BB
Billy Bevan
Actor
Born September 29, 1887Died November 26, 1957 (70 years)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Billy Bevan (born William Bevan Harris, 29 September 1887 – 26 November 1957) was an Australian-born vaudevillian, who became an American film actor. He appeared in 254 American films between 1916 and 1950.
Bevan was born in the country town of Orange, New South Wales, Australia. He went on the stage at an early age, traveled to Sydney and spent eight years in Australian light opera, performing as Willie Bevan. He sailed to America with the Pollard’s Lilliputian Opera Company in 1912 and later toured Canada. Bevan broke into films with the Sigmund Lubin studio in 1916. When the company disbanded, Bevan became a supporting actor in Mack Sennett movie comedies. An expressive pantomimist, Bevan's quiet scene-stealing attracted attention, and by 1922 Bevan was a Sennett star. He supplemented his income, however, by establishing a citrus and avocado farm at Escondido, California.
Usually filmed wearing a derby hat and a drooping mustache, Bevan may not have possessed an indelible screen character like Charlie Chaplin but he had a friendly, funny presence in the frantic Sennett comedies. Much of the comedy depended on Bevan's skilled timing and reactions; the famous "oyster" routine performed on film by Curly Howard, Lou Costello, and Huntz Hall—in which a bowl of "fresh oyster stew" shows alarming signs of life and battles the guy trying to eat it—was originated on film decades earlier by Bevan in the short film Wandering Willies.
By the mid-1920s Bevan was often teamed with Andy Clyde; Clyde soon graduated to his own starring series. The late 1920s found Bevan playing in wild marital farces for Sennett.
The advent of talking pictures took their toll on the careers of many silent stars, including Billy Bevan. Bevan began a second career in "talkies" as a character actor and bit player in roles such as that of a bus driver in the 1929 film High Voltage, a hotel employee in the Mae Murray film Peacock Alley, and the supporting role of Second Lieutenant Trotter in Journey's End in 1930. His starring roles had come to an end, however, and for the next 20 years he often would play rowdy Cockneys (as in Pack Up Your Troubles with The Ritz Brothers), and affable Englishmen (as in Tin Pan Alley and Terror by Night). He played a friendly bus conductor opposite Greer Garson in one of the opening scenes of Mrs. Miniver.
Bevan died in 1957 in Escondido, California, just before new audiences discovered him in Robert Youngson's silent-comedy compilations. (The Youngson films mispronounce his name as "Be-VAN"; Bevan himself offered the proper pronunciation in a Voice of Hollywood reel in 1930.)
Billy Bevan (born William Bevan Harris, 29 September 1887 – 26 November 1957) was an Australian-born vaudevillian, who became an American film actor. He appeared in 254 American films between 1916 and 1950.
Bevan was born in the country town of Orange, New South Wales, Australia. He went on the stage at an early age, traveled to Sydney and spent eight years in Australian light opera, performing as Willie Bevan. He sailed to America with the Pollard’s Lilliputian Opera Company in 1912 and later toured Canada. Bevan broke into films with the Sigmund Lubin studio in 1916. When the company disbanded, Bevan became a supporting actor in Mack Sennett movie comedies. An expressive pantomimist, Bevan's quiet scene-stealing attracted attention, and by 1922 Bevan was a Sennett star. He supplemented his income, however, by establishing a citrus and avocado farm at Escondido, California.
Usually filmed wearing a derby hat and a drooping mustache, Bevan may not have possessed an indelible screen character like Charlie Chaplin but he had a friendly, funny presence in the frantic Sennett comedies. Much of the comedy depended on Bevan's skilled timing and reactions; the famous "oyster" routine performed on film by Curly Howard, Lou Costello, and Huntz Hall—in which a bowl of "fresh oyster stew" shows alarming signs of life and battles the guy trying to eat it—was originated on film decades earlier by Bevan in the short film Wandering Willies.
By the mid-1920s Bevan was often teamed with Andy Clyde; Clyde soon graduated to his own starring series. The late 1920s found Bevan playing in wild marital farces for Sennett.
The advent of talking pictures took their toll on the careers of many silent stars, including Billy Bevan. Bevan began a second career in "talkies" as a character actor and bit player in roles such as that of a bus driver in the 1929 film High Voltage, a hotel employee in the Mae Murray film Peacock Alley, and the supporting role of Second Lieutenant Trotter in Journey's End in 1930. His starring roles had come to an end, however, and for the next 20 years he often would play rowdy Cockneys (as in Pack Up Your Troubles with The Ritz Brothers), and affable Englishmen (as in Tin Pan Alley and Terror by Night). He played a friendly bus conductor opposite Greer Garson in one of the opening scenes of Mrs. Miniver.
