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Billy Bevan

Billy Bevan

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 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.)

Personal information

Birthday

1887-09-29

Birth Place

Orange, New South Wales, Australia

Movies and TV shows :

30 Years of Fun

30 Years of Fun

1963

3.0

Movie
A Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carol

1938

7.0

Movie
A Sea Dog's Tale

A Sea Dog's Tale

1926

0.0

Movie
A Small Town Idol

A Small Town Idol

1921

6.0

Movie
A Small Town Princess

A Small Town Princess

1927

0.0

Movie
A Study in Scarlet

A Study in Scarlet

1933

5.5

Movie
A Tale of Two Cities

A Tale of Two Cities

1935

6.8

Movie
Alice in Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland

1933

6.1

Movie
Another Dawn

Another Dawn

1937

6.2

Movie
Around the Town: British Film Stars and Studios

Around the Town: British Film Stars and Studios

1921

0.0

Movie
Arrest Bulldog Drummond

Arrest Bulldog Drummond

1938

6.7

Movie
Astray from the Steerage

Astray from the Steerage

1921

0.0

Movie
Be Reasonable

Be Reasonable

1921

7.3

Movie
Black Sheep

Black Sheep

1935

7.0

Movie
Blond Cheat

Blond Cheat

1938

6.0

Movie
Bombs and Bandits

Bombs and Bandits

1917

0.0

Movie
Born to Love

Born to Love

1931

5.0

Movie
Bright Eyes

Bright Eyes

1921

0.0

Movie
Bringing Up Baby

Bringing Up Baby

1938

7.5

Movie
Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back

Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back

1934

5.3

Movie
Butter Fingers

Butter Fingers

1925

5.8

Movie
Calling Hubby's Bluff

Calling Hubby's Bluff

1929

0.0

Movie
Captain Fury

Captain Fury

1939

4.8

Movie
Caravan

Caravan

1934

0.0

Movie
Cavalcade

Cavalcade

1933

5.5

Movie
Champagne Charlie

Champagne Charlie

1936

4.8

Movie
Chances

Chances

1931

7.0

Movie
Circus Today

Circus Today

1926

0.0

Movie
Cluny Brown

Cluny Brown

1946

7.1

Movie
Confirm or Deny

Confirm or Deny

1941

3.8

Movie
Counter-Espionage

Counter-Espionage

1942

6.2

Movie
Cupid In Quarantine

Cupid In Quarantine

1918

5.0

Movie
Cured in the Excitement

Cured in the Excitement

1927

0.0

Movie
Devotion

Devotion

1946

6.0

Movie
Distilled Love

Distilled Love

1920

5.0

Movie
Don't Get Jealous

Don't Get Jealous

1929

0.0

Movie
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

1941

6.4

Movie
Dracula's Daughter

Dracula's Daughter

1936

5.9

Movie
East of the Water Plug

East of the Water Plug

1924

0.0

Movie
Easy Pickings

Easy Pickings

1927

0.0

Movie
Fight Night

Fight Night

1926

5.0

Movie
Flirty Four-Flushers

Flirty Four-Flushers

1926

5.0

Movie
For the Love o' Lil

For the Love o' Lil

1930

0.0

Movie
Forever and a Day

Forever and a Day

1943

7.3

Movie
Fortunes of Captain Blood

Fortunes of Captain Blood

1950

7.1

Movie
From Rags to Britches

From Rags to Britches

1925

0.0

Movie
Galloping Bungalows

Galloping Bungalows

1924

5.0

Movie
Gertie's Gasoline Glide

Gertie's Gasoline Glide

1916

5.0

Movie
Giddap!

Giddap!

1925

0.0

Movie
God's Country and the Woman

God's Country and the Woman

1937

4.2

Movie
Gold Digger of Weepah

Gold Digger of Weepah

1927

0.0

Movie
Gymnasium Jim

Gymnasium Jim

1922

4.5

Movie
Hans Christian Andersen

Hans Christian Andersen

1952

6.2

Movie
Happy Times and Jolly Moments

Happy Times and Jolly Moments

1943

0.0

Movie
Hayfoot, Strawfoot?

Hayfoot, Strawfoot?

