Montagu Love
Encyclopedia
Montagu Love also known as Montague Love, was an English
screen, stage and vaudeville
actor.
Born Harry Montague Love in Portsmouth
, Hampshire
, England
, and educated in Great Britain
, Love began his career as an artist and military correspondent. His first important job was as a London newspaper cartoonist. Love honed basic stage talents in London
, and in 1913 sailed to the U.S. with a road-company production of Cyril Maude
's Grumpy.
Usually cast in heartless villain roles, in the 1920s, he played opposite Rudolph Valentino
in The Son of the Sheik
; opposite John Barrymore
in Don Juan
; and appeared with Lillian Gish
in 1928's The Wind
. He also portrayed 'Colonel Ibbetson' in Forever
(1921), the silent film version of Peter Ibbetson
. Love also played the cowardly and treasonous Bishop of the Black Canons in The Adventures of Robin Hood
, starring Errol Flynn
. However, he also played gruff authoritarian figures, such as Monsieur Cavaignac
, who, contrary to history, demands the resignation of those responsible for the Dreyfus
coverup, in The Life of Emile Zola
(1937), as well as Don Alejandro de la Vega, whose son appears to be a fop but is actually Zorro, in the 1940 version of The Mark of Zorro
, starring Tyrone Power
. In 1937, he played King Henry VIII in the first talking film version of Mark Twain's The Prince and the Pauper
. In 1941, he played a doctor in Shining Victory
, which also starred James Stephenson
, Geraldine Fitzgerald
, and Donald Crisp
. In 1939's Gunga Din
, it is Montagu Love who reads the final stanza of Rudyard Kipling
's original poem over the body of the slain Din. His last film, Devotion, was released three years after his death in 1943. His interment was located at Chapel of the Pines Crematory
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
screen, stage and vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
actor.
Born Harry Montague Love in Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and educated in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, Love began his career as an artist and military correspondent. His first important job was as a London newspaper cartoonist. Love honed basic stage talents in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and in 1913 sailed to the U.S. with a road-company production of Cyril Maude
Cyril Maude
Cyril Francis Maude was an English actor-manager.-Biography:Maude was born in London and educated at the Charterhouse School. In 1881, he was sent to Adelaide, South Australia, on the clipper ship City of Adelaide to regain his health...
's Grumpy.
Usually cast in heartless villain roles, in the 1920s, he played opposite Rudolph Valentino
Rudolph Valentino
Rudolph Valentino was an Italian actor, and early pop icon. A sex symbol of the 1920s, Valentino was known as the "Latin Lover". He starred in several well-known silent films including The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, The Sheik, Blood and Sand, The Eagle and Son of the Sheik...
in The Son of the Sheik
Son of the Sheik (film)
Son of the Sheik is a 1926 silent film produced by United Artists, directed by George Fitzmaurice and starring Rudolph Valentino and Vilma Bánky. It was based on a romance novel by Edith Maude Hull The Sons of the Sheik, a sequel to The Sheik...
; opposite John Barrymore
John Barrymore
John Sidney Blyth , better known as John Barrymore, was an acclaimed American actor. He first gained fame as a handsome stage actor in light comedy, then high drama and culminating in groundbreaking portrayals in Shakespearean plays Hamlet and Richard III...
in Don Juan
Don Juan (1926 film)
Don Juan is a Warner Brothers film, directed by Alan Crosland. It was the first feature-length film with synchronized Vitaphone sound effects and musical soundtrack, though it has no spoken dialogue...
; and appeared with Lillian Gish
Lillian Gish
Lillian Diana Gish was an American stage, screen and television actress whose film acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912 to 1987....
in 1928's The Wind
The Wind
The Wind is a 1928 American dramatic silent film directed by Victor Sjöström. The movie was adapted by Frances Marion from the novel The Wind written by Dorothy Scarborough. It features Lillian Gish, Lars Hanson, Montagu Love, Dorothy Cumming, and others...
. He also portrayed 'Colonel Ibbetson' in Forever
Forever (film)
Forever is a silent film, also known as Peter Ibbetson; written by Ouida Bergère, and directed by George Fitzmaurice. Adapted from 1891's George Du Maurier's novel, Peter Ibbetson, made into a play by John N...
