Leo Willis

Leo Willis
Still with Leo Willis and Roy Stewart in The Silent Rider (1918)
BornJanuary 5, 1890
Wapanucka, Oklahoma
Died10 April 1952(1952-04-10) (aged 62)
King City, Monterey County, California
OccupationActor
Years active1914–1936
Spouse(s)May Frances Hennessy
(m. 1914; died 1927)
Children2 daughters

Leo Willis (January 5, 1890[1] – April 10, 1952) was an American actor who began his career in the silent era.[2] He played mainly tough guys and comic villains, notably opposite Harold Lloyd, Charley Chase, and Laurel and Hardy at the Hal Roach Studios.

Early life and career

Born in Wapanucka, Oklahoma,[3] Willis was the son of Joe Willis and Margurate Holdebery.[4]

Regarding Willis's third film, the 1916 William S. Hart western The Return of Draw Egan, the Nashville Tennessean singled out as one of the film's principal "thrill[s]" a fight staged between the star and Willis, whom the paper dubs "one of Inceville's strongest men."[5] Willis again figured prominently, this time alongside fellow villain Thomas Kurihara, in Hart's followup western, The Devil's Double.[6][7]

The Philadelphia Inquirer, in its contemporaneous review of Harold Lloyd's 1927 comedy The Kid Brother, states that Walter James, Willis, and Olin Francis, in their respective portrayals of the hero's father and two older brothers, "create a new standard of character work in a feature-length comedy,"[8] a point echoed by New-York Tribune critic Harriette Underhill, who characterized the trio's work as "singularly earnest [and] without exaggeration for a work of this sort."[9]

Beginning in 1927, the final decade of Willis's screen career featured appearances—mostly in minor roles—in 11 films alongside Laurel and Hardy, including a pair, Call of the Cuckoo and Flying Elephants, in which the two appeared together prior to becoming a full-fledged team, as well as his final role, in the 1936 Charlie Chase short, On the Wrong Trek, in which the famous team makes only a cameo appearance.[10]

Personal life and death

Willis was married to May Frances Hennessey from June 1914 until her death on September 17, 1926.[11][12] They had two daughters.[2]

On April 10, 1952, at age 62, Willis died in his sleep at his home in King City, California.[2]

Selected filmography

References

  1. ^ Katchmer, George A. (2009). A Biographical Dictionary of Silent Film Western Actors and Actresses. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 401. ISBN 978-0-7864-4693-3.
  2. ^ a b c "Leo Willis Passes Away In King City". Salinas Californian. April 11, 1952. p. 11. Retrieved March 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KZVK-J9Y : Sat Nov 23 02:47:04 UTC 2024), Entry for Leo Willis, from 1917 to 1918.
  4. ^ "California, County Marriages, 1850-1953", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K8Z1-TFF : Sun Mar 10 10:37:09 UTC 2024), Entry for Leo Willis and May Hennessy, 29 June 1914.
  5. ^ "FLICKERS FROM THE FILMS: Hart in New Triangle Film". Nashville Tennessean and the Nashville American. October 27, 1916. p. 14. ProQuest 906777725.
  6. ^ "Amusu". Elmira Star-Gazette. December 18, 1916. p. 13. ProQuest 2348304237. Another unusual scene presents a terrific knife fight within a burning cabin. The combatants in this are Leo Willis and Thomas Kurihara, as two bandits fighting each other for possession of the girl. For several minutes the men struggle, one finally conquering, while flames lead around victor and vanquished.
  7. ^ "William S. Hart Stars in a New Triangle Play at Opera House". The Daily Home News. January 16, 1917. p. 14. ProQuest 2264278818. One of the most striking scenes is that in which Leo Willis and Thomas Kurihara, as two mountain desperados, are shown planning and executing a murderous attack upon the occupants of a cabin.
  8. ^ "Harold Lloyd's New Picture at Stanton: Promises Many Laughs and Bag of New Tricks; Several Members of the Cast Nearly Steal Honors from Star". The Philadelphia Inquirer. January 18, 1927. p. 14. ProQuest 1830987514.
  9. ^ Underhill, Harriette (January 24, 1927). "On the Screen: Ronald Colman Stars in Gypsy Drama and Harold Lloyd Appears in Latest Comedy". New York Tribune. p. 13. ProQuest 1113514471.
  10. ^ McCabe, John (1983). Laurel & Hardy. New York: Bonanza Books. pp. 37, 53, 64, 65, 171, 188, 293, 307, 319, 328. ISBN 0-517-413698.
  11. ^ "Vital Statistics—Deaths, Births, Marriages: Marriage Licenses". Los Angeles Evening Express. June 30, 1914. p. 23. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  12. ^ "Deaths (With Funeral Announcements)". The Los Angeles Times. pt. I, p. 24. See also:
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