1926

0.0

Movie
Her Rustic Romeo

Her Rustic Romeo

1918

0.0

Movie
High Voltage

High Voltage

1929

4.3

Movie
His New Stenographer

His New Stenographer

1928

0.0

Movie
His Unlucky Night

His Unlucky Night

1928

0.0

Movie
Hoboken to Hollywood

Hoboken to Hollywood

1926

0.0

Movie
Honeymoon Beach

Honeymoon Beach

1932

0.0

Movie
Honeymoon Hardships

Honeymoon Hardships

1925

0.0

Movie
Hubby’s Quiet Little Game

Hubby’s Quiet Little Game

1926

0.0

Movie
Hubby's Weekend Trip

Hubby's Weekend Trip

1928

0.0

Movie
I Married a Witch

I Married a Witch

1942

6.8

Movie
Ice Cold Cocos

Ice Cold Cocos

1926

0.0

Movie
Inbad the Sailor

Inbad the Sailor

1923

0.0

Movie
It Had to Be You

It Had to Be You

1947

6.5

Movie
Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre

1943

6.9

Movie
Journey's End

Journey's End

1930

6.2

Movie
Let Freedom Ring

Let Freedom Ring

1939

6.0

Movie
Let's Live a Little

Let's Live a Little

1948

6.3

Movie
Limehouse Blues

Limehouse Blues

1934

4.2

Movie
Little Robinson Corkscrew

Little Robinson Corkscrew

1924

0.0

Movie
Lizzies of the Field

Lizzies of the Field

1924

6.2

Movie
Lloyd's of London

Lloyd's of London

1936

7.2

Movie
London Blackout Murders

London Blackout Murders

1943

5.0

Movie
Looking Forward

Looking Forward

1933

6.2

Movie
Love and Doughnuts

Love and Doughnuts

1921

0.0

Movie
Luxury Liner

Luxury Liner

1933

6.3

Movie
Masked Mamas

Masked Mamas

1926

0.0

Movie
Me and My Gal

Me and My Gal

1932

6.5

Movie
Monte Carlo

Monte Carlo

1930

6.3

Movie
Moss Rose

Moss Rose

1947

6.4

Movie
Motorboat Mamas

Motorboat Mamas

1928

0.0

Movie
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town

Mr. Deeds Goes to Town

1936

7.5

Movie
Mrs. Miniver

Mrs. Miniver

1942

7.0

Movie
Musclebound Music

Musclebound Music

1926

0.0

Movie
Mysterious Mr. Moto

Mysterious Mr. Moto

1938

5.7

Movie
Mystery Woman

Mystery Woman

1935

0.0

Movie
National Velvet

National Velvet

1945

7.2

Movie
Nip and Tuck

Nip and Tuck

1923

0.0

Movie
Off His Trolley

Off His Trolley

1924

0.0

Movie
On Patrol

On Patrol

1922

3.0

Movie
One Cylinder Love

One Cylinder Love

1923

0.0

Movie
One More River

One More River

1934

5.3

Movie
One Spooky Night

One Spooky Night

1924

0.0

Movie
Over Thereabouts

Over Thereabouts

1925

0.0

Movie
Pack Up Your Troubles

Pack Up Your Troubles

1939

6.2

Movie
Payment Deferred

Payment Deferred

1932

5.9

Movie
Peaches and Plumbers

Peaches and Plumbers

1927

0.0

Movie
Peacock Alley

Peacock Alley

1930

4.3

Movie
Peg o' My Heart

Peg o' My Heart

1933

5.2

Movie
Penny Serenade

Penny Serenade

1941

6.5

Movie
Personal Property

Personal Property

1937

6.9

Movie
Piccadilly Jim

Piccadilly Jim

1936

6.5

Movie
Pink Pajamas

Pink Pajamas

1929

0.0

Movie
Pirates of the Air

Pirates of the Air

1916

0.0

Movie
Pitfalls of a Big City

Pitfalls of a Big City

1923

0.0

Movie
Pop's Pal

Pop's Pal

1933

0.0

Movie
Private Number

Private Number

1936

6.3

Movie
Rebecca

Rebecca

1940

7.9

Movie
Riley the Cop

Riley the Cop

1928

5.6

Movie
Rogues of Sherwood Forest

Rogues of Sherwood Forest

1950

4.8

Movie
Scotch

Scotch

1930

0.0

Movie
Shadows Over Shanghai

Shadows Over Shanghai

1938

5.7

Movie
She Whoops To Conquer

She Whoops To Conquer

1933

0.0

Movie
Shining Victory

Shining Victory

1941

5.9

Movie
Shock

Shock

1934

6.0

Movie
Should Husbands Marry?

Should Husbands Marry?

1926

0.0

Movie
Should Sleepwalkers Marry?

Should Sleepwalkers Marry?

