He was born as Matthew Reginald Sheffield Cassan in the St. George's, Hanover Square district of London, to Matthew Sheffield Cassan and Alice Mary Field. He had a brother, Edward Sheffield Cassan and a sister, Flora Kathleen Sheffield Cassan, who became an actress known as Flora Sheffield.
His father was born in Ireland and his mother in England. They were married in London in 1892. Matthew died when Reginald was nine. In 1913 Reginald Sheffield (billed as Eric Desmond) appeared in David Copperfield. In 1914, Alice Sheffield and her children emigrated to the United States where they lived in Queens, New York. Reginald acted on the stage and in films. While his sister, Flora, was an actress, brother Edward worked as an accountant in a bank and later became a theatrical agent.
Sheffield's Broadway performances credited as Reggie Sheffield include Evidence (1914), in which his mother, Alice Sheffield, also appeared, The Merry Wives of Windsor (1916), If (1917), The Betrothal (1918) and Helena's Boys (1924). His performances credited as Reginald Sheffield include Youth (1920), The Way Things Happen (1924), Hay Fever (1925), playing Sandy Tyrell, Slaves All (1926), Soldiers and Women (1929), playing Lieutenant Mason and Dear Old England (1930).
Reginald Sheffield was married in 1927 to Louise Van Loon (b. January 21, 1905 - d. April 14, 1987), a New York-born, Vassar College graduate with a liberal arts education. The couple had three children:
Mary Alice Sheffield Cassan (born 1928)
Jon Matthew Sheffield Cassan (April 11, 1931 – October 15, 2010) (aka actor Johnny Sheffield)
William Hart Sheffield Cassan (July 15, 1935 – December 12, 2010) (actor Billy Sheffield)
As film production became more and more located in Southern California, Sheffield and his wife travelled back and forth between New York and Los Angeles. After several years they moved permanently to the West Coast.
Being a trained stage actor, Sheffield easily made the transition from silent films to talkies. He was a working actor who became memorable in numerous character and supporting roles and appeared with some of the greatest film stars of the day, including Constance Bennett, William Powell, George Arliss, Loretta Young, Gary Cooper, Errol Flynn, Rosalind Russell, Cary Grant and Joan Fontaine.
In 1954, he began starring as Professor Mayberry in the television series Rocky Jones, Space Ranger. And after his son, Johnny Sheffield, appeared in his last jungle film in 1955, Reginald created, produced and directed a pilot for a television series, Bantu, the Zebra Boy, but a sponsor was not found and the show was never produced as a weekly series.
Sheffield acted in both versions of Cecil B. DeMille's The Buccaneer in (1938) and (1958), the latter being his last screen appearance.
Sheffield died December 8, 1957 at his home in Pacific Palisades, California, aged 56.
David Copperfield 1913 (Hepworth Manufacturing Company) ... David Copperfield
The Country Cousin (1919) (Selznick Pictures) ... Sammy Wilson
Piccadilly Jim (1920) (Selznick Pictures) ... Ogden Pett
Classmates (1924) (First National) ... Bert Stafford
The Pinch Hitter (1925) (Associated Exhibitors) ... Alexis Thompson
White Mice (1926) (Associated Exhibitors) ... Peter de Peyster
The College Widow (1927) (Warner Bros.) ...
The Nest (1927) (Excellent Pictures) ... Martin Hamilton
The Adorable Cheat (1928) (Chesterfield Motion Picture Corp.) ... Will Dorsey
Sweet Sixteen (1928) (Rayart Pictures) ... Tommy Lowell
The Green Goddess (1930) (Warner Bros.) ... Lt. Cardew
Old English (1930) (Warner Bros.) ... Bob Phillin
Partners of the Trail (1931) (Monogram) ... John Durant
Lost in Limehouse (1933) (RKO) ... Dr. Jackson ... aka Lady Esmeralda's Predicament (1933)
The House of Rothschild (1934) (20th Century Fox, United Artists) ... Stock Trader
All Men Are Enemies (1934) (20th Century Fox) ... Officer (uncredited)
Of Human Bondage (1934) (RKO) ... Cyril Dunsford
One More River (1934) (Universal Studios) ... Tommy ... aka Over the River (1934)
Charlie Chan in London (1934) (20th Century Fox) ... Flight Cmdr. King
The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935) (Paramount) ... Novice Clerk (uncredited)
Cardinal Richelieu (1935) (20th Century Fox) ... Richelieu's Outrider
Black Sheep (1935) (20th Century Fox) ... One of Oscar's friends (uncredited)
Society Fever (1935) (Chesterfield, Invincible) ... Lord Michael (uncredited)
Dante's Inferno (1935) (20th Century Fox) ... Bidder (uncredited)
Without Regret (1935) (Paramount) ... Reporter
