Charles Bickford

Charles Bickford
Charles Ambrose Bickford (January 1, 1891 – November 9, 1967) was an American actor known for supporting roles. He was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for The Song of Bernadette (1943), The Farmer's Daughter (1947), and Johnny Belinda (1948). His other roles include Whirlpool (1950), A Star Is Born (1954), and The Big Country (1958).
Early life
Bickford was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, during the first minute of 1891. His parents were Loretus and Mary Ellen Bickford. The fifth of seven children, he was an intelligent but very independent and unruly child. He had a particularly strong relationship with his maternal grandfather, a sea captain, who was a powerful influence during his formative years. At the age of nine, he was tried and acquitted of the attempted murder of a trolley motorman, who had callously driven over and killed his beloved dog. He attended Foster School and Everett High School.
Always more interested in experiencing life than reading about it, Bickford was considered "the wild rogue" of this family, causing his parents frequent consternation. In his late teens, he drifted aimlessly around the United States for a time. Before breaking into acting, he worked as a lumberjack and investment promoter, and for a short time, ran a pest-extermination business. He was a stoker and fireman in the United States Navy when a friend dared him to get a job in burlesque. Bickford served as an engineer lieutenant in the United States Army during World War I. His first entry into acting was on the stage, eventually including Broadway. This venue provided him with an occasional living and served as the principal training ground for developing his acting and vocal talents.
Acting career
Bickford had intended to attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to earn an engineering degree, but while wandering around the country, he became friends with the manager of a burlesque show, who convinced Bickford to take a role in the show. He debuted in Oakland, California in 1911. Bickford enjoyed himself so much that he abandoned his plans to attend MIT. He made his legitimate stage debut with the John Craig Stock Company at the Castle Square Theatre in Boston in 1912. He eventually joined a road company and traveled throughout the United States for more than a decade, appearing in various productions. In 1925, while working in a Broadway play called Outside Looking In, co-star James Cagney (in his first Broadway role) and he received rave reviews. He was offered a role in Herbert Brenon's 1926 film of Beau Geste, but anxious not to give up his newfound Broadway stardom, refused it, a decision he later came to regret. Following his appearance in the critically praised but unsuccessful Maxwell Anderson-Harold Hickerson drama about the Sacco and Vanzetti case Gods of the Lightning (Bickford was the Sacco character), he was contacted by filmmaker Cecil B. DeMille and offered a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) studios to star in DeMille's first talking picture: Dynamite. He soon began working with MGM studio chief Louis B. Mayer on a number of projects.
Bickford became a star after playing Greta Garbo's lover in Anna Christie (1930), but never developed into a leading man. Always independent minded, exceptionally strong-willed, and quick with his fists, Bickford frequently argued and nearly came to blows with Mayer and any number of other MGM authority figures during the course of this contract with the studio. During the production of Dynamite, he punched out his director following a string of heated arguments, primarily related to the interpretation of his character's role. Throughout his early career on both the stage and later films, Bickford rejected numerous scripts and made no secret of his disdain for much of the material he was offered. Not surprisingly, his association with MGM was short-lived, with Bickford asking for and quickly receiving a release from his contract. He soon found himself blacklisted at other studios, though, forcing him to take the highly unusual step (for that era) of becoming an independent actor for several years. His career took another turn in 1935, when he was mauled by a lion and nearly killed while filming East of Java. While he recovered, he lost his contract with Twentieth Century-Fox and his leading-man status owing to extensive neck scarring suffered in the attack, coupled with his advancing age. Soon, he made a very successful transition to character roles, which he felt offered much greater diversity and allowed him to showcase his talent to better effect. Much preferring the character roles that became his forte, Bickford appeared in many notable films, including The Farmer's Daughter, Johnny Belinda, A Star Is Born, and Not as a Stranger.
