Philip Van Zandt
Encyclopedia
Philip "Phil" Van Zandt (October 4, 1904 – February 15, 1958) was a Dutch actor
of film, stage and television. He made over 220 film and television appearances between 1939 and 1958.
, The Netherlands, Phil Van Zandt made his acting debut in 1927 and soon after left for the United States
, where he eventually landed on Broadway
, appearing in 10 different productions between 1931 and 1938.
Van Zandt made his Hollywood
debut in 1939 and, in the two decades that followed, appeared in some 100 movies. However, he was usually cast in bit parts and also found himself typecast
in villainous roles as a Nazi
, criminal, or mad scientist. For instance, he appeared as a villain in two Laurel and Hardy
films in the 1940s.
The few films in which he got more considerable screen-time were mostly comedy shorts, including several Three Stooges
short subjects. In 1941, he played a small but important part as magazine editor Rawlston in Orson Welles
' classic film Citizen Kane
.
He established his own acting school in Hollywood in the 1950s. In 1956, he guest-starred in an episode of Johnny Weismuller's Jungle Jim
syndicated television series.
. As a result, he committed suicide
by overdosing on sleeping pills. His last film appearance was in the Three Stooges
comedy Fifi Blows Her Top
, released nearly two months after his death. He was buried in Chapel of the Pines Crematory
.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
of film, stage and television. He made over 220 film and television appearances between 1939 and 1958.
Career
Born as Philip Pinheiro in AmsterdamAmsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, The Netherlands, Phil Van Zandt made his acting debut in 1927 and soon after left for the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where he eventually landed on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
, appearing in 10 different productions between 1931 and 1938.
Van Zandt made his Hollywood
Cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
debut in 1939 and, in the two decades that followed, appeared in some 100 movies. However, he was usually cast in bit parts and also found himself typecast
Typecasting (acting)
In TV, film, and theatre, typecasting is the process by which a particular actor becomes strongly identified with a specific character; one or more particular roles; or, characters having the same traits or coming from the same social or ethnic groups...
in villainous roles as a Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
, criminal, or mad scientist. For instance, he appeared as a villain in two Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
films in the 1940s.
The few films in which he got more considerable screen-time were mostly comedy shorts, including several Three Stooges
Three Stooges
The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy act of the early to mid–20th century best known for their numerous short subject films. Their hallmark was physical farce and extreme slapstick. In films, the Stooges were commonly known by their first names: "Moe, Larry, and Curly" and "Moe,...
short subjects. In 1941, he played a small but important part as magazine editor Rawlston in Orson Welles
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
' classic film Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, directed by and starring Orson Welles. Many critics consider it the greatest American film of all time, especially for its innovative cinematography, music and narrative structure. Citizen Kane was Welles' first feature film...
.
He established his own acting school in Hollywood in the 1950s. In 1956, he guest-starred in an episode of Johnny Weismuller's Jungle Jim
Jungle Jim (TV series)
Jungle Jim is a 26-episode syndicated adventure television series which aired from 1955-1956, starring Johnny Weismuller, as Jim "Jungle Jim" Bradley, a hunter, guide, and explorer in, primarily, Africa. The program should not be confused with Ramar of the Jungle, but is based on the Jungle Jim...
syndicated television series.
Death
By 1958, Van Zandt had become depressed with his flagging career, and had spent practically all his income on compulsive gamblingCompulsive gambling
Problem gambling is an urge to continuously gamble despite harmful negative consequences or a desire to stop. Problem gambling often is defined by whether harm is experienced by the gambler or others, rather than by the gambler's behavior. Severe problem gambling may be diagnosed as clinical...
. As a result, he committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
by overdosing on sleeping pills. His last film appearance was in the Three Stooges
Three Stooges
The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy act of the early to mid–20th century best known for their numerous short subject films. Their hallmark was physical farce and extreme slapstick. In films, the Stooges were commonly known by their first names: "Moe, Larry, and Curly" and "Moe,...
comedy Fifi Blows Her Top
Fifi Blows Her Top
Fifi Blows Her Top is the 184th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:The Stooges reminisce about their wartime romances in Europe...
, released nearly two months after his death. He was buried in Chapel of the Pines Crematory
Chapel of the Pines Crematory
Chapel of the Pines Crematory is a crematory and columbarium located at 1605 South Catalina Street Los Angeles, California, in the historic West Adams District a short distance southwest of Downtown...
.
Selected filmography
- Those High Gray Walls (1939)
- Citizen KaneCitizen KaneCitizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, directed by and starring Orson Welles. Many critics consider it the greatest American film of all time, especially for its innovative cinematography, music and narrative structure. Citizen Kane was Welles' first feature film...
(1941) - Hostages (1943)
- Air Raid WardensAir Raid WardensAir Raid Wardens is a 1943 Laurel and Hardy comedy film. This was the first of their films made at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.-Synopsis:Set during World War II, Stan and Ollie try their hand at various business ventures...
(1943) - Tarzan TriumphsTarzan TriumphsTarzan Triumphs is a 1943 adventure film in which Tarzan fights the Nazis. Johnny Weismuller had portrayed the popular Edgar Rice Burroughs character in six films with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, but this was his first with the producer Sol Lesser at RKO Pictures...
(1943) - Tarzan's Desert MysteryTarzan's Desert MysteryTarzan's Desert Mystery is a 1943 film starring Johnny Weismuller and Nancy Kelly. The movie was directed by Wilhelm Thiele.Like its immediate predecessor, "Tarzan Triumphs," this movie makes reference to Tarzan's mate, Jane, played in earlier Weissmuller films by Maureen O'Sullivan, but it does...