(1921), the silent film version of Peter Ibbetson
Peter Ibbetson
Peter Ibbetson is an American black-and-white drama film released in 1935 and directed by Henry Hathaway.The picture is based on a novel by George du Maurier, first published in 1891. In 1917, du Maurier's story was adapted into a very successful Broadway play starring John Barrymore, Lionel...
. Love also played the cowardly and treasonous Bishop of the Black Canons in The Adventures of Robin Hood
The Adventures of Robin Hood (film)
The Adventures of Robin Hood is a 1938 American swashbuckler film directed by Michael Curtiz and William Keighley. Filmed in Technicolor, the picture stars Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Basil Rathbone, and Claude Rains.-Plot:...
, starring Errol Flynn
Errol Flynn
Errol Leslie Flynn was an Australian-born actor. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles in Hollywood films, being a legend and his flamboyant lifestyle.-Early life:...
. However, he also played gruff authoritarian figures, such as Monsieur Cavaignac
Jacques Marie Eugène Godefroy Cavaignac
Jacques Marie Eugène Godefroy Cavaignac , known as Godefroy Cavaignac, French politician, was born in Paris. He was the son of Louis Eugène Cavaignac...
, who, contrary to history, demands the resignation of those responsible for the Dreyfus
Alfred Dreyfus
Alfred Dreyfus was a French artillery officer of Jewish background whose trial and conviction in 1894 on charges of treason became one of the most tense political dramas in modern French and European history...
coverup, in The Life of Emile Zola
The Life of Emile Zola
The Life of Emile Zola is a 1937 American biographical film about French author Émile Zola. Set in the mid through late 19th century, it depicts his friendship with noted painter Paul Cézanne, and his rise to fame through his prolific writing, with particular focus on his involvement in the Dreyfus...
(1937), as well as Don Alejandro de la Vega, whose son appears to be a fop but is actually Zorro, in the 1940 version of The Mark of Zorro
The Mark of Zorro (1940 film)
The Mark of Zorro is a 1940 American adventure film directed by Rouben Mamoulian and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck for 20th Century Fox. The action movie stars Tyrone Power as Don Diego Vega , Linda Darnell as his love interest, and Basil Rathbone as the villain...
, starring Tyrone Power
Tyrone Power
Tyrone Edmund Power, Jr. , usually credited as Tyrone Power and known sometimes as Ty Power, was an American film and stage actor who appeared in dozens of films from the 1930s to the 1950s, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads such as in The Mark of Zorro, Blood and Sand, The Black Swan,...
. In 1937, he played King Henry VIII in the first talking film version of Mark Twain's The Prince and the Pauper
The Prince and the Pauper
The Prince and the Pauper is an English-language novel by American author Mark Twain. It was first published in 1881 in Canada before its 1882 publication in the United States. The book represents Twain's first attempt at historical fiction...
. In 1941, he played a doctor in Shining Victory
Shining Victory
Shining Victory is a 1941 film based on the play, Jupiter Laughs, by A. J. Cronin. It stars James Stephenson, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Donald Crisp, and Barbara O'Neil, and it was the first film directed by Irving Rapper. Bette Davis makes a brief cameo appearance as a nurse in the film.-Plot...
, which also starred James Stephenson
James Stephenson
James Stephenson was a British actor.-Career:British stage actor James Stephenson made his film debut in 1937 at the age of 48 with parts in four films...
, Geraldine Fitzgerald
Geraldine Fitzgerald
Geraldine Fitzgerald, Lady Lindsay-Hogg was an Irish-American actress and a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame.-Early life:...
, and Donald Crisp
Donald Crisp
Donald Crisp was an English film actor. He was also an early motion picture producer, director and screenwriter...
. In 1939's Gunga Din
Gunga Din (film)
Gunga Din is a 1939 RKO adventure film directed by George Stevens, loosely based on the poem of the same name by Rudyard Kipling, combined with elements of his novel Soldiers Three...
, it is Montagu Love who reads the final stanza of Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...
's original poem over the body of the slain Din. His last film, Devotion, was released three years after his death in 1943. His interment was located at Chapel of the Pines Crematory
Chapel of the Pines Crematory
Chapel of the Pines Crematory is a crematory and columbarium located at 1605 South Catalina Street Los Angeles, California, in the historic West Adams District a short distance southwest of Downtown...
.
