Guy Oliver
Encyclopedia
George Guy Oliver was an American actor
. He appeared in at least 189 silent era
motion pictures
and 27 talkies
in character roles
between 1911
and 1931
. His obituary gives him credit for at least 600. He directed
three movies in 1915
.
Born in Chicago, Illinois
, Oliver began his career as a cornet
ist at six-years-old in Lamar, Missouri
. After traveling with his family in a musical troupe, he decided to become an actor at age 21.
In 1908, he joined Lubin Studios
in Philadelphia, earning $3.00 a day. After appearing with Eclair
, Kinemacolor
and the Selig Polyscope Company
, Oliver went to California. He joined the company headed by Jesse L. Lasky
in 1916, working for Lasky under a verbal contract
.
Oliver appeared in at least 18 movies starring Wallace Reid
, and in those made by many other stars
on the Paramount
roster.
He was forced to retire and rest in 1931 because of his health, but the studio
kept him on the payroll.
Guy Oliver died at age 53 from cancer
at Hollywood Hospital in Hollywood, California
.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
. He appeared in at least 189 silent era
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
motion pictures
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and 27 talkies
Sound film
A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades would pass before sound motion pictures were made commercially...
in character roles
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...
between 1911
1911 in film
The year 1911 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*March 23: D.W Griffith shows the first major close-up shot on film with the successful release of The Lonedale Operator proving his ever growing mastery of how to utilise film....
and 1931
1931 in film
-Top grossing films:-Academy Awards:*Best Picture: Cimarron - MGM*Best Actor: Lionel Barrymore - A Free Soul*Best Actor: Wallace Beery - The Champ*Best Actor: Fredric March - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde...
. His obituary gives him credit for at least 600. He directed
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
three movies in 1915
1915 in film
The year 1915 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 8 : D.W Griffith's The Birth of a Nation premieres at Clune's Auditorium Los Angeles and breaks box office and film length records, running at a total length of 3 hrs 10 minutes.* June 18 : The Motion Picture Directors...
.
Born in Chicago, Illinois
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Oliver began his career as a cornet
Cornet
The cornet is a brass instrument very similar to the trumpet, distinguished by its conical bore, compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. It is not related to the renaissance and early baroque cornett or cornetto.-History:The cornet was...
ist at six-years-old in Lamar, Missouri
Lamar, Missouri
Lamar is a city in Barton County, Missouri, United States. The population was 4,474 at the 2011 census. It is the county seat of Barton County. Lamar is well known as the birthplace of President Harry S. Truman.-Geography:...
. After traveling with his family in a musical troupe, he decided to become an actor at age 21.
In 1908, he joined Lubin Studios
Lubin Studios
The Lubin Manufacturing Company, was an American motion picture production company that produced silent films from 1902 to 1916. Lubin films were distributed with a Liberty Bell trademark.-History:...
in Philadelphia, earning $3.00 a day. After appearing with Eclair
Eclair (camera)
Éclair was a film production, film laboratory and movie camera manufacturing company established in Épinay-sur-Seine, France by Charles Jourjon in 1907....
, Kinemacolor
Kinemacolor
Kinemacolor was the first successful color motion picture process, used commercially from 1908 to 1914. It was invented by George Albert Smith of Brighton, England in 1906. He was influenced by the work of William Norman Lascelles Davidson. It was launched by Charles Urban's Urban Trading Co. of...
and the Selig Polyscope Company
Selig Polyscope Company
The Selig Polyscope Company was an American motion picture company founded in 1896 by William Selig in Chicago, Illinois. Selig Polyscope is noted for establishing Southern California's first permanent movie studio, in the historic Edendale district of Los Angeles...
, Oliver went to California. He joined the company headed by Jesse L. Lasky
Jesse L. Lasky
Jesse Louis Lasky, Sr. was a pioneer Hollywood film producer. He was a key founder of Paramount Pictures with Adolph Zukor, and father of screenwriter Jesse L...
in 1916, working for Lasky under a verbal contract
Verbal contract
A verbal contract is any contract which is expressed in words .This contrasts with a contract which is implied by actions of the parties. An implied contract can be either implied in fact or implied in law. A contract which is implied in fact is one in which the circumstances imply that parties...
