John Barrymore (born John Sidney Blyth; 1882–1942) was an American actor of stage, screen and radio who appeared in more than 40 plays, 60 films and 100 radio shows. He was the youngest child of the actors Maurice Barrymore and Georgie Drew Barrymore, and his two siblings were Lionel and Ethel; together they were known as America's "Royal Family" of actors, and John was "perhaps the most influential and idolized actor of his day", according to his biographer Martin F. Norden.
After Barrymore tried to start a career in art, becoming an illustrator at the New York Evening Journal, his father tempted him to appear on stage in 1901 in A Man of the World; the theater proved more interesting than the newspaper industry, and he quickly changed professions. In 1904 he appeared in his first stage show on Broadway, where he appeared in light comedies and musicals until 1914 when he began to turn to more serious roles, starting with The Yellow Ticket and Kick In. That year he also began to work in full-length films, and appeared in nine between 1914 and 1918, all of them slapstick or farce comedies. During the 1920s film roles became more serious, and he appeared in the lead role in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1920), which he followed with The Lotus Eater (1921), Sherlock Holmes (1922), Beau Brummel (1924) and The Sea Beast (1926). In between his film roles, he also took the lead in two major stage productions of Shakespeare. In 1920 he played Richard, Duke of Gloucester in Richard III; although a success, the play closed after only 31 performances when Barrymore "collapsed from the physical and psychological challenges of the role". In November 1922 he played the title character in Hamlet on Broadway for 101 performances, before touring the US until January 1924; Norden described the critics' reaction as "universally praising the production as the best Hamlet they had ever seen". After the US tour, Barrymore took the production to London, where it ran for a further 68 performances; The Manchester Guardian later described the first performance as "the most memorable first night for years".
Such was the success of Hamlet, that Warner Bros. signed Barrymore to a film contract. When his time with Warner Bros. finished, he signed a contract with United Artists to make three features: The Beloved Rogue (1927), Tempest (1928) and Eternal Love (1929). When that contract ended he returned to Warner Bros. for five further films, and was then picked up by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where he appeared in Grand Hotel, A Bill of Divorcement and Rasputin and the Empress (all 1932). At the end of the MGM contract he became "a journeyman movie actor", in the words of Norden. In September 1940 Barrymore was invited to leave his imprint in the forecourt of Grauman's Chinese Theatre; instead of the traditional handprint, Barrymore left his facial profile, reflecting his nickname "The Great Profile". He was inducted to the Hollywood Walk of Fame on February 8, 1960.
Although Barrymore appeared in a number of successful films in the 1930s, including Counsellor at Law (1933) and Twentieth Century (1934), his increasing alcoholism led to memory loss and the inability to remember his lines. His problems with alcohol affected his confidence and he admitted to Helen Hayes, his co-star of Night Flight, that he had "completely lost [his] nerve" and that he "could never appear before an audience instead". In 1935 he was hospitalized after being unable to remember neither his seven lines for the film Hat, Coat, and Glove, nor his character's name. After his discharge from the hospital he enjoyed a brief career revival, although much of his film work "bore little distinction", according to Norden; the film historians Donald McCaffrey and Christopher Jacobs opine that Barrymore's "contribution to the art of cinematic acting began to fade" after the mid-1930s. Barrymore also enjoyed a fruitful career on radio, which included broadcasting six of Shakespeare's plays in a Streamlined Shakespeare series. Much of his radio work was in the 74 episodes of The Sealtest Show with Rudy Vallée; it was during a rehearsal for the show in May 1942 that Barrymore collapsed and was admitted to hospital, where he died on May 29.
