Billy Bevan
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Billy Bevan (born William Bevan Harris, 29 September 1887 – 26 November 1957) was an Australian-born vaudevillian, who became an American film actor. He appeared in 254 American films between 1916 and 1950.
Bevan was born in the country town of Orange, New South Wales, Australia. He went on the stage at an early age, traveled to Sydney and spent eight years in Australian light opera, performing as Willie Bevan. He sailed to America with the Pollard’s Lilliputian Opera Company in 1912 and later toured Canada. Bevan broke into films with the Sigmund Lubin studio in 1916. When the company disbanded, Bevan became a supporting actor in Mack Sennett movie comedies. An expressive pantomimist, Bevan's quiet scene-stealing attracted attention, and by 1922 Bevan was a Sennett star. He supplemented his income, however, by establishing a citrus and avocado farm at Escondido, California.
Usually filmed wearing a derby hat and a drooping mustache, Bevan may not have possessed an indelible screen character like Charlie Chaplin but he had a friendly, funny presence in the frantic Sennett comedies. Much of the comedy depended on Bevan's skilled timing and reactions; the famous "oyster" routine performed on film by Curly Howard, Lou Costello, and Huntz Hall—in which a bowl of "fresh oyster stew" shows alarming signs of life and battles the guy trying to eat it—was originated on film decades earlier by Bevan in the short film Wandering Willies.
By the mid-1920s Bevan was often teamed with Andy Clyde; Clyde soon graduated to his own starring series. The late 1920s found Bevan playing in wild marital farces for Sennett.
The advent of talking pictures took their toll on the careers of many silent stars, including Billy Bevan. Bevan began a second career in "talkies" as a character actor and bit player in roles such as that of a bus driver in the 1929 film High Voltage, a hotel employee in the Mae Murray film Peacock Alley, and the supporting role of Second Lieutenant Trotter in Journey's End in 1930. His starring roles had come to an end, however, and for the next 20 years he often would play rowdy Cockneys (as in Pack Up Your Troubles with The Ritz Brothers), and affable Englishmen (as in Tin Pan Alley and Terror by Night). He played a friendly bus conductor opposite Greer Garson in one of the opening scenes of Mrs. Miniver.
Bevan died in 1957 in Escondido, California, just before new audiences discovered him in Robert Youngson's silent-comedy compilations. (The Youngson films mispronounce his name as "Be-VAN"; Bevan himself offered the proper pronunciation in a Voice of Hollywood reel in 1930.)
Acted in
Vincent Price's Dracula
1986
as Horace - (archive footage)
30 Years of Fun
1963
as (archive footage)
The Golden Age of Comedy
1957
as archive footage
Hans Christian Andersen
1952
as Town Councilman (uncredited)
The Slappiest Days of Our Lives
1951
as (archive footage)
Three Secrets
1950
as Ed Jackson (uncredited)
Rogues of Sherwood Forest
1950
as Will Scarlet
Fortunes of Captain Blood
1950
as Billy Bragg
Tell It to the Judge
1949
as Winston, Kitty's Butler (uncredited)
The Secret Of St. Ives
1949
as Douglas (uncredited)
The Secret Garden
1949
as Barney
Let's Live a Little
1948
as Morton
The Black Arrow
1948
as Dungeon Keeper
The Swordsman
1948
as Old Andrew
It Had to Be You
1947
as Evans
Moss Rose
1947
as Harry, Cab Driver (uncredited)
Cluny Brown
1946
as Uncle Arn Porritt
Devotion
1946
as Mr. Ames (uncredited)
Terror by Night
1946
as Conductor Taking Tickets
The Picture of Dorian Gray
1945
as Malvolio Jones
National Velvet
1945
as Constable (uncredited)
Tonight and Every Night
1945
as Cabbie (uncredited)
The Pearl of Death
1944
as Constable With Food Tray (uncredited)
The Invisible Man's Revenge
1944
as Police Sergeant (uncredited)
The Lodger
1944
Jane Eyre
1943
as Bookie (uncredited)
The Return of the Vampire
1943
as Horace (uncredited)
Forever and a Day
1943
as Wartime Cabby
London Blackout Murders
1943
as Air Raid Warden
Happy Times and Jolly Moments
1943
as (archive footage)
I Married a Witch
1942
as Puritan Vendor (uncredited)
Counter-Espionage
1942
as George Barrow
Mrs. Miniver
1942
