Chester Morris in Thunder Afloat (1939)
American collector card. Photo: Metro Goldwyn Mayer. Chester Morris in Thunder Afloat (George B. Seitz, 1939).
American actor Chester Morris (1901-1970) was a Broadway star who billed himself as 'the youngest leading man in the country'. With his dark, good looks and chiselled jaw, he became a film star in the sound era. Morris was Oscar-nominated for Alibi (1929), but his greatest success was The Big House (1930). However, his star dimmed and by the end of the decade, he was appearing in B-pictures, From 1941, the Boston Blackie series at Columbia Pictures revived his career. In all, he appeared in 14 films as a detective.
Chester Morris was born John Chester Brooks Morris in New York City, in 1901. He was the son of actor William Morris and comedienne Etta Hawkins. As a teenager, Morris made his Broadway debut in 1918 in the play 'The Copperhead', in support of the great Lionel Barrymore. A year earlier, Chet Morris had made his film debut in Van Dyke Brooke's An Amateur Orphan (1917), but he didn't become a real film actor until the sound era. Instead, Morris appeared on Broadway in the plays 'Thunder' and 'The Mountain Man' in 1919. He returned to the Great White Way in 1922 in the comedy 'The Exciters'. He followed it up with the comedy-drama 'Extra' in 1923. Now established, Chester Morris began billing himself as 'the youngest leading man in the country'.
Chester Morris' dark, good looks and chiselled jaw made him a natural for movie stardom, but it wasn't until the transition from silent pictures to talkies that he became a film actor. He was one of the first actors to be nominated for an Academy Award when in 1930 (the second year of the as-yet non-nicknamed Oscars) he was recognised with a nod as Best Actor for Alibi (1929), his first talking picture. But it was his appearance in The Big House (1930), the film for which he is best known that he broke through to stardom. From 1930 through the middle of the decade, he was a star with good roles in first-rate pictures, usually assaying a tough guy. However, his star dimmed and by the end of the decade he was appearing in B-pictures, but beginning in 1941, the Boston Blackie series at Columbia Pictures revived his career. In all, he appeared in 14 pictures as the detective. He later segued to TV work in the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in the occasional film such as his last, The Great White Hope (1970), which meant he had been a working movie actor for seven decades. Although he was afflicted with cancer, it is unclear whether he took his own life as he was apparently in good spirits and left no note in 1970.
Sources: Jon C. Hopwood (IMDb) and IMDb.
And please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
Chester Morris in Thunder Afloat (1939)
American collector card. Photo: Metro Goldwyn Mayer. Chester Morris in Thunder Afloat (George B. Seitz, 1939).
American actor Chester Morris (1901-1970) was a Broadway star who billed himself as 'the youngest leading man in the country'. With his dark, good looks and chiselled jaw, he became a film star in the sound era. Morris was Oscar-nominated for Alibi (1929), but his greatest success was The Big House (1930). However, his star dimmed and by the end of the decade, he was appearing in B-pictures, From 1941, the Boston Blackie series at Columbia Pictures revived his career. In all, he appeared in 14 films as a detective.
Chester Morris was born John Chester Brooks Morris in New York City, in 1901. He was the son of actor William Morris and comedienne Etta Hawkins. As a teenager, Morris made his Broadway debut in 1918 in the play 'The Copperhead', in support of the great Lionel Barrymore. A year earlier, Chet Morris had made his film debut in Van Dyke Brooke's An Amateur Orphan (1917), but he didn't become a real film actor until the sound era. Instead, Morris appeared on Broadway in the plays 'Thunder' and 'The Mountain Man' in 1919. He returned to the Great White Way in 1922 in the comedy 'The Exciters'. He followed it up with the comedy-drama 'Extra' in 1923. Now established, Chester Morris began billing himself as 'the youngest leading man in the country'.
Chester Morris' dark, good looks and chiselled jaw made him a natural for movie stardom, but it wasn't until the transition from silent pictures to talkies that he became a film actor. He was one of the first actors to be nominated for an Academy Award when in 1930 (the second year of the as-yet non-nicknamed Oscars) he was recognised with a nod as Best Actor for Alibi (1929), his first talking picture. But it was his appearance in The Big House (1930), the film for which he is best known that he broke through to stardom. From 1930 through the middle of the decade, he was a star with good roles in first-rate pictures, usually assaying a tough guy. However, his star dimmed and by the end of the decade he was appearing in B-pictures, but beginning in 1941, the Boston Blackie series at Columbia Pictures revived his career. In all, he appeared in 14 pictures as the detective. He later segued to TV work in the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in the occasional film such as his last, The Great White Hope (1970), which meant he had been a working movie actor for seven decades. Although he was afflicted with cancer, it is unclear whether he took his own life as he was apparently in good spirits and left no note in 1970.
Sources: Jon C. Hopwood (IMDb) and IMDb.
And please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.