| Production | Date | Theatre (New York, unless stated) | Role | Number of performances | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Touring | |||||
| Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines | – 02 season | Touring | |||
| Madga | W. S. Cleveland's Theatre, Chicago | 10 | |||
| Leah the Forsaken | W. S. Cleveland's Theatre, Chicago | Jacob | 18 | ||
| Glad of It | Savoy Theatre | Corley | 32 | ||
| Criterion Theatre, then touring in US and Britain (September 1904 to July 1905) | 105 | ||||
| Yvette | Knickerbocker Theatre | 1 | |||
| Sunday | – December 1905 | Touring | Jacky | ||
| Pantaloon | – March 1906 | Criterion Theatre for 81, then touring from May 1906 | Clown | 81 | |
| Alice Sit-by-the-Fire | – March 1906 | Criterion Theatre for 81, then touring (March to April 1906 and September 1906 to February 1907) | 81 | ||
| Miss Civilization | Broadway Theatre | , alias "Reddy the Kid" | 1 | ||
| On the Quiet | – October 1906 | Touring, US and Australia | |||
| – August 1906 | Touring, US and Australia | ||||
| Colonial Theatre, Boston | 1 | ||||
| His Excellency the Governor | Empire Theatre | 36 | |||
| – July 1907 | Lyceum Theatre, then touring (July to September 1907) | 96 | |||
| Toddles | Garrick Theatre | 16 | |||
| – May 1909 | Touring (June 1908 – January 1909), then Broadway Theatre, Boston (January – April 1909), then touring (April – May 1909) | Mac | 88 | ||
| – June 12, 1909 | Knickerbocker Theatre | 56 | |||
| – May 1911 | Gaiety Theatre, the touring (September 1910 to May 1911) | 345 | |||
| Uncle Sam | Touring (August to October 1911), then Liberty Theatre | 48 | |||
| Princess Zim-Zim | – January 1912 | Touring | |||
| – March 1912 | Empire Theatre | 48 | |||
| Half a Husband | Touring (less than 2 weeks) | ||||
| On the Quiet | Belasco Theatre, Los Angeles | 14 | |||
| Belasco Theatre, Los Angeles | 6 (est) | ||||
| Belasco Theatre, Los Angeles | 14 (est) | ||||
| Little Theatre | Anatol | 72 | |||
| McVicker's Theatre, Chicago | 46 | ||||
| Believe Me Xantippe | Thirty-Ninth St. Theatre | 79 | |||
| Eltinge Theatre | 183 | ||||
| Kick In | Longacre Theatre | 188 | |||
| Actors' Fund Benefit | Forth-Fourth Street | 1 | |||
| Justice | – January 1917 | Candler Theatre (April to September 1916), then touring (to January 1917) | 104 | ||
| Junior Patriots of America Benefit | Hippodrome | Sailor | 2 | ||
| Peter Ibbetson | – May 1918 | Republic Theatre (April to November 1917), then touring (to May 1918) | 71 | ||
| Rosemary Open Air Theatre | Tyrant | 4 | |||
| Redemption | Plymouth Theatre | 204 | |||
| Plymouth Theatre | 256 | ||||
| Richard III | Plymouth Theatre | 31 | |||
| Clair de Lune | Empire Theatre | Gwymplane | 64 | ||
| Annual Equity Show | Metropolitan Opera House | Romeo | 2 | ||
| Hamlet | – January 26, 1924 | Sam H. Harris Theatre (November 1922 – February 1923), Manhattan Opera House (November and December 1923 – 3 weeks), then touring (December 1923 – January 26, 1924) | Hamlet | 101 | |
| Hamlet | Theatre Royal Haymarket, London | Hamlet | 68 | ||
| My Dear Children | Touring (March 1939 to January 1940), then the Belasco Theatre | ||||
| Palace Theatre, Chicago | 20 (est) |
| Film | Year | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dream of a Motion Picture Director | Boss | Lost film; 1 reel. Credited as "Jack Barrymore", this is probably John Barrymore, although Norden notes that "we may never know for certain if ... [these films] are in fact Barrymore movies". | ||
