Edward Arnold (actor)

For other people named Edward Arnold, see Edward Arnold (disambiguation).

Edward Arnold
Arnold in 1941
Born	Günther Edward Arnold Schneider (1890-02-18)February 18, 1890 New York City, U.S.
Died	April 26, 1956(1956-04-26) (aged 66) Encino, California, U.S.
Resting place	San Fernando Mission Cemetery
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1907–1956
Spouses	Harriet Marshall ​ ​ (m. 1917; div. 1927)​ Olive Emerson ​ ​ (m. 1929; div. 1949)​ Cleo McLain ​ ​ (m. 1951)​
Children	3
President of the Screen Actors Guild
In office 1940–1942
Preceded by	Ralph Morgan
Succeeded by	James Cagney

Günther Edward Arnold Schneider^[1] (February 18, 1890 – April 26, 1956) was an American actor of the stage and screen.

Early life

Arnold was born on February 18, 1890, in Lower East Side of New York City, the son of German immigrants Elizabeth (Ohse) and Carl Schneider. His schooling came at the East Side Settlement House.^[2]

Acting career

Arnold on the radio show Three Thirds of a Nation, May 6, 1942

Stage

Arnold was interested in acting ever since he appeared on stage as Lorenzo in The Merchant of Venice at age 12. He made his professional stage debut in 1907 and had important roles in several plays on Broadway in the 1920s and 1930s. Among them is the 1927 revival of The Jazz Singer, with Arnold as the second lead to the star, George Jessel.

Film

He found work as an extra for Essanay Studios and World Studios, before landing his first significant role in 1916's The Misleading Lady. He returned to the stage in 1919, and did not appear in movies again until his talkie debut in Okay America! (1932). He recreated one of his stage roles in one of his early films, Whistling in the Dark (1933). His role in the 1935 film Diamond Jim boosted him to stardom. He reprised the role of Diamond Jim Brady in the 1940 film Lillian Russell. He played a similar role in The Toast of New York (1937), another fictionalized version of real-life business chicanery, for which he was billed above Cary Grant on posters, with his name in much larger letters.

Arnold appeared in over 150 movies. Although he was labeled "box office poison" in 1938 by an exhibitor publication (he shared this dubious distinction with Joan Crawford, Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich, Mae West, Fred Astaire and Katharine Hepburn), he never lacked work. Rather than continue in leading man roles, he gave up losing weight and went after character parts instead. He said, "The bigger I got, the better character roles I received." He was so sought-after, he often worked on two pictures at once.

Arnold (left) with J. Carrol Naish; from the trailer for Annie Get Your Gun (1950)

Arnold was expert as rogues and authority figures, and superb at combining the two as powerful villains quietly pulling strings. He was best known for his roles in Come and Get It (1936), Sutter's Gold (1936), the aforementioned The Toast of New York (1937), You Can't Take It with You (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Meet John Doe (1941), and a larger than life star turn as Daniel Webster in The Devil and Daniel Webster (1941). He was the first to portray Rex Stout's famous detective Nero Wolfe, starring in Meet Nero Wolfe (1936), based on the first novel in the series.

He played blind detective Duncan Maclain in two movies based on the novels by Baynard Kendrick, Eyes in the Night (1942) and The Hidden Eye (1945).

An image of Arnold made a posthumous appearance in the 1984 film Gremlins as the deceased husband (visible in a large framed photograph) of Mrs. Deagle, a character much like the rich, heartless characters Arnold was known for. Director Joe Dante mentioned that they received permission from Arnold's family to use his image.

Radio

From 1947 to 1953, Arnold starred in the ABC radio program Mr. President. He also played a lawyer, Mr. Reynolds, on The Charlotte Greenwood Show.^[3] In 1953, he hosted Spotlight Story on the Mutual network.^[4]

Television

Arnold hosted Your Star Showcase, "a series of 52 half-hour television dramas ... released by Television Programs of America."^[5] It was launched January 1, 1954, and ran in 150 cities.^[5] He co-starred in "Ever Since the Day", an episode of Ford Theatre on NBC.^[6]

Personal life

Arnold was married three times: to Harriet Marshall (1917–1927), with whom he had three children—Elizabeth, Jane, and William (who had a short movie career as Edward Arnold Jr.); to Olive Emerson (1929–1948), and to Cleo McLain (1951 until his death)

Arnold was president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1940 to 1942. In 1940, his autobiography Lorenzo Goes to Hollywood was published. He was the co-founder of the I Am an American Foundation.^{[clarification needed]}

Starting in the 1940s, Arnold became involved in Republican politics and was mentioned as a possible candidate for the United States Senate. In 1950, he announced his candidacy for the open U.S. Senate seat from California, but withdrew soon after, saying he did not have enough time to mount a campaign. He lost a closely contested election for Los Angeles County Supervisor and said at the time that perhaps actors were not suited to run for political office. ^{[citation needed]}

Arnold supported Thomas Dewey in the 1944 United States presidential election.^[7]

