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Leslie Banks

 
Actor: Leslie Banks
Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Actors
  • Born: Jun 09, 1890 in West Derby, England, UK
  • Died: Apr 21, 1952 in London, England, UK
  • Occupation: Actor
  • Active: '30s-'40s
  • Major Genres: Drama, War
  • Career Highlights: Henry V, The Man Who Knew Too Much, The Most Dangerous Game
  • First Major Screen Credit: The Most Dangerous Game (1932)

Biography

Oxford-educated Leslie Banks embarked upon a stage career at London's Vaudeville Theatre in 1911. During combat in World War I, Banks' face was scarred and partially paralyzed. Returning to the theater at war's end, Banks was able to use his disfigurement to his advantage, favoring the unblemished side of his face when playing comedy, then conversely utilizing his "marked" side when essaying villains. Some of his more celebrated stage roles included Captain Hook in Peter Pan, Petruchio in Taming of the Shrew, the capricious title character in Springtime for Henry, and the kindly, doddering lead in the original 1938 staging of Goodbye Mr. Chips. He also distinguished himself as a theatrical producer and director. Banks entered films in 1932, starring as diabolical "people hunter" Count Zaroff in The Most Dangerous Game (1932). Leslie Banks continued making occasional film appearances until 1950, most notably as the reluctant hero of Hitchcock's 1934 version of The Man Who Knew Too Much, and the Chorus in Olivier's brilliant Henry V (1945). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
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Wikipedia: Leslie Banks
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Leslie Banks
Born June 9, 1890(1890-06-09)
West Derby, England,
Died April 21, 1952 (aged 61)
London, England


This article is about the British actor and director. For the African American writer, see Leslie Esdaile Banks.

Leslie Banks, CBE (9 June 1890 – 21 April 1952) was an English theatre and cinema actor, director and producer.

Born in West Derby, England, a suburb of Liverpool. His parents were George Banks and Emily Banks nee Dalby.[1] He studied at Trinity College in Glenalmond and Keble College, Oxford[1] with the intention of becoming a parson but decided against this. [2]

He joined F.R.Benson's Company and made his acting debut in October 1911 at the Town Hall, Brechin, playing Old Gobbo in The Merchant of Venice.[1] He then toured the US and Canada with Henry V. Esmond and Eva Moore 1912-1913.[1] Returning to London, he appeared for the first time on the West End stage at the Vaudeville Theatre on 5 May, 1914, as Lord Murdon in The Dangerous Age.[1]

When the First World War broke out, he served with the Essex Regiment 1914-1918.[2] He received injuries that left his face partially scarred and paralysed.[3] In his acting career he would use this injury to good effect, by showing the unblemished side of his face when playing comedy or romance and the scarred, paralysed side of his face when playing drama or tragedy. After the war, Banks joined the Birmingham Repertory Theatre. He returned to London in 1921 and established himself as a leading dramatic actor and West End star known for his powerful yet restrained performances.

Working in both London and New York, he won transAtlantic fame and it was when he was in New York that Kenneth Macgowan persuaded him to go to Hollywood and make his stage debut there in The Hounds of Zaroff in 1932.[2]

His first important film role was in the movie version of the story, re-titled The Most Dangerous Game (1932) as a diabolical "human hunter" with Joel McCrea and Fay Wray and for the rest of his career he divided his time between Britain and the United States, and between film and theatre. His other film roles include Alfred Hitchcock's The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934), Fire Over England (1937), Jamaica Inn (1939), Laurence Olivier's Henry V (1944), and David Lean's Madeleine (1950).

His theatre roles included Eliza Comes to Stay (his American debut in 1914), Captain Hook in Peter Pan (his New York debut in 1924),[1] Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew (1937) the schoolmaster in Goodbye, Mr Chips (1938), and James Jarvis in the Kurt Weill musical Lost in the Stars (1950) .

He married Gwendoline Haldane Unwin in 1915[1] and had three daughters: Daphne, Virginia and Evangeline.[2] He was made a CBE for his services to theatre in 1950,[3] the year in which he made both his final stage and film appearances.

Partial filmography

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g "John Parker: Who's Who in the Theatre: A Biographical Record of the Contemporary Stage (1925), pub Small, Maynard & Company, Inc.". http://www.archive.org/stream/whoswhointhethea011179mbp/whoswhointhethea011179mbp_djvu.txtl. 
  2. ^ a b c d "Picturegoer, 3 October 1942". http://www.powell-pressburger.org/Reviews/Banks/CloseUp.html. 
  3. ^ a b "British Film Institute Screenonline". http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/454219/index.html. 

External links


This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

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