Miles Malleson

Miles Malleson
Born	William Miles Malleson 25 May 1888(1888-05-25) Croydon, Surrey, England, UK
Died	15 March 1969(1969-03-15) (aged 80) London, England, UK
Other names	Miles Malieson
Occupation	Actor/Screenwriter
Years active	1921–1965
Spouse	Lady Constance Annesley (1915–1923) Joan G. Billson (?–1956) Tatiana Lieven (?–1969)

William Miles Malleson (25 May 1888 – 15 March 1969) was an English actor and dramatist, particularly known for his appearances in British comedy films of the 1930s to 1960s. Towards the end of his career he also appeared in cameo roles in several Hammer horror films, with a fairly large role in The Brides of Dracula as the hypochondriac and fee-hungry local doctor. Malleson was also a writer on many films, including some of those in which he had small parts, such as Nell Gwyn (1934) and The Thief of Bagdad (1940). He also translated and adapted several of Molière's plays (The Misanthrope, which he titled "The Slave of Truth", Tartuffe, and The Imaginary Invalid)

Biography

Malleson was born in Croydon, England and educated at Brighton College and Emmanuel College, Cambridge. At Cambridge, he created a sensation when it was discovered that he had successfully posed as a visiting politician and given a speech when the man failed to attend a debating society dinner.^[1]

He was married three times and had many relationships. In 1915, he married the aspiring actress Lady Constance Annesley. Like her, he was interested in social reform, one of his plays being on the subject of the Tolpuddle Martyrs. They were divorced in 1923 and Malleson later married Joan Billson, who died in 1956. His third wife was Tatiana Lieven.

He was tall and slender, but with a round double-chin like Robert Morley's, and a sharp nose. His manner was gentle and absent-minded; his voice, soft and high. He is best remembered for his roles as the Sultan in The Thief of Bagdad (1940), the poetically-inclined hangman in Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) and as Dr. Chasuble in The Importance of Being Earnest (1952).

Partial filmography

As actor

The Headmaster (1921) Battling Bruiser (1925) The W Plan (1930) Two Worlds (1930) The Yellow Mask (1930) Night Birds (1930) Children of Chance (1930) City of Song (1931) The Sign of Four (1932) Love on Wheels (1932) Summer Lightning (1933) Vintage Wine (1935) Tudor Rose (1936) as the Duke of Suffolk Knight Without Armour (1936) The Thief of Bagdad (1940) as the Sultan Major Barbara (1941) as Morrison the butler They Flew Alone (1942) Unpublished Story (1942) Thunder Rock (1942) The Gentle Sex (1943) The Demi-Paradise (1943) Dead of Night (1945) as the undertaker Woman Hater (1948) The Queen of Spades (1949) The Perfect Woman (1949) Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) as Mr. Elliott the hangman Train of Events (1949) Golden Salamander (1950) The Man in the White Suit (1951) as the Tailor Scrooge (1951) as Old Joe the fence The Importance of Being Earnest (1952) as Canon Chasuble Treasure Hunt (1952) Trent's Last Case (1952)

The Happy Family (1952) The Captain's Paradise (1953) Folly to Be Wise (1953) Geordie (1955) King's Rhapsody (1955) Private's Progress (1956) as Windrush Sr. The Man Who Never Was (1956) as the scientist The Silken Affair (1956) Dry Rot (1956) Brothers in Law (1957) as Kendall Grimes The Admirable Crichton (1957) The Naked Truth (1957) Happy is the Bride (1958) Dracula (1958) as the undertaker Behind the Mask (1958) The Captain's Table (1959) The Hound Of The Baskervilles (1959) as Bishop Frankland I'm All Right Jack (1959) as Windrush Sr. Kidnapped (1960) And the Same to You (1960) Peeping Tom (1960) The Day They Robbed the Bank of England (1960) The Hellfire Club (1960) The Brides of Dracula (1960) as Dr. Tobler Fury at Smugglers' Bay (1961) Postman's Knock (1962) Heavens Above! (1963) A Jolly Bad Fellow (1964) Circus World (1964) Murder Ahoy! (1964) First Men in the Moon (1964) You Must Be Joking! (1965)

As screenwriter

• Nell Gwyn (1934)
• Tudor Rose (1936)
• Victoria the Great (1937)
• Action for Slander (1937)
• The Thief of Bagdad (1940)
• The First of the Few (1942)
• Squadron Leader X (1943)
• The Adventures of Tartu (1943) (uncredited)
• Yellow Canary (1943)

As playwright

• Molière: Three Plays (1960); contains The Slave of Truth (Le Misanthrope), Tartuffe, and The Imaginary Invalid.

References

1. ^ Catherine De La Roche (1 October 1949). "Miles of Characters". Picturegoer magazine. http://www.powell-pressburger.org/Reviews/Miles/Miles01.html. 

External links

• Miles Malleson at the Internet Movie Database
• Miles Malleson at the British Film Institute's Screenonline

Persondata
Name	Malleson, Miles
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	25 May 1888
Place of birth	Croydon, Surrey, England, UK
Date of death	15 March 1969
Place of death	London, England, UK