Finding great success playing an array of character roles in films and later in television, Bickford quickly became highly sought-after; his burly frame and craggy, intense features, coupled with a gruff, powerful voice lent themselves to a wide variety of roles. Most often, he played lovable father figures, stern businessmen, heavies, ship captains, or authority figures of some sort. During the 1940s, he was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He served as host of the 1950s television series The Man Behind the Badge.
On April 16, 1958, Bickford appeared with Roger Smith in "The Daniel Barrister Story" on Wagon Train.
Bickford continued to act in projects right up to his death. He guest-starred on The Islanders, The Barbara Stanwyck Show, and The Eleventh Hour. In his final years, Bickford played rancher John Grainger, owner of the Shiloh Ranch, on The Virginian. Bickford was well-liked by both fans and his fellow actors, including series lead James Drury. According to Drury, Bickford, who guest-starred earlier in the series in an unrelated role, wished he could have been on the series from the beginning. According to Paul Green, author of A History of Television's The Virginian, 1962-1971, Bickford's vigorous portrayal of John Grainger helped restore the quality of the show after what some considered a chaotic fourth season.
Two of the actor's late-career, big-screen roles came in the Western The Big Country (1958), as a wealthy and ruthless rancher, with Gregory Peck and Charlton Heston; and in the drama Days of Wine and Roses (1962), as the forlorn father of an alcoholic, with Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick. President Dwight D. Eisenhower ran The Big Country four nights in a row in the White House when it was first released.
Personal life
Bickford married Beatrice Ursula Allen in 1916, in Manhattan. The couple had a son, Rex, and a daughter, Doris. Some sources have stated that Rex died in 1960, but this is disputed by a newspaper story printed at the time of his father's death, which stated he was aged 42 and married.
Bickford was a practicing Catholic and a Democrat who supported Adlai Stevenson's campaign during the 1952 presidential election.
In 1965, Bickford published his autobiography Bulls, Balls, Bicycles, & Actors.
Death and legacy
Bickford died in Los Angeles on November 9, 1967, at age 76, of pneumonia and a blood infection after being hospitalized for an extended period.
Bickford received two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. His motion-picture star is located at 6780 Hollywood Boulevard, and his television star is located at 1620 Vine Street.
Filmography
As actor
South Sea Rose (1929) - Capt. Briggs
Dynamite (1929) - Hagon Derk
Hell's Heroes (1929) - Bob Sangster
Anna Christie (1930) - Matt Burke
The Sea Bat (1930) - John Dennis aka Reverend Sims
River's End (1930) - John Keith / Sgt. Conniston
Passion Flower (1930) - Dan Wallace
East of Borneo (1931) - Dr. Allan Randolph
The Squaw Man (1931) - Cash Hawkins
The Pagan Lady (1931) - Dingo Mike
Men in Her Life (1931) - 'Flashy' Madden
Panama Flo (1932) - Dan McTeague
Scandal for Sale (1932) - Jerry Strong
Thunder Below (1932) - Walt
The Last Man (1932) - Bannister
Vanity Street (1932) - rian Murphy
No Other Woman (1933) - Jim Stanley
Song of the Eagle (1933) - Joe (Nails) Anderson
This Day and Age (1933) - Louis Garrett
White Woman (1933) - Ballister
Red Wagon (1933) - Joe Prince
Little Miss Marker (1934) - Big Steve Halloway
A Wicked Woman (1934) - Naylor
A Notorious Gentleman (1935) - Kirk Arlen
Under Pressure (1935) - Nipper Moran
The Farmer Takes a Wife (1935) - Jotham Klore
