And… here’s to you, Henry Daniell.
It takes real talent to convincingly play a wide range of onscreen meanies, and he managed beautifully over a career that ran 35 years. The fact that he was British added extra snap to his many aristocratic snarls.
We believe the photos below give you some idea of Daniell’s range and talents. He played with the biggest studio names, always making an impression even if moviegoers were often hard pressed to remember his name.
Let’s see how well you matched Daniell’s appearances with those of the far more famous names he played with. On to the answers to our Henry Daniell Quiz:
1) Question: Who is Daniell supporting (above) in this 1936 outing in which our man plays a sleazy Baron? (Can you also name the picture?) a) Hedy Lamarr; b) Greer Garson; c) Greta Garbo; or d) Olivia DeHavilland.
Answer: The picture is Camille, starring c) Greta Garbo. We wouldn’t have trusted Daniell’s character in this picture as far as we could throw him.
2) Question: Who is that chubby chap grilling Daniell, who plays a ruthless blackmailer in this 1944 thriller? a) Edmund Gwen; b) Ralph Richardson; c) Sir Cedric Hardwicke; or d) Charles Laughton.
Answer: d) Charles Laughton. The movie is The Suspect. Daniell also plays a testy barrister who instructs legal counsel Laughton in 1957’s Witness For The Prosecution.
3) Question: Who is that handsome chap crossing swords with our Henry in this 1940 outing in which Daniell plays a treacherous Lord? a) Roger Moore; b) Erroll Flynn; c) Charles Boyer; or d) Tyrone Power.
Answer: Who else but b) Erroll Flynn. The picture is The Sea Hawk, directed by Michael Curtiz. Daniell plays yet another treacherous Lord who takes it to Erroll in an exceptionally strenuous duel.
4) Question: Who is that fellow giving the cold stare to our distressed Henry in an entertaining 1945 horror outing? a) Bela Lugosi; b) Boris Karloff; c) Claude Rains; or d) Lon Chaney Jr.
Answer: Yup, that’s Boris Karloff, Henry’s costar in The Body Snatcher. The movie, well worth another look, is from that highly skilled RKO team of producer Val Lewton and director Robert Wise.
5) Question: There’s our man to the right above mediating the antics between two blowhards in this 1940 comedy. You probably recognize the guy in the middle, but which of the following plays the chap on the left? a) Jackie Gleason; b) Jack Oakie; c) Curly Howard; or d) Jack E.Leonard.
Answer: b) Jack Oakie. The movie is The Great Dictator with Henry playing a parody of Joseph Goebbels. Yes, that’s Chaplin in the middle above.
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