Harry Agar Lyons (1 April 1878 – 1944) was an Irish-born British actor. He was born in Cork,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

in 1878 and died in

Wandsworth Wandsworth Town () is a district of south London, within the London Borough of Wandsworth southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Toponymy Wandsworth takes its nam ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

, England in 1944 at age 72. Lyons is best known for playing

Fu Manchu Dr. Fu Manchu () is a supervillain who was introduced in a series of novels by the English author Sax Rohmer beginning shortly before World War I and continuing for another forty years. The character featured in cinema, television, radio, com ...

in a series of fifteen

silent films A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, whe ...

collectively called ''The Mystery of Dr. Fu Manchu'', all filmed in 1923, followed by a 1924 series of eight additional Fu Manchu films under the title ''The Further Mysteries of Dr. Fu Manchu''. Lyons starred in the title role of all 23 movies (which ran about 20 –25 minutes each in length), all of which featured Fu's ongoing battle with his two British nemeses, Sir Nayland Smith (played by Fred Paul) and his assistant Dr. Petrie. Both series were produced by Oswald Stoll (see

List of Stoll Pictures films This is a list of films released by the British studio Stoll Pictures, one of the largest European studios of the 1920s.Low pp. 325–486 It excludes films made in other countries but film distribution, distributed in the United Kingdom by Stoll. ...

), who had earlier produced a 1920 film version of Sax Rohmer's 1915 "Yellow Peril" novel, ''The Yellow Claw''. In spite of the many films in which Lyons played an Oriental character, the obviously British actor "put forth little effort to make himself seem anything other than Caucasian". He later also starred as ''Dr. Sin Fang'', another Asian character, in a low-budget 1928 six-picture film series produced by Pioneer Productions. The Sin Fang films were produced and directed by Fred Paul (who also co-starred in them as the regularly appearing police lieutenant John Byrne) and were written by Patrick K. Heale. The Sin Fang films co-starred Evelyn Arden as Byrne's girlfriend Betty and

Wally Patch Walter Sydney Vinnicombe (26 September 1888 – 27 October 1970) was an English actor and comedian. He worked in film, television and theatre. Biography Vinnicombe was born in Willesden, Middlesex and began working on the music hall stages in ...

as Byrne's sidekick Bill Riggers. Fred Paul (who had also directed a number of the earlier Fu Manchu films) co-produced the 6 Sin Fang films with A. M. Brooks, and created the Sin Fang character to be as similar to Fu Manchu as he could possibly be, without being sued by

Sax Rohmer Arthur Henry "Sarsfield" Ward (15 February 1883 – 1 June 1959), better known as Sax Rohmer, was an English novelist. He is best remembered for his series of novels featuring the master criminal Dr. Fu Manchu."Rohmer, Sax" by Jack Adrian in Da ...

for copyright infringement. Of the six Sin Fang films, only the fifth one (''The Torture Cage'') still exists. Lyons' last two films, the cheaply-made 1937 ''Dr. Sin Fang'' sound feature and the 1938 ''Chinatown Nights'', also both featured the Dr. Sin Fang character, but those were produced by Victory Films and were not part of the 1928 silent film series.

The 1923 "Mystery of Dr. Fu Manchu" film series

*1. ''The Scented Envelopes'' (a lost film) *2. ''The West Case'' *3. ''The Clue of the Pigtail'' *4. ''The Call of Siva'' *5. ''The Miracle'' *6. ''The Fungi Cellars'' *7. ''The Knocking on the Door'' *8. ''The Cry of the Nighthawk'' *9. ''Aaron's Rod'' (only a partial print exists) *10.''The Fiery Hand'' *11.''The Man With the Lamp'' *12.''The Queen of Hearts'' *13.''The Silver Buddha'' *14.''The Sacred Order'' *15.''Shrine of the Seven Lamps''

The 1924 "Further Mysteries of Dr. Fu Manchu" film series

*1. ''The Midnight Summons'' *2. ''The Coughing Horror'' *3. ''Cragmire Tower'' *4. ''The Green Mist'' *5. ''The Cafe L'Egypte'' *6. ''The Golden Pomegranates'' *7. ''Karanmaneh'' *8. ''Greywater Park''

The 1928 "Dr. Sin Fang Dramas" film series

*1 ''The Scarred Face'' *2 ''The Zone of Death'' *3 ''The Light on the Wall'' *4 ''The Living Death'' *5 ''The Torture Cage'' (the only surviving film in the Sin Fang series) *6 ''Under the Tide'' (*Note - See also ''Dr. Sin Fang'' (1937) and ''Chinatown Nights'' (1938), two later sound films that also both featured the Dr. Sin Fang character)

Selected filmography

* ''

Little Lord Fauntleroy ''Little Lord Fauntleroy'' is a novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It was published as a serial in ''St. Nicholas Magazine'' from November 1885 to October 1886, then as a book by Scribner's (the publisher of ''St. Nicholas'') in 1886. The ill ...

'' (1914) * '' The World, the Flesh and the Devil'' (1914) * '' The Chance of a Lifetime'' (1916) * '' Diana and Destiny'' (1916) * '' A Man the Army Made'' (1917) * '' The Happy Warrior'' (1917) * '' The Knave of Hearts'' (1919) * '' The Man Who Forgot'' (1919) * '' The Power of Right'' (1919) * '' The Iron Stair'' (1920) * '' Mary Latimer, Nun'' (1920) * '' Frailty'' (1921) * '' The River of Stars'' (1921) * ''

Melody of Death ''Melody of Death'' is a 1922 British silent crime film directed by Floyd Martin Thornton and starring Philip Anthony, Enid R. Reed and Dick Sutherd.Low p.410 It is an adaptation of the 1915 novel '' The Melody of Death'' by Edgar Wallace. ...

'' (1922) * '' The Romany'' (1923) * '' One Arabian Night'' (1923) * '' Slaves of Destiny'' (1924) * '' The Prehistoric Man'' (1924) * '' Henry, King of Navarre'' (1924) * '' The Thoroughbred'' (1928) * ''

In a Lotus Garden ''In a Lotus Garden'' is a 1931 British musical film directed by Fred Paul and starring Roy Galloway, Jocelyn Yeo and H. Agar Lyons. It was made at Isleworth Studios as a quota quickie.Chibnall p.264 The film's sets were designed by Norman G. Ar ...

'' (1931) Lyons plays a Chinese mandarin in this British musical

* ''Dr. Sin Fang'' (1937) featured the character Dr. Sin Fang * '' Chinatown Nights'' (1938) featured the character Dr. Sin FangWorkman, Christopher; Howarth, Troy (2016). "Tome of Terror: Horror Films of the Silent Era". Midnight Marquee Press. p.326, 331. .

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lyons, Harry Agar 1878 births 1944 deaths British male film actors Irish male film actors British male silent film actors Irish male silent film actors Male actors from Cork (city) 20th-century British male actors