as Bus Conductor (uncredited)
This Above All
1942
as Farmer
The Man Who Wouldn't Die
1942
as Phillips
Confirm or Deny
1941
as Mr. Bindle
Suspicion
1941
as Ticket Taker (uncredited)
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
1941
as Mr. Weller
Shining Victory
1941
as Chivers
Penny Serenade
1941
as McDougal (uncredited)
Tin Pan Alley
1940
as Stage Doorman
The Long Voyage Home
1940
as Joe
Rebecca
1940
as Policeman (uncredited)
The Invisible Man Returns
1940
as Jim (uncredited)
The Earl of Chicago
1940
as Castle Guide
We Are Not Alone
1939
as Mr. Jones
Pack Up Your Troubles
1939
as British Sergeant
Captain Fury
1939
as Duffy
Let Freedom Ring
1939
as Cockney (uncredited)
A Christmas Carol
1938
as Street Watch Leader
Arrest Bulldog Drummond
1938
as Aquarium Guard
Shadows Over Shanghai
1938
as Gallicuddy
Mysterious Mr. Moto
1938
as Customs Official
The Young in Heart
1938
as Kennel Man (uncredited)
Blond Cheat
1938
as Bartender (uncredited)
The Girl of the Golden West
1938
as Nick
Bringing Up Baby
1938
as Joe (uncredited)
The Wrong Road
1937
as McLean
The Sheik Steps Out
1937
as Munson
Another Dawn
1937
as Pvt. Hawkins
Slave Ship
1937
as Atkins
Personal Property
1937
as Frank (uncredited)
God's Country and the Woman
1937
as Plug Hat
Lloyd's of London
1936
as Innkeeper
Piccadilly Jim
1936
as Taxi Driver
Private Number
1936
as Frederick
Dracula's Daughter
1936
as Police Constable Albert
Champagne Charlie
1936
as Mr. Boswick
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
1936
as Cabby (uncredited)
Song and Dance Man
1936
as Curtis
A Tale of Two Cities
1935
as Jerry Cruncher
The Widow from Monte Carlo
1935
as Officer Watkins
The Last Outpost
1935
as Private Foster
Black Sheep
1935
as Alfred
Vanessa: Her Love Story
1935
as Horse Auctioneer
Mystery Woman
1935
as Jepson
Caravan
1934
as Police Sergeant
Limehouse Blues
1934
as Herb
Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back
1934
as Man in Hotel Room
One More River
1934
as Cloakroom Attendant
Shock
1934
as Meadows
Stingaree
1934
as Mac
The Lost Patrol
1934
as Hale
Pop's Pal
1933
as Grandpa
Alice in Wonderland
1933
as Two of Spades (uncredited)
The Way to Love
1933
as M. Prial
Too Much Harmony
1933
as Stage Director
The Big Squeal
1933
as Jake Burke
Thundering Taxis
1933
as One of the Taxi Boys
Peg o' My Heart
1933
as Detective #2 (uncredited)
A Study in Scarlet
1933
as Will Swallow
Uncle Jake
1933
as Uncle Jake
Looking Forward
1933
as Mr. Barker
Techno-Crazy
1933
as Mary's Father - the Mayor
Cavalcade
1933
as George Grainger
Luxury Liner
1933
as Schultz
She Whoops To Conquer
1933
Me and My Gal
1932
as Ashley (uncredited)
Payment Deferred
1932
as Charlie Hammond
Honeymoon Beach
1932
as Billy Bevan
Vanity Fair
1932
as Joseph Sedley
Sky Devils
1932
as Colonel
The Silent Witness
1932
as Horace Ward
Who's Who in the Zoo
1931
as Father
Waterloo Bridge
1931
as Soldier on the Make (uncredited)
Transatlantic
1931
as Hodgkins
Chances
1931
as Cuthbert (uncredited)
Born to Love
1931
as Departing British Soldier (uncredited)
For the Love o' Lil
1930
as Edward O. Walker
Monte Carlo
1930
as Train Conductor (uncredited)
Temptation
1930
as Sam
Journey's End
1930
as Trotter
Scotch
1930
as Gilbert - Addie's Brother
Peacock Alley
1930
as Walter
Weak But Willing
1929
as George Downing
The Trespasser
1929
as Reporter (uncredited)
High Voltage
1929
as Gus Jones
Don't Get Jealous
1929
as Billy Blake
Pink Pajamas
1929
as Billy Brooks
Calling Hubby's Bluff
1929
as Billy Barton
The Sky Hawk
1929
as Tom Berry
His New Stenographer
1928
as Billy Brooks
Riley the Cop
1928
as Paris Cabman
Hubby's Weekend Trip
1928
as Bill Blake
Motorboat Mamas
1928
as Billy Bender
His Unlucky Night
1928
as Billy Trotter
The Girl from Nowhere
1928
as Constable Billy Barnes
The Bicycle Flirt
1928
as Doty Bassett - the Bicycle Flirt
The Best Man
1928
as Best Man
The Beach Club
1928
The Girl from Everywhere
1927
as Messenger
The Bull Fighter
1927
as Pete De Tour
Gold Digger of Weepah
1927
as The Barber
The Golf Nut
1927
as Billy Divott
Cured in the Excitement
1927
as Professor Brawn
A Small Town Princess
1927
as Joe Whiffet
Peaches and Plumbers
1927
as Bill the Plumber
Easy Pickings
1927
as The Detective
Should Sleepwalkers Marry?