| The Widow Casey's Return | Sullivan | Lost film; 1 reel. Credited as "Jack Barrymore", this is probably John Barrymore, although Norden notes that "we may never know for certain if ... [these films] are in fact Barrymore movies". | ||
| A Prize Package | Lost film; 1 reel. Credited as "Jack Barrymore", this is probably John Barrymore, although Norden notes that "we may never know for certain if ... [these films] are in fact Barrymore movies". | |||
| One on Romance | 1913 | Helen's Father | Lost film; on a split reel Credited as "Jack Barrymore", this is probably John Barrymore, although Norden notes that "we may never know for certain if ... [these films] are in fact Barrymore movies". | |
| Lost film | ||||
| Fitzhugh | Lost film | |||
| Are You a Mason? | Lost film | |||
| Lost film | ||||
| Nearly a King | Lost film | |||
| Lost film | ||||
| Lost film | ||||
| Raffles, the Amateur Cracksman | ||||
| National Red Cross Pageant | Lost film | |||
| On the Quiet | 1918 | Lost film | ||
| Here Comes the Bride | Lost film | |||
| Lost film | ||||
| Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde | 1920 | |||
| 1921 | Lost film | |||
| Sherlock Holmes | 1922 | |||
| Beau Brummel | 1924 | |||
| Don Juan | ||||
| When a Man Loves | ||||
| Tempest | 1928 | |||
| Eternal Love | ||||
| in Henry VI, Part 3 | ||||
| General Crack | ||||
| Lost film | ||||
| Moby Dick | ||||
| Svengali | Svengali | |||
| Arsène Lupin | ||||
| Grand Hotel | Grand Hotel was inducted into the National Film Registry in 2007. | |||
| State's Attorney | ||||
| Rasputin and the Empress | ||||
| Topaze | ||||
| Reunion in Vienna | ||||
| Dinner at Eight | ||||
| Night Flight | A. Riviére | |||
| Counsellor at Law | ||||
| Long Lost Father | ||||
| Twentieth Century | Twentieth Century was inducted into the National Film Registry in 2011. | |||
| Romeo and Juliet | 1936 | Mercutio | ||
| Maytime | ||||
| Bulldog Drummond Comes Back | ||||
| Night Club Scandal | ||||
| Bulldog Drummond's Revenge | ||||
| True Confession | ||||
| Bulldog Drummond's Peril | ||||
| Romance in the Dark | ||||
| Marie Antoinette | ||||
| Spawn of the North | ||||
| Hold That Co-ed | ||||
| Midnight | Midnight was inducted into the National Film Registry in 2013. | |||
| World Premiere | ||||
| Playmates |
| Broadcast | Date | Network | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hamlet | 2LO, UK | ||||
| [Unknown] | WBPI, New York | ||||
| Dodge Brothers Hour | NBC Blue Network | ||||
| NBC Red Network | |||||
| Shell Chateau | NBC Red Network | ||||
| Hollywood Hotel | CBS | ||||
| Streamlined Shakespeare: Hamlet | NBC Blue Network | ||||
| Interview | NBC Blue Network | ||||
| Streamlined Shakespeare: Richard III | NBC Blue Network | ||||
| Streamlined Shakespeare: Macbeth | NBC Blue Network | ||||
| Streamlined Shakespeare: The Tempest | NBC Blue Network | Prospero/Caliban | |||
| Streamlined Shakespeare: Twelfth Night | NBC Blue Network | /Malvolio | |||
| Streamlined Shakespeare: The Taming of the Shrew | NBC Blue Network | Petruchio | |||
| NBC Blue Network | |||||
| Accent on Youth | NBC Blue Network | ||||
| NBC Blue Network | |||||
| This is New York | CBS | ||||
| CBS | |||||
| – January 11, 1939 | CBS | 9 episodes | |||
| CBS | |||||
| NBC Red Network | |||||
| – May 14, 1942 | NBC Red Network | 74 episodes | |||
"The Great Man Votes" | CBS | ||||
| Salute to Ethel Barrymore: Forty Years a Star | NBC Blue Network | ||||
| Time to Smile | NBC Red Network | ||||
| Hollywood | CBS | ||||
| United Service Organizations Benefit | CBS |
