Samuel Livesey (14 October 1873 – 7 November 1936) was a Welsh stage and

film actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), ...

Life

Livesey's father, Thomas, had been a railway engineer before leaving the industry to establish a travelling theatre with his wife Mary. The two had six children who all grew up working in the theatre. In 1893, after Thomas's death, Mary opened a purpose built theatre, the Prince of Wales in

Mexborough Mexborough is a town in the City of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England. Situated between Manvers and Denaby Main, it lies on the River Don close to where it joins the River Dearne, and the A6023 road runs through the town. It is contiguous ...

. The family performed frequently on the stage and in touring productions. Sam and his brother Joseph married actresses who were themselves sisters: Sam married Margaret Ann Edwards in 1900 and Joseph married Mary Catherine Edwards in 1905. Sam and Margaret had two children who subsequently followed their profession, the actors

Jack Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

and

Barry Livesey Barry Edwards Livesey (16 Oct 1905 in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan – 1959 in Maidstone, Kent) was a British stage and film actor. He was sometimes credited as Barrie Livesey. He was the son of Sam Livesey, the brother of actor Jack Livesey, and th ...

. But by 1913 both Joseph and Margaret Ann had died. Sam then married Mary Catherine and adopted her son Roger (his nephew) as his own.

Roger Livesey Roger Livesey (25 June 1906 – 4 February 1976) was a British stage and film actor. He is most often remembered for the three Powell and Pressburger, Powell & Pressburger films in which he starred: ''The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp'', '' ...

also went on to become a highly successful stage and screen actor. The couple had a daughter together in 1915 whom they named Stella.

Film career

Livesey had a successful film career encompassing both the silent and sound eras. He often appeared as authority figures; the cuckolded headmaster in '' Young Woodley'', the dictatorial paterfamilias in '' Maisie's Marriage'' and a variety of Police inspectors and military officers.

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

cast him as the Chief Inspector in the original silent version of ''

Blackmail Blackmail is an act of coercion using the threat of revealing or publicizing either substantially true or false information about a person or people unless certain demands are met. It is often damaging information, and it may be revealed to fa ...

'' but in the subsequent sound version, the role went to Harvey Braban. Livesey also worked with

Anthony Asquith Anthony William Landon Asquith (; 9 November 1902 – 20 February 1968) was an English film director. He collaborated successfully with playwright Terence Rattigan on ''The Winslow Boy'' (1948) and '' The Browning Version'' (1951), among oth ...

on ''

Moscow Nights __NOTOC__ "Moscow Nights" ( rus, Подмосковные вечера, r=Podmoskovnyje večera, ), later covered as "Midnight in Moscow", is a Soviet Russian song. Composition and initial success Composer Vasily Solovyov-Sedoi and poet Mikhai ...

'' and

Alexander Korda Sir Alexander Korda (; born Sándor László Kellner; hu, Korda Sándor; 16 September 1893 – 23 January 1956)Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally cons ...

'' with his stepson Roger, '' Dark Journey'' and cameoing in ''

The Private Life of Henry VIII ''The Private Life of Henry VIII'' is a 1933 British film directed and co-produced by Alexander Korda and starring Charles Laughton, Robert Donat, Merle Oberon and Elsa Lanchester. It was written by Lajos Bíró and Arthur Wimperis for London F ...

''). Roger and Sam had previously appeared together playing father and son in the 1923 silent '' Maisie's Marriage''. Virtually the whole family - Sam, Mary Catherine ('Cassie'), Jack and Barry - appear as the Boyd family in the 1935 film revue ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' directed by

Adrian Brunel Adrian Brunel (4 September 1892 – 18 February 1958) was an English film director and screenwriter. Brunel's directorial career started in the silent era, and reached its peak in the latter half of the 1920s. His surviving work from the 1920s, ...

. One of his final roles was as Mr Tulliver, the owner of the titular Mill on the Floss, with

James Mason James Neville Mason (; 15 May 190927 July 1984) was an English actor. He achieved considerable success in British cinema before becoming a star in Hollywood. He was the top box-office attraction in the UK in 1944 and 1945; his British films inc ...

portraying his son Tom.

Partial filmography

* ''The Lifeguardsman'' (1916) - Capt. Salzburg * '' One Summer's Day'' (1917) - Philip Marsden * ''Spinner o' Dreams'' (1918) - Reuben Hundred * ''

Victory and Peace ''Victory and Peace'' is a 1918 British silent war film directed by Herbert Brenon and starring Matheson Lang, Marie Lohr, and James Carew. The film was produced by the National War Aims Committee that was set up in 1917 to focus on domestic ...

'' (1918, unreleased) - Capt. Schiff * ''The Sins of Youth'' (1919) * ''

A Sinless Sinner ''A Sinless Sinner'' is a 1919 British silent drama film directed by James C. McKay and starring Marie Doro, Godfrey Tearle and Sam Livesey. It was distributed in the United States the following year under the alternative title ''Midnight Gambo ...