Partial filmography
- Forever (1921)
- Restless WivesRestless WivesRestless Wives is a 1924 silent melodrama, directed by Gregory La Cava.-Plot:Polly, is a wealthy wife neglected by her husband James Benson. When a business engagement causes James to miss their wedding anniversary, Polly goes with admirer Curtis Wilbur to a cabaret, and later she decides to go...
(1924) - Son of the Sheik (1926)
- Don JuanDon Juan (1926 film)Don Juan is a Warner Brothers film, directed by Alan Crosland. It was the first feature-length film with synchronized Vitaphone sound effects and musical soundtrack, though it has no spoken dialogue...
(1926) - Hands Up!Hands Up! (1926 film)Hands Up! is a silent comedy film directed by Clarence Badger, co-written by Monte Brice and Lloyd Corrigan, and starring Raymond Griffith, one of the great silent movie comedians.-Plot:...
(1926) - The Hawk's NestThe Hawk's Nest (film)The Hawk's Nest was a 1928 American film directed by Benjamin Christensen. It is believed to be lost.-Plot summary:The title of The Hawk's Nest comes from the speakeasy around which most of the action revolves. Two bootleggers, played by Milton Sills and Mitchell Lewis, quarrel over a dancer while...
(1928) - The NooseThe Noose (film)The Noose is a silent film adaptation of the Willard Mack play The Noose, which was released in 1928, and stars Richard Barthelmess, Montagu Love, Robert Emmett O'Connor and Thelma Todd. The movie was adapted by Garrett Graham and James T. O'Donohoe from the play...
(1928) - The WindThe WindThe Wind is a 1928 American dramatic silent film directed by Victor Sjöström. The movie was adapted by Frances Marion from the novel The Wind written by Dorothy Scarborough. It features Lillian Gish, Lars Hanson, Montagu Love, Dorothy Cumming, and others...
(1928) - The Last WarningThe Last WarningThe Last Warning is a mystery film directed by Paul Leni. It is a companion piece to Universal Pictures 1927 production of The Cat and the Canary...
(1929) - The Divine LadyThe Divine LadyThe Divine Lady is a 1929 Vitaphone sound film with a synchronized musical score and sound effects. The film, however, featured no spoken dialogue. The film tells the story of the love affair between Horatio Nelson and Emma Hamilton. It stars Corinne Griffith, Victor Varconi, H.B. Warner, Ian...
(1929) - Bulldog DrummondBulldog Drummond (1929 film)Bulldog Drummond is a detective film which tells the story of Captain Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond, a British officer bored with civilian life, who investigates an extortion case for a beautiful girl. The film stars Ronald Colman, Claud Allister, Lawrence Grant, Montagu Love, Wilson Benge, Joan...
(1929) - The Mysterious IslandThe Mysterious Island (1929 film)The Mysterious Island is an MGM film directed by Lucien Hubbard, a film adaptation of Jules Verne's novel L'Île mystérieuse , published in 1874...
(1929) - Outward BoundOutward Bound (film)Outward Bound is a film based on the hit 1923 play of the same name by Sutton Vane. The film stars Leslie Howard, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Helen Chandler, Beryl Mercer, Montagu Love, Alison Skipworth, Alec B...
(1930) - The Lion and the LambThe Lion and the Lamb-Cast:* Walter Byron as Dave* Carmel Myers as Inez* Raymond Hatton as Muggsy* Montagu Love as Professor Tottie* Miriam Seegar as Madge* Charles K. Gerrard as Bert * Will Stanton as Ruebin* Charles Wildish as First Lascar...
(1930) - Alexander HamiltonAlexander Hamilton (film)Alexander Hamilton is a 1931 American biographical film about Alexander Hamilton, based on a play by George Arliss and Mary Hamlin. It was directed by John G. Adolfi and stars Arliss in the title role...
(1931) - Vanity FairVanity Fair (1932 film)Vanity Fair is a modernized adaptation of William Makepeace Thackeray's novel of the same name that was directed by Chester M. Franklin and starred Myrna Loy. The story is reset in the twentieth century.-Other information:...
(1932) - Limehouse BluesLimehouse BluesLimehouse Blues is a world famous jazz standard , as well as a 1934 crime film is set in London's Chinese district and starring George Raft and Anna May Wong. The film is named after the tune...
