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Convict 99
''Convict 99'' is a 1938 British comedy film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Will Hay, Moore Marriott, Graham Moffatt and Googie Withers. Plot Incompetent Dr Benjamin Twist (Will Hay) is dismissed from his job as headmaster at St. Michael's School (the school returns in a later film ''The Ghost of St. Michael's''), and applies for a job in another school. Going for interview, he is called into another office where they are expecting John Benjamin, a strict prison governor recently arrived from Australia who is applying for the vacancy at Blackdown Prison in Devon. On the way to what Twist believes is the school, he becomes drunk, and on arrival is mistaken for Max Slessor, a prisoner who had escaped during a jailbreak. Designated Convict 99 and in for seven years for forgery, Twist is soon discovered to be the new Prison Governor, and once put in his (dubiously) rightful place embarks on a programme to make the prison a more friendly place for the prisoners, funding it ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marcel Varnel
Marcel Varnel (16 October 1892 – 13 July 1947) was French film director, notably however for his career in the United States and England as a director of plays and films Biography He was born Marcel Hyacinthe le Bozec in Paris, France. Varnel started his working life on the Paris stage, soon becoming a director of musical comedies. In 1925 he moved to New York City working as director in several Broadway operettas, musicals and dramas for the Shubert family. This was followed by a move to Hollywood where he directed three low budget thrillers. In 1934, he moved to England and it was as a director of British comedies – initially working at British International Pictures, Elstree, then moving in 1936 to Gainsborough Pictures – where he produced his best films. Among the performers he worked with were Will Hay, The Crazy Gang, Arthur Askey and George Formby. He died in a car crash near Rake, West Sussex Rogate is a village and civil parish in the Chichester district ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prison Governor
The warden ( US, Canada) or governor ( UK, Australia), also known as a superintendent (US, South Asia) or director (UK, New Zealand), is the official who is in charge of a prison. Name In the United States and Canada, warden is the most common title for an official in charge of a prison or jail. In some US states, the post may also be known as a superintendent. Some small county jails may be managed by the local sheriff or undersheriff. In the UK and Australia, the position is known as a governor. In New Zealand and private prisons in the UK, the position is known as a director. In India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, the English-language title is a jail superintendent or just superintendent. The exact title varies depending on the type of prison. Duties The prison warden supervises all the operations within the prison. Prisons vary in size, with some housing thousands of inmates. They are responsible for the prison's security, the performance of staff of the prison (includin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roddy McDowall
Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 4 October 1998) was a British actor, photographer and film director. He began his acting career as a child in England, and then in the United States, in ''How Green Was My Valley'' (1941), '' My Friend Flicka'' (1943) and ''Lassie Come Home'' (1943). As an adult, McDowall appeared most frequently as a character actor on radio, stage, film, and television. For portraying Octavian in the historical drama ''Cleopatra'' (1963), he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award. He played Cornelius and Caesar in the original ''Planet of the Apes'' film series, as well as Galen in the spin-off television series. Other notable films included '' The Longest Day'' (1962), ''The Greatest Story Ever Told'' (1965), '' That Darn Cat!'' (1965), '' Inside Daisy Clover'' (1965), ''Bedknobs and Broomsticks'' (1971), '' The Poseidon Adventure'' (1972), '' Funny Lady'' (1975), ''The Black Hole'' (1979), ''Class of 1984'' (1982), ''Fright Nigh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kathleen Harrison
Kathleen Harrison (23 February 1892 – 7 December 1995) was a prolific English character actress best remembered for her role as Mrs. Huggett (opposite Jack Warner and Petula Clark) in a trio of British post-war comedies about a working-class family's misadventures, The Huggetts. She later played the charwoman Mrs. Dilber opposite Alastair Sim in the 1951 film '' Scrooge'' (US: ''A Christmas Carol'', 1951) and a Cockney charwoman who inherits a fortune in the television series ''Mrs Thursday'' (1966–67). Life and career Born in Blackburn, Lancashire, Harrison was brought up in London, her father having become borough engineer for Southwark. She was educated at Clapham High School before training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (1914–15). She spent some years living in Argentina and Madeira before making her professional acting debut in the UK in the 1920s. Harrison made her stage debut as Mrs. Judd in ''The Constant Flirt'' at the Pier Theatre, Eastbourne in 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alf Goddard
Frank Henry "Alf" Goddard (28 November 1897 in Brentford, Middlesex – 25 February 1981 in Ealing, London) was an English film actor. Brother of a famous boxer, Alf Goddard was once a boxer too. He was also a trained athlete and a professional dancer. He served in the army in World War I and when he was invalided out he worked on munitions. He made his stage debut in a musical hall act in 1916. His first appearance in films was as a stunt double where he did a number of risky jobs like jumping off bridges and swimming in rough seas. This led to him being given acting parts. Later he moved on to comedy roles. Filmography * '' Mademoiselle from Armentieres'' (1926) * ''White Heat'' (1926) * ''Every Mother's Son'' (1926) * '' Hindle Wakes'' (1927) * ''Carry On'' (1927) * '' The Flight Commander'' (1927) * ''Second to None'' (1927) * '' A Sister to Assist 'Er'' (1927) * ''Downhill'' (1927) * ''What Money Can Buy'' (1928) * '' Smashing Through'' (1928) * '' Balaclava'' (1928) * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wilfred Walter