Arnold died at his home in Encino, California, at age 66, from a cerebral hemorrhage associated with atrial fibrillation. He was interred in the San Fernando Mission Cemetery.^[8]

Recognition

Midwestern University awarded Arnold the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters (D.Litt) on May 24, 1951.^[2] He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6225 Hollywood Boulevard in the recording category on February 8, 1960.^[9]

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Director	Notes
1916	The Misleading Lady	Sidney Parker	Arthur Berthelet
	The Strange Case of Mary Page	Dr. Foster	J. Charles Haydon	Lost film
	Vultures of Society	Joseph Gripp
	Sherlock Holmes	Moriarty Henchman In Striped Cap	Arthur Berthelet William Postance (assistant director)	uncredited
	The Return of Eve	Seymour Purchwell
1917	The Slacker's Heart	Frank Allen
	The Wide, Wrong Way	Hugh Chilvers	E.H. Calvert	Essanay Studios
1919	Phil for Short	Tom Wentworth	Oscar Apfel
	A Broadway Saint	Mr. Frewen	Harry O. Hoyt
1920	The Cost	Hampden Scarborough	Harley Knoles	Lost film
1932	Murder in the Pullman	Nick Valentine		Short
	Okay, America!	Duke Morgan	Tay Garnett
	Three on a Match	Ace	Mervyn LeRoy
	Afraid to Talk	Jig Skelli	Edward L. Cahn
	Rasputin and the Empress	Dr A. Remezov	Richard Boleslawski
1933	Whistling in the Dark	Dillon	Charles Reisner
	The White Sister	Father Saracinesca	Victor Fleming
	The Barbarian	Pasha Achmed	Sam Wood
	The Life of Jimmy Dolan	Inspector Ennis	Archie Mayo	uncredited
	Jennie Gerhardt	Sen. Brander	Marion Gering
	Secret of the Blue Room	Commissioner Forster	Kurt Neumann
	Her Bodyguard	Orson Bitzer	William Beaudine
	I'm No Angel	"Big Bill" Barton	Wesley Ruggles
	Duck Soup	Politician	Leo McCarey	uncredited
	Roman Scandals	Emperor Valerius	Frank Tuttle
1934	Madame Spy	Schultz	Karl Freund
	Sadie McKee	Jack Brennan	Clarence Brown
	Unknown Blonde	Frank Rodie	Hobart Henley
	Thirty Day Princess	Richard M. Gresham	Marion Gering
	Hide-Out	Det. Lt. 'Mac' MacCarthy	W.S. Van Dyke
	Million Dollar Ransom	Vincent Shelton	Murray Roth
	Wednesday's Child	Ray Phillips	John S. Robertson Ray Lissner (assistant)
	The President Vanishes	Secretary of War Lewis Wardell	William A. Wellman
1935	Biography of a Bachelor Girl	Mr. 'Feydie' Feydak	Edward H. Griffith
	Cardinal Richelieu	Louis XIII	Rowland V. Lee
	The Glass Key	Paul Madvig	Frank Tuttle
	Diamond Jim	Diamond Jim Brady	A. Edward Sutherland
	Remember Last Night?	Danny Harrison	James Whale
	Crime and Punishment	Insp. Porfiry	Josef von Sternberg
	Sutter's Gold	John Sutter	James Cruze
1936	Meet Nero Wolfe	Nero Wolfe	Herbert Biberman
	Come and Get It	Barney Glasgow	William Wyler
1937	John Meade's Woman	John Meade	Richard Wallace
	Easy Living	J.B. Ball	Mitchell Leisen
	The Toast of New York	Jim Fisk	Rowland V. Lee
	Blossoms on Broadway	Ira Collins	Richard Wallace
1938	The Crowd Roars	Jim Cain	Richard Thorpe
	You Can't Take It with You	Anthony P. Kirby	Frank Capra
1939	Idiot's Delight	Achille Weber	Clarence Brown
	Let Freedom Ring	Jim Knox	Jack Conway
	Man About Town	Sir John Arlington	Mark Sandrich
	Mr. Smith Goes to Washington	Jim Taylor	Frank Capra
	Slightly Honorable	Vincent Cushing	Tay Garnett Charles Kerr (assistant)
1940	The Earl of Chicago	Quentin 'Doc' Ramsey	Richard Thorpe
	Johnny Apollo	Robert Cain Sr.	Henry Hathaway
	Lillian Russell	Diamond Jim Brady	Irving Cummings
1941	The Penalty	Martin 'Stuff' Nelson	Harold S. Bucquet
	The Lady from Cheyenne	James 'Jim' Cork	Frank Lloyd
	Meet John Doe	D.B. Norton	Frank Capra
	Nothing but the Truth	T.T. Ralson	Elliott Nugent
	The Devil and Daniel Webster	Daniel Webster	William Dieterle
	Unholy Partners	Merrill Lambert	Mervyn LeRoy
	Johnny Eager	John Benson Farrell	Mervyn LeRoy
	Design for Scandal	Judson M. Blair	Norman Taurog
1942	The War Against Mrs. Hadley	Elliott Fulton	Harold S. Bucquet
	Eyes in the Night	Duncan 'Mac' Maclain	Fred Zinnemann
1943	The Youngest Profession	Burton V. Lyons	Edward Buzzell
1944	Standing Room Only	T. J. Todd	Sidney Lanfield
	Janie	Charles Conway	Michael Curtiz
	Kismet	The Grand Vizier	William Dieterle
	Mrs. Parkington	Amory Stilham	Tay Garnett
1945	Main Street After Dark	Lt. Lorrgan	Edward L. Cahn
	Ziegfeld Follies	Lawyer	George Sidney	'Pay the Two Dollars'
	The Hidden Eye	Capt. Duncan Maclain	Richard Whorf
	Week-End at the Waldorf	Martin X. Edley	Robert Z. Leonard
1946	Janie Gets Married	Charles Conway	Vincent Sherman
	Three Wise Fools	Theodore Findley	Edward Buzzell
	No Leave, No Love	Hobart Canford Stiles	Charles Martin
1947	The Mighty McGurk	Mike Glenson	John Waters
	My Brother Talks to Horses	Mr. Bledsoe	Fred Zinnemann
	Dear Ruth	Judge Harry Wilkins	William D. Russell
	The Hucksters	David 'Dave' Lash	Jack Conway
1948	Three Daring Daughters	Robert Nelson	Fred M. Wilcox
	Big City	Judge Martin O. Abercrombie	Norman Taurog
	Wallflower	Andrew J. Linnett	Frederick de Cordova
	Command Decision	Congressman Arthur Malcolm	Sam Wood
1949	John Loves Mary	Sen. James McKinley	David Butler
	Take Me Out to the Ballgame	Joe Lorgan	Busby Berkeley
	Big Jack	Mayor Mahoney	Richard Thorpe
	Dear Wife	Judge Harry Wilkins	Richard Haydn
1950	The Yellow Cab Man	Martin Creavy	Jack Donohue
	Annie Get Your Gun	Pawnee Bill	Charles Walters
	The Skipper Surprised His Wife	Adm. Homer Thorndyke	Elliott Nugent
1951	Dear Brat	Senator Wilkins	William A. Seiter
1952	Belles on Their Toes	Sam Harper	Henry Levin
1953	City That Never Sleeps	Penrod Biddel	John H. Auer
	Man of Conflict	J.R. Compton	Hal R. Makelim
1954	Living It Up	The Mayor	Norman Taurog
	Studio One	Juror No. 10	Franklin J. Schaffner	"Twelve Angry Men" (TV episode)
1956	The Houston Story	Paul Atlas	William Castle
	The Ambassador's Daughter	Ambassador William Fisk	Norman Krasna
	Miami Exposé	Oliver Tubbs	Fred F. Sears

