WALLACE BEERY, whose recent role of "Richard the Lion Heart"
in "Robin Hood" probably will cause him to be remembered as long
as any part he ever played, secured plenty of training for this period upon
the throne, for royalty scampered all around him during his earlier stage
career. It seems a long and peculiar jump from "King Dodo" to
"Richard," a leap from the ridiculous to the sublime, but that
was the hurdle which Mr. Beery made with success crowding all the interval
of years.
During all that long period there were two years with a circus as an
elephant trainer, but whether this had to do with his later success as director
with the old Essanay, his historian does not state.
Mr. Beery was born in Kansas City, Mo., and lived there until he was
eighteen, attending grammar and high schools.
During his first season in motion pictures Mr. Beery did not attract
any more attention than scores of other actors in those pioneer days of
the film. He joined Essanay, and directed before leaving. Next he played
with Universal, and even had a taste of Keystone before coming into general
notice as a masterly leading screen character.
Some of the many productions in which Mr. Beery has scored heavily are
"Victory" and "Last of the Mohicans," with Tourneur;
"The Unpardonable Sin," "The Golden Snare, Tale of Two Cities,"
Behind the Door" and "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse."
He is six feet tall, weighs 200 pounds He has dark hair and brown eyes,
and he lives in Hollywood. |