Bevan died in 1957 in Escondido, California, just before new audiences discovered him in Robert Youngson's silent-comedy compilations. (The Youngson films mispronounce his name as "Be-VAN"; Bevan himself offered the proper pronunciation in a Voice of Hollywood reel in 1930.)
Movies & Shows on Plex
Filmography
| 1986 | Vincent Price's Dracula · as Horace - (archive Footage) |
| 1982 | Hollywood: The Gift of Laughter · as Actor - Unidentified Mack Sennett Film |
| 1963 | 30 Years of Fun · as (archive Footage) |
| 1960 | When Comedy Was King · as Edited From 'super Duper Dyne Lizzies, ' 'the Lion's Whiskers, ' 'wall Street Blues, ' And' Wandering Willies' |
| 1960 | Lifetime of Comedy · as Cast |
| 1957 | The Golden Age of Comedy · as Archive Footage |
| 1952 | Hans Christian Andersen · as Town Councilman (uncredited) |
| 1951 | Ça c'est du cinéma · as (archive Footage) |
| 1950 | Three Secrets · as Ed Jackson (uncredited) |
| 1950 | Rogues of Sherwood Forest · as Will Scarlet |
| 1950 | Fortunes of Captain Blood · as Billy Bragg |
| 1949 | Tell It to the Judge · as Winston, Kitty's Butler (uncredited) |
| 1949 | That Forsyte Woman · as Porter |
| 1949 | The Secret Garden · as Barney |
| 1949 | The Secret of St. Ives · as Douglas (uncredited) |
| 1948 | Let's Live a Little · as Morton |
| 1948 | The Black Arrow · as Dungeon Keeper |
| 1948 | The Swordsman · as Old Andrew |
| 1947 | It Had to Be You · as Evans |
| 1947 | Love from a Stranger · as Taxi Driver |
| 1947 | Moss Rose · as Harry, Cab Driver (uncredited) |
| 1946 | Cluny Brown · as Uncle Arn Porritt |
| 1946 | Devotion · as Mr. Ames (uncredited) |
| 1946 | Terror by Night · as Conductor Taking Tickets |
| 1945 | Scotland Yard Investigator · as Porter |
| 1945 | The Picture of Dorian Gray · as Malvolio Jones |
| 1945 | Tonight and Every Night · as Cabbie (uncredited) |
| 1944 | National Velvet · as Constable (uncredited) |
| 1944 | Once Upon a Time · as Patrol Cop-Driver |
| 1944 | Once Over Lightly · as Cast |
| 1944 | The Pearl of Death · as Constable With Food Tray (uncredited) |
| 1944 | The Invisible Man's Revenge · as Police Sergeant (uncredited) |
| 1944 | |
| 1943 | Jane Eyre · as Bookie (uncredited) |
| 1943 | The Return of the Vampire · as Horace (uncredited) |
| 1943 | Holy Matrimony · as Cabby |
| 1943 | Young and Willing · as Phillips |
| 1943 | Forever and a Day · as Wartime Cabby |
| 1943 | London Blackout Murders · as Air Raid Warden |
| 1942 | I Married a Witch · as Puritan Vendor (uncredited) |
| 1942 | Counter-Espionage · as George Barrow |
| 1942 | A Yank at Eton · as Tour Guide |
| 1942 | Mrs. Miniver · as Bus Conductor (uncredited) |
| 1942 | This Above All · as Farmer |
| 1942 | The Man Who Wouldn't Die · as Phillips |
| 1941 | Confirm or Deny · as Mr. Bindle |
| 1941 | Suspicion · as Ticket Taker (uncredited) |
| 1941 | Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde · as Mr. Weller |
| 1941 | One Night in Lisbon · as Lord Fitzleigh's Aide |
| 1941 | Shining Victory · as Chivers |
| 1941 | Penny Serenade · as Mcdougal (uncredited) |
| 1941 | Scotland Yard · as Porter |
| 1940 | Tin Pan Alley · as Stage Doorman |
| 1940 | The Long Voyage Home · as Joe |
| 1940 | Li'l Abner · as Bandleader |
| 1940 | Rebecca · as Policeman (uncredited) |
| 1940 | The Invisible Man Returns · as Jim (uncredited) |
