John Alexander (actor)
Encyclopedia
John Alexander was an American stage and film actor.
Perhaps his most memorable performance was as Teddy Brewster, a lunatic who thinks he is Theodore Roosevelt
, in the 1944 classic film Arsenic and Old Lace
opposite Cary Grant
. He had previously portrayed that role in the 1941 Broadway play of the same name
on which the film was based. He went on to play Roosevelt in the 1950 Bob Hope
comedy Fancy Pants
.
Perhaps his most memorable performance was as Teddy Brewster, a lunatic who thinks he is Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, in the 1944 classic film Arsenic and Old Lace
Arsenic and Old Lace (film)
Arsenic and Old Lace is a 1944 film directed by Frank Capra based on Joseph Kesselring's play of the same name. The script adaptation was by twins Julius J. Epstein and Philip G. Epstein. Capra actually filmed the movie in 1941, but it was not released until 1944, after the original stage version...
opposite Cary Grant
Cary Grant
Archibald Alexander Leach , better known by his stage name Cary Grant, was an English actor who later took U.S. citizenship...
. He had previously portrayed that role in the 1941 Broadway play of the same name
Arsenic and Old Lace (play)
Arsenic and Old Lace is a play by American playwright Joseph Kesselring, written in 1939. It has become best known through the film adaptation starring Cary Grant and directed by Frank Capra. The play was directed by Bretaigne Windust, and opened on January 10, 1941. On September 25, 1943, the...
on which the film was based. He went on to play Roosevelt in the 1950 Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
comedy Fancy Pants
Fancy Pants
Fancy Pants is a 1950 American comedy film, directed by George Marshall starring Lucille Ball and Bob Hope.-Plot:A B-grade stage actor is convinced to play the role of a butler for a Western family who are about to host President Theodore Roosevelt....
.
Partial filmography
- Baby Take a Bow (1934) (uncredited)
- Flowing GoldFlowing GoldFlowing Gold is a 1940 adventure film starring John Garfield, Frances Farmer, and Pat O'Brien. It was based on the novel of the same name by Rex Beach. The film is set in the American oilfields and the title refers to oil.-Plot:...
(1940) - Mr. SkeffingtonMr. SkeffingtonMr. Skeffington is a 1944 American drama film directed by Vincent Sherman, based on the novel of the same name by Elizabeth von Arnim.The film stars Bette Davis as a beautiful woman whose many suitors, and self-love, distract her from returning the affections of her husband, Job Skeffington...
(1944) - Arsenic and Old LaceArsenic and Old Lace (film)Arsenic and Old Lace is a 1944 film directed by Frank Capra based on Joseph Kesselring's play of the same name. The script adaptation was by twins Julius J. Epstein and Philip G. Epstein. Capra actually filmed the movie in 1941, but it was not released until 1944, after the original stage version...
(1944) - A Tree Grows in BrooklynA Tree Grows In Brooklyn (film)A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is a 1945 film, the first film directed by Greek-American director Elia Kazan, starring James Dunn , Dorothy McGuire, Joan Blondell, and Peggy Ann Garner .The film is based on an American novel A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith first published in 1943...
(1945) - The Horn Blows at MidnightThe Horn Blows at MidnightThe Horn Blows at Midnight is a comedy fantasy film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Jack Benny. Its biggest claim to fame, apart from its star, is its failure at the box office, and this fact was exploited often for laughs in Benny's popular radio and television comedy series The Jack Benny...
(1945) - Junior MissJunior MissJunior Miss is a collection of semi-autobiographical stories by Sally Benson first published in The New Yorker. Between 1929 and the end of 1941, the prolific Benson published 99 stories in The New Yorker, some under her pseudonym of Esther Evarts...
(1945) - The Jolson StoryThe Jolson StoryThe Jolson Story is a 1946 musical biography which purports to tell the life story of singer Al Jolson. It stars Larry Parks as Jolson, Evelyn Keyes as "Julie Benson" , William Demarest as his manager, Ludwig Donath and Tamara Shayne as his parents, and Scotty Beckett as the young Jolson.The...
(1946) - New OrleansNew Orleans (1947 film)New Orleans is a 1947 musical drama featuring Billie Holiday as a singing maid and Louis Armstrong as a bandleader; supporting players Holiday and Armstrong perform together and portray a couple becoming romantically involved...
(1947) - Living in a Big WayLiving in a Big WayLiving in a Big Way is an American musical comedy film starring Gene Kelly and Marie McDonald as a couple who marry during World War II after only knowing each other a short time.- Synopsis :...
(1947) - Cass TimberlaneCass TimberlaneCass Timberlane is a novel written by Sinclair Lewis, published in 1945. It is Sinclair Lewis' nineteenth novel and one of his last.It was made into a romantic drama film starring Spencer Tracy and Lana Turner, directed by George Sidney, and released in 1947.Timberlane is a minor character in...
(1947) - Where There's LifeWhere There's LifeWhere There's Life is a 1947 comedy film. The film's title derives from a line in Don Quixote .-Plot:...
(1947) - Summer HolidaySummer Holiday (1948 film)Summer Holiday is a 1948 American musical film, starring Mickey Rooney and Gloria DeHaven. It is based on the play Ah, Wilderness! by Eugene O'Neill, which had been filmed as Ah, Wilderness! by MGM in 1935.-Cast:...
(1948) - Night Has a Thousand EyesNight Has a Thousand EyesNight Has a Thousand Eyes is a 1948 film noir, starring Edward G. Robinson and directed by John Farrow. The screenplay was written by Barré Lyndon and Jonathan Latimer. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Cornell Woolrich.- Plot :...
(1948) - Fancy PantsFancy PantsFancy Pants is a 1950 American comedy film, directed by George Marshall starring Lucille Ball and Bob Hope.-Plot:A B-grade stage actor is convinced to play the role of a butler for a Western family who are about to host President Theodore Roosevelt....
(1950) - Winchester '73 (1950)
- The Sleeping CityThe Sleeping CityThe Sleeping City is a 1950 film noir, shot in semidocumentary style, starring Richard Conte. Set in and shot at New York's Bellevue Hospital, it was directed by George Sherman....
(1950) - The Model and the Marriage BrokerThe Model and the Marriage BrokerThe Model and the Marriage Broker is a 1951 comedy film about a model who is so pleased with the work of a marriage broker, she decides to return the favor.-Cast:* Jeanne Crain as Kitty Bennett* Scott Brady as Matt Hornbeck* Thelma Ritter as Mae Swasey...
(1951) - The Marrying KindThe Marrying KindThe Marrying Kind is a film directed by George Cukor, starring Aldo Ray and Judy Holliday. Other cast members include John Alexander, Charles Bronson, Peggy Cass, Barry Curtis, Tom Farrell, Frank Ferguson, Ruth Gordon , Gordon Jones, Madge Kennedy, Nancy Kulp, Mickey Shaughnessy, and Joan...
(1952) - The Man in the NetThe Man in the NetThe Man in the Net is an American film noir starring Alan Ladd and Carolyn Jones. The taut drama was directed by Michael Curtiz.-Plot:...
(1959)