Ernest Torrence
Encyclopedia
Ernest Torrence was a Scottish
born film character actor
who appeared in many Hollywood films, including Broken Chains (1922) with Colleen Moore
,Mantrap
(1926) with Clara Bow
, and Fighting Caravans
(1931) with Gary Cooper
and Lili Damita
. A towering (6' 4") figure, Torrence frequently played cold-eyed and imposing villains.
, Scotland
, and as a child was an exceptional pianist and operatic baritone and graduated from the Stuttgart Conservatory, Edinburgh Academy
before earning a scholarship at London's Royal Academy of Music
. He toured with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
in such productions as The Emerald Isle
(1901) and The Talk of the Town (1905) before disarming vocal problems set in and he was forced to abandon this career path. Sometime prior to 1900, he changed the spelling of Torrance to Torrence and dropped the name Thomson. Both Ernest and his actor brother David Torrence went to America, in March 1911, directly from Scotland prior to World War I
. Focusing instead on a purely acting career, Ernest and his brother developed into experienced players on the Broadway
New York stage. Ernest received significant acclaim with Modest Suzanne in 1912 and a prominent role in The Night Boat in 1920 brought him to the attention of Hollywood filmmakers.
(1921) opposite Richard Barthelmess
, and immediately settled into films for the rest of his career and life. He played an old codger in the acclaimed classic western The Covered Wagon
(1923) and gained attention from his roles in The Hunchback of Notre Dame
(1923) as Clopin
, king of the beggars, and Betty Bronson in Peter Pan
(1924) as the dastardly Captain Hook
. 1924 also found him playing an Army General who escapes into the circus world and becomes a clown in The Side Show of Life
. In an offbeat bit of casting he paired up with Clara Bow
in Mantrap
(1926), unusually as a gentle, giant type backwoodsman in search of a wife. He appeared in other silent film classics such as The King of Kings (1927) (as Peter) and Steamboat Bill Jr.
(1928) as Buster Keaton
's steamboat captain father. During the course of his twelve year film career, Ernest made 49 films, both silent and "talkies".
(1931) with Gary Cooper
and Lili Damita
. He was able to play a notable nemesis, Dr. Moriarty
, to Clive Brooks' Sherlock Holmes
(1932) in one of his last roles. Filming for I Cover the Waterfront
(1933), in which he starred as a smuggler opposite Claudette Colbert
in New York
, had just been completed when he died suddenly on May 15, 1933, at the relatively young age of 54. While en route to Europe by ship, Torrence suffered an acute attack of gall stones and was rushed back to a New York
hospital but died later of complications following surgery.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
born film character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
who appeared in many Hollywood films, including Broken Chains (1922) with Colleen Moore
Colleen Moore
Colleen Moore was an American film actress, and one of the most fashionable stars of the silent film era.-Early life:...
,Mantrap
Mantrap (film)
Mantrap is a 1926 American black-and-white silent film based on the novel of the same name by Sinclair Lewis...
(1926) with Clara Bow
Clara Bow
Clara Gordon Bow was an American actress who rose to stardom in the silent film era of the 1920s. It was her appearance as a spunky shopgirl in the film It that brought her global fame and the nickname "The It Girl." Bow came to personify the roaring twenties and is described as its leading sex...
, and Fighting Caravans
Fighting Caravans
Fighting Caravans is a lavish 1931 western film starring Gary Cooper and Lili Damita. The movie was directed by Otto Brower and David Burton. Although the film is billed as being based on the novel of the same name by Zane Grey, the stories have little in common. The film was actually written by...
(1931) with Gary Cooper
Gary Cooper
Frank James Cooper, known professionally as Gary Cooper, was an American film actor. He was renowned for his quiet, understated acting style and his stoic, but at times intense screen persona, which was particularly well suited to the many Westerns he made...
and Lili Damita
Lili Damita
Lili Damita was a French actress who appeared in 33 movies between 1922 and 1937.-Early life and education:...
. A towering (6' 4") figure, Torrence frequently played cold-eyed and imposing villains.
Education and early work
He was born Ernest Torrance-Thomson on June 26, 1878, in EdinburghEdinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, and as a child was an exceptional pianist and operatic baritone and graduated from the Stuttgart Conservatory, Edinburgh Academy
Edinburgh Academy
The Edinburgh Academy is an independent school which was opened in 1824. The original building, in Henderson Row on the northern fringe of the New Town of Edinburgh, Scotland, is now part of the Senior School...
before earning a scholarship at London's Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
. He toured with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company was a professional light opera company that staged Gilbert and Sullivan's Savoy operas. The company performed nearly year-round in the UK and sometimes toured in Europe, North America and elsewhere, from the 1870s until it closed in 1982. It was revived in 1988 and...
in such productions as The Emerald Isle
The Emerald Isle
The Emerald Isle; or, The Caves of Carrig-Cleena, is a two-act comic opera, with music by Arthur Sullivan and Edward German, and a libretto by Basil Hood. It premiered at the Savoy Theatre on 27 April 1901, closing on 9 November 1901 after a run of 205 performances...
(1901) and The Talk of the Town (1905) before disarming vocal problems set in and he was forced to abandon this career path. Sometime prior to 1900, he changed the spelling of Torrance to Torrence and dropped the name Thomson. Both Ernest and his actor brother David Torrence went to America, in March 1911, directly from Scotland prior to World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Focusing instead on a purely acting career, Ernest and his brother developed into experienced players on the 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...
New York stage. Ernest received significant acclaim with Modest Suzanne in 1912 and a prominent role in The Night Boat in 1920 brought him to the attention of Hollywood filmmakers.