.
Oliver appeared in at least 18 movies starring Wallace Reid
Wallace Reid
Wallace Reid was an actor in silent film referred to as "the screen's most perfect lover".-Early life:Born William Wallace Reid in St...
, and in those made by many other stars
Movie star
A movie star is a celebrity who is well-known, or famous, for his or her starring, or leading, roles in motion pictures. The term may also apply to an actor or actress who is recognized as a marketable commodity and whose name is used to promote a movie in trailers and posters...
on the Paramount
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
roster.
He was forced to retire and rest in 1931 because of his health, but the studio
Movie studio
A movie studio is a term used to describe a major entertainment company or production company that has its own privately owned studio facility or facilities that are used to film movies...
kept him on the payroll.
Guy Oliver died at age 53 from cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
at Hollywood Hospital in Hollywood, California
Hollywood, Los Angeles, California
Hollywood is a famous district in Los Angeles, California, United States situated west-northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Due to its fame and cultural identity as the historical center of movie studios and movie stars, the word Hollywood is often used as a metonym of American cinema...
.
Selected filmography
- Saved From the TitanicSaved From the TitanicSaved From the Titanic is a 1912 silent motion picture short starring Dorothy Gibson, an actual survivor of the sinking of the RMS Titanic.The movie was shot in less than two weeks and in black and white, with color scenes...
(19121912 in filmThe year 1912 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*Mack Sennett, who had previously worked as an actor and comedy director with D. W. Griffith, formed a new company with New York City entrepreneur Adam Kessel called Keystone Studios...
) - Robin HoodRobin Hood (1912 film)Robin Hood is a 1912 film made by Eclair Studios when it and many other early film studios in America's first motion picture industry were based in Fort Lee, New Jersey at the beginning of the 20th century.The movie's costumes feature enormous versions of the familiar hats of Robin and his merry...
(1912) - His Father's RifleHis Father's RifleHis Father's Rifle is a 1914 American silent short drama directed by Edward LeSaint and written by Joseph F. Poland. The film starred Earle Foxe and Bertram Grassby in the main roles.-Cast:*Earle Foxe*Bertram Grassby*William Howard*Stella LeSaint...
(19141914 in filmThe year 1914 in film involved some significant events, including the debut of Cecil B. DeMille as a director.-Events:*The 3,300-seat Mark Strand Theatre opens in New York City....
) - Nan of Music MountainNan of Music MountainNan of Music Mountain is a 1917 short drama film directed by George Melford and Cecil B. DeMille. A lost film. -Cast:* Wallace Reid - Henry de Spain* Ann Little - Nan Morgan * Theodore Roberts - Duke Morgan* James Cruze - Gale Morgan...
(19171917 in filmThe year 1917 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*Foundation of Universum Film AG , as a propaganda film company, in Berlin.*Technicolor System 1, a two-color process, is introduced...
) - The Whispering ChorusThe Whispering ChorusThe Whispering Chorus is a 1918 drama film directed by Cecil B. DeMille.-Cast:* Raymond Hatton - John Tremble* Kathlyn Williams - Jane Tremble* Edythe Chapman - John Tremble's mother* Elliott Dexter - George Coggeswell* Noah Beery - Longshoreman...
(1918) - Old Wives for NewOld Wives for NewOld Wives for New is a 1918 drama film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. Prints of the film survive at the International Museum of Photography and Film at George Eastman House.-Cast:* Elliott Dexter - Charles Murdock* Florence Vidor - Juliet Raeburn...
(1918) - The Squaw ManThe Squaw Man (1918 film)The Squaw Man is a 1918 Western film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. It is a remake of DeMille's 1914 film of the same name. It would be remade again by DeMille in 1931...
(19181918 in filmThe year 1918 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*Following litigation for anti-trust activities, the US Supreme Court orders the Motion Picture Patents Company to disband....
