Arthur Wontner (21 January 1875 – 10 July 1960[2]) was a British actor best known for playing Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's master detective Sherlock Holmes in five films from 1931 to 1937.
Wontner's acting career began on the stage where he played such roles as Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet, Bassanio in The Merchant of Venice, Bunny Manders in Raffles, the Amateur Cracksman and Cardinal Richelieu in The Three Musketeers (1930, West End).[3][4][5][6] In 1926, Wontner appeared in The Captive alongside Basil Rathbone, both of whom went on to play Sherlock Holmes on film.[1]
Sherlock Holmes
Wontner landed the role of Sherlock Holmes thanks to his performance of Holmes imitation Sexton Blake in a 1930 stage production.[7] He played the famed sleuth in five films from 1931 to 1937.
The Sleeping Cardinal (1931) (US title: Sherlock Holmes' Fatal Hour), based on Doyle's two stories, "The Final Problem" and "The Adventure of the Empty House"[8][9]
The Missing Rembrandt (1932) (still considered lost), based on "The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton"[8][9]
Silver Blaze (1937) (US title: Murder at the Baskervilles, release 1941),[11] based on "The Adventure of Silver Blaze"[8]
Of the five films in which Wontner portrayed Sherlock Holmes, The Missing Rembrandt is no longer available. It is officially a lost film.[12]
Silver Blaze was renamed Murder at the Baskervilles on its US release in order to make the most of the publicity which had been generated by Basil Rathbone's version of The Hound of the Baskervilles.[13]
After seeing The Sleeping Cardinal, Vincent Starrett said "Surely no better Sherlock Holmes than Arthur Wontner is likely to be seen and heard in pictures, in our time."[14]
Personal life
Wontner's son became the well-known hotelier and Lord Mayor of London Sir Hugh Wontner.
Three Cases of Murder (1955) - Leader of the House (segment "Lord Mountdrago") (uncredited) (final film role)
References
Bunson, Matthew (1997). Encyclopedia Sherlockiana: an A-to-Z guide to the world of the great detective. Macmillan. p.290. ISBN0-02-861679-0.
"Arthur Wontner". British Film Institute. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
Kabatchnik, Amnon (2010). Blood on the Stage, 1925-1950: Milestone Plays of Crime, Mystery, and Detection: an Annotated Repertoire. Scarecrow Press. p.399. ISBN9780810869639.
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