Michael Simeon Visaroff (December 18, 1889 – February 27, 1951) was a

Russian American Russian Americans ( rus, русские американцы, r=russkiye amerikantsy, p= ˈruskʲɪje ɐmʲɪrʲɪˈkant͡sɨ) are Americans of full or partial Russian ancestry. The term can apply to recent Russian immigrants to the United Stat ...

film character actor.

Biography

Visaroff was born Mikhail Semenonovich Vizarov (

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

: Михаил Семёнович Визаров) in Moscow, Russia. He was a graduate of the Russian Principal Dramatic School. Visaroff started his career on stage: In July 1922, Visaroff came to the United States with a group from the

Kamerny Theatre The Kamerny Theatre was a chamber theatre in Moscow, founded in 1914 by director Alexander Tairov (1885–1950). Over the next 35 years, this small, intimate theater became "recognized as a major force in Russian theater". Considered among the bett ...

in Moscow. With a 14-week leave of absence from Russia, the group planned to present 12 plays, each lasting one week, in a Broadway theater. He eventually made the transition to film, appearing in more than 110 films between 1925 and 1952. He was best known for his

uncredited In general, the term credit in the artistic or intellectual sense refers to an acknowledgment of those who contributed to a work, whether through ideas or in a more direct sense. Credit in the arts In the creative arts, credits are an acknowledg ...

appearance in an early scene of ''

Dracula ''Dracula'' is a novel by Bram Stoker, published in 1897. As an epistolary novel, the narrative is related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist, but opens with solicitor Jonathan Harker taking ...

'' (1931) as the nervous Hungarian innkeeper who, as Renfield is traveling to meet the Count, warns him about the actual existence of

vampires A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deaths ...

Personal life

When Visaroff came to the US in July 1922 he was already married to Nina Visaroff, according to the passenger list, and they had a daughter named Lydia. Yet they got married again in 1924 in New York. His age in the passenger list is stated as 32 and in the naturalization file dated in March 1929, is given as 39 meaning that he was born in 1889 and not in 1892 as he claimed later in his life. He died in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

, from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

in 1951.''American Silent Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Feature Films, 1913–1929''
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Partial filmography

* ''

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

'' (1926) * ''

The Nickel-Hopper ''The Nickel-Hopper'' is a 1926 American short silent comedy film starring Mabel Normand and featuring Oliver Hardy and Boris Karloff in minor uncredited roles. Cast * Mabel Normand as Paddy, the nickel hopper * Michael Visaroff as Paddy's fa ...

'' (1926) * ''

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

'' (1926) * ''

The Sunset Derby ''The Sunset Derby'' is a 1927 American silent drama film directed by Albert S. Rogell and starring Mary Astor, William Collier Jr., and Ralph Lewis.

'' (1927) * ''

Two Arabian Knights ''Two Arabian Knights'' (1927) is an American comedy film, directed by Lewis Milestone and starring William Boyd, Mary Astor, and Louis Wolheim. A silent film, ''Two Arabian Knights'' was produced by Howard Hughes and was distributed by United ...

'' (1927) * ''

Ramona ''Ramona'' is a 1884 American novel written by Helen Hunt Jackson. Set in Southern California after the Mexican–American War, it portrays the life of a mixed-race Scottish– Native American orphan girl, who suffers racial discrimination and ...

'' (1928) * ''

Tempest Tempest is a synonym for a storm. '' The Tempest'' is a play by William Shakespeare. Tempest or The Tempest may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Films * ''The Tempest'' (1908 film), a British silent film * ''The Tempest'' (1911 film), a ...

'' (1928) * ''

The Night Bird ''The Night Bird'' is a 1928 American silent comedy film directed by Fred C. Newmeyer and starring Reginald Denny, Corliss Palmer and Sam Hardy.Munden p.543 Synopsis A New York boxer falls in love with an Italian girl he meets in Central Par ...

'' (1928) * ''

We Americans ''We Americans'' is a 1928 American silent drama film directed by Edward Sloman and starring George Sidney, Patsy Ruth Miller and George J. Lewis.Erens p.96 Synopsis Two young couples try to cross the mixed ethnic divide in America, something w ...

'' (1928) * ''

Lullaby A lullaby (), or cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for (or sung to) children (for adults see music and sleep). The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies they are used to pass down cultural knowled ...

'' (1929) * ''

Marquis Preferred ''Marquis Preferred'' is a 1929 silent film comedy directed by Frank Tuttle and starring Adolphe Menjou. It was produced and distributed by Paramount Pictures. Cast *Adolphe Menjou - Marquis d'Argenville * Nora Lane - Peggy Winton * Chester Con ...

'' (1929) * '' House of Horror'' (1929) * ''

Disraeli Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a centr ...

'' (1929) * ''

Du Barry, Woman of Passion ''Du Barry, Woman of Passion'' is a 1930 American pre-Code dramatic film starring Norma Talmadge, produced by her husband Joseph Schenck, released through United Artists, and based on a 1901 stage play ''Du Barry'' written and produced by David ...

