Thomas Hardie Chalmers (October 20, 1884 – June 11, 1966) was an American opera singer and actor.

Biography

Chalmers was born on October 20, 1884 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, the son of Thomas Hardie and Sophia Amanda (De Bann) Chalmers. In 1909, he went to

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

to study singing with Vincenzo Lombardi and made his operatic debut in May 1911 in

Fossombrone Fossombrone is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Pesaro e Urbino, Marche, central Italy. History The ancient Roman colony of ''Forum Sempronii'' took its name from Gaius Sempronius Gracchus. Near the Furlo Pass, during the Gothic War (535 ...

as Marcello in ''

La bohème ''La bohème'' (; ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions ''quadri'', ''tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe G ...

''. His first appearance in the United States was as Jack Rance in '' The Girl of the Golden West'' with

Henry Wilson Savage Henry Wilson Savage (March 21, 1859 – November 29, 1927) was an American theatrical manager. Biography Henry W. Savage was born March 21, 1859, in New Durham, New Hampshire. He graduated from Harvard in 1880. He became president of the Henry W. ...

's English Grand Opera Company. Chalmers toured the United States with the company from 1911 to 12. He then sang as the leading baritone with the Boston National Opera Company and the Century Opera Company before making his

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

debut on November 17, 1917 as Valentin in ''

Faust Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroads ...

''. He went on to appear regularly at the Met until 1922 and sang in the world premiere of ''

Shanewis ''Shanewis'' (or ''The Robin Woman'') (1918) is an opera in one act and two scenes by American composer Charles Wakefield Cadman with an English-language libretto by Nelle Richmond Eberhart. They collaborated with Tsianina Redfeather Blackstone, ...

'', the US premiere of '' Mârouf'', and the first Met performances of ''

La forza del destino ' (; ''The Power of Fate'', often translated ''The Force of Destiny'') is an Italian opera by Giuseppe Verdi. The libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on a Spanish drama, ' (1835), by Ángel de Saavedra, 3rd Duke of Rivas, wi ...

'' and ''

Crispino e la Comare ''Crispino e la comare o Il medico e la morte'' (''The Cobbler and the Fairy or The Doctor and Death'') is an opera written collaboratively by Luigi Ricci and Federico Ricci with an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. Performance history ...

''. His recordings were all made for

Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These invention ...

and covered a wide range of repertoire from folk songs to opera; he recorded both on cylinder and the

Edison Disc Record The Edison Diamond Disc Record is a type of phonograph record marketed by Thomas A. Edison, Inc. on their Edison Record label from 1912 to 1929. They were named Diamond Discs because the matching Edison Disc Phonograph was fitted with a permanent ...

formats. (Note: A Zonophone 78 has been found by Chalmers. Because 5522-A and Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms 5522-B) Following a throat operation, Chalmers withdrew from opera and became a stage and film actor. His many stage roles included several

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

premieres such as Landolfo in Pirandello's '' The Living Mask'' (''Henry IV''), 1924; Doctor Schindler in

Schnitzler There have been several people named Schnitzler ( he, שניצלר): * Arthur Schnitzler (born 1862), an Austrian playwright and author, son of Johann * Barbara Schnitzler (born 1953, Berlin), a German actress (de) * Claude Schnitzler (born 1949, ...

's ''The Call of Life'' (''Der Ruf des Lebens''), 1925; Captain Adam Brant in

O'Neill The O'Neill dynasty (Irish: ''Ó Néill'') are a lineage of Irish Gaelic origin, that held prominent positions and titles in Ireland and elsewhere. As kings of Cenél nEógain, they were historically the most prominent family of the Northern ...

's ''

Mourning Becomes Electra ''Mourning Becomes Electra'' is a play cycle written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. The play premiered on Broadway at the Guild Theatre on 26 October 1931 where it ran for 150 performances before closing in March 1932, starring Lee Baker ...

'', 1931; Ben Loman in Miller's ''

Death of a Salesman ''Death of a Salesman'' is a 1949 stage play written by American playwright Arthur Miller. The play premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742 performances. It is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn told through a montag ...

'', 1949; and Richard Bravo in

Maxwell Anderson James Maxwell Anderson (December 15, 1888 – February 28, 1959) was an American playwright, author, poet, journalist, and lyricist. Background Anderson was born on December 15, 1888, in Atlantic, Pennsylvania, the second of eight children to ...

's ''

The Bad Seed ''The Bad Seed'' is a 1954 novel by American writer William March, the last of his major works published before his death. Nominated for the 1955 National Book Award for Fiction, ''The Bad Seed'' tells the story of a mother's realization that h ...

'', 1954. One of Chalmers's earliest film roles was The Minister in the 1923 silent film ''

Puritan Passions ''Puritan Passions'' is a 1923 silent film directed by Frank Tuttle, based on Percy MacKaye's 1908 play '' The Scarecrow'', which was itself based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story "Feathertop". The film stars Glenn Hunter, Mary Astor, and s ...

'', based on

Percy MacKaye Percy MacKaye (1875–1956) was an American dramatist and poet. Biography MacKaye was born in New York City into a theatrical family. His father, Steele MacKaye, was a popular actor, playwright, and producer, while his mother, Mary, wrote a dr ...

's play '' The Scarecrow'', which was in turn based on ''Feathertop'', by

Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associated with that t ...

. His last film role was The Judge in

Martin Ritt Martin Ritt (March 2, 1914 – December 8, 1990) was an American director and actor who worked in both film and theater, noted for his socially conscious films. Some of the films he directed include ''The Long, Hot Summer'' (1958), '' The Black ...

