JB
Photo of J. Edward Bromberg

J. Edward Bromberg

Actor
Born December 25, 1903Died December 6, 1951 (47 years)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Joseph Edward Bromberg (born Josef Bromberger, December 25, 1903 – December 6, 1951) was a Romanian-born American character actor in motion picture and stage productions dating mostly from the 1930s and 1940s. By virtue of his physique, the short, somewhat rotund actor was destined to play secondary roles. Bromberg made his stage debut at the Greenwich Village Playhouse and in 1926 made his first appearance in a Broadway play, Princess Turandot. The following year, Bromberg married Goldie Doberman, with whom he had three children.

Occasionally credited as J.E. Bromberg' and Joseph Bromberg, he performed secondary roles in 35 Broadway productions and 53 motion pictures until 1951. For two decades, Bromberg was highly regarded in the New York theatrical world and was a founding member of the Civic Repertory Theatre (1928–1930) and of the Group Theatre (1931–1940).

Bromberg made his screen debut in 1936 under contract to Twentieth Century-Fox. The versatile actor played a wide variety of roles ranging from a ruthless New York newspaper editor (in Charlie Chan on Broadway) to a despotic Arabian sheik (in Mr. Moto Takes a Chance). Although he spoke with no trace of an accent, he was often called upon to play humble immigrants of various nationalities. When Warner Oland, the actor who played Charlie Chan, died in 1938, Fox considered Bromberg as a suitable replacement, but the role ultimately went to Sidney Toler. Fox began loaning Bromberg to other studios in 1939 and finally dropped him from the roster in 1941. He kept working for various producers, including a stint at Universal Pictures in the mid-1940s.

Bromberg's most outstanding attribute was his facility with sensitive character roles; he could take a standard, undistinguished supporting part and make it unforgettably sympathetic. In Hollywood Cavalcade he portrays Don Ameche's friend who knows he will never get the girl; in Three Sons he is the lowly business associate who longs to be given a partnership; in Easy to Look At he is the once-great couturier now reduced to night watchman.

In September 1950, the anti-communist magazine Red Channels accused Bromberg of being a member of the American Communist Party. Subpoenaed to testify before the House Committee on Un-American Activities in June 1951, Bromberg refused to answer any questions in accordance with his Fifth Amendment rights.

Movies & Shows on Plex

  • Son of Dracula
  • The Return of Frank James
  • A Song Is Born
  • Lady of Burlesque
  • Arch of Triumph
  • Queen of the Amazons
  • Salome, Where She Danced
  • The Many Faces of Dracula

Known For

  • The Mark of Zorro
  • Son of Dracula
  • Phantom of the Opera
  • Lady of Burlesque
  • Jesse James
  • The Return of Frank James
  • Invisible Agent
  • I Shot Jesse James
  • Strange Cargo
  • Charlie Chan on Broadway
  • Queen of the Amazons
  • Arch of Triumph
  • The Missing Corpse
  • Reunion in France
  • Suez
  • Guilty Bystander
  • Stowaway
  • Seventh Heaven
  • Tennessee Johnson
  • Four Men and a Prayer

Filmography

2011
These Amazing Shadows · as Don Luis Quintero (clip From The Mark Of Zorro (1940))
2000
The Many Faces of Dracula · as Professor Lazlo (archive Footage)
1992
Dracula in the Movies · as Professor Lazlo
1950
Guilty Bystander · as Varkas
1949
I Shot Jesse James · as Harry Kane
1948
A Song Is Born · as Dr. Elfini
1948
Arch of Triumph · as Verdun Hotel Manager
1946
1946
Cloak and Dagger · as Trenk
1946
1946
Tangier · as Alec Rocco
1945
Pillow of Death · as Julian Julian
1945
The Missing Corpse · as Henry Kruger
1945
1944
Voice in the Wind · as Dr. Hoffman
1944
Chip Off the Old Block · as Blaney Wright
1943
Son of Dracula · as Professor Lazlo
1943
1943
1942
Reunion in France · as Durand
1942
1942
1942
Halfway to Shanghai · as Maj. U. Vinpore
1942
Invisible Agent · as Karl Heiser
1941
Pacific Blackout · as Pickpocket
1941
The Devil Pays Off · as Arnold Debrock
1941
Dance Hall · as Max Brandon
1940
The Mark of Zorro · as Don Luis B. Quintero
1940
1940
Strange Cargo · as Flaubert
1939
Hollywood Cavalcade · as Dave Spingold
1939
Three Sons · as Abe Ullman
1939
1939
Jesse James · as George Runyan
1938
Suez · as Prince Said
1938
I'll Give a Million · as Editor
1938
1938
One Wild Night · as Norman
1938
Four Men and a Prayer · as General Torres
1938
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm · as Doctor Hill
1938
Sally, Irene and Mary · as Pawnbroker
1938
1937
Second Honeymoon · as Herbie
1937
Charlie Chan on Broadway · as Murdock, Editor New York Bulletin
1937
Seventh Heaven · as Aristide The Astrologer
1937
Fair Warning · as Matthew Jericho
1936
Stowaway · as Judge Booth
1936
Ladies in Love · as Franz Brenner
1936
Girls' Dormitory · as Dr. Spindler
1936
The Crime of Dr. Forbes · as Dr. Eric Godfrey
1936
Under Two Flags · as Col, Ferol

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