
Wilfred Lucas
Personal Info
Known for
Acting
Gender
Male
Birthday
1871-01-29
Day of Death
1940-12-13 (69 years old)
Place of Birth
Norfolk, Ontario, Canada
Wilfred Lucas
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wilfred Lucas (January 30, 1871 – December 13, 1940) was a Canadian-born American stage actor who found success in film as an actor, director, and screenwriter.
Wilfred Lucas made his Broadway debut in 1904, playing in both the The Blue Grass Handicap and The Superstition of Sue. Following his 1906 role in the highly successful play The Chorus Lady, he was recruited to the fledgling Biograph Studios by D. W. Griffith.
At the time, the film business was still looked down upon by many members of the theatrical community. In her 1925 book titled When the Movies Were Young, Griffith's wife, actress Linda Arvidson, told the story of the early days at Biograph Studios. In it, she referred to Lucas as the "first real grand actor, democratic enough to work in Biograph movies." In 1908 Lucas made his motion picture debut in Griffith's The Greaser's Gauntlet, appearing in more than 50 of these short (usually 17 minutes) films over the next two years.
In 1910 while still acting, he wrote the script for Griffith's film Sunshine Sue, which was followed by many more scripts by 1924. Lucas also began directing in 1912 with Griffith on An Outcast Among Outcasts, and directed another 44 films over the next 20 years.
In early 1916 he starred as John Carter in Acquitted, about which Photoplay wrote, "No single performance in the records of active photography has surpassed his visualization of the humble book-keeper in Acquitted." Later in 1916 he appeared in D.W. Griffith's film Intolerance.
Part of the group of Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood, Lucas became friends and sometimes starred with Mary Pickford, Sam De Grasse, and Marie Dressler. Canadian-born director Mack Sennett hired him to both direct and act in a large number of films at his Keystone Studios.
Lucas made the successful transition from silent film to sound. While working in Hollywood, in 1926 he returned to the stage, performing in several Broadway plays. He later appeared as a foil for Laurel and Hardy in their feature films Pardon Us and A Chump at Oxford.
During his long career, Wilfred Lucas appeared in more than 375 films. Although for a time he was cast in leading roles, he became very successful as secondary and minor characters, making a good living in the film industry for more than three decades.
Known For
Acting
(1968)
The Best of Laurel and Hardy
as The Warden (archive footage) (uncredited)
(1941)
(1940)
Santa Fe Trail
as Weiner (uncredited)
(1940)
Waterloo Bridge
as Elderly Huntsman at Estate Dance (uncredited)
(1940)
Virginia City
as Southerner (uncredited)
(1940)
A Chump at Oxford
as Dean Williams
(1940)
They Drive by Night
as Bailiff (uncredited)
(1940)
Edison, the Man
as Broker
(1940)
Brother Orchid
as Brother MacDonald
(1940)
The Fighting 69th
as Eye Doctor (uncredited)
(1940)
Tear Gas Squad
as Policeman
(1940)
A Dispatch from Reuters
as Board Member (uncredited)
(1940)
Legion of the Lawless
as East Ivestown Leader (uncredited)
(1940)
Women Without Names
as Roomer
(1940)
Triple Justice
as Constable Herb at Tule Mesa
(1940)
Women in Hiding
as Policeman (uncredited)
(1939)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
as Pompous Man (uncredited)
(1939)
Dodge City
as Bartender (uncredited)
(1939)
Each Dawn I Die
as Bailiff (uncredited)
(1939)
Raffles
as Bobby
(1939)
Zenobia
as Undetermined Role
(1939)
Four Wives