's ''

The Outrage ''The Outrage'' is a 1964 American Western film directed by Martin Ritt and starring Paul Newman, Laurence Harvey, Claire Bloom, Edward G. Robinson and William Shatner. It is a remake of Akira Kurosawa's 1950 Japanese film ''Rashomon'', based ...

'', released in 1964. Chalmers also produced and directed several short comedy films written by

Robert Benchley Robert Charles Benchley (September 15, 1889 – November 21, 1945) was an American humorist best known for his work as a newspaper columnist and film actor. From his beginnings at ''The Harvard Lampoon'' while attending Harvard University, thro ...

, including '' The Sex Life of the Polyp'' and ''

The Treasurer's Report ''The Treasurer's Report'' (1928) is a comedy sketch, made into a short film, written and performed by Robert Benchley. The film, made in the then-new Fox Movietone, documents an assistant treasurer of an organization struggling to present its ye ...

'', both released in 1928. His voice can be heard as the narrator in two documentary films by

Pare Lorentz Pare Lorentz (December 11, 1905 – March 4, 1992) was an American filmmaker known for his film work about the New Deal. Born Leonard MacTaggart Lorentz in Clarksburg, West Virginia he was educated at Buckhannon High School, West Virginia Wesl ...

, ''

The Plow That Broke the Plains ''The Plow That Broke the Plains'' is a 1936 short documentary film that shows the cultivation of the Great Plains region of the United States and Canada following the Civil War and leading up to the Dust Bowl as a result of farmers' exploitati ...

'' (1936) and '' The River'' (1938), both with scores by

Virgil Thomson Virgil Thomson (November 25, 1896 – September 30, 1989) was an American composer and critic. He was instrumental in the development of the "American Sound" in classical music. He has been described as a modernist, a neoromantic, a neoclassic ...

. In the 1950s and '60s, Chalmers appeared on television as an actor in several drama

anthology series An anthology series is a radio, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a differ ...

including ''

Westinghouse Studio One ''Studio One'' is an American anthology drama television series that was adapted from a radio series. It was created in 1947 by Canadian director Fletcher Markle, who came to CBS from the CBC. It premiered on November 7, 1948 and ended on Septem ...

'', ''

CBS Television Workshop ''CBS Television Workshop'' is an American anthology series that aired on CBS from January to April 1952. The series is noted for featuring early television appearances of several well known actors, including Audrey Hepburn, James Dean, Sidne ...

'', ''

Kraft Television Theatre ''Kraft Television Theatre'' is an American anthology drama television series running from 1947 to 1958. It began May 7, 1947 on NBC, airing at 7:30pm on Wednesday evenings until December of that year. It first promoted MacLaren's Imperial Chees ...

'', ''

The DuPont Show of the Month ''DuPont Show of the Month'' was a 90-minute television anthology series that aired monthly on CBS from 1957 to 1961. The DuPont Company also sponsored a weekly half-hour dramatic anthology series hosted by June Allyson, ''The DuPont Show with Jun ...

'', and ''

Play of the Week Play of the Week may refer to: *''ITV Play of the Week'', British TV anthology series broadcast from 1956 to 1966 *''The Play of the Week'', American TV anthology series broadcast from 1959 to 1961 See also *''Play of the Month ''Play of the M ...

''. He also appeared in single episodes of ''

The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen ''The Adventures of Ellery Queen'' is the title of a radio series and four separate television series made from the 1950s through the 1970s. They were based on the fictional detective and pseudonymous writer Ellery Queen and the cases he solved wi ...

'', '' The Defenders'', ''

Mister Peepers ''Mister Peepers'' is an American sitcom that aired on NBC from July 3, 1952, to June 12, 1955. Overview Wally Cox starred as Robinson J. Peepers, Jefferson City's junior high school science teacher. Others in the cast included Tony Randall as ...

'', and several other weekly series. Chalmers' wife, Vilma Fiorelli, was originally from Florence. They were married in London on June 24, 1913. One of the couple's daughters, Vilma Fiora Chalmers, married the banker Alfred Hayes in 1937. Thomas Hardie Chalmers died on June 11, 1966 at the Laurelton Nursing Home in

Greenwich, Connecticut Greenwich (, ) is a New England town, town in southwestern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the town had a total population of 63,518. The largest town on Connecticut's Gold Coast (Conne ...

. He was survived by his wife and his daughter, Vilma Hayes, wife of Alfred Hayes.''New York Times'' (June 12, 1966) p. 87

Filmography

References

Sources

*Barnouw, Erik
''Documentary: A History of the Non-fiction Film''
Oxford University Press US, 1993, pp. 116–120. *Metropolitan Opera

MetOpera Database *''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

''
"Carmen Sung at Century"
December 24, 1913, p. 11. *''New York Times''

December 31, 1937. *''New York Times''

June 12, 1966, p. 87 * Saerchinger, César (ed.)
''International who's who in music and musical gazetteer''
Current Literature Pub. Co., 1918, p. 3. *Thompson, Oscar
''The American Singer A Hundred Years Of Success In Opera''
The Dial Press, Inc., 1937, p. 246.

External links

*Thomas Chalmers audio recording
1-10
an
11-20
on the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Chalmers, Thomas Hardie 1884 births 1966 deaths American operatic baritones American male musical theatre actors American male film actors Male actors from New York City 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American male opera singers