Radio appearances

Year	Program	Episode/source
1942	Philip Morris Playhouse	The Maltese Falcon[10]

References

1. Franzen, Michael (June 17, 2019). Tagebuch der Geschichte der USA des 19. Jahrhunderts Band 8 1889 - 1899 [Diary of the History of the United States of the 19th Century: Volume 8 1889--1899] (in German). neobooks. ISBN 978-3-7485-9769-8.
2. "Edward Arnold Is Often Called 'Mr. President' In Private Life". Denton Record-Chronicle. February 3, 1952. p. 14. Retrieved August 18, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
3. Dunning, John (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio (Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 150. ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3. Retrieved September 26, 2019.
4. "MBS Sets Lineup for Program Plan" (PDF). Broadcasting. September 28, 1953. p. 73. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
5. "Release of Film Series Costing $1.85 Million" (PDF). Broadcasting. December 14, 1953. p. 37. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
6. "Production" (PDF). Broadcasting. October 12, 1953. p. 41. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
7. Critchlow, Donald T. (October 21, 2013). When Hollywood Was Right: How Movie Stars, Studio Moguls, and Big Business Remade American Politics (footnote 63). Cambridge University Press. p. 67. ISBN 978-1-1076-5028-2.
8. "Edward Arnold, Actor, Dies at 66". The New York Times. April 27, 1956. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
9. "Edward Arnold". Hollywood Walk of Fame. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
10. "Arnold Is Playhouse Guest Star". Harrisburg Telegraph. August 8, 1942. p. 25. Retrieved August 18, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.

Further reading

• Alistair, Rupert (2018). "Edward Arnold". The Name Below the Title : 65 Classic Movie Character Actors from Hollywood's Golden Age (softcover) (First ed.). Great Britain: Independently published. pp. 18–21. ISBN 978-1-7200-3837-5.
• Arnold, Edward (1940). Lorenzo Goes to Hollywood: The Autobiography of Edward Arnold. New York: Liveright.

External links

• Edward Arnold at IMDb
• Edward Arnold at the Internet Broadway Database
• Edward Arnold at Find a Grave
• Edward Arnold at Virtual History