the stage at the age of 16. By the age of 20, he was already a member of an acting company that toured in the United States. He was one the first actors to portray Dr. Watson of Sherlock Holmes fame, though not in a staged performance of Conan Doyle's original material, but rather in a parody of his famous detective penned in part by Hicks himself. Long before his film career (which really became a kind of addendum to his greater acting career), Hicks had already done just about everything that a person could in the world of theater, including managing and even building not one, but two, theaters that are still standing today (The Hicks--now The Gielgud--in London and The Aldwych in Westminster). Even after his film appearances began, he and his actress wife Ellaline Terriss continued in theater. Mentioned above, Hicks appeared in Old Scrooge in 1913; this actually his film acting debut; he also adapted the Dickens piece for the film as well (Hicks first appeared as himself on film in 1907 in the comedic short Seymour Hicks Edits 'The Tatler'). He also appeared in the 1913 film David Garrick. Both films were directed by Leedham Bantock. Hicks' film career ran from 1913 until 1949, during this period of time he only appeared in a little over 20 films, with only five of them in the silent era. His writing credits in the field number almost as many. He did not appear in a feature length film until 1927 (his last silent film), when he had a small part in the war drama Blighty, the star of which was his wife Ellaline. Hicks also managed to direct a couple of films, the first of which officially is also his first talking film: Sleeping Partners in 1930--Hicks, also adapted and starred in the film (Hicks is one of two uncredited directors on the 1923 picture Always Tell Your Wife--on which he garnered his only producer credit, when director Hugh Croise stormed off the set--the other uncredited director was a little known new comer to films: Alfred Hitchcock). Hicks' last film appearance came in a film that was released after his death in 1949 in Silent Dust which was released in December of that year. Hicks had died earlier in the year on the 6th of April at the age of 78. He is buried at Fleet Cemetery in the English township of the same name, located in Hampshire.
 |
| Still from Old Scrooge (1913) |
 |
| [Source: fionamac (Find A Grave)] |
No comments:
Post a Comment