McCrindl, Alex

Alex Mackrindl was born on August 3, 1911 in Glasgow , Scotland . He began his career at the age of 10, working as a milkman. At 15, he dropped out of school and got a job in the office. For the first time he began to go on stage, playing in the plays of a youth Christian organization. Later, after moving to Glasgow and gaining the position of manager in one of the equipment trading companies, he joined the Glasgow Clarion Players theater group, which was closely associated with the Communist Party of Great Britain .

McCrindl attended acting classes at the University of Glasgow , and soon he had to choose between working in a company and acting. He managed to conclude a contract for training at the Royal Theater in London , located at the north end of the Kew Bridge . McCrindl quit his job as an electrician and devoted himself to acting for the rest of his life.

He began acting on British television in 1937 with small roles in his first television shows, including , as well as in A. Hitchcock's classic film 39 Steps , although Alex was more proud of his participation in the play Six from Dorset . dedicated to the history of the “ Tolpaddle Martyrs "; in 1937 a national tour of this play took place.

During the Second World War he was drafted into the Royal Navy . With his participation, the first play in the history of the fleet, staged on a warship, “ Androclus and the Lion ” by Bernard Shaw , transmitted through local communications, was staged.

From 1946 to 1951, he played the role of Jock Anderson in the BBC radio show “ Dick Barton: Special Agent ”, with 700 episodes and 15 million listeners. This role brought the actor national love and great popularity. In 1947, he became the producer of the television program Larry the Lamb .

Despite his achievements as an actor, as well as a very successful screenwriter, for his communist activities and participation in the actor’s union “Equality”, the origins of which he stood for, Alex Mackrindl was on the black list for many years, especially from the late 1940s to the end 1950s In 1951, he starred in his first American film, " House on the Square ." In the 1950s, he starred - often without credits in order to avoid the blacklist - as characteristic actors of low-budget films. During this period, he starred in the films “I Believe in You” (1952), “ Little Kidnappers ” (1953), Trouble in the Glen (1954), Geordie (1955) and “ Depth Bomb ” (1960). However, this allowed him to devote considerable attention to “Equality” and the struggle to improve working conditions and raise the salaries of actors for seven years; the leadership of the union was entrusted with the creation of its Scottish branch.

By the mid-1960s, his career began to straighten, he played increasingly significant roles in film and television, from the television series The Saint (1965) to the movie " All Creations, Big and Small " (1975).

In 1976, starred in the movie "New Hope" in the role of the rebel general Jan Dodonna. During the filming, Alex came to grips with the director of the film, George Lucas , who, saving the money allocated for the film, cut the salaries of the actors. However, as one of the actors recalled, “Hollywood thought Darth Vader was a tough nut; but they didn’t meet with Alex! ” Through Equality, McCrindl managed to knock out bonuses for all Star Wars actors, including Birmingham- born Kenny Baker , who played R2-D2 .

He later played small roles in television films, such as the role of the eccentric veterinarian Evan Ross in All Creatures, Big and Small. The last works of the actor were the television series Reilly: The King of Spies (1983), the films Samson and Delilah (1985), Comrades (1987) and the television movie Taggart (1988).

In all, during his life, the actor starred in 56 films and television films.

Alex was very fond of Scottish poetry and regularly recited poetry aloud to an audience. He created and read his own compilation of 37 poems by William Sutar (Glasgow, 1989) and raised money for Brownsbank Cottage , the home of Hugh McDermid .

Alex was a close friend of the famous photographer Paul Strand and was the first assistant in organizing his photo project Tir a Mhurain .

He died on April 20, 1990 in Edinburgh , Scotland. The obituary in The Times , entitled "The Unyielding Communist, " said that he remained "an adherent of firm Marxism , who did not lose his impeccability and uncompromising severity."

Family

He was married twice, his first wife was Sandy, and the second time was Honor Arundel , also a communist, children's writer and film critic, published in The Daily Walker . According to the writer Doris Lessing , the house of McCrindl and Arundel in the 1950s was the focus of the Communist Party. The daughter of actor Jean also participated in political activities and established a prize in the field of dramatic art in honor of her father.

• Alex McCrindle - IMDB
• Mccrindle alex
• Alex McCrindl on Wookieepedia