| 1940 | The Earl of Chicago · as Castle Guide |
| 1939 | We Are Not Alone · as Mr. Jones |
| 1939 | Pack Up Your Troubles · as British Sergeant |
| 1939 | Captain Fury · as Duffy |
| 1939 | Let Freedom Ring · as Cockney (uncredited) |
| 1938 | A Christmas Carol · as Street Watch Leader |
| 1938 | Arrest Bulldog Drummond · as Aquarium Guard |
| 1938 | Mysterious Mr. Moto · as Customs Official |
| 1938 | Shadows Over Shanghai · as Gallicuddy |
| 1938 | The Young in Heart · as Kennel Man (uncredited) |
| 1938 | Blond Cheat · as Bartender (uncredited) |
| 1938 | The Girl of the Golden West · as Nick |
| 1938 | Bringing Up Baby · as Joe (uncredited) |
| 1937 | The Wrong Road · as Mclean |
| 1937 | Slave Ship · as Atkins |
| 1937 | Another Dawn · as Pvt. Hawkins |
| 1937 | Personal Property · as Frank (uncredited) |
| 1937 | God's Country and the Woman · as Plug Hat |
| 1936 | Lloyd's of London · as Innkeeper |
| 1936 | Piccadilly Jim · as Taxi Driver |
| 1936 | Private Number · as Frederick |
| 1936 | Dracula's Daughter · as Police Constable Albert |
| 1936 | Champagne Charlie · as Mr. Boswick |
| 1936 | Mr. Deeds Goes to Town · as Cabby (uncredited) |
| 1935 | A Tale of Two Cities · as Jerry Cruncher |
| 1935 | The Widow from Monte Carlo · as Officer Watkins |
| 1935 | The Last Outpost · as Private Foster |
| 1935 | Dressed to Thrill · as Canadian Soldier |
| 1935 | Black Sheep · as Alfred |
| 1935 | Vanessa, Her Love Story · as Horse Auctioneer |
| 1934 | Limehouse Blues · as Herb |
| 1934 | The Painted Veil · as Bridegroom |
| 1934 | Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back · as Man In Hotel Room |
| 1934 | One More River · as Cloakroom Attendant |
| 1934 | |
| 1934 | Stingaree · as Mac |
| 1934 | The Lost Patrol · as Hale |
| 1934 | Caravan · as Police Sergeant |
| 1933 | Alice in Wonderland · as Two Of Spades (uncredited) |
| 1933 | The Way to Love · as M. Prial |
| 1933 | Too Much Harmony · as Stage Director |
| 1933 | Midnight Club · as Detective |
| 1933 | Peg o' My Heart · as Detective #2 (uncredited) |
| 1933 | A Study in Scarlet · as Will Swallow |
| 1933 | Looking Forward · as Mr. Barker |
| 1933 | Cavalcade · as George Grainger |
| 1933 | Luxury Liner · as Schultz |
| 1932 | Me and My Gal · as Ashley (uncredited) |
| 1932 | Payment Deferred · as Charlie Hammond |
| 1932 | The Spot on the Rug · as Gerald J. Fitzgerald |
| 1932 | Vanity Fair · as Joseph Sedley |
| 1932 | Sky Devils · as Colonel |
| 1932 | The Silent Witness · as Horace Ward |
| 1931 | Waterloo Bridge · as Soldier On The Make (uncredited) |
| 1931 | Transatlantic · as Hodgkins |
| 1931 | Chances · as Cuthbert (uncredited) |
| 1931 | The Spy · as Undetermined Role |
| 1931 | Frozen Face · as Cast |
| 1931 | Born to Love · as Departing British Soldier (uncredited) |
| 1930 | For the Defense · as Drunk |
| 1930 | Monte Carlo · as Train Conductor (uncredited) |
| 1930 | Journey's End · as Trotter |
| 1930 | Peacock Alley · as Walter |
| 1929 | The Trespasser · as Reporter (uncredited) |
| 1929 | High Voltage · as Gus Jones |
| 1928 | Riley the Cop · as Paris Cabman |
| 1927 | Gold Digger of Weepah · as The Barber |
| 1926 | Ice Cold Cocos · as Gus Gander |
| 1925 | Butter Fingers · as Nick |
| 1923 | The Extra Girl · as Comedian |
| 1921 | A Small Town Idol · as Director |