Charles Waldron

Charles Waldron
Charles Waldron in Escape by Night (1937)
Born	December 24, 1874 Waterford, New York, United States
Died	March 4, 1946 (aged 71) Hollywood, California, United States
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1907–1946
Spouse(s)	May King (1907-?)

Charles Waldron (December 24, 1874 – March 4, 1946) was an American stage and film actor, sometimes credited as Charles Waldron Sr., Chas. Waldron Sr., Charles D. Waldron or Mr. Waldron.

Biography

He was born and grew up in Waterford, New York. His parents, Mr. and Mrs. George B. Waldron, were themselves actors of some note, but they did not want their son to follow in their profession and tried to get him to pursue a career in finance.^[1] He worked in Philadelphia as a bank clerk.^[2] However, he jumped at the chance to "play the juvenile lead in 'Kidnapped'".^[1]

Nine years of stock and a tour of Australia performing in The Virginian and The Squaw Man followed. In 1905, he was praised for his performance in the leading role in the play The Eternal City at San Francisco's Alcazar Theatre.^[3] He made his Broadway debut in 1907 in David Belasco's The Warrens of Virginia.^[1] (His father and Belasco had been fellow actors in a Portland, Oregon company.^[1]) From 1907 to 1946, he acted in over forty Broadway productions in New York City.^[4] He played the title role in the original 1914 production of Daddy Long Legs, opposite future film star Ruth Chatterton; both he and Chatterton were highly praised.^[5] He performed alongside his son, Charles Belasco Jr., in the latter's debut in Lucrece c. 1932.^[1]

Over his long film career, he appeared in over sixty films, starting with the silent film Big Horse Hank (1911). He is perhaps best known for his final film role, that of General Sternwood in the film The Big Sleep (1946), starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. He also played U.S. President James Monroe in The Monroe Doctrine (1939).

He died, aged 71, in Hollywood, California. He was survived by his wife Alice, son Charles and daughter Donnee.^[6]

Partial filmography

• Big Noise Hank (1911 short)
• When We Were Twenty-One (1915)
• Esmerelda (1915 short)
• At Bay (1915)
• Mice and Men (1916)
• Audrey (1916)
• The Great Impersonation (1935)
• Crime and Punishment (1935)
• The Garden of Allah (1936) (uncredited)
• Ramona (1936)
• A Doctor's Diary (1937)
• The Emperor's Candlesticks (1937)
• Escape by Night (1937)
• Madame X (1937) (uncredited)
• Navy Blue and Gold (1937)
• They're Always Caught (1938 short)
• Marie Antoinette (1938) (uncredited)
• The Little Adventuress (1938)
• Kentucky (1938)
• On Borrowed Time (1939)
• The Real Glory (1939)
• The Monroe Doctrine (1939 short)
• Street of Memories (1940)
• Remember the Night (1940)
• And One Was Beautiful (1940)
• Dr. Kildare's Strange Case (1940)
• Stranger on the Third Floor (1940)
• Three Faces West (1940)
• The Case of the Black Parrot (1941)
• The Devil and Miss Jones (1941)
• Rise and Shine (1941)
• The Gay Sisters (1942)
• Random Harvest (1942)
• The Song of Bernadette (1943)
• Mademoiselle Fifi (1944)
• The Big Sleep (1946)

References

1. "Another Waldron Takes to Stage". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. November 20, 1932 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "When Banker Becomes Bishop: News!". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. April 12, 1936 – via Newspapers.com.
3. Blanche Partington (October 3, 1905). "Alcazar Presents Astonishing Production of "The Eternal City," With New Talent. Charles Waldron Proves Highly Satisfactory as Leading Man". San Francisco Call – via Newspapers.com.
4. Charles Waldron at the Internet Broadway Database
5. "Charles Waldron, Villain / Cornell Play Is Easy to Like". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. December 13, 1931 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Veteran Actor, Former Resident of Area, Expires / Charles D. Waldron Spent Boyhood in Waterford; Funeral To Be in Hollywood". Troy Times-Record. March 7, 1946 – via Newspapers.com.

External links

• Charles Waldron at the Internet Movie Database
• Charles Waldron at the Internet Broadway Database
• Charles Waldron at Find a Grave