Alfie Bass
Encyclopedia
Alfred Bass was an English
actor
. He was born in Bethnal Green
, London
, the youngest in a Jewish family with ten children; their parents had fled persecution in Russia. He appeared in a variety of stage, film, television and radio productions throughout his career.
in the late 1930s, appearing in Plant In The Sun alongside Paul Robeson
, and as the pantomime
King in Babes In The Wood. After the outbreak of the Second World War, Bass joined the Middlesex regiment as a despatch rider. Despite being kept busy with his duties, he found time to become involved in concert parties, as well as taking part in documentaries for the Army Film Unit.
His stage career included plays by Shakespeare and Shaw
. During the 1950s he continued to direct shows at Unity, and on one occasion appeared in court (along with Vida Hope) charged with putting on a play without a licence. His stage work also included an adaptation of Gogol
's short story "The Bespoke Overcoat
", transposed to the East End of London, which was filmed by Jack Clayton
in 1956, and won the Oscar for best short. Bass also took over from Chaim Topol
in the role of Tevye
in Fiddler on the Roof
on the West End stage
.
documentaries. He also appeared in a number of feature films including The Lavender Hill Mob
(1951), Hell Drivers
(1957), A Tale of Two Cities
(1958) and Alfie (1966) starring Michael Caine
and Shelley Winters
. In the latter he played Harry Clamacraft, a man Alfie meets and befriends in a sanatorium
.
He starred in Roman Polanski
's vampire
film The Fearless Vampire Killers
(1967) (British title The Dance of the Vampires) as innkeeper Yoine Shagal with his daughter Sarah played by Sharon Tate
. In the course of the film, he and his daughter become vampires. When a maid
tries to scare him off with a crucifix
, he responds with "Oy, have you got the wrong vampire!".
Bass also appeared in the "Pride" segment of The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins
(1971) and had a leading role in the 1977 sex comedy Come Play with Me. He has had many cameo roles, such as the Indian restaurant
doorman in The Beatles
' movie Help!
(1965), as Clouseau's seafaring informant in Revenge of the Pink Panther
(1978), and in Moonraker
(1979). Bass had a small part in I Was Monty's Double
in a non-speaking passenger on a train.
starring Richard Greene. He appeared in The Army Game
(1957–61), a British TV comedy series, as Private Montague 'Excused Boots' Bisley, and its sequel Bootsie and Snudge
from 1960-63 (there was also a one series revival in colour in 1974) working at a Gentleman's Club with Bill Fraser
as Snudge and Clive Dunn
. Bass also acted in the 1950s Landmark BBC Radio SF Series Journey Into Space
as Lemuel "Lemmy" Barnet.
He continued working until the turn of the 1980s. Later work included roles in the TV series Till Death Us Do Part, Minder
, and Are You Being Served?
as Mr. Goldberg, the second in a series of replacements for Arthur Brough
's Mr. Grainger character (the first being James Hayter's Mr. Tebbs). As in the Mr. Goldberg role, he often emphasised his Jewish background in on-screen characterizations. He played a memorable Silas Wegg in the BBC's 1976 adaptation of Dickens's Our Mutual Friend.
He also guest starred in two episodes of the British comedy television The Goodies
, in which he appeared as the "Town Planner" in Camelot
, and as the Giant in The Goodies and the Beanstalk.
on 15 July 1987 in Barnet
, Greater London
. His last home was in Well End, a suburb of Borehamwood
, Hertfordshire
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
. He was born in Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green is a district of the East End of London, England and part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, with the far northern parts falling within the London Borough of Hackney. Located northeast of Charing Cross, it was historically an agrarian hamlet in the ancient parish of Stepney,...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, the youngest in a Jewish family with ten children; their parents had fled persecution in Russia. He appeared in a variety of stage, film, television and radio productions throughout his career.
Early life
After leaving elementary school in Bethnal Green at the age of 14, he worked as a tailor's apprentice, a messenger boy and a shop-window display fitter, before taking to the stage.Stage career
Bass's acting career began at Unity Theatre, LondonUnity Theatre, London
The Unity Theatre was a theatre club formed in 1936, and initially based in St Judes Hall, Britannia Street, Kings Cross, in 1937 they moved to a former chapel in Goldington Street, near St Pancras, in the London Borough of Camden. Although the theatre was destroyed by fire in 1975 productions...
in the late 1930s, appearing in Plant In The Sun alongside Paul Robeson
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
, and as the pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
King in Babes In The Wood. After the outbreak of the Second World War, Bass joined the Middlesex regiment as a despatch rider. Despite being kept busy with his duties, he found time to become involved in concert parties, as well as taking part in documentaries for the Army Film Unit.
His stage career included plays by Shakespeare and Shaw
George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60...
. During the 1950s he continued to direct shows at Unity, and on one occasion appeared in court (along with Vida Hope) charged with putting on a play without a licence. His stage work also included an adaptation of Gogol
Nikolai Gogol
Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol was a Ukrainian-born Russian dramatist and novelist.Considered by his contemporaries one of the preeminent figures of the natural school of Russian literary realism, later critics have found in Gogol's work a fundamentally romantic sensibility, with strains of Surrealism...
's short story "The Bespoke Overcoat
The Bespoke Overcoat
The Bespoke Overcoat is a British short film directed by Jack Clayton, based on a 1953 play of the same name by Wolf Mankowitz. The story is an adaptation of Gogol's short story The Overcoat with the action relocated from Russia to the East End of London. In this version the protagonists are poor...
", transposed to the East End of London, which was filmed by Jack Clayton
Jack Clayton
Jack Clayton was a British film director who specialised in bringing literary works to the screen.-Career:A native of East Sussex, Clayton started his career as a child actor on the 1929 film Dark Red Roses...
in 1956, and won the Oscar for best short. Bass also took over from Chaim Topol
Chaim Topol
Chaim Topol , often billed simply as Topol, is an Israeli theatrical and film performer, actor, writer and producer. He has been nominated for an Oscar and Tony Award, and has won two Golden Globes.-Early life:...
in the role of Tevye
Tevye
Tevye the Dairyman is the protagonist of several of Sholem Aleichem's stories, originally written in Yiddish and first published in 1894. The character became best known from the fictional memoir Tevye and his Daughters , about a pious Jewish milkman in Tsarist Russia, and the troubles he has with...
in Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
on the West End stage
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
.
Film appearances
Bass first appeared on film in wartimeWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
documentaries. He also appeared in a number of feature films including The Lavender Hill Mob
The Lavender Hill Mob
The Lavender Hill Mob is a 1951 comedy film from Ealing Studios, written by T.E.B. Clarke, directed by Charles Crichton, starring Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway and featuