Nick Stuart Explained

Nick Stuart
Birth Date:10 April 1904
Birth Place:Abrudbánya, Alsó-Fehér County, Austria-Hungary
(now Abrud, Alba County, Romania)
Death Place:Biloxi, Mississippi, United States
Birthname:Niculae Pratza
Occupation:Actor, bandleader
Spouse:Sue Carol (1929-34)
Martha Burnett (1942-73, his death)
Children:Carol Lee Ladd
Yearsactive:1919–44

Nick Stuart (April 10, 1904 – April 7, 1973) was an Austro-Hungarian-born American actor and bandleader. His career spanned five decades, during which he appeared in over 50 films, more than half of them features, as well as film shorts, serials, and even one television appearance. He rose to stardom in such films as Girls Gone Wild and Chasing Through Europe, prior to expanding his business interests by creating a talent agency, and a popular upscale club in Hollywood.

After being introduced to music by Guy Lombardo, he established his own band, "The Man with the Band from Movieland", which played for over twenty years. When he dissolved the band in 1961, he opened a haberdashery in Biloxi, Mississippi. He met his first wife, Sue Carol, while working on a film, and the two had a daughter, actress Carol Lee Ladd. While his first marriage was short-lived, his second marriage to Martha Burnett lasted over thirty years, until his death from cancer in 1973.

Early life and family

Stuart was born Niculae Pratza on April 10, 1904, in Abrud (Abrudbánya), Transylvania, then part of Austria-Hungary. He emigrated to the United States as a child in 1913,[1] [2] growing up in Dayton, Ohio.[3]

Stuart was married twice. The first time was to Sue Carol on November 28, 1929;[4] the two had a child, actress Carol Lee Ladd (born July 18, 1932).[5] The "Lee" in Carol Lee was named for Carol's best friend, Dixie Lee, the wife of Bing Crosby.[6] Initially, the couple attempted to hide their marriage from the public, with the help of the Crosbys. Stuart would make public appearances with Dixie Lee, while Bing Crosby would feign romantic interest in Sue Carol in public.[7] While on a personal appearances tour in 1931, the couple had $35,000 of jewelry stolen from their parked car on Michigan Avenue in Chicago.[8]

Less than a year after the birth of the couple's child, reports began to circulate that their marriage was in trouble.[9] By August 1933, Stuart and Carol were estranged and living separate lives,[10] [11] and divorced in 1934.[12] [13] [14] After the divorce, Stuart was romantically linked with several other women, including nightclub singer Bobbe Arnst (recently divorced from Johnny Weissmuller),[15] [16] and Dorothy Lee.[17]

Career

Film

In the mid-1920s Nick Prata (as he was then known) began working in the film industry, doing odd jobs around the set for Fox Film, such as prop boy, script clerk, and assistant cameraman.[18] [19] While working as an assistant on Raoul Walsh's What Price Glory? in 1926, Prata was given a screen test, after which his name was changed to Nick Stuart. Shortly after, he became Howard Hawks's personal assistant. He appeared in minor roles in two film shorts, before being given an opportunity to act in a featured role by Hawks, in 1927's, The Cradle Snatchers.[20] After the success of The Cradle Snatchers, Stuart would star in several shorts, many of which again paired him with his Snatchers co-star, Sally Phipps, which included Gentlemen Prefer Scotch,[21] and Cupid and the Clock (based on a short story by O. Henry).[22] The two would star in Stuart's next three films in 1927 and 1928: High School Hero, Why Sailors Go Wrong, and News Parade. Stuart's next role was that of Sandy, starring alongside Victor McLaglen in William K. Howard's The River Pirate in 1928.[23] Stuart and Sue Carol had been linked together romantically since early in 1928, and would co-star in Stuart's next project, Girls Gone Wild.[24] [25]

Stuart and Phipps appeared together in his next film, although Phipps was in a secondary role. Stuart's co-star in 1929's Joy Street, was Lois Moran, who had also been his love interest in The River Pirate.[26] Stuart and Phipps were again slated to co-star in Chasing Through Europe, the sequel to their successful film, News Parade.[27] However, she was replaced by June Collyer in July 1928,[28] who was replaced in turn by Sue Carol in September.[29] Stuart and Carol appeared in several films together over the next few years, including 1933's Secret Sinners.[30]