'' (1919) - Sam Stevens * '' The Chinese Puzzle'' (1919) - Paul Markatel * ''

The Black Spider ''The Black Spider'' is a novella by the Swiss writer Jeremias Gotthelf written in 1842. Set in an idyllic frame story, old legends are worked into a Christian-humanist allegory about ideas of good and evil. Though the novel is initially divide ...

'' (1920) - Reggie Cosway * ''Burnt Wings'' (1920) - Joseph Heron * ''All the Winners'' (1920) - Pedro Darondary * '' The Marriage Lines'' (1921) - Martin Muscroft * ''

Married Love ''Married Love or Love in Marriage'' is a book by British academic Marie Stopes. It was one of the first books openly to discuss birth control. The book begins by stating that "More than ever to-day are happy homes needed. It is my hope that thi ...

'' (1923) - Mr. Burrows * '' Wait and See'' (1928) - Gregory Winton * ''

Zero 0 (zero) is a number representing an empty quantity. In place-value notation such as the Hindu–Arabic numeral system, 0 also serves as a placeholder numerical digit, which works by multiplying digits to the left of 0 by the radix, usual ...

'' (1928) - Monty Sterling * '' The Forger'' (1928) - Inspector Rouper * ''

'' (1929) - The Chief Inspector (silent version) (uncredited) * '' Raise the Roof'' (1930) - Mr. Langford * '' Young Woodley'' (1930) - Doctor Simmons * ''One Family'' (1930) - The Policeman * '' Dreyfus'' (1931) - Labori * '' The Girl in the Night'' (1931) - Ephraim Tucker * ''

Jealousy Jealousy generally refers to the thoughts or feelings of insecurity, fear, and concern over a relative lack of possessions or safety. Jealousy can consist of one or more emotions such as anger, resentment, inadequacy, helplessness or disgus ...

'' (1931) - Inspector Thompson * ''

Many Waters ''Many Waters'' is a 1986 novel by Madeleine L'Engle, part of the author's Time Quintet (also known as the Time Quartet). The title is taken from the Song of Solomon 8:7: "Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it. If a ...

'' (1931) - Stanley Rosel * ''

The Hound of the Baskervilles ''The Hound of the Baskervilles'' is the third of the four crime novels by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in ''The Strand Magazine'' from August 1901 to April 1902, it is se ...

'' (1931) - Sir Hugo Baskerville * '' Up for the Cup'' (1931) - John Cartwright * ''

The Wickham Mystery ''The Wickham Mystery'' is a 1931 British mystery film directed by G. B. Samuelson and starring Eve Gray, John Longden and Lester Matthews. It was based on a play by John McNally. It was shot at Isleworth Studios in London and distributed by U ...

'' (1932) - Inspector Cobb * ''

Mr. Bill the Conqueror ''Mr. Bill the Conqueror'' is a 1932 British comedy film directed by Norman Walker and starring Henry Kendall, Heather Angel and Nora Swinburne. It was made by British International Pictures at Elstree Studios.Wood p.72 Cast * Henry Kendall a ...

'' (1932) - Dave Lannick * '' Insult'' (1932) - Major Dubois * '' The Flag Lieutenant'' (1932) - Col. McLeod * '' The Wonderful Story'' (1932) - Doctor * ''

'' (1933) - The English Executioner * ''Commissionaire'' (1933) - Sergeant George Brown * '' Tangled Evidence'' (1934) - Inspector Drayton * '' The Great Defender'' (1934) - Sir Henry Linguard * '' Jew Süss'' (1934) - Harprecht * '' Regal Cavalcade'' (1935) - Drinker * ''

Drake of England ''Drake of England'' is a 1935 British drama film directed by Arthur B. Woods and starring Matheson Lang, Athene Seyler and Jane Baxter. It depicts the life of Francis Drake and the events leading up to the defeat of the Armada in 1588. Pr ...

'' (1935) - Sir George Sydenham * '' Where's George?'' (1935) - Sir Richard Lancaster * ''

Turn of the Tide ''Turn of the Tide'' (1935) is a British drama film directed by Norman Walker and starring John Garrick, Geraldine Fitzgerald and Wilfrid Lawson. It was the first feature film made by J. Arthur Rank. Lacking a distributor for his film, Rank se ...

'' (1935) - Henry Lunn * ''

'' (1935) - Fedor * ''

'' (1935) - Charlie Boyd * '' Men of Yesterday'' (1936) * '' Calling the Tune'' (1936) - Bob Gordon * ''

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally cons ...

'' (1936) - Auctioneer * ''

The Mill on the Floss ''The Mill on the Floss'' is a novel by George Eliot, first published in three volumes in 1860 by William Blackwood. The first American edition was published by Harper & Brothers, Publishers, New York. Plot summary Spanning a period of 10 to ...

'' (1936) - Mr. Tulliver * '' Dark Journey'' (1937) - Major Schaeffer * '' Wings of the Morning'' (1937) - Angelo (final film role)

References

External links

* *
Sam Livesey at BFI Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Livesey, Sam 1873 births 1936 deaths Welsh male film actors Welsh male silent film actors People from Flintshire 20th-century British male actors