Hardwick, Cedric

Cedric Hardwick was born in the village of Lai , in Worcestershire , United Kingdom, in the family of Dr. Edwin Hardwick. He attended grammar school in Bridgnorth, Shropshire , and then studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts .

He made his debut on the stage of the London tetra "Lyceum" in 1912 in the melodrama of Frederick Melville "The Monk and the Woman", where he played the role of brother John. In the same year he worked as a double at the Theater of Her Majesty , and then at the Garrick Theater in the plays of Charles Klein. In 1913, he joined the Frank Benson troupe and toured the provinces of England, South Africa and Rhodesia . In 1914, he played in Lawrence Irving ’s play The Unwritten Law, and then appeared at the Old Vic Theater in 1914 as Malcolm in Macbeth of Shakespeare , the Tombstone in Hamlet and others.

In 1914 - 1921, Hardwick served in the ranks of the British army in France. In January 1922, he joined the Birmingham Theater troupe. He played many classic heroes in leading London theaters. He made a name for himself by playing in the plays of Bernard Shaw , who considered Hardwick as the fifth most talented actor, after the four Marx brothers . As one of the leading actors playing Shows such as Caesar and Cleopatra, Pygmalion, The Cart with Apples, Candida, Bitter but True, and Don Juan in Hell, Hardwick was so penetrating in a game that at the age of 41 became one of the youngest knighted actors. This event occurred in 1934. From now on, the honorary knighthood “Sir” was added to the name Hardwick.

Hardwick debut in English cinema took place in 1913. Among the first roles - the embodiment of such historical figures as Horatio Nelson and Alfred Dreyfus . In December 1935, he was elected Rede Lecturer of the University of Cambridge for 1936. In 1939, Hardwick went to Hollywood to shoot, playing David Livingstone in the film “Stanley and Livingstone,” his partner, who played Henry Stanley , was Spencer Tracy . In the same year, another film was released with his participation: The Hunchback from Notre Dame (Hadwick as Claude Frollo , Charles Lawton as Quasimodo . The movie “The Ghost of Frankenstein” (1942) followed them. Then Hardwick continued his career already in New York

In 1944 he returned to the UK, toured a lot, performed on stage, in particular at the Westminster Theater in March 1945. He returns to America at the end of 1945 and performs alongside Ethel Barrymore in Shaw's Pygmalion. In 1951-1952, he plays on Broadway in the play “Don Juan in Hell”, along with Agnes Moorehead , Charles Boyer and Charles Lawton .

Despite roles in films such as "The Miserable" (1935), "Mines of King Solomon" (1937), "The Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven" (1944), "The Boy Winsley" (1948) and "Richard III" by Lawrence Olivier (1955) Hardwick today is remembered at home mainly by the role of King Arthur in the musical comedy “Yankees at King Arthur’s Court” (1949), singing in a trio with Bing Crosby and William Bendix , and the role of Pharaoh Seti I in the film “ Ten Commandments ” (1956 ) Cecilia de Mille .

In 1956, he appears in one of the series "Alfred Hitchcock Represents" in the role of Mr. Princi, an aristocrat trying to hide a crime in order to avoid public scandal. In 1961–1962, he starred in the television comedy series Gertrude Berg as Professor Creighton, who had been on television for 26 weeks and in the TV series “Mr. Adams and Christmas.”

Ronald Hardwick died at the age of 71 from pneumonia in New York and was cremated.

• In the homeland of the actor, the memorial of actor Tim Tolkien is installed. The memorial is a giant filmstrip depicting scenes from famous Hardwick films: The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Look of the Future, and The Ghost of Frankenstein. The memorial was opened in November 2005.
• The actor also has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame .
• Quote Hardvika: "Actors and thieves work better at night."

Hardwick was married twice. His first wife was Helena Picard , with whom he had been married for 20 years (1928-1948). The second wife - Mary Scott Mary Scott (1950-1961).

The son of his first marriage, Edward Hardwick (1932–2011), also became an actor who gained fame in the UK thanks to the role of Dr. Watson in the television series “ The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, ” which ran from 1984–1994.

Ronald Hardwick starred in 95 films. The main genres: drama, romance, history.

• Hardwick, Cedric (English) on the Internet Broadway Database
• Hardwicke archive