Talbot, Lyle

Lyle Talbot (birth name - Lyle Henderson) was born on February 8, 1902 in Pittsburgh ^{[1] [2]} in a family of wandering pop artists ^{[3] [4]} . According to some sources, he was born on a river ship, where his parents performed ^[5] . After his mother’s early death, he was taken up by his grandmother Mary Hollywood Talbot, who lived in the small town of Brainard in Nebraska ^{[3] [2] [5] [1]} . From the age of 17, already under the name Talbot, he began performing with touring big top theaters, first as an assistant hypnotist and magician, and then with his own program ^{[4] [2] [1] [3]} .

Then the beautiful Talbot tried his hand at the repertoire theater in Nebraska as a leading actor, and in 1930 at the age of 28 he formed his own troupe Lyle Talbot Players ^{[3] [5 ]} in Nashville (according to other sources, in Memphis ^[4] ) ^{[5 ] ]} . A Hollywood agent, seeing his game in Houston , invited the young actor to film screenings for sound films new for that time ^[3] , and, like many other energetic performers of the 1920s, Talbot went to Hollywood " ^{[4] [5]} .

Possessing a beautiful appearance and rich baritone , in 1931 Talbot quickly signed a contract with Warner Bros. ^[1] . The most productive and successful period in Talbot’s film career was in the first half of the 1930s, when “during 1932–34 he played in an incredible 28 films, mainly for Warner Bros and First National ” ^[5] . In the words of Talbot: “I played anything, anything and everything” ^[1] . During this period, Talbot repeatedly played significant supporting roles or was a second star in the company of many stars of his time ^[5] .

His first significant film was the romantic comedy “ Love Is Racket ” (1932) with Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Anne Dvorak , where Talbot was a gangster. In the same year, he played in the successful prison drama “ 20,000 Years in Sing Sing ” (1932) with Spencer Tracy and Bette Davis , creating the image of an educated and intelligent prisoner who prepares a sophisticated jailbreak, ending in failure and ultimately his suicide ^[1] . In the same year, he played with Carol Lombard a couple of poorly compatible lovers in the romantic comedy “ No More Orchids ” (1932). This was followed by the role of a bohemian playboy connected with criminals, seducing the unfortunate heroine Ann Dvorak , in the crime melodrama Three in a Pair (1932), as well as the role of a gangster in love with a nightclub singer performed by Barbara Stanwick in the melodrama Purchase Price (1932 ) ^[5] . When rented at Monogram Pictures Studios, Talbot played a major role in a pair with Ginger Rogers in two fascinating comedy thrillers - “The Thirteenth Guest ” (1932) and “ Howl in the Night ” (1933), which continued to be included in the cinema doubles program until 1940- x years ^[4] .

In 1933, in the prison drama "The Lady Who Is Talking About " (1933) with Stanwick, the main role was played by Talbot, the leader of a gang of robbers who die when he escapes from prison. A year later, in the melodrama "The Missing Lady " (1934), Talbot played a lawyer who was passionate about the heroine performed by Stanwick , and in the crime melodrama " Fog Over Frisco " (1934), he was the groom of the depraved and treacherous socialite performed by Davis , who extort money from him ^[5] . In addition, Talbot was a drinking doctor in the melodrama Mandalay (1934) with Kay Francis , a gangster in the crime melodrama Zarnitsa (1934) with Dvorak and an admirer of the opera star ( Grace Moore ) in the romantic musical One Night of Love (1934) ) ^[5] . A year later, he played in the melodrama Our Little Girl (1935) with Shirley Temple and played the role of a journalist in the romantic comedy Miss Glory (1935) with Marion Davis , and also tried to look after a movie star performed by May West in the comedy May West Forever "(1936) ^[5] .

As columnist Mirna Oliver wrote in the Los Angeles Times , in 1935, Talbot “was not afraid of the wrath of the studios when he became one of the 24 founding members of the Screen Actors Guild . He was the only one of the dissident actors who at that time had a studio contract, and the studio immediately reduced him from romantic main roles to characteristic roles ” ^[3] . After that, "it became apparent that Talbot would not become a star." However, although his participation in the activities of the Guild angered some studio leaders, the actor never looked for work ^[5] . Until the end of his life, Talbot willingly and proudly showed off his membership card for the Guild No. 4 ^[4] .

From March 1940 to September 1941, Talbot played a major role in the successful Broadway comedy "Separate Rooms", which withstood 613 performances. It was his only role on Broadway ^{[2] [6]} .