Agency days

In 1933 Stuart, along with David Kay, opened an agency in Hollywood, which represented actors, writers, and directors.[31] Later that year, their company signed an agreement with the Canadian film company, British Commonwealth Productions, to cast all of their films. The first film they cast was The Crimson West (released in the United States as Fighting Playboy), which would be the first full-length talking film produced in Canada.[32] The following year, he became the founder of the Bath and Tennis Club in Hollywood. The club was modeled on upscale clubs in the east, particularly those in Palm Beach and Long Island, New York, and included recreational facilities for tennis, squash, swimming, badminton, and handball.[33] [34]

Entrance into music and later acting career

In the midst of his film career, after Guy Lombardo got him interested in music, Stuart began his own big band, and became known as "The Man with the Band from Movieland".[35] Stuart had become friendly with Lombardo when he and his wife, Carol, had helped Lombardo's brother adopt a child in 1932.[36] By 1937, Stuart's band had achieved a modicum of fame, and had appeared in several film shorts,[37] including 1938's Twenty Girls and a Band.[38] After the creation of his band, Stuart would only sporadically appear in films over the next 20 years.[39] In the 1940s, he appeared in two of the Bowery Boys films, starring Leo Gorcey and Huntz Hall, Mr. Muggs Steps Out (1943),[40] and Pride of the Bowery (1946).[41] Stuart's last starring role would be in the 1946 film, Gunsmoke.[42]

From 1946 through 1963 Stuart would appear in only four more films, although he appeared in several film serials, such as The Lost Planet (1953), Blackhawk: Fearless Champion of Freedom (1952), and King of the Congo (1952).[43] Stuart's sole television appearance was a featured role in the final episode of Navy Log, which aired on September 11, 1958.[44] In the 1960s, he made his final film appearance in a small role in Sydney Pollack's drama This Property Is Condemned, starring Natalie Wood, Robert Redford, and Charles Bronson.[45]

Later life and death

Stuart married Martha Burnett in 1942,[46] with whom he remained married until his death in 1973. Stuart dissolved his band in 1961, after which he opened a haberdashery in Biloxi, Mississippi, located in the Broadwater Beach Hotel. Stuart died from cancer on April 7, 1973, in Biloxi, Mississippi.[47]

Filmography

(Per AFI database, and imdb.com. Feature films except as noted.)