(1934) - Clive of IndiaClive of India (film)Clive of India is a 1935 drama film based on Robert, Lord Clive's historical biography. It was written by R.J. Minney and W.P. Lipscomb and directed by Richard Boleslawski.-Cast:* Ronald Colman as Baron Robert Clive* shahrukh khan as devdas...
(1935) - The CrusadesThe Crusades (film)- Plot :Mostly taking elements from the Third Crusade, King Richard is enlisted in a crusade to bring Jerusalem back into Christian hands in order to get out of a betrothal with Alice, the Princess of France. En route, Richard meets Berengaria the Princess of Navarre and marries her in exchange...
(1935) - The White AngelThe White Angel (1936 film)The White Angel is a 1936 American historical drama film directed by William Dieterle and starring Kay Francis, Ian Hunter, Donald Woods and Nigel Bruce...
(1936) - The Prince and the PauperThe Prince and the Pauper (1937 film)The Prince and the Pauper is a 1937 film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Mark Twain. It starred Errol Flynn, twins Billy and Bobby Mauch in the title roles, and Claude Rains....
(1937) - ParnellParnell (film)Parnell is a 1937 MGM film starring Clark Gable as Charles Stewart Parnell, the famous Irish politician. It is considered Gable's worst film, and is classified in The Fifty Worst Films of All Time.-Production:...
(1937) - The Life of Emile ZolaThe Life of Emile ZolaThe Life of Emile Zola is a 1937 American biographical film about French author Émile Zola. Set in the mid through late 19th century, it depicts his friendship with noted painter Paul Cézanne, and his rise to fame through his prolific writing, with particular focus on his involvement in the Dreyfus...
(1937) - The Prisoner of ZendaThe Prisoner of Zenda (1937 film)The Prisoner of Zenda is a 1937 black-and-white adventure film based on the Anthony Hope 1894 novel of the same name and the 1896 play. Of the many film adaptations, this is considered by many to be the definitive version....
(1937) - Adventure's EndAdventure's End-Cast:* John Wayne - Duke Slade* Diana Gibson - Janet Drew* Montagu Love - Capt. Abner Drew* Moroni Olsen - First Mate Rand Husk* Maurice Black - Blackie* Paul White - Kalo* Cameron Hall - Slivers* Patrick J. Kelly - Matt* George Cleveland - Tom...
(1937) - TovarichTovarich (film)Tovarich is a 1937 American comedy film directed by Anatole Litvak, based on the 1935 play by Robert E. Sherwood, which in turn was based on the 1933 French play Tovaritsch by Jacques Deval. It was produced by Litvak through Warner Bros., with Robert Lord as associate producer and Hal B. Wallis...
(1937) - The BuccaneerThe Buccaneer (1938 film)The Buccaneer is a 1938 American adventure film made by Paramount Pictures based on Jean Lafitte and the Battle of New Orleans during the War of 1812. It was produced and directed by Cecil B. DeMille from a screenplay by Harold Lamb, Edwin Justus Mayer and C. Gardner Sullivan adapted by Jeanie...
(1938) - The Adventures of Robin HoodThe Adventures of Robin Hood (film)The Adventures of Robin Hood is a 1938 American swashbuckler film directed by Michael Curtiz and William Keighley. Filmed in Technicolor, the picture stars Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Basil Rathbone, and Claude Rains.-Plot:...
(1938) - The Fighting Devil DogsThe Fighting Devil DogsThe Fighting Devil Dogs is a 12-chapter Republic movie serial starring Lee Powell and Herman Brix, the latter better known by his later stage name, Bruce Bennett. It was directed by William Witney and John English...
(1938), twelve-chapter serial - Gunga DinGunga Din (film)Gunga Din is a 1939 RKO adventure film directed by George Stevens, loosely based on the poem of the same name by Rudyard Kipling, combined with elements of his novel Soldiers Three...
(1939) - JuarezJuarez (1939 film)Juarez is a 1939 American historical drama film directed by William Dieterle. The screenplay by Aeneas MacKenzie, John Huston, and Wolfgang Reinhardt is based on the novel The Phantom Crown by Bertita Harding and the play Juarez and Maximilian by Franz Werfel.-Plot:The film focuses on the conflict...
(1939) - Sons of LibertySons of Liberty (film)Sons of Liberty is a 1939 short drama film directed by Michael Curtiz, which tells the story of Haym Solomon. It won an Academy Award in 1940 for Best Short Subject .-Cast:* Claude Rains - Haym Salomon* Gale Sondergaard - Rachel Salomon...