During World War II, at the age of 40, Talbot enlisted in the army, where, as a sergeant, the Air Force organized leisure activities for military personnel ^{[2] [3]} .

In the 1940s, Talbot rarely got significant roles, playing mainly in category B films ^[3] . As a freelancer, he continued to act in both large and poor studios, but "often these were unforgettable films" ^[5] .

In 1949, Talbot played the positive role of Commissioner Gordon in the 15-part movie series Batman and Robin (1949), and a year later appeared as the supervillain scientist Lex Luther in the 15-part movie series Atomic Man vs. Superman (1950) ^{[4 ] [3]} . In addition, he played small roles in the film noir “ Strange Incarnation ” (1946), “ Scarf ” (1951), “ Sudden Danger ” (1955) and “ City of Fear ” (1959), as well as episodic roles (without crediting) ) in such large-budget films as the biographical musical tape “ With a Song in the Heart ” (1952) with Susan Hayward and the musical comedy “ There Is No Such Business as Show Business ” (1954) with Marilyn Monroe ^[5] .

As noted in the actor’s biography on AllMovie , “it seems that ready to play with anyone who pays the price, Talbot did not hesitate to appear in cheap horror films of the 1950s” ^[4] . According to critic Ray Delgado, during this period “Talbot worked with a variety of actors and directors, including Ed Wood , famous for his quirkiness” ^[2] . In the 1950s, during a professional downtime, Talbot made three films with Wood - “ Glen or Glenda ” (1953) about a man who violates social taboos in his admiration for angora and women's underwear, the extravagant film noir “ Prison Beit ” (1954) ) with endless flamenco-style guitar accompaniment, and “glaring nonsense” “ Plan 9 from outer space ” (1959), which “mixes primitive scientific ideas, zombies , warlike pacifists from another planet and the crazy sayings of the frantic futurist” ^[2] . When asked what it feels like to work with Wood, famous for his mediocrity, Talbot replied that the director “never forgot to pay him in advance for each shooting day with a bunch of ten-dollar pieces of paper” ^[4] .

The actor’s last film was a high-budget biographical drama about Franklin D. Roosevelt , Dawn at Campobello (1960), where Talbot played the role of a clumsy merchant ^{[1] [3] [5]} .

Since the early 1950s, Talbot began to work a lot on television, first appearing in 1950 as a banker in the Lone Ranger Western television series, after which he played various roles in four episodes of this series until 1955. In 1955, he played various roles in nine episodes of the spy series Dangerous Mission ^[5] .

Replacing, according to Oliver, “the cinematic role of a tough guy into a pleasant neighbor” ^[1] , Talbot played in the episode 91 of the sitcom “ The Adventures of Ozzy and Harriet ” (1955–66), where he appeared in the image of a restless neighbor and best friend Ozzy Nelson named Joe Randolph, who constantly borrowed tools from Ozzy and never returned them, and also by naivety gave Harriet little secrets to Ozzy ^{[1] [2] [3]} . During the same period, Talbot played another regular role in 21 episodes of the sitcom “ The Bob Cummings Show, ” also known as “I Love This Bob” (1955-1959). Here, Talbot was a former military pilot and army friend of a loving photographer performed by Cummings, who romantically courted his sister ^{[4] [3]} .

Talbot also had an ongoing role as the chief villain's assistant in seven episodes of the fantastic superhero Commando Cody: Space Marshal of the Universe (1955), played various roles in five episodes of the series Port (1954-55) and two episodes of the sitcom Leave It to Beaver "(1958). In addition, he played three times in the western series The Adventures of Keith Carson (1952-54) and Days in the Valley of Death (1952-54), and also four times as a judge in the Western Kisco Kid (1950-54 ) ^[5] .

As Oliver noted, “Talbot’s well-known face often appeared in other multi-year television programs,” among them the George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (1954-58, 7 episodes), the Red Skelton Show (1957-64, 5 episodes) , The Danny Thomas Show (1962) and The Lucy Show (1963, 2 episodes) ^{[1] [3]} . Talbot has also been a guest star on such popular TV shows as Perry Mason (1958), Wagon Caravan (1958), Maverick (1959), Rawhide (1959) and Bonanza (1961), and in 1967, played Colonel Blake in three episodes of the comedy series The Beverly Hillbilly . He continued to work on television until the end of the 1980s, acting as a guest star in such television series as Charlie's Angels (1979), Duke of Hazzard (1984), Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1986), and Who's Here the boss? ”(1986) and in his last role in the comedy series“ Newhart ”(1987) ^[5] .