(1943) - House of FrankensteinHouse of Frankenstein (1944 film)House of Frankenstein is an American monster horror film produced in 1944 by Universal Studios as a sequel to Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man the previous year. This monster rally approach would continue in the following film, House of Dracula, as well as the 1948 comedy Abbott and Costello Meet...
(1944) - The Big NoiseThe Big NoiseThe Big Noise is a 1944 comedy film starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. It was produced by Sol M. Wurtzel and directed by Mal St.Clair. It has been regarded by many film critics and Laurel and Hardy historians as being among the duo's worst films....
(1944) - SudanSudan (film)Sudan is a 1945 historical drama film set in Egypt during the reign of the pharaoh Khafra . The film was directed by John Rawlins and starred Maria Montez.-Cast:* Maria Montez as "Naila"* Jon Hall as "Merab"* Turhan Bey as "Herua"...
(1945) - Counter-AttackCounter-AttackCounter-Attack is a 1945 war film starring Paul Muni and Marguerite Chapman as two Russians trapped in a collapsed building with seven enemy German soldiers during World War II...
(1945) - A Thousand and One NightsA Thousand and One Nights (film)A Thousand and One Nights is a tongue-in-cheek Technicolor fantasy film set in the Baghdad of the One Thousand and One Nights, starring Cornel Wilde as Aladdin, Evelyn Keyes as the genie of the magic lamp, Phil Silvers as Aladdin's larcenous sidekick, and Adele Jergens as the princess Aladdin...
(1945) - Slave Girl (1947)
- Squareheads of the Round TableSquareheads of the Round TableSquareheads of the Round Table is the 106th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(1948 short) - The Big ClockThe Big Clock (1948 film)The Big Clock is a 1948 film noir thriller directed by John Farrow, adapted by renowned novelist-screenwriter Jonathan Latimer from the novel of the same name by Kenneth Fearing....
(1948) - Fiddlers ThreeFiddlers Three (1948 film)Fiddlers Three is the 107th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959. It is a partial remake of Restless Knights.-Plot:...
(1948 short) - Embraceable YouEmbraceable You (film)Embraceable You is a 1948 romantic drama film starring Dane Clark and Geraldine Brooks, and directed by Felix Jacoves. A getaway car, leaving the scene of a murder, strikes and injures a woman. Afterward, the driver visits her in the hospital.-Cast:...
(1948) - The Lady GamblesThe Lady GamblesThe Lady Gambles is a 1949 drama film starring Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Preston. A woman accompanies her husband to Las Vegas and becomes addicted to gambling.-Cast:*Barbara Stanwyck as Joan Phillips Boothe*Robert Preston as David Boothe...
(1949) - Fuelin' AroundFuelin' AroundFuelin' Around is the 116th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(1949) - Red, Hot and BlueRed, Hot and Blue (film)Red, Hot and Blue is a 1949 musical comedy film starring Betty Hutton as an actress who gets mixed up with gangsters and murder. It has no connection to Cole Porter's play of the same name...
(1949) - Dopey DicksDopey DicksDopey Dicks is the 122nd short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(1950) - His Kind of WomanHis Kind of WomanHis Kind of Woman is a black-and-white 1951 film noir starring Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell. The film features supporting roles by Vincent Price, Raymond Burr, and Charles McGraw...
(1951) - Three Arabian NutsThree Arabian NutsThree Arabian Nuts is the 129th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(1951) - Spooks!Spooks!Spooks! is the 148th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. It is notable as the first Three Stooges short filmed in 3-D. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(1953) - Captain John Smith and PocahontasCaptain John Smith and PocahontasCaptain John Smith and Pocahontas is a 1953 American historical film directed by Lew Landers. The distributor was United Artists. It stars Anthony Dexter, Jody Lawrance and Alan Hale. It depicts the foundation of the Jamestown Colony in Virginia by English settlers and the relationship between...
(1953) - Clipped Wings (1953)
- Yankee PashaYankee PashaYankee Pasha is a 1954 romantic adventure film starring Jeff Chandler and Rhonda Fleming, and featured Mamie Van Doren. The movie was released by Universal Pictures.-Cast:*Jeff Chandler as Jason Starbuck*Rhonda Fleming as Roxana Reil...
(1954) - The Big ComboThe Big ComboThe Big Combo is an American film noir directed by Joseph H. Lewis and stylistically photographed by cinematographer and noir icon John Alton with music by David Raksin....
(1955) - Bedlam in ParadiseBedlam in ParadiseBedlam in Paradise is the 162nd short subject starring the American slapstick comedy team Three Stooges who made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(1955) - The Pride and the PassionThe Pride and the PassionThe Pride and the Passion is a historical film drama starring Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra and Sophia Loren made by Stanley Kramer Productions. Set in the Napoleonic era, it is the story of a British officer who has orders to retrieve a huge cannon from Spain and take it to the British forces by ship...
(1957) - Man of a Thousand FacesMan of a Thousand FacesMan of a Thousand Faces is a film detailing the life of silent movie actor Lon Chaney, in which the title role is played by James Cagney.Directed by Joseph Pevney, the film's cast included Dorothy Malone, Jane Greer and Jim Backus...
(1957) - Outer Space JittersOuter Space JittersOuter Space Jitters is the 182nd short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The five made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:...
(1957) - Fifi Blows Her TopFifi Blows Her TopFifi Blows Her Top is the 184th short subject starring American slapstick comedy team the Three Stooges. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures between 1934 and 1959.-Plot:The Stooges reminisce about their wartime romances in Europe...
(1958)