1927
as Charley Carter
Flirty Four-Flushers
1926
as Jerry Connors / Archibald De Shyster
Masked Mamas
1926
as Casey McCorkle
Should Husbands Marry?
1926
as The Cop
Hoboken to Hollywood
1926
as Billy Judkins
Hubby’s Quiet Little Game
1926
as Billy Foote
A Sea Dog's Tale
1926
as Wilbur Watts
Ice Cold Cocos
1926
as Gus Gander
Musclebound Music
1926
as Billy Hornby
Fight Night
1926
as Walter Moore
Hayfoot, Strawfoot?
1926
as Pete
Wandering Willies
1926
as Percy Nudge
Circus Today
1926
as Gus Barnum
Trimmed in Gold
1926
as Otto Stropp
Whispering Whiskers
1926
as The Drifter
From Rags to Britches
1925
as Joe Bush
Over Thereabouts
1925
as Joe Dobell
Butter Fingers
1925
as Nick
The Iron Nag
1925
as Joe Gobb
Sneezing Beezers
1925
as Joe Honck - Taxi Driver
Super-Hooper-Dyne Lizzies
1925
as Hiram Case
The Lion's Whiskers
1925
as Otto Klutch
Giddap!
1925
as Gaspard De Brie
Honeymoon Hardships
1925
as Farmer
Off His Trolley
1924
as The Traffic Cop
The Cannon Ball Express
1924
as Adam Fargo - Baggage Master
Galloping Bungalows
1924
as John Syrup Soother
Wandering Waistlines
1924
as Sandy Hook - Sailor
Little Robinson Corkscrew
1924
as The Sheriff
Three Foolish Weeks
1924
as King of Anchovia
Lizzies of the Field
1924
as Bud Gasket
East of the Water Plug
1924
as The Sheriff
Wall Street Blues
1924
as The Janitor
The Hollywood Kid
1924
as Studio Organist
The White Sin
1924
as Travers Dale
One Spooky Night
1924
as A.J. Bird Jr.
Inbad the Sailor
1923
as Jake aka Inbad the Sailor
The Extra Girl
1923
as Comedian
Pitfalls of a Big City
1923
as Barfly (uncredited)
Nip and Tuck
1923
as Sailor
When Summer Comes
1922
as Lyons - the Tenderfoot
The Crossroads of New York
1922
as Press Agent
Gymnasium Jim
1922
as Jim
On Patrol
1922
as The Amateur Cop
The Duck Hunter
1922
as The Sportsman
Around the Town: British Film Stars and Studios
1921
as Himself
Bright Eyes
1921
as The Nosey Butler
Be Reasonable
1921
as A Rolling Stone
Love and Doughnuts
1921
as The Burglar
Astray from the Steerage
1921
as A steerage passenger
A Small Town Idol
1921
as Director
The Quack Doctor
1920
as The Hired Lady's Sweetheart
Distilled Love
1920
Cupid In Quarantine
1918
as The Father
Her Rustic Romeo
1918
Somebody's Widow
1918
as Secretary
Bombs and Bandits
1917
as The Chief of Police
Pirates of the Air
1916
as The Bartender
Gertie's Gasoline Glide
1916
as The Minister
One Cylinder Love
as The Bachelor's Butler / Chauffeur / Footman