Wilfred Walter (2 March 1882 in Ripon, West Riding of Yorkshire – 9 July 1958 in Ashtead, Surrey) was an English film and theatre actor, sometimes credited as Wilfrid Walter. He was born Franz Wilfrid Walter, son of the actor Richard Walter. Career He was a Shakespearian actor during the first half of the 20th century, playing at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, Stratford-upon-Avon and the Old Vic, where his major roles included Mark Antony, Falstaff, Othello, Bottom and Titus Andronicus. His best-known film role was as Max Slessor the eponymous inmate in the 1938 comedy ''Convict 99'', who is mistaken for the prison governor Benjamin Twist (Will Hay). Walter also acted as the monstrous lumbering brute Jake, Dr Orloff's (Bela Lugosi) assistant in the 1939 film adaption of the Edgar Wallace thriller '' The Dark Eyes of London''. Selected filmography * '' Old Roses'' (1935) * '' Hearts of Humanity'' (1936) * ''Owd Bob'' (1938) * ''Convict 99'' (1938) * '' The Dark Eyes of L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dennis Wyndham
Dennis Wyndham (15 January 1887 – 19 August 1973) was a South African born stage and film actor. Long based in Britain, he appeared in more than 40 films between 1920 and 1956. He was born in Natal, South Africa. On 23 May 1917, he married Elsie Mackay otherwise known as silent film actress Poppy Wyndham. Her elopement caused her father James Mackay, 1st Earl of Inchcape to disinherit her. The marriage was annulled in 1922. Partial filmography * ''Lorna Doone'' (1920) * '' The Eleventh Hour'' (1922) * '' The Informer'' (1929) * '' Lily of Killarney'' (1929) * '' Juno and the Paycock'' (1930) * ''Let's Love and Laugh'' (1931) * ''Who Killed Doc Robin?'' (1931) * ''The Man They Couldn't Arrest'' (1931) * ''Carmen'' (1931) * '' The Face at the Window'' (1932) * '' Anne One Hundred'' (1933) * ''The Stolen Necklace'' (1933) * '' Money Mad'' (1934) * ''Immortal Gentleman'' (1935) * ''Midshipman Easy'' (1935) * '' Lonely Road'' (1936) * ''Sensation'' (1936) * ''You Must Get Marr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Basil Radford
Arthur Basil RadfordAdam Greaves, "Radford, (Arthur) Basil (1897–1952)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, May 201available online Retrieved 3 August 2020. (25 June 189720 October 1952) was an English character actor who featured in many British films of the 1930s and 1940s. He trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and made his first stage appearance in July 1924. He is probably best remembered for his appearances alongside Naunton Wayne as two cricket-obsessed Englishmen in several films from 1938 to 1949. Early life Radford was born in Chester, England, on 25 June 1897. First World War He was a commissioned officer in the British South Staffordshire Regiment in the First World War, in 1918 transferring into the Royal Air Force, ending the war as a subaltern when he was demobilised in 1920. Radford had a crescent-shaped scar on his right cheek from a wound sustained during his time in the trenches. Depending on the lighting and cam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peter Gawthorne
Peter Gawthorne (1 September 1884 – 17 March 1962) was an Anglo-Irish actor, probably best known for his roles in the films of Will Hay and other popular British comedians of the 1930s and 1940s. Gawthorne was one of Britain's most called-upon supporting actors during this period. Early life and career He was born in 1884 in Queen's County (now County Laois) in Ireland, but spent most of his career in England. After two years at the ''Academy of Dramatic Art'', Gawthorne began a career on the London stage, eventually running up over twenty years experience there. His debut was in 1906, a walk-on part at His Majesty's Theatre, London. He was featured in the role of Albany Pope, receiving good notices, in the hit musical '' The Boy'' in 1917.Findon, B.W. (ed.) "''The Boy''", ''The Play Pictorial'', No. 186, Vol. XXXI, 1917, pp. 33–35 He also studied singing. He then toured Australia, South Africa and America, making his film debut in Hollywood before returning to Britain, w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for two millennia. The City of London, its ancient core and financial centre, was founded by the Romans as '' Londinium'' and retains its medieval boundaries.See also: Independent city § National capitals The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has for centuries hosted the national government and parliament. Since the 19th century, the name "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire, which largely comprises Greater London, governed by the Greater London Authority.The Greater London Authority consists of the Mayor of London and the London Assembly. The London Mayor is distinguished fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Limehouse
Limehouse is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London. It is east of Charing Cross, on the northern bank of the River Thames. Its proximity to the river has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains through its riverside public houses and steps, such as The Grapes and Limehouse Stairs. It is part of the traditional county of Middlesex. It became part of the ceremonial County of London following the passing of the Local Government Act 1888, and then part of Greater London in 1965. It is located between Stepney to the west and north, Mile End and Bow to the northwest, Poplar to the east, and Canary Wharf and Millwall to the south, and stretches from the end of Cable Street and Butcher Row in the west to Stainsby Road near Bartlett Park in the east, and from West India Dock (South Dock) and the River Thames in the south to Salmon Lane and Rhodeswell Road in the north. The area gives its name to Limehouse Reach, a section of the Thames wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Football Pools
In the United Kingdom, the football pools, often referred to as "the pools", is a betting pool based on predicting the outcome of association football matches taking place in the coming week. The pools are typically cheap to enter, and may encourage gamblers to enter several bets. The traditional and most popular game was the Treble Chance, now branded the Classic Pools game. Players pick 10, 11 or 12 football games from the offered fixtures to finish as a draw, in which each team scores at least one goal. The player with the most accurate predictions wins the top prize, or a share of it if more than one player has these predictions. In addition, there is a special £3,000,000 prize or share of it for correctly predicting the nine score draws (draws of 1-1 or higher) when these are the only score draws on the coupon. Players can win large cash prizes in a variety of other ways, under a points-based scoring system. Entries were traditionally submitted through the post or via agen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
