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Robert Greig (actor)
Encyclopedia
Robert Greig was an Australian-American actor who appeared in over 100 films between 1930 and 1949, usually as the dutiful butler.
debut in 1928 in an operetta
, Countess Maritza
. His next production was the Marx Brothers
' comedy, Animal Crackers
, in which he played the butler, "Hives", and he repeated his characterization when the play was filmed in 1930. Animal Crackers
became his film debut, and set the pattern for much of his career, as he was often cast as a butler or other servant.
Although he did several other productions on Broadway, the last in 1938, after his film debut Greig worked steadily in films. He worked again with the Marx Brothers in 1932's Horse Feathers
, in which he played a biology professor, and was featured in the 1932 short Jitters the Butler. Notable films in which he broke out of butler-mode were Cockeyed Cavaliers (1934) starring Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey
, in which Greig played the "Duke of Weskit", and Algiers
(1938), in which he was "Giraux", the wealthy and gross protector of Hedy Lamarr
.
In the 1940s, Greig was part of Preston Sturges
' unofficial "stock company" of character actors
, appearing in six films written and directed by Sturges. His performances in Sullivan's Travels
, The Lady Eve
and The Palm Beach Story
, in which he played a member of the "Ale & Quail Club", were among his best.
Greig's last film was Bride of Vengeance
, a 1949 Paulette Goddard
vehicle, in which he played the uncredited part of a "Councillor."
on 27 June 1958 at the age of 78: he is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California
.
Career
Greig was born in Melbourne, Australia, in 1878, and made his BroadwayBroadway 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...
debut in 1928 in an operetta
Operetta
Operetta is a genre of light opera, light in terms both of music and subject matter. It is also closely related, in English-language works, to forms of musical theatre.-Origins:...
, Countess Maritza
Countess Maritza
Gräfin Mariza is an operetta in three acts composed by Hungarian composer Emmerich Kálmán, with a libretto by Julius Brammer and Alfred Grünwald. It premiered in Vienna on 28 February 1924 at the Theater an der Wien....
. His next production was the Marx Brothers
Marx Brothers
The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act, originally from New York City, that enjoyed success in Vaudeville, Broadway, and motion pictures from the early 1900s to around 1950...
' comedy, Animal Crackers
Animal crackers
Animal crackers are a children's snackAnimal Crackers may also refer to:* Animal Crackers , the 1928 Broadway play by George S...
, in which he played the butler, "Hives", and he repeated his characterization when the play was filmed in 1930. Animal Crackers
Animal crackers
Animal crackers are a children's snackAnimal Crackers may also refer to:* Animal Crackers , the 1928 Broadway play by George S...
became his film debut, and set the pattern for much of his career, as he was often cast as a butler or other servant.
Although he did several other productions on Broadway, the last in 1938, after his film debut Greig worked steadily in films. He worked again with the Marx Brothers in 1932's Horse Feathers
Horse Feathers
Horse Feathers is a Marx Brothers film comedy. It stars the four Marx Brothers and Thelma Todd. It was written by Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby, S. J. Perelman, and Will B. Johnstone. Kalmar and Ruby also wrote some of the original music for the film...
, in which he played a biology professor, and was featured in the 1932 short Jitters the Butler. Notable films in which he broke out of butler-mode were Cockeyed Cavaliers (1934) starring Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey
Robert Woolsey
Robert Woolsey was an American stage and screen comedian and half of the 1930s comedy team Wheeler & Woolsey....
, in which Greig played the "Duke of Weskit", and Algiers
Algiers (film)
Algiers is a 1938 American drama film directed by John Cromwell and starring Charles Boyer, Sigrid Gurie, and Hedy Lamarr. The Walter Wanger production was a remake of the successful 1937 French film Pépé le Moko, which derived its plot from the Henri La Barthe novel of the same name...
(1938), in which he was "Giraux", the wealthy and gross protector of Hedy Lamarr
Hedy Lamarr
Hedy Lamarr was an Austrian-American actress celebrated for her great beauty who was a major contract star of MGM's "Golden Age".Lamarr also co-invented – with composer George Antheil – an early technique for spread spectrum communications and frequency hopping, necessary to wireless...
.
In the 1940s, Greig was part of Preston Sturges
Preston Sturges
Preston Sturges , originally Edmund Preston Biden, was a celebrated playwright, screenwriter and film director born in Chicago, Illinois...
' unofficial "stock company" of character actors
Preston Sturges Unofficial Stock Company Actors
Actors who frequently worked with film director Preston Sturges: !! Christmas in July !! The Lady Eve !! Sullivan's Travels !! The Palm Beach Story !! The Miracle of Morgan's Creek !! Hail the Conquering Hero !! The Great Moment !! The Sin of Harold Diddlebock !! Unfaithfully Yours !! The...
, appearing in six films written and directed by Sturges. His performances in Sullivan's Travels
Sullivan's Travels
Sullivan's Travels is a 1941 American comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges. It is a satire about a movie director, played by Joel McCrea, who longs to make a socially relevant drama, but eventually learns that comedies are his more valuable contribution to society. The film features...
, The Lady Eve
The Lady Eve
The Lady Eve is a 1941 American screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. The film is based on a story by Monckton Hoffe about a mismatched couple who meet on board a luxury liner...
and The Palm Beach Story
The Palm Beach Story
The Palm Beach Story is a 1942 romantic screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, and starring Claudette Colbert, Joel McCrea, Mary Astor and Rudy Vallée. Victor Young contributed the lively musical score, including a fast-paced variation of William Tell Overture for the...