Film career
Torrence played the despicable adversary Luke Hatburn in Tol'able DavidTol'able David
Tol'able David is a 1921 American silent film based on the Joseph Hergesheimer short story. It was adapted to the screen by Edmund Goulding and directed by Henry King for Inspiration Pictures....
(1921) opposite Richard Barthelmess
Richard Barthelmess
Richard Semler "Dick" Barthelmess was an Oscar-nominated silent film star.-Early life:Barthelmess was educated at Hudson River Military Academy at Nyack and Trinity College at Hartford, Connecticut...
, and immediately settled into films for the rest of his career and life. He played an old codger in the acclaimed classic western The Covered Wagon
The Covered Wagon
The Covered Wagon is an American silent Western film released by Paramount Pictures. The film was directed by James Cruze based on a novel by Emerson Hough about a group of pioneers traveling through the old West from Kansas to Oregon. J...
(1923) and gained attention from his roles in The Hunchback of Notre Dame
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923 film)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1923 American film directed by Wallace Worsley and produced by Carl Laemmle and Irving Thalberg. It stars Lon Chaney, Sr., Patsy Ruth Miller, Norman Kerry, Nigel de Brulier, Brandon Hurst. The film is the second most famous adaptation of Victor Hugo's novel,...
(1923) as Clopin
Clopin
Clopin Trouillefou is a fictional character first created in the 1831 novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by French author Victor Hugo, and subsequently adapted.-In the novel:...
, king of the beggars, and Betty Bronson in Peter Pan
Peter Pan (1924 film)
Peter Pan is a 1924 adventure silent film released by Paramount Pictures, the first film adaptation of the play by J. M. Barrie. It was directed by Herbert Brenon and starred Betty Bronson as Peter Pan, Ernest Torrence as Captain Hook, Mary Brian as Wendy, and Virginia Browne Faire as Tinker Bell...
(1924) as the dastardly Captain Hook
Captain Hook
Captain James Hook is the main antagonist of J. M. Barrie's play Peter Pan; or, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up and its various adaptations. The character is a villainous pirate captain of the Jolly Roger brig, and lord of the pirate village/harbour in Neverland, where he is widely feared. Most...
. 1924 also found him playing an Army General who escapes into the circus world and becomes a clown in The Side Show of Life
The Side Show of Life
The Side Show of Life is a 1924 silent film produced by Famous Players-Lasky, directed by Herbert Brenon and distributed by Paramount. It is based on the novel "The Mountebank" by William J. Locke which had been turned into a play by Ernest Denny...
. In an offbeat bit of casting he paired up with Clara Bow
Clara Bow
Clara Gordon Bow was an American actress who rose to stardom in the silent film era of the 1920s. It was her appearance as a spunky shopgirl in the film It that brought her global fame and the nickname "The It Girl." Bow came to personify the roaring twenties and is described as its leading sex...
in Mantrap
Mantrap (film)
Mantrap is a 1926 American black-and-white silent film based on the novel of the same name by Sinclair Lewis...
(1926), unusually as a gentle, giant type backwoodsman in search of a wife. He appeared in other silent film classics such as The King of Kings (1927) (as Peter) and Steamboat Bill Jr.
Steamboat Bill Jr.
Steamboat Bill Jr. is a 1928 feature-length comedy silent film featuring Buster Keaton. Released by United Artists, the film is the last product of Keaton's independent production team and set of gag writers. It was not a box-office success and proved to be the last picture Keaton would make for...
(1928) as Buster Keaton
Buster Keaton
Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the...
's steamboat captain father. During the course of his twelve year film career, Ernest made 49 films, both silent and "talkies".
Death
Torrence made the transition into talking films very well, starring in Fighting CaravansFighting Caravans
Fighting Caravans is a lavish 1931 western film starring Gary Cooper and Lili Damita. The movie was directed by Otto Brower and David Burton. Although the film is billed as being based on the novel of the same name by Zane Grey, the stories have little in common. The film was actually written by...
(1931) with Gary Cooper
Gary Cooper
Frank James Cooper, known professionally as Gary Cooper, was an American film actor. He was renowned for his quiet, understated acting style and his stoic, but at times intense screen persona, which was particularly well suited to the many Westerns he made...
and Lili Damita
Lili Damita
Lili Damita was a French actress who appeared in 33 movies between 1922 and 1937.-Early life and education:...
. He was able to play a notable nemesis, Dr. Moriarty
Professor Moriarty
Professor James Moriarty is a fictional character and the archenemy of the detective Sherlock Holmes in the fiction of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Moriarty is a criminal mastermind, described by Holmes as the "Napoleon of Crime". Doyle lifted the phrase from a real Scotland Yard inspector who was...
, to Clive Brooks' Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
(1932) in one of his last roles. Filming for I Cover the Waterfront
I Cover the Waterfront
I Cover the Waterfront is a 1933 film, based on the book of the same name by Max Miller. The film was directed by James Cruze and stars Ben Lyon, Claudette Colbert, Ernest Torrance, and Hobart Cavanaugh.-Synopsis:...
(1933), in which he starred as a smuggler opposite Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert was a French-born American-based actress of stage and film.Born in Paris, France and raised in New York City, Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the 1920s, progressing to film with the advent of talking pictures...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, had just been completed when he died suddenly on May 15, 1933, at the relatively young age of 54. While en route to Europe by ship, Torrence suffered an acute attack of gall stones and was rushed back to a New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
hospital but died later of complications following surgery.