As noted by the New York Times columnist Mel Gassow, Talbot is one of those actors, “whose face is more recognizable than their name” ^[1] . During his long career Talbot has played in more than 150 films in a wide range of genres - in romantic comedies, westerns and gangster films ^{[1] [2]} . As noted in the actor’s biography on Turner Classic Movies , “a beautiful, well-built actor with theatrical experience and a big smile, in 1931 Talbot quickly found himself a movie job” ^[5] . “Gifted with the grace and beauty of a secular boyfriend”, in the 1930s he played the second main roles at the Warner Bros studio, and also played heroes in category B films ^[4] . According to Gassou, “with a handsome face and an impassive manner of holding on, he played friends of heroes, and sometimes played the main roles, but was still more known for negative roles” ^[1] . During this period, his partners were such stars as Bette Davis , Anne Dvorak , Joan Blondell , Carol Lombard , Mary Astor , Barbara Stanwick , Ginger Rogers and Loretta Young , he played together with Humphrey Bogart , Spencer Tracy and Tyrone ^{[1] 3] [5]} .

In the mid-1930s, Talbot became one of the founders of the Screen Actors Guild , which led to the fact that Warner Bros did not renew his contract with him ^[2] , after which the level and quality of Talbot's roles decreased markedly. From the second half of the 1940s, Talbot became known as a strong character actor, playing with equal skill playing cowboys, pirates, detectives, cops, surgeons, psychiatrists, soldiers, judges, newspaper editors, shop owners and boxers ^[5] . As noted in the actor’s biography on the AllMovie website, “as he became more bald and wider, Talbot became one of Hollywood’s busiest villains” ^[4] .

Talbot was the first actor to play two significant DC comic book characters on the screen - Commissioner Gordon in the Batman and Robin movie series (1949) and Lex Luthor's supervillain in the movie The Atomic Man vs. Superman (1950). As Mirna Oliver of the Los Angeles Times noted, “Talbot was a versatile actor who could play anything. He could be described as an actor who always worked. In 1984, he told our newspaper,“ It's very simple. I never I didn’t refuse work, not even once ”and added:“ I worked in some really disgusting things, in particular in the film “ Plan 9 from outer space “, which won the Golden Turkey award as the “worst film ever made“ " ^[3] .

In addition to the movie, Talbot played on Broadway, toured the country with theater troupes, acted as a magician, worked on radio and television ^[3] . From the beginning of the 1950s to the end of the 1980s, he worked a lot in television series, playing characters on both sides of the law, where his most memorable work was the constant role of a restless good neighbor in the sitcom " The Adventures of Ozzy and Harriet " (1955-66 ) ^[4] .

Since the mid-1930s, in addition to filming a movie, Talbot began performing in various theater shows, and in 1940–41 he played in his only Broadway production of “Separate Rooms”. He later played Captain Brackett in the musical South Seas (1967) at the Lincoln Center , and also toured with the performances Strange Couple (1968–69), Chanterelles (1970) and Camelot (1973). In 1972, he staged in Florida with his colleagues Ozzy and Harriet Nelson the play "The Marry Carousel" ^{[5] [1]} . Until the end of the 1970s, Talbot continued to tour with theatrical and pop programs, "resting on the leading local talk shows with an inexhaustible reserve of jokes about his thirty-year period of stay in Hollywood" ^[4] .

In the 1980s, he took part in two documentaries, produced by his son Stephen, speaking in the voice of Deshil Hammett in “The Case of Deshil Hammett” (1982) and being an off-screen narrator in the film “A World Without Barriers: African Memories of Beryl Markham” ( 1986) ^[1] . After retirement, Talbot continued to lead an active social life and worked on memoirs ^[5] .

Talbot had several short-term marriages - with Elaine Malkhor (1930-32), Margaret Ethel Kramer (1937-40), Abigail Adams (1942) and Kiven McClure (1946-47), as well as many romantic hobbies. In 1948, he married for the fifth time actress and singer Margaret Carol Apple. At that moment, she was 20 years old, and he was a 46-year-old drinking actor. Under the influence of Apple, Talbot quit drinking. У пары родилось четверо детей, и они иногда работали вместе на сцене. Они оставались в браке на протяжении сорока лет вплоть до его смерти в 1989 году. Трое из четырёх детей Тэлбота — Стивен, Дэвид и Маргарет — стали известными журналистами, а Синтия стала врачом ^{[2] [3] [1]} .

Лайл Тэлбот умер 2 марта 1996 года в своём доме в Сан-Франциско в возрасте 94 лет ^{[1] [3] [2]} .