Splendor (1935) (United Artists) ... Billy Grimes (uncredited)
The White Angel (1936) (Warner Bros., First National) ... Patient (uncredited)
The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936) (Warner Bros.) ... Bentham (uncredited)
It Happened Out West (1937) (20th Century Fox) ... Middleton ... aka The Man from the Big City (1937) (UK)
Another Dawn (1937) (Warner Bros.) ... Wireless Operator (uncredited)
Sergeant Murphy (1938) (Warner Bros.) ... English radio commentator (uncredited)
The Buccaneer (1938) (Paramount) ... Ship's Surgeon (uncredited)
Female Fugitive (1938) (Monogram) ... Dr. Richardson
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) (First National, Warner Bros.) ... Herald at archery tournament (uncredited)
Gunga Din (1939) (RKO) ... Rudyard Kipling (uncredited)
Earthbound (1940) (20th Century Fox) ... Defense Attorney
Arise, My Love (1940) (Paramount) ... Steward (uncredited)
Hudson's Bay (1941) (20th Century Fox) ... Clerk (uncredited)
The Lady Eve (1941) (Paramount) ... Prof. Jones (uncredited)
Suspicion (1941) (RKO) ... Reggie Wetherby
Scotland Yard (1941) (20th Century Fox) ... Hat Clerk (uncredited)
Bedtime Story (1942) (Columbia) ... Broadcaster (uncredited)
Take a Letter, Darling (1942) (Paramount) ... (uncredited)
Eyes in the Night (1942) (MGM) ... Victor
Random Harvest (1942) (MGM) ... Judge (uncredited)
Gorilla Man (1942) (Warner Bros.) ... Staff Officer (uncredited)
The Crystal Ball (1943) (United Artists) ... Dad in Shooting Gallery (uncredited)
Tonight We Raid Calais (1943) (20th Century Fox) ... Commander
Bomber's Moon (1943) (20th Century Fox) ... (appearance unconfirmed)
The Man from Down Under (1943) (MGM) ... (uncredited)
Appointment in Berlin (1943) (Columbia) ... (uncredited)
My Kingdom for a Cook (1943) (Columbia) ... English Reporter (uncredited)
Passport to Destiny (1944) (RKO) ... (uncredited)
Wilson (1944) (20th Century Fox) ... Secretary of War Newton D. Baker (uncredited)
The Great Moment (1944) (Paramount) ... Young Father
Our Hearts Were Young and Gay (1944) (Paramount) ... Purser (uncredited)
The Man in Half Moon Street (1945) (Paramount) ... Mr. Taper (uncredited)
My Name Is Julia Ross (1945) (Columbia) ... McQuarrie (uncredited)
Captain Kidd (1945) (United Artists) ... (uncredited)
Three Strangers (1946) (Warner Bros., First National) ... Hotel Clerk (uncredited)
To Each His Own (1946) (Paramount) ... Headwaiter (uncredited)
Devotion (1946) (Warner Bros.) ... Charles Dickens (uncredited)
Centennial Summer (1946) (20th Century Fox) ... President Ulysses S. Grant (uncredited)
The Searching Wind (1946) (Paramount) ... Prissy Man (uncredited)
Temptation (1946) (Universal, International) ... Wickersham (uncredited)
Singapore (1947) (Universal) ... Travel agent
The Exile (1947) (Universal) ... Commanding Officer (uncredited)
If Winter Comes (1947) (MGM) ... (uncredited)
The Three Musketeers (1948) (MGM) ... Subaltern (uncredited)
Kiss the Blood Off My Hands (1948) (Universal) ... Superintendent
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1949) (Paramount) ... Auctioneer (uncredited)
Mr. Belvedere Goes to College (1949) (20th Century Fox) ... Prof. Ives (uncredited)
Prison Warden (1949) (Columbia) ... English Charlie Watkins
That Forsyte Woman (1949) (MGM) ... Mr. McLean (uncredited)
Rogues of Sherwood Forest (1950) (Columbia) ... Farmer (uncredited)
At Sword's Point (1951) (RKO) ... Cardinal (uncredited)
The Story of Three Loves (1953) (MGM) ... Production Manager (uncredited)
Young Bess (1953) (MGM) ... Court Recorder (uncredited)
Second Chance (1953) (RKO) ... Mr. Woburn, English tourist
Forbidden (1953) (Universal) ... Englishman (uncredited)
23 Paces to Baker Street (1956) (20th Century Fox) ... Bespectacled Man (uncredited)
Secret of Treasure Mountain (1956) (Columbia) ... Edward Lancaster
The Story of Mankind (1957) (Warner Bros.) ... Julius Caesar
Marjorie Morningstar (1958) (Warner Bros.) ... Hotel Desk Clerk (uncredited)
The Buccaneer (1958) (Paramount) ... Tripes
Rocky Jones, Space Ranger (1954) ... Professor Mayberry
The Robot of Regalio (1956) ... Professor Mayberry
Renegade Satellite (1956) ... Professor Mayberry ... aka The Trial of Rocky Jones (1980) (USA video title)
The Magnetic Moon (1956) ... Professor Mayberry
The Cold Sun (1956) ... Professor Mayberry
Four Star Playhouse (1952) ... Gordon Richards ... episode 9: "Man on a Train" aired January 15, 1953
Studio 57 (1954) episode 78: "The Brown Leather Case" aired June 10, 1956
The Adventures of Jim Bowie (1956) episode: "The Bounty Hunter" aired May 17, 1957