Barnett Parker
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- September 10, 1886
- Died
- August 5, 1941
- Birthplace
- Batley, Yorkshire, England, UK
Within the British colony of expatriate actors in Hollywood during the 1930's, Barnett Parker, born 11 September 1886, in Batley, Yorkshire, England, was among the most stereotypical. Harrowgate College-educated, straight-backed, balding and well-intoned, Parker caricatured a multitude of unctuous, stiff-upper-lip butlers, man-servants or waiters, though his performances could, at times, verge on the brink of being camp. When driven to frustration his characters commonly resorted to incoherent twitter or wild gesticulation. Parker was trained under Marie Tempest and George Alexander in England. He first acted on Broadway at the Lyceum Theatre as Wilfred Tavish in Arthur Wing Pinero's "The "Mind the Paint" Girl" in 1912. He was well served with further roles in hit plays like "Hobson's Choice" (1915), "Artists and Models" (1924) and "The Red Robe" (1928). He was at first prone to reject film offers, professing to favor acting on stage. Nonetheless, the celluloid medium eventually beckoned, enticing him to sign with the East Coast-based studio Thanhouser in 1915. He worked in films during the daytime (while treading the boards at night) and quickly landed a plum role as a weak socialite, rescuing Gladys Hulette in Prudence, the Pirate (1916). He was seldom thereafter afforded the opportunity for heroic acts. During the 1930's, he was primarily in demand for small roles as dandified or 'silly ass' Britishers, giving value for money in films like Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936), Personal Property (1937), Live, Love and Learn (1937) and Broadway Melody of 1938 (1937). Looking rather older than his years, Barnett Parker died at the Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in Los Angeles after multiple heart attacks on August 5, 1941.
Filmography
Walt Disney's Fables - Vol.6 2004
as Dragon (voice) (archive sound) (uncredited)
The Big Parade of Comedy 1964
as Arthur Trevelyan in 'Personal Property' (arch. foot.) (uncred.)
New Wine 1941
as The Duke
Kisses for Breakfast 1941
as Phillips
The Reluctant Dragon 1941
as Dragon (segment "The Reluctant Dragon") (voice)
A Man Betrayed 1941
as George
Tall, Dark and Handsome 1941
as Quentin
Love Thy Neighbor 1940
as George - Fred's Chauffeur
One Night in the Tropics 1940
as Thompson, Steve's Butler (uncredited)
Hullabaloo 1940
as Samuel Stephens
La Conga Nights 1940
as Hammond
He Married His Wife 1940
as Huggins
At the Circus 1939
as Whitcomb
Babes in Arms 1939
as William
Hotel for Women 1939
as Photographer
She Married a Cop 1939
as Bekins, the Butler
The Girl Downstairs 1938
as Hugo
Listen, Darling 1938
as Abercrombie
Marie Antoinette 1938
as Prince de Rohan
Hold That Kiss 1938
as Maurice
Sally, Irene and Mary 1938
as Oscar
Love Is a Headache 1938
as Hotchkiss, Carlotta's Butler
Navy Blue and Gold 1937
as Graves
Live, Love and Learn 1937
as Alfredo
Double Wedding 1937
as Mr. Flint, Margit's Bookkeeper
Wake Up and Live 1937
as Foster
Broadway Melody of 1938 1937
as Jerry Jason
The Emperor's Candlesticks 1937
as Albert, Stephan's Butler
Married Before Breakfast 1937
as Tweed
Personal Property 1937
as Arthur Trevelyan
Ready, Willing and Able 1937
as Waiter
Espionage 1937
as Bill Cordell
The Last of Mrs. Cheyney 1937
as Purser
Dangerous Number 1937
as Minehardi
We Who Are About to Die 1937
as John Barkley
A Girl's Best Years 1936
as Primrose
Born to Dance 1936
as Floorwalker
The General Died at Dawn 1936
as Dining Car Man (uncredited)
Libeled Lady 1936
as Butler (uncredited)
The President's Mystery 1936
as Roger
Roaming Lady 1936
as Waters
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town 1936
as Butler (uncredited)
The Misleading Lady 1920
as Steve
Prudence the Pirate 1916
as John Astorbilt
- The Traffic Cop
The Traffic Cop 1916
as Book Agent
The Flight of the Duchess 1916
as The Duke
- Bill Bunks the Bandit
Bill Bunks the Bandit 1915
as Bill - a Gentleman from the East
Credits from TMDB.