(1939), short - The Man in the Iron MaskThe Man in the Iron Mask (1939 film)The Man in the Iron Mask is a 1939 American film very loosely adapted from the last section of the novel The Vicomte de Bragelonne by Alexandre Dumas, père, which is itself based on the French legend of the Man in the Iron Mask....
(1939) - We Are Not AloneWe Are Not Alone (film)We Are Not Alone is a drama film about a doctor who hires a woman as a nanny for his son. When his wife becomes jealous, tragedy consumes all involved. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Hilton, who adapted his novel with Milton Krims.-Cast:*Paul Muni as Dr...
(1939) - Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet (1940)
- The Sea HawkThe Sea Hawk (1940 film)The Sea Hawk is a 1940 American Warner Bros. feature film starring Errol Flynn as an English privateer who defends his nation's interests on the eve of the Spanish Armada. The film was the tenth collaboration between Flynn and director Michael Curtiz. The film's screenplay by Howard Koch and Seton I...
(1940) - Private AffairsPrivate AffairsPrivate Affairs is a 1940 film comedy starring Nancy Kelly, with a supporting cast including Hugh Herbert, Roland Young, and Robert Cummings. The movie was directed by Albert S...
(1940) - All This, and Heaven Too (1940)
- The Lone Wolf Strikes (1940)
- A Dispatch from Reuter's (1940)
- North West Mounted PoliceNorth West Mounted Police (film)North West Mounted Police is a 1940 American action adventure film directed by Cecil B. DeMille, and starring Gary Cooper, Paulette Goddard, and Madeleine Carroll. This was DeMille's...
(1940) - The Mark of ZorroThe Mark of Zorro (1940 film)The Mark of Zorro is a 1940 American adventure film directed by Rouben Mamoulian and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck for 20th Century Fox. The action movie stars Tyrone Power as Don Diego Vega , Linda Darnell as his love interest, and Basil Rathbone as the villain...
(1940) - Don Alejandro Vega - The Son of Monte CristoThe Son of Monte CristoThe Son of Monte Cristo is a 1940 black-and-white film directed by Rowland V. Lee and starring Louis Hayward, Joan Bennett, and George Sanders....
(1940) - The Devil and Miss JonesThe Devil and Miss JonesThe Devil and Miss Jones is a 1941 comedy film starring Jean Arthur and Charles Coburn. Directed by Sam Wood and scripted by Norman Krasna, the film was the product of an independent collaboration between Krasna and producer Frank Ross...
(1941) - Shining VictoryShining VictoryShining Victory is a 1941 film based on the play, Jupiter Laughs, by A. J. Cronin. It stars James Stephenson, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Donald Crisp, and Barbara O'Neil, and it was the first film directed by Irving Rapper. Bette Davis makes a brief cameo appearance as a nurse in the film.-Plot...
(1941) - Lady for a NightLady for a Night-Cast:* Joan Blondell - Jenny 'Jen' Blake Alderson* John Wayne - Jackson Morgan* Ray Middleton - Alan Alderson* Philip Merivale - Stephen Alderson* Blanche Yurka - Julia Anderson* Edith Barrett - Katherine Alderson* Leonid Kinskey - Boris, Jack's Bodyguard...
(1942) - Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of TerrorSherlock Holmes and the Voice of TerrorSherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror is the third film in the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce series of Sherlock Holmes movies. Made in 1942, the film combines elements of the Arthur Conan Doyle story "His Last Bow" and loosely parallels the real-life activities of Lord Haw-haw...
(1942) - Tennessee JohnsonTennessee JohnsonTennessee Johnson is a 1942 American film about Andrew Johnson, the 17th president of the United States. It was directed by William Dieterle and written by Milton Gunzburg, Alvin Meyers, John Balderston, and Wells Root. It starred Van Heflin as Johnson, Lionel Barrymore as his nemesis Thaddeus...
(1942) - The Constant NymphThe Constant Nymph (1943 film)The Constant Nymph is a 1943 romantic drama film starring Charles Boyer, Joan Fontaine, Alexis Smith, Brenda Marshall, Charles Coburn, Dame May Whitty and Peter Lorre...
(1943) - Devotion (1946)