1927

0.0

Movie
Sky Devils

Sky Devils

1932

5.5

Movie
Slave Ship

Slave Ship

1937

4.8

Movie
Sneezing Beezers

Sneezing Beezers

1925

0.0

Movie
Somebody's Widow

Somebody's Widow

1918

0.0

Movie
Song and Dance Man

Song and Dance Man

1936

0.0

Movie
Stingaree

Stingaree

1934

5.9

Movie
Super-Hooper-Dyne Lizzies

Super-Hooper-Dyne Lizzies

1925

0.0

Movie
Suspicion

Suspicion

1941

7.1

Movie
Techno-Crazy

Techno-Crazy

1933

0.0

Movie
Tell It to the Judge

Tell It to the Judge

1949

6.3

Movie
Temptation

Temptation

1930

0.0

Movie
Terror by Night

Terror by Night

1946

6.6

Movie
The Beach Club

The Beach Club

1928

0.0

Movie
The Best Man

The Best Man

1928

0.0

Movie
The Bicycle Flirt

The Bicycle Flirt

1928

0.0

Movie
The Big Squeal

The Big Squeal

1933

0.0

Movie
The Black Arrow

The Black Arrow

1948

5.2

Movie
The Bull Fighter

The Bull Fighter

1927

0.0

Movie
The Cannon Ball Express

The Cannon Ball Express

1924

0.0

Movie
The Crossroads of New York

The Crossroads of New York

1922

0.0

Movie
The Duck Hunter

The Duck Hunter

1922

0.0

Movie
The Earl of Chicago

The Earl of Chicago

1940

5.6

Movie
poster

The Ed Sullivan Show

1948

6.6

TV
The Extra Girl

The Extra Girl

1923

5.9

Movie
The Girl from Everywhere

The Girl from Everywhere

1927

0.0

Movie
The Girl from Nowhere

The Girl from Nowhere

1928

0.0

Movie
The Girl of the Golden West

The Girl of the Golden West

1938

4.6

Movie
The Golden Age of Comedy

The Golden Age of Comedy

1957

6.9

Movie
The Golf Nut

The Golf Nut

1927

0.0

Movie
The Hollywood Kid

The Hollywood Kid

1924

5.3

Movie
The Invisible Man Returns

The Invisible Man Returns

1940

6.2

Movie
The Invisible Man's Revenge

The Invisible Man's Revenge

1944

5.6

Movie
The Iron Nag

The Iron Nag

1925

0.0

Movie
The Last Outpost

The Last Outpost

1935

6.0

Movie
The Lion's Whiskers

The Lion's Whiskers

1925

0.0

Movie
The Lodger

The Lodger

1944

6.3

Movie
The Long Voyage Home

The Long Voyage Home

1940

6.5

Movie
The Lost Patrol

The Lost Patrol

1934

6.5

Movie
The Man Who Wouldn't Die

The Man Who Wouldn't Die

1942

6.4

Movie
The Pearl of Death

The Pearl of Death

1944

7.0

Movie
The Picture of Dorian Gray

The Picture of Dorian Gray

1945

7.1

Movie
The Quack Doctor

The Quack Doctor

1920

0.0

Movie
The Return of the Vampire

The Return of the Vampire

1943

6.0

Movie
The Secret Garden

The Secret Garden

1949

7.1

Movie
The Secret Of St. Ives

The Secret Of St. Ives

1949

6.0

Movie
The Sheik Steps Out

The Sheik Steps Out

1937

4.0

Movie
The Silent Witness

The Silent Witness

1932

5.5

Movie
The Sky Hawk

The Sky Hawk

1929

6.0

Movie
The Slappiest Days of Our Lives

The Slappiest Days of Our Lives

1951

0.0

Movie
The Swordsman

The Swordsman

1948

0.0

Movie
The Trespasser

The Trespasser

1929

6.7

Movie
The Way to Love

The Way to Love

1933

0.0

Movie
The White Sin

The White Sin

1924

6.0

Movie
The Widow from Monte Carlo

The Widow from Monte Carlo

1935

5.0

Movie
The Wrong Road

The Wrong Road

1937

4.3

Movie
The Young in Heart

The Young in Heart

1938

6.6

Movie
This Above All

This Above All

1942

6.6

Movie
Three Foolish Weeks

Three Foolish Weeks

1924

0.0

Movie
Three Secrets

Three Secrets

1950

6.4

Movie
Thundering Taxis

Thundering Taxis

1933

0.0

Movie
Tin Pan Alley

Tin Pan Alley

1940

5.0

Movie
Tonight and Every Night

Tonight and Every Night

1945

5.2

Movie
Too Much Harmony

Too Much Harmony

1933

5.0

Movie
Transatlantic

Transatlantic

1931

5.5

Movie
Trimmed in Gold

Trimmed in Gold

1926

0.0

Movie
Uncle Jake

Uncle Jake

1933

0.0

Movie
Vanessa: Her Love Story

Vanessa: Her Love Story

1935

6.0

Movie
Vanity Fair

Vanity Fair

1932

5.5

Movie
Vincent Price's Dracula

Vincent Price's Dracula

1986

7.9

Movie
Wall Street Blues

Wall Street Blues

1924

0.0

Movie
Wandering Waistlines

Wandering Waistlines

1924

0.0

Movie
Wandering Willies

Wandering Willies

1926

0.0

Movie
Waterloo Bridge

Waterloo Bridge

1931

7.0

Movie
We Are Not Alone

We Are Not Alone

1939

6.2

Movie
Weak But Willing

Weak But Willing

1929

0.0

Movie
When Summer Comes

When Summer Comes

1922

0.0

Movie
Whispering Whiskers

Whispering Whiskers

1926

0.0

Movie
Who's Who in the Zoo

Who's Who in the Zoo

1931

0.0

Movie