, in which he played a member of the "Ale & Quail Club", were among his best.
Greig's last film was Bride of Vengeance
Bride of Vengeance
Bride of Vengeance is a 1949 adventure film directed by Mitchell Leisen. Mary Grant designed the film's costumes. It stars Paulette Goddard and John Lund.-Cast:*Paulette Goddard as Lucrezia Borgia*John Lund as Alfonso d'Este...
, a 1949 Paulette Goddard
Paulette Goddard
Paulette Goddard was an American film and theatre actress. A former child fashion model and in several Broadway productions as Ziegfeld Girl, she was a major star of the Paramount Studio in the 1940s. She was married to several notable men, including Charlie Chaplin, Burgess Meredith, and Erich...
vehicle, in which he played the uncredited part of a "Councillor."
Death
Greig died in Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
on 27 June 1958 at the age of 78: he is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California
Culver City, California
Culver City is a city in western Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 38,883, up from 38,816 at the 2000 census. It is mostly surrounded by the city of Los Angeles, but also shares a border with unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. Culver...
.
Selected filmography
- Animal CrackersAnimal Crackers (film)Animal Crackers is a 1930 American comedy film, in which mayhem and zaniness ensue when a valuable painting goes missing during a party in honor of famed African explorer Captain Spaulding. The film was both a critical and commercial success upon initial release, and remains one of the Marx...
(1930) - Tonight or NeverTonight or NeverTonight or Never is a comedy film directed by Mervyn LeRoy, starring Gloria Swanson and featuring Boris Karloff.-Plot:Nella Vargo is a Hungarian prima donna whose latest performances include singing Tosca in Venice...
(1931) - Beauty and the Boss (1932)
- Horse FeathersHorse FeathersHorse Feathers is a Marx Brothers film comedy. It stars the four Marx Brothers and Thelma Todd. It was written by Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby, S. J. Perelman, and Will B. Johnstone. Kalmar and Ruby also wrote some of the original music for the film...
(1932) - Love Me TonightLove Me TonightLove Me Tonight is a 1932 musical comedy film produced and directed by Rouben Mamoulian, with music by Rodgers and Hart. It stars Maurice Chevalier as a tailor who poses as a nobleman and Jeanette MacDonald as a princess with whom he falls in love...
(1932) - Jitters the Butler (1932)
- Trouble in Paradise (1932)
- Upper WorldUpper World (film)Upper World is a 1934 drama film starring Warren William as a married railroad tycoon whose friendship with a showgirl, played by Ginger Rogers, leads to blackmail and murder.-Cast:*Warren William as Alexander Stream*Mary Astor as Mrs. Hettie Stream...
(1934) - Cockeyed Cavaliers (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) - Small Town GirlSmall Town Girl (1936 film)Small Town Girl is a film starring Janet Gaynor, Robert Taylor, and James Stewart. The romantic comedy was directed by William A. Wellman.Based on a novel by Ben Ames Williams, the film went through many changes before it reached the screen...
(1936)
- Trouble for TwoTrouble for TwoTrouble for Two is a 1936 film starring Robert Montgomery and Rosalind Russell. It is based on The Suicide Club, a short story collection by Robert Louis Stevenson...
(1936) - The Adventures of Marco PoloThe Adventures of Marco PoloThe Adventures of Marco Polo is a 1938 drama-adventure genre film, and one of the most elaborate and costly of Samuel Goldwyn's productions.-Plot:...
(1936) - AlgiersAlgiers (film)Algiers is a 1938 American drama film directed by John Cromwell and starring Charles Boyer, Sigrid Gurie, and Hedy Lamarr. The Walter Wanger production was a remake of the successful 1937 French film Pépé le Moko, which derived its plot from the Henri La Barthe novel of the same name...
(1938) - Tower of LondonTower of London (1939 film)Tower of London is a 1939 black-and-white historical film and quasi-horror film released by Universal Pictures and directed by Rowland V. Lee. It stars Basil Rathbone as the future Richard III of England, and Boris Karloff as his fictitious club-footed executioner Mord. Vincent Price appears as...
(1939) - The Lady EveThe Lady EveThe Lady Eve is a 1941 American screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda. The film is based on a story by Monckton Hoffe about a mismatched couple who meet on board a luxury liner...
(1941) - Sullivan's TravelsSullivan's TravelsSullivan's Travels is a 1941 American comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges. It is a satire about a movie director, played by Joel McCrea, who longs to make a socially relevant drama, but eventually learns that comedies are his more valuable contribution to society. The film features...
(1941) - The Palm Beach StoryThe Palm Beach StoryThe Palm Beach Story is a 1942 romantic screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, and starring Claudette Colbert, Joel McCrea, Mary Astor and Rudy Vallée. Victor Young contributed the lively musical score, including a fast-paced variation of William Tell Overture for the...
(1942) - The Picture of Dorian GrayThe Picture of Dorian GrayThe Picture of Dorian Gray is the only published novel by Oscar Wilde, appearing as the lead story in Lippincott's Monthly Magazine on 20 June 1890, printed as the July 1890 issue of this magazine...
(1945) - Bride of VengeanceBride of VengeanceBride of Vengeance is a 1949 adventure film directed by Mitchell Leisen. Mary Grant designed the film's costumes. It stars Paulette Goddard and John Lund.-Cast:*Paulette Goddard as Lucrezia Borgia*John Lund as Alfonso d'Este...
(1949)