'' (1930) * ''

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

'' (1930) * ''

'' (1931) (uncredited) * ''

Mata Hari Margaretha Geertruida MacLeod (née Zelle; 7 August 187615 October 1917), better known by the stage name Mata Hari (), was a Dutch exotic dancer and courtesan who was convicted of being a spy for Germany during World War I. She was executed by ...

'' (1931) (uncredited) * ''

Chinatown After Dark ''Chinatown After Dark'' is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film directed by Stuart Paton and starring Carmel Myers, Rex Lease and Barbara Kent.Pitts p.240 Cast *Carmel Myers as Madame Ying Su *Rex Lease as James 'Jim' Bonner *Barbara Kent as Lo ...

'' (1931) * ''

Arizona Terror ''Arizona Terror'' is a 1931 American Pre-Code Western film directed by Phil Rosen and starring Ken Maynard, Lina Basquette and Hooper Atchley. Partial cast * Ken Maynard as The Arizonian * Lina Basquette as Kay Moore * Hooper Atchley as ...

'' (1931) * ''

Six Hours to Live ''Six Hours to Live'' is a 1932 American pre-Code science fiction drama film directed by William Dieterle and starring Warner Baxter, Miriam Jordan and John Boles.Solomon p.336 Cast * Warner Baxter as Capt. Paul Onslow * Miriam Jordan as Ba ...

'' (1932) * ''

Mark of the Vampire ''Mark of the Vampire'' (also known as ''Vampires of Prague'') is a 1935 American horror film, starring Lionel Barrymore, Elizabeth Allan (British actress), Elizabeth Allan, Bela Lugosi, Lionel Atwill, and Jean Hersholt, and directed by Tod Br ...

'' (1935) * '' The Magnificent Brute'' (1936) * ''

The Soldier and the Lady ''The Soldier and the Lady'' is the 1937 American adventure film version of the oft-produced 1876 Jules Verne novel, ''Michel Strogoff''. Produced by Pandro S. Berman, he hired as his associate producer, Joseph Ermolieff. Ermolieff had produced ...

'' (1937) * '' I'll Give a Million'' (1938) * ''

Paris Honeymoon ''Paris Honeymoon'' is a 1939 American musical film directed by Frank Tuttle and written by Frank Butler and Don Hartman. The film stars Bing Crosby, Franciska Gaal, Akim Tamiroff, Shirley Ross, Edward Everett Horton and Ben Blue. Filming took p ...

'' (1939) * ''

The Flying Deuces ''The Flying Deuces'', also known as ''Flying Aces'', is a 1939 buddy comedy film starring Laurel and Hardy, in which the duo join the French Foreign Legion. It is a partial remake of their short film ''Beau Hunks'' (1931). Plot While the boys ...

'' (1939) (uncredited) * ''

Everything Happens at Night ''Everything Happens at Night'' is a 1939 American drama-comedy film starring Sonja Henie, Ray Milland and Robert Cummings. Plot American Geoffrey Thompson and Englishman Ken Morgan are reporters from rival newspapers who are sent to a remote ...

'' (1939) * ''

Charlie Chan at the Wax Museum ''Charlie Chan at the Wax Museum'' is a 1940 mystery film starring Sidney Toler as detective Charlie Chan. Revisiting an old case results in fresh deaths. Plot Chan's testimony results in a death sentence for convicted murderer Steve McBirney ( ...

'' (1940) * ''

Reunion in France ''Reunion in France'' is a 1942 American war film distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer starring Joan Crawford, John Wayne, and Philip Dorn in a story about a woman in occupied France who, learning her well-heeled lover has German connections, aids ...

'' (1942) (uncredited) * ''

Paris After Dark ''Paris After Dark'' is a 1943 American war drama film directed by Léonide Moguy and starring George Sanders, Philip Dorn and Brenda Marshall. It portrays the activities of the French resistance in occupied Paris during World War II. The portraya ...

'' (1943) - Paul * ''

For Whom the Bell Tolls ''For Whom the Bell Tolls'' is a novel by Ernest Hemingway published in 1940. It tells the story of Robert Jordan, a young American volunteer attached to a Republican guerrilla unit during the Spanish Civil War. As a dynamiter, he is assigned ...

'' (1943) * ''

Yolanda and the Thief ''Yolanda and the Thief'' is a 1945 American Technicolor MGM musical-comedy film set in a fictional Latin American country. It stars Fred Astaire, Lucille Bremer, Frank Morgan, and Mildred Natwick, with music by Harry Warren and lyrics by Arthur F ...

'' (1945) * ''

Don Ricardo Returns ''Don Ricardo Returns'' is a 1946 American western drama film. After having been abducted and sent away on a ship in 1835, Don Ricardo (Coby) escapes and makes his way back to Alta California. He returns to exact revenge on those who kidnappe ...

'' (1946)

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Visaroff, Michael 1892 births 1951 deaths American male film actors American male silent film actors American people of Russian descent Deaths from pneumonia in California Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States Male actors from Moscow 20th-century American male actors