Minor Watson

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Minor Watson
Watson in The Jackie Robinson Story (1950)
Born(1889-12-22)December 22, 1889
DiedJuly 28, 1965(1965-07-28) (aged 75)
Resting placeAlton Cemetery, Alton, Illinois
NationalityAmerican
OccupationActor
Years active1912–1959
Spouse(s)Elinor Hewitt
(m. 1919)

Minor Watson (December 22, 1889 – July 28, 1965) was a prominent character actor. He appeared in 111 movies made between 1913 and 1956. His credits included Boys Town (1938), Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942), Kings Row (1942), Guadalcanal Diary (1943), Bewitched (1945), The Virginian (1946), and The Jackie Robinson Story (1950)

Early years

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Watson was the son of Mrs. Alice Rodgers.[1] He attended St. John's Northwestern Military Academy in Delafield, Wisconsin,[2] and Shurtleff College in Alton, Illinois. He said that, as a member of Sigma Phi at Shurtleff, he was encouraged to pursue a career in drama.[3]

Film

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Watson began his film career with Essanay Studios in 1913.[4] He was described as "the new recruit that plays lover parts."[5]

In his forty-three-year movie career, Watson appeared in 115 features and short films.[6]

Stage

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Watson made seventeen appearances on Broadway in his career, including new plays by George M. Cohan, Robert E, Sherwood, S. N. Behrman, and Howard Lindsay & Russell Crouse. He acted with theatre luminaries such as Ruth Chatterton, Lynn Fontanne and Alfred Lunt, Helen Westley, Walter Abel, Mady Christians, Josephine Hull, Rex Ingram, Ina Claire, Osgood Perkins, and Tom Powers. Fellow actors in his Broadway shows also maintained Hollywood careers: Ralph Bellamy, Humphrey Bogart, Walter Connolly, Melvyn Douglas, Van Heflin, Ruth Hussey, Alan Mowbray, Mildred Natwick, Sidney Toler, and Henry Travers.[7]

Watson's Broadway credits include State of the Union, End of Summer, Tapestry in Gray, A Divine Drudge, Reunion in Vienna, Friendship, This Thing Called Love, These Modern Women, Howdy King, Mismates, The Magnolia Lady, and Why Men Leave Home.[8]

Personal life

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Watson married Elinor Hewitt December 7, 1919, in Boston, Massachusetts.[9]

Death

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Watson is buried in Alton Cemetery in Alton, Illinois.

Partial filmography

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References

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  1. ^ "Alton Furnishes Two Young Men to Stage". Alton Evening Telegraph. Illinois, Alton. Alton Evening Telegraph. June 3, 1911. p. 8. Retrieved April 15, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  2. ^ "(untitled brief)". Alton Evening Telegraph. Illinois, Alton. Alton Evening Telegraph. January 6, 1908. p. 3. Retrieved April 15, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ "Stratton White Named President Of Sigma Society". Alton Evening Telegraph. Illinois, Alton. Alton Evening Telegraph. March 31, 1927. p. 3. Retrieved April 15, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  4. ^ "Minor Watson in Motion Pictures". Alton Evening Telegraph. Illinois, Alton. Alton Evening Telegraph. July 3, 1913. p. 1. Retrieved April 15, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  5. ^ "Converts His Role of Simulated Heroism into Daring Reality". The Ogden Standard. Utah, Standard. The Ogden Standard. July 12, 1913. p. 2. Retrieved April 15, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  6. ^ imdb.com, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0914808/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_4_nm_4_q_Minor%2520Watson
  7. ^ Internet Broadway Database, https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/minor-watson-64232
  8. ^ "Minor Watson". Playbill. Retrieved April 17, 2016.
  9. ^ "Miss Hewitt to Be Married Next Sunday in Boston". Alton Evening Telegraph. Illinois, Alton. Alton Evening Telegraph. December 2, 1919. p. 3. Retrieved April 15, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
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