Notes and References

  1. News: Modern Screen . Their Real Names . Silver . Gordon R. . November 1930 . 47 . October 10, 2015.
  2. News: Nick Stewart, actor, bandleader, 69, dies . The Times Standard (Eureka, California) . April 8, 1973 . 54 . Newspapers.com. May 26, 2015.
  3. Web site: Nick Stuart: Overview . AllMovie . May 25, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120306164928/http://www.allmovie.com/artist/nick-stuart-p68835 . March 6, 2012.
  4. News: New York Times . Sue Carol Secretly Wed . November 29, 1929 . 27.
  5. News: Motion Picture Magazine . Answers to Your Gossip Test . October 1932 . 88 . May 27, 2015.
  6. News: Modern Screen . Let's Talk About Hollywood . October 1932 . 78.
  7. News: Motion Picture Magazine . The Voice With the Love Call Wins . February 1932 . 88 . May 27, 2015.
  8. News: Motion Picture Herald . Seeing's Believing! . May 2, 1931 . 71 . May 27, 2015.
  9. News: Motion Picture Magazine . Answers to Your Gossip Test . July 1933 . 84 . May 27, 2015.
  10. News: Modern Screen . No Time For Sleep . August 1933 . 40 . Bruce . Carter . May 27, 2015.
  11. News: Motion Picture Magazine . Answers to Your Gossip Test . September 1933 . 84 . May 27, 2015.
  12. News: Modern Screen . Double Christening . January 1934 . 60 . May 27, 2015.
  13. News: Modern Screen . Let's Talk About Hollywood . December 1933 . 78 . May 27, 2015.
  14. News: Modern Screen . Here's where star gazing is exciting and profitable! . December 1934 . 70 . May 27, 2015.
  15. News: Modern Screen . What Every Fan Should Know . October 1933 . 39 . May 27, 2015.
  16. News: Motion Picture Magazine . News and Gossip of the Studios . October 1933 . 74 . May 27, 2015.
  17. News: Modern Screen . Let's Talk About Hollywood . September 1934 . 84 . May 27, 2015.
  18. News: Motion Picture Magazine . Join the Movies and See the World! . September 1928 . 50 . October 11, 2015.
  19. Web site: Nick Stuart: Overview . Turner Classic Movies . May 25, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150420023135/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/186297%7C117392/Nick-Stuart/ . April 20, 2015.
  20. Web site: The Cradle Snatchers: Detail View . American Film Institute . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150109232456/http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/DetailView.aspx?s=&Movie=3489 . January 9, 2015.
  21. News: The Film Daily . Neilly in Fox Comedy . June 26, 1927 . 6 . May 26, 2015.
  22. News: The Film Daily . Cupid and the Clock . July 3, 1927 . 10 . May 26, 2015.
  23. News: The Film Daily . "River Pirate" for McLaglen . May 8, 1928 . 6 . October 11, 2015.
  24. News: The Film Daily . Carol-Stuart Cast . December 11, 1928 . 3 . May 26, 2015.
  25. Web site: Girls Gone Wild . American Film Institute . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140402142350/http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/AbbrView.aspx?s=&Movie=9382 . April 2, 2014.
  26. Web site: Joy Street . American Film Institute . October 11, 2015.
  27. News: The Film Daily . Another Newsreel Film . May 8, 1928 . 6 . May 26, 2015.
  28. News: The Film Daily . Collyer to Europe For Fox . July 3, 1928 . 11 . May 26, 2015.
  29. Web site: Chasing Through Europe . American Film Institute . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140401233933/http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/AbbrView.aspx?s=&Movie=3263 . April 1, 2014.
  30. Web site: Secret Sinners . American Film Institute . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140329212410/http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/AbbrView.aspx?s=&Movie=5053 . March 29, 2014 .
  31. News: The Film Daily . A Little from "Lots" . Wilk . Ralph . September 23, 1933 . 8 . May 26, 2015.
  32. News: The Film Daily . A "Little" from Hollywood "Lots" . Wilk . Ralph . October 17, 1933 . 8 . May 26, 2015.
  33. News: The Film Daily . A "Little" from Hollywood "Lots" . Wilk . Ralph . June 21, 1934 . 10 . May 26, 2015.
  34. News: The Film Daily . A "Little" from Hollywood "Lots" . Wilk . Ralph . July 3, 1934 . 10 . May 26, 2015.
  35. Web site: Retired Band Members: Phil Vonder Haar (tenor sax) . Gateway City Big Band . May 25, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150526033140/http://www.gatewaycitybigband.com/spotlight_vonderhaar.html . May 26, 2015.
  36. News: Motion Picture Herald . Asides & Interludes . Cunningham . James . December 31, 1932 . 27 . May 27, 2015.
  37. News: The Film Daily . Shorts Show Signs of Maturity--Gilroy . Gilroy . Bert . October 15, 1937 . 17 . May 26, 2015.
  38. News: The Film Daily . Twenty Girls and a Band . January 26, 1938 . 12 . May 26, 2015.
  39. Web site: Nick Stuart . American Film Institute . May 25, 2015.
  40. Web site: Mr. Muggs Steps Out: Detail View . American Film Institute . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140402122114/http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/DetailView.aspx?s=&Movie=576 . April 2, 2014.
  41. Web site: Pride of the Bowery: Detail View . American Film Institute . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140401211425/http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/DetailView.aspx?s=&Movie=4664 . April 1, 2014.
  42. Web site: Gunsmoke: Detail View . American Film Institute . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140402122305/http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/DetailView.aspx?s=&Movie=25391 . April 2, 2014.
  43. Web site: Nick Stuart . imdb.com . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150526225110/http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0835819/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1 . May 26, 2015.
  44. Web site: Navy Log: Season 4, Episode 3 - The Goodwill Ambassador . imdb.com . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150526225501/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0657959/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_2 . May 26, 2015.
  45. Web site: This Property Is Condemned: Detail View . American Film Institute . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140403125551/http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/DetailView.aspx?s=&Movie=22728 . April 3, 2014.
  46. News: The Film Daily . Wedding Bells . December 28, 1942 . 5 . May 26, 2015.
  47. News: Nick Stewart, 69, Film Star, Dies . The Weirton Daily Times (Weirton, West Virginia) . April 9, 1973 . 2. Newspapers.com. May 26, 2015.
  48. First Canadian talking feature film
  49. Web site: Fighting Playboy . TV Guide.com . May 26, 2015.
  50. Web site: Secrets of Chinatown . TV Guide.com . May 26, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150526234440/http://www.tvguide.com/movies/secrets-of-chinatown/117175/ . May 26, 2015.
  51. News: The Film Daily . Film Daily Reviews of New Pictures: Journey Together . March 7, 1946 . 6 . May 26, 2015.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Nick Stuart".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.