as Stationmaster (uncredited)
(1939)
Women in the Wind
as Burbank Offical (uncredited)
(1939)
The Day the Bookies Wept
as Bill, Man Outside Racetrack (uncredited)
(1939)
Almost a Gentleman
as Dog Show Director
(1939)
Nick Carter, Master Detective
as Police Detective Randall
(1939)
The Marshal Of Mesa City
as Marshal Andy Thompson (uncredited)
(1938)
Over the Wall
as Cell Block Keeper
(1938)
Four Daughters
as Doctor (uncredited)
(1938)
A Man to Remember
as Man at Hospital Dedication (uncredited)
(1938)
Breakdowns of 1938
as Race Judge (archive footage) (uncredited)
(1938)
Night Spot
as Police Lieutenant
(1938)
The Baroness and the Butler
as Member of Parliament
(1938)
Brother Rat
as Ballfield Doctor
(1938)
The Declaration of Independence
as John Dickinson (uncredited)
(1938)
Down on the Farm
as Wheeler
(1938)
The Daredevil Drivers
as Race Judge
(1938)
Safety in Numbers
as Councilman
(1938)
Freshman Year
as Professor Ullrich
(1937)
Marked Woman
as Jury Foreman #1 (uncredited)
(1937)
Black Legion
as Bailiff (uncredited)
(1937)
Varsity Show
as Police Commissioner (uncredited)
(1937)
Varsity Show
as Police Commissioner
(1937)
Navy Blue and Gold
as Ship's Captain (uncredited)
(1937)
Hot Water
as Customer in Drugstore (uncredited)
(1937)
She Loved a Fireman
as Fire Tug Captain
(1937)
Talent Scout
as Director of Screen Test (uncredited)
(1937)
Missing Witnesses
as Judge in Wagner Case (uncredited)
(1937)
Blazing Sixes
as Sheriff Tom
(1937)
Empty Holsters
as John Ware
(1937)
We Who Are About to Die
as Prison Yard Captain (uncredited)
(1937)
Land Beyond the Law
as Jim Blake (uncredited)
(1937)
The Westland Case
as Gun Dealer
(1937)
The Man Without a Country
as Lincoln's Secretary (uncredited)
(1937)
Idol of the Crowds
as Doctor (uncredited)
(1937)
Criminal Lawyer
as Brandon's Assistant
(1937)
Prairie Thunder
as Nate Temple
(1937)
(1937)
Mile a Minute Love
as Drexel
(1936)
Modern Times
as Juvenile Officer
(1936)
The Prisoner of Shark Island
as Testifying Colonel
(1936)
Beloved Enemy
as Doctor (Uncredited)
(1936)
The Devil-Doll
as Off-Screen Voice (voice / uncredited)
(1936)
The Preview Murder Mystery
as Director (Uncredited)
(1936)
Love on a Bet
as Man at Hutchinson's Meeting
(1936)
Chatterbox
as Himself (uncredited)
(1936)
High Tension
as Businessman
(1936)
The White Angel
as Raglan Staff Officer (uncredited)
(1936)
California Mail
as Sheriff
(1936)
Midnight Blunders
as Professor Edwin Millstone (uncredited)
(1936)
The Country Doctor
as Proprietor (uncredited)
(1936)
Give Me Liberty
as His Excellency Permitting Henry's Arrest (uncredited)
(1936)
Human Cargo
as Police Chief
(1935)
Les Misérables
as Onlooker
(1935)
Naughty Marietta
as Announcer (uncredited)
(1935)
Frisco Kid
as First Policeman (uncredited)
(1935)
The Arizonian
as Townsman with Mayor
(1935)
Chandu on the Magic Island
as Capt. Walker
(1935)
Kind Lady
as First Scotland Yard Man (uncredited)
(1935)
Show Them No Mercy!
as Druggist (uncredited)
(1935)
Stranded
as Pat, a Welfare Worker (uncredited)
(1935)
Stormy
as Mack's Horse Trainer (uncredited)
(1935)
Vagabond Lady
as Dock Official (uncredited)
(1935)
Angkor
as Wilfred Lucas, game hunter
(1935)
Rip Roaring Riley
as Chief Martin
(1934)
Cleopatra
as Roman Greeting Antony (uncredited)
(1934)
The Dragon Murder Case
as Police Sergeant (uncredited)
(1934)
One Night of Love
as Metropolitan Operagoer
(1934)
The Return of Chandu
as Capt. Wilson [Chs. 4-12]
(1934)
Love Time
as Dignitary (uncredited)
(1934)
The Moth
as John Gale
(1934)
Shrimps for a Day
as Mr. Wade
(1934)
Apples to You!
as Chairman of the Board
(1933)
Mary Stevens, M.D.
