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Wilfrid Lawson (actor)

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Cause of death  Heart attack
Name  Wilfrid Lawson
Role  Character actor

Years active  1918-1966
Siblings  Gerald Lawson
Spouse(s)  Lillian (nee Fenn)
Nieces  Mavis Lawson

Full Name  Wilfrid Lawson Worsnop
Born  14 January 1900 (1900-01-14) Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
Died  October 10, 1966, London, United Kingdom
TV shows  The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Movies  Pygmalion, Tower of Terror, War and Peace, Allegheny Uprising, The Viking Queen
Similar People  Anthony Asquith, Leslie Howard, William A Seiter, Don Chaffey, Anatole de Grunwald

Occupation  Stage and screen actor

Wilfrid Lawson (born Wilfrid Worsnop, 14 January 1900 – 10 October 1966) was an English character actor of stage and screen.

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Life and career

Lawson was born Wilfrid Worsnop at 18 Harris Street, Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire. He was educated at Hanson Boys' Grammar School, Bradford, and entered the theatre in his late teens, appearing on both the British and American stage throughout his career.

He made his film début in East Lynne on the Western Front (1931) and appeared in supporting roles until he took the lead in The Terror (1938). That same year saw arguably his most celebrated film role as dustman Alfred P. Doolittle in the film version of George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, which also features Leslie Howard and Wendy Hiller.

He also had memorable leading roles in Pastor Hall (1940), as a German village clergyman who denounces the new Nazi regime in 1934; Tower of Terror (1941) as the wild-eyed maniacal lighthouse keeper Wolfe Kristen; and the title role in The Great Mr. Handel (1942), a biopic of the 18th century composer, all three showing his broad range. He also made a number of films in America beginning with Ladies in Love (1936) and including John Ford's The Long Voyage Home (1940) alongside John Wayne. His last leading role was in The Turners of Prospect Road (1947).

As a result of bouts of alcoholism, Lawson became difficult to work with, and throughout the 1950s his roles became increasingly small—even uncredited in some cases. Despite this he still gave memorable performances such as Prince Andrei Bolkonsky's father in King Vidor's War and Peace (1956), Ed in Hell Drivers (1957) and Uncle Nat in Room at the Top (1958), filmed in Lawson's home town of Bradford.

The 1960s saw something of a career resurgence, beginning with his turn as Black George in Tony Richardson's Tom Jones (1963) and culminating in two of his most notable latter day performances: the decrepit butler Peacock in The Wrong Box and the Dormouse in Jonathan Miller's television adaptation of Alice in Wonderland (both 1966). The same year saw his death, in London, from a heart attack.

His brother was the supporting player Gerald Lawson (born Gerald Worsnop, 30 April 1897 – 6 December 1973) and a nephew was actor Bernard Fox (10 May 1927 – 14 December 2016).

References

Wilfrid Lawson (actor) Wikipedia