Georges Metaxa

Georges Radu Metaxa (11 September 1899 - 8 December 1950, occasionally anglicised to George Metaxa) was a Romania-born American singer, film & stage actor. He was known for his crooning high baritone voice and often portrayed genteel antagonists.
== Life & Career ==
Metaxa was born in Bucharest, Romania to Nicholas Metaxa and Emilie Theophilatos.https://www.myheritage.com/names/george_metaxa
He worked as a civil servant, becoming principle private secretary to the Romanian Ministry of Agriculture before emigrating to London in 1926 to pursue a career in musical comedy.
He first began his showbusiness career recording songs, the first being the Romanian folk song Mandrulita in 1927. After engaging with Charles B. Cochran, his first stage billing was in John Hastings Turner 1929 musical revue Wake Up and Dream (musical). Metaxa was then cast in Noel Coward operetta Bitter Sweet (operetta). He continued to record songs in London until 1931, finishing with Roy Noble Goodnight Sweetheart (Ray Noble, Jimmy Campbell and Reg Connelly song) before moving to New York City with the Bitter Sweet touring company.
His career in New York was slow to start, perhaps in part due to the saturation of similar male leads at the time. He nevertheless managed to find roles, his first film role being in Secrets of a Secretary in 1931. Metaxa was cast in the musical The Cat and the Fiddle (musical) and later the musical comedy Revenge with Music. He notably starred opposite Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire in 1936's Swing Time, playing Astaire's love rival, the band leader Ricky Romero.
He was married to Helene Valoary until their amicable divorce in July 1933, and they had one daughter. He then married 18 year old actress Margaret Stafford in September 1933. In April of 1934, Metaxa and Stafford were involved in an automobile accident in Miami, which killed Margaret and gravely injured Metaxa. He later married Byrnece Macfadden Muckerman (the daughter of American publisher and bodybuilder Bernarr Macfadden) in 1946.
Towards the end of his life, Metaxa's health declined to such a point he had to turn down roles, notably the leading role in South Pacific (musical) that was being shown in London. Metaxa died suddenly of a heart attack 8 December 1950 at a hotel in Monroe, Louisiana, as he and his wife were on their way to their home in Beverley Hills after returning from a seven month long trip around Europe.
== Selected Performances ==
===Film===
Year	Title 	Role 	Soundtrack
1931	Secrets of a Secretary 	Frank D'Agnoll 	
1931	The House That Shadows Built	Frank D'Agnoll 	Compilation film released by Paramount Pictures to commemorate the studio's 20th anniversary
1933	Kissing Time (Short film) 	Lieutenant Juan Segovia 	Performed on the tracks Let's Drink and All My Life I've Waited (For Someone Like You)
1936	Swing Time 	Ricky Romero 	Performed on the tracks The Way You Look Tonight and A Fine Romance
1936	Sheik to Sheik (Short film) 	Lieutenant Georges 	Performed on the tracks The Song of the Sand and What Makes the Night So Beautiful?
1940	The Doctor Takes a Wife 	Jean Rovere 	
1941	Paris Calling 	Waiter 	
1943	Background to Danger 	L.V. Bastaki (uncredited)	
1943	Submarine Base 	Nazi Agent Anton Kroll 	
1943	Hi Diddle Diddle 	Tony Spinelli 	
1943	West Side Kid 	Dr. Kenton 	
1944	The Mask of Dimitrios 	Hans Werner 	
1945	Scotland Yard Investigator 	Henri 	
===Stage===
Year 	Title 	Role 	Notes
1929-1930	Bitter Sweet 	Carl Linden 	
1931-1932	The Cat and the Fiddle 	Victor Florescu	395 Performances
1933 	Twenty-five Dollars an Hour	Claude de Rozay	
1934-1935	Revenge with Music 	Carlos 	158 performances
Category:Actors from Romania
Category:American film actors
Category:American stage actors
Category:1899 births
Category:1950 deaths