as Andrews' Lawyer Barry (uncredited)
(1933)
(1933)
The Mayor of Hell
as Bill (uncredited)
(1933)
The Three Musketeers
as El Shaitan
(1933)
Midnight Mary
as Nightclub Bouncer (uncredited)
(1933)
(1933)
The Sphinx
as Prosecuting Attorney
(1933)
I Cover the Waterfront
as Randall
(1933)
The Intruder
as Mr. Wayne
(1933)
The House on 56th Street
as Prosecuting Attorney (uncredited)
(1933)
The Big Cage
as Bob Mills
(1933)
Racetrack
as Mr. Ryan
(1933)
Phantom Thunderbolt
as Eaton - Railroad President
(1933)
Strange People
as John Davis
(1933)
Air Fright
as Mr. Lucas, Airline Superintendent
(1932)
Call Her Savage
as Child Welfare Official (Uncredited)
(1932)
What Price Hollywood?
as Bill the Replacement Director (uncredited)
(1932)
The Unwritten Law
as Captain Kane
(1932)
The Dark Horse
as Debate Chairman
(1932)
The Secrets of Wu Sin
as Pharmacist
(1932)
Cross-Examination
as Judge Hollister
(1932)
Red Noses
as Mr. Lucas
(1932)
Careless Lady
as Ship's Purser
(1932)
You Said a Mouthful
as Official (uncredited)
(1932)
(1932)
Big City Blues
as Policeman (uncredited)
(1932)
The Devil Horse
as Whitney [Ch. 1] (uncredited)
(1932)
The Tabasco Kid
as Sheriff's Deputy
(1932)
Free Wheeling
as The Specialist
(1932)
Lucky Larrigan
as John Larrigan
(1932)
Sister to Judas
as Mike O'Flanagan
(1932)
(1931)
Pardon Us
as Warden
(1931)
(1931)
Millie
as Millie's Elderly Escort (uncredited)
(1931)
Stranger in Town
as J.P. Walker
(1931)
Men Call It Love
as Sam Ellery (uncredited)
(1931)
Graft
as Candidate Louis
(1931)
The Galloping Ghost
as Sportscaster
(1931)
The Age for Love
as Undetermined Role
(1931)
The Phantom
as Dist. Atty. John Hampton
(1931)
Young Donovan's Kid
as Duryea
(1931)
Convicted
as Capt. Hammond
(1931)
House of Mystery
as Sheriff Franklin
(1931)
(1931)
(1931)
Big Ears
as Doctor
(1930)
Madam Satan
as Roman Senator
(1930)
The Arizona Kid
as Manager
(1930)
Those Who Dance
as Big Ben Benson
(1930)
Looser Than Loose
as Mr. Gillstrom, Charley's Boss
(1930)
Cock o' the Walk
as Señor Vallejo
(1930)
Hello Sister
as Dr. Saltus
(1930)
(1927)
Burnt Fingers
as Lord Cumberly
(1926)
The Sorrows of Satan
as Minister (uncredited)
(1926)
Her Sacrifice
as Edwin Ramsey
(1925)
Cyclone Cavalier
as Hugh Clayton
(1925)
As No Man Has Loved
as Maj. Bissell
(1925)
A Broadway Butterfly
as Stage Manager
(1925)
Riders of the Purple Sage
as Oldring
(1925)
The Bad Lands
as Col. Owen
(1925)
How Baxter Butted In
as R.S. Falk
(1924)
The Valley of Hate
as Old Jim Darley
(1924)
Daughters of Pleasure
as Mark Hadley
(1924)
Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall
as Earl of Rutland
(1924)
Racing for Life
as Hudford
(1924)
North of Nevada
as C. Hanaford
(1924)
The Price She Paid
as James Presbury
(1924)
Valley of Hate
as Old Jim Darley
(1924)
The Fighting Sap
as Charles Richmond
(1924)
Lightning Romance
as Richard Wade
(1923)
Trilby
as The Laird
(1923)
Jazzmania
as Julius Furman
(1923)
The Girl of the Golden West
as Ashby
(1923)
The Greatest Menace
as Charles W. Wright
(1922)
The Kentucky Derby
as Capt. Wolff
(1922)
(1922)
Flesh and Blood
as The Policeman
(1922)
Across the Dead-Line
as Aaron Kidder
(1922)
Paid Back
as Ship Captain
(1921)
Through The Back Door
as Elton Reeves
(1921)
One a Minute
as Prosecutor (uncredited)
(1921)
The Beautiful Liar
as Gaston Allegretti
(1921)
The Fighting Breed
as John MacDonald
(1920)
The Man from Kangaroo
as Red Jack Braggan
(1919)
Soldiers of Fortune
as President Alvarez
(1919)
A Woman of Pleasure
as Sir John Thornbull
(1919)
What Every Woman Wants
as Horace Lennon
(1919)
The Hushed Hour
as Robert Appleton Jr.
