Byron, Arthur [William] (1872–1943), actor. The son of performer Oliver Doud Byron, he was born in Brooklyn and made his debut with his father's company in 1889. After playing several seasons under Charles Frohman's aegis in support of John Drew, Byron was playing leading roles, such as the maligned suitor of the heroine in The Stubbornness of Geraldine (1902), Maxine Elliott's vicious suitor in Her Own Way (1903), Rev. Gavin Dishart in The Little Minister (1904), John Ryder in a touring company of The Lion and the Mouse (1906), and Jerome Le Govain in Samson (1908). He was again Elliott's leading man in The Inferior Sex (1910), then toured with Maude Adams as John Shand in What Every Woman Knows (1911) and played opposite Mrs. Fiske in The High Road (1912). Byron scored a major success as Dr. Gerald Sumner in The Boomerang (1915) and enjoyed another long run as the Friend to the absurdly jealous Husband in Tea for Three (1918). After a lengthy tour and brief New York stand as the aging boulevardier Comte de Larsac in Transplanting Jean (1921), he won applause as Dr. John Dillard in The Ghost Between (1921). His biggest hit was as Richard Sones, who tames his irresponsible wife in Spring Cleaning (1923). In a change of pace he was hailed as Martin Brady, the state's attorney, in The Criminal Code (1929) while another drama, Five Star Final (1930), allowed him to play the guilt‐ridden editor Randall. In 1936 Byron essayed Polonius to John Gielgud's Hamlet and two years later made his last appearance as the militaristic King Zedekiah in Jeremiah (1939).

• Born: Apr 03, 1872 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York
• Died: Jul 17, 1943 in Hollywood, California
• Occupation: Actor
• Active: '30s
• Major Genres: Drama, Comedy
• Career Highlights: The Mummy, The Prisoner of Shark Island, The Whole Town's Talking
• First Major Screen Credit: The Mummy (1932)

Biography

Veteran Broadway actor Arthur Byron came to Hollywood at the dawn of the talkie era, when his clear, precise vocal intonations proved to be a sound recordist's dream. Generally cast as high-ranking politicos and business executives, Byron's best screen assignments included the reform-minded warden in 20,000 Years in Sing Sing (1932) and the title character in The President Vanishes (1934). He could also use his veneer of respectability for dishonest purposes, as witness his Depression-era profiteer in Stand Up and Cheer (1934). Already well-on in years when he entered films, Arthur Byron retired after playing Mr. Erickson in John Ford's Prisoner of Shark Island (1936). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Return of Frank James Buy this Movie

The Whole Town's Talking Buy this Movie

Gabriel Over the White House Buy this Movie

The Mummy Buy this Movie