) - Don't Change Your HusbandDon't Change Your HusbandDon't Change Your Husband is a 1919 comedy film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. A print of the film survives.-Cast:* Elliott Dexter - James Denby Porter* Gloria Swanson - Leila Porter* Lew Cody - Schuyler Van Sutphen* Sylvia Ashton - Mrs. Huckney...
(19191919 in filmThe year 1919 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*February 5 - Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and D.W. Griffith launch United Artists...
) - The Round-Up (19201920 in filmThe year 1920 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* November 27 - The Mark of Zorro, starring Douglas Fairbanks opens.-Top grossing films :-Films released in 1920:U.S.A. unless stated*The $1,000,000 Reward...
) - Fool's Paradise (19211921 in film-Top grossing films :-Films released in 1921:U.S.A. unless stated*$10,000 Under a Pillow, silent film directed by Frank Moser*The Ace of Hearts, silent film directed by Wallace Worsley*Across the Divide, silent film directed by John Holloway...
) - ManslaughterManslaughter (1922 film)Manslaughter is a 1922 silent drama film directed by Cecil B. DeMille and starring Thomas Meighan, Leatrice Joy and Lois Wilson.-Plot summary:...
(19221922 in film-Events:* June 11 - United States première of Robert J. Flaherty's Nanook of the North, the first commercially successful feature length documentary film....
) - HollywoodHollywood (1923 film)Hollywood was a silent comedy film directed by James Cruze, co-written by Frank Condon and Thomas J. Geraghty, and released by Paramount Pictures.The film has become famous as having featured cameos of more than thirty famous Hollywood stars...
(1923) cameo - The Covered WagonThe Covered WagonThe 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) - To the Last Man (19231923 in film-Events:*April 15 - Lee De Forest demonstrates the Phonofilm sound-on-film system at the Rivoli Theater in New York with a series of short musical films featuring vaudeville performers.-Top grossing films :-Films released in 1923:U.S.A...
) - A Woman of the WorldA Woman of the WorldA Woman of the World is a 1925 silent drama starring Pola Negri. It was directed by Mal St. Clair, produced by Famous Players-Lasky and distributed by their parent company Paramount Pictures.-Synopsis:...
(19251925 in film-Events:*November 5: The Big Parade holds its Grand Premier*December 30: premier of Ben-Hur the most expensive silent film ever made costing 4-6 million dollars -Top grossing films :...
) - The Eagle of the SeaThe Eagle of the SeaThe Eagle of the Sea is a 1926 silent drama film directed by Frank Lloyd, starring Florence Vidor and featuring Boris Karloff in an uncredited role.-Cast:* Florence Vidor - Louise Lestron* Ricardo Cortez - Captain Sazarac...
(19261926 in film-Events:*August - Warner Brothers debuts the first Vitaphone film, Don Juan. The Vitaphone system used multiple 33⅓ rpm disc records developed by Bell Telephone Laboratories and Western Electric to play back audio synchronized with film....
) - The Docks of New YorkThe Docks of New YorkThe Docks of New York is a silent film directed by Josef von Sternberg and starring George Bancroft, Betty Compson and Baclanova. It tells the story of a prostitute who tries to rise above her life on the docks by finding love...
(1928) - Woman TrapWoman TrapWoman Trap is a 1929 American drama film directed by William A. Wellman and starring Evelyn Brent.- Cast :* Hal Skelly as Dan Malone* Chester Morris as Ray Malone* Evelyn Brent as Kitty Evans* William B. Davidson as Watts* Effie Ellsler as Mrs. Malone...
(1929) - Murder by the ClockMurder by the ClockMurder by the Clock is a murder mystery film starring William "Stage" Boyd and Lilyan Tashman. It is based on the novel of the same name by Rufus King and the play Dangerously Yours by Charles Beahan. After a wealthy woman dies, her heirs start to follow suit.-Cast:*William "Stage" Boyd as Lt...
(1931) - Up Pops the DevilUp Pops the DevilUp Pops the Devil is a film about an advertising man who quits his job to become a novelist, upsetting his wife and straining their marriage. The film was directed by A...
(1931)
External links
- Guy Oliver at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films