East of Java (1935) - Red McGovern aka Harvey Bowers
Rose of the Rancho (1936) - Joe Kincaid
Pride of the Marines (1936) - Steve Riley
The Plainsman (1936) - John Lattimer
High, Wide, and Handsome (1937) - Red Scanlon
Thunder Trail (1937) - Lee Tate
Night Club Scandal (1937) - Det. Capt. McKinley
Daughter of Shanghai (1937) - Otto Hartman
Gangs of New York (1938) - 'Rocky' Thorpe / John Franklyn
Valley of the Giants (1938) - Howard Fallon
The Storm (1938) - Bob 'Sparks' Roberts
Stand Up and Fight (1939) - Arnold
Romance of the Redwoods (1939) - Steve Blake
Street of Missing Men (1939) - Cash Darwin
Our Leading Citizen (1939) - Shep Muir
Mutiny in the Big House (1939) - Father Joe Collins
One Hour to Live (1939) - Insp. Sid Brady
Of Mice and Men (1939) - Slim
Thou Shalt Not Kill (1939) - Rev. Chris Saunders
Girl from God's Country (1940) - Bill Bogler
South to Karanga (1940) - Jeff Worthing
Queen of the Yukon (1940) - Ace Rincon
Riders of Death Valley (1941, Serial) - Wolf Reade
Burma Convoy (1941) - Cliff Weldon
Reap the Wild Wind (1942) - Master of the 'Tyfib'
Tarzan's New York Adventure (1942) - Buck Rand
Mr. Lucky (1943) - Hard Swede
The Song of Bernadette (1943) - Father Peyramale
Wing and a Prayer (1944) - Capt. Waddell
Captain Eddie (1945) - William Rickenbacker
Fallen Angel (1945) - Mark Judd
Duel in the Sun (1946) - Sam Pierce
The Farmer's Daughter (1947) - Clancy
The Woman on the Beach (1947) - Tod
Brute Force (1947) - Gallagher
The Babe Ruth Story (1948) - Brother Matthias
Four Faces West (1948) - Pat Garrett
Johnny Belinda (1948) - Black MacDonald
Command Decision (1948) - Elmer Brockhurst
Roseanna McCoy (1949) - Devil Anse Hatfield
Whirlpool (1950) - Lt. James Colton
Guilty of Treason (1950) - Joszef Cardinal Mindszenty
Riding High (1950) - J.L. Higgins
Branded (1950) - Mr. Lavery
Jim Thorpe – All-American (1951) - Glenn S. 'Pop' Warner
The Raging Tide (1951) - Hamil Linder
Elopement (1951) - Tom Reagan
The Last Posse (1953) - Sampson Drune
A Star Is Born (1954) - Oliver Niles
Prince of Players (1955) - Dave Prescott
Not as a Stranger (1955) - Dr. Dave Runkleman
The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell (1955) - Gen. Jimmy Guthrie
You Can't Run Away from It (1956) - A.A. Andrews
Mister Cory (1957) - Jeremiah Des Plains 'Biloxi' Caldwell
The Big Country (1958) - Maj. Henry Terrill
Woman on the Run (1959, TV movie)
Winterset (1959, TV movie) - Judge Gaunt
The 33rd (1959, TV movie)
The Unforgiven (1960) - Zeb Rawlins
The Gambler, the Nun and the Radio (1960, TV movie)
The Farmer's Daughter (1962, TV movie) - Clancy
Days of Wine and Roses (1962) - Ellis Arnesen
Della (1964) - Hugh Stafford
A Big Hand for the Little Lady (1966) - Benson Tropp
The Virginian (1966-1967) - Grainger
As himself
Screen Snapshots Series 9, No. 20 (1930, short)
Screen Snapshots (1932, documentary short)
Hollywood on Parade No. B-6 (1934, short)
The Dark Wave (1956, documentary short)
Now Is Tomorrow (1958, TV movie)
See also
List of actors with Academy Award nominations
References
Further reading
External links
Charles Bickford at Virtual History
1891 births
1967 deaths
Male actors from Cambridge, Massachusetts
Writers from Cambridge, Massachusetts
Military personnel from Massachusetts
American male film actors
American male stage actors
American male television actors
Male actors from Greater Los Angeles
Male Western (genre) film actors
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract players
Burials at Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery, Santa Monica
20th Century Studios contract players
20th-century American male actors
American Roman Catholics
Deaths from pneumonia in California