Richard Barthelmess
Richard Barthelmess ( May 9, 1895 in New York City; † August 17, 1963 in Southampton, Long Iceland, actually Richard Semler Barthelmess ) was an American actor and co-founder of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Life
Richard Barthelmess attended Trinity College in Hartford and played alongside theater. His passion for acting, he had inherited from his mother, Carolyn Harris, who was also an actress in amateur theater productions. 1916 Barthelmess was Alla Nazimova, a friend of his mother, discovered and played in the same year his first starring role in Gloria 's Romance. Within a few years Barthelmess rose to become a major star and signed in 1918 a contract with David Wark Griffith, under whose direction he in Broken Blossoms and the following year played on the side of Lillian Gish in 1919 in Far to the east. His breakthrough for Topstar had Barthelmess 1921 with the self-produced film Tol'able David directed by Henry King. The actor specializing in the portrayal somewhat naive but lovable men of the land who prevailed against all kinds of hostility. As the biggest male star of First National ' Barthelmess earned approximately $ 375,000 per film.
Unlike many of his fellow actors of the silent era, Barthelmess made the transition to talkies, without losing popularity. At the Academy Awards in 1930 (April) was nominated for his performances in the night without hope and The World in Flames for an Oscar as Best Actor. In 1930 he played in Howard Hawks war drama starting in the twilight, but his popularity began to sink slowly. One of the better parts of the appearance beside Bette Davis was in the cabin in the cotton field. His contract with Warner Brothers in 1935 not renewed.
1939 succeeded the actor making a comeback as a character actor, directed by Howard Hawks, in SOS Fire on board. In 1942, he finally retired completely from the film business and lived the last decades withdrawn in great prosperity on Long Iceland.