(1917)
Hands Up!
as John Houston
(1917)
A Love Sublime
as Philip
(1917)
Souls Triumphant
as Robert Powers
(1917)
The Co-respondent
as Richard Manning
(1917)
Jim Bludso
as Jim Bludso
(1917)
Sins of Ambition
as Andrew Maxwell
(1917)
The Judgment House
as Rudyard Byng
(1916)
Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages
as Extra (uncredited)
(1916)
The Wood Nymph
as Fred Arnold
(1916)
The Microscope Mystery
as Doc Arnold
(1916)
Acquitted
as John Carter
(1916)
Hell-to-Pay Austin
as Hell-to-Pay Austin
(1916)
Macbeth
as Macduff
(1915)
The Lily and the Rose
as Jack Van Norman
(1915)
The Spanish Jade
as Osmund Manvers
(1914)
Brute Force
as Brute Force
(1914)
Gentleman Burglar
as Baffles
(1913)
(1913)
The Widow and the Widower
as The Widower
(1913)
(1912)
Man's Genesis
as Bruteforce
(1912)
A Pueblo Legend
as The Indian Girl's Great Brother
(1912)
The Massacre
as Stephen
(1912)
Just Like a Woman
as The Wealthy Friend
(1912)
A Temporary Truce
as An Indian (uncredited)
(1912)
(1912)
Under Burning Skies
as Joe
(1912)
Home Folks
as The Blacksmith
(1912)
Fate's Interception
as The American
(1912)
When Kings Were the Law
as The King of Romanda
(1912)
A Sailor’s Heart
as The Sailor
(1912)
The Goddess of Sagebrush Gulch
as Minor Role (uncredited)
(1912)
The Transformation of Mike
as Mike
(1912)
Billy's Stratagem
as Billy's Father
(1911)
Enoch Arden
as Enoch Arden
(1911)
The Making of a Man
as In Second Audience
(1911)
(1911)
The Rose of Kentucky
as The planter
(1911)
Fisher Folks
as Steve Hardester
(1911)
His Trust
as George
(1911)
Swords and Hearts
as Hugh Frazier
(1911)
(1911)
The Primal Call
as The Fisherman
(1911)
The Lonedale Operator
as The Fireman
(1911)
A Woman Scorned
as The Doctor
(1911)
The Long Road
as A Policeman
(1911)
What Shall We Do with Our Old?
as Violent Jailbird
(1911)
His Trust Fulfilled
as George
(1911)
(1911)
The Miser's Heart
as First Crook
(1911)
(1911)
(1911)
Heart Beats of Long Ago
as The Lover
(1911)
The Failure
as The Clerk
(1911)
A Terrible Discovery
as The District Attorney
(1911)
Love in the Hills
as The Manley Suitor
(1911)
(1910)
Winning Back His Love
as Frederick Wallace
(1910)
(1909)
(1909)
(1909)
(1909)
(1909)
(1908)
The Greaser's Gauntlet
as Jose
(1908)
(1908)
Crew
(1932)
Igloo
Writer
(1932)
The Unwritten Law
Director
(1926)
Her Sacrifice
Director
(1924)
Racing for Life
Screenplay, Story
(1924)
The Beautiful Sinner
Story
(1921)
The Fighting Breed
Writer, Director
(1920)
The Man from Kangaroo
Director
(1918)
The Romance of Tarzan
Scenario Writer, Director
(1918)
Morgan's Raiders
Director, Writer
(1917)
Jim Bludso
Director
(1917)
Hands Up!
Director, Writer
(1917)
A Love Sublime
Director, Writer
(1915)
The Spanish Jade
Director
(1914)
The Severed Hand
Director
(1914)
A Misplaced Foot
Director
(1914)
The Trey o' Hearts
Director
(1914)
A Glimpse of Los Angeles
Director
(1913)
Pirate Gold
Director
(1913)
The Speed Kings
Director
(1913)
Fatty's Day Off
Director
(1913)
A Quiet Little Wedding
Director
(1913)
The Milk We Drink
Director
(1913)
Baby Day
Director
(1912)
The Chief's Blanket
Writer
(1912)
A Sailor’s Heart
Director, Writer
(1912)
With the Enemy's Help
Director
(1912)
When Kings Were the Law
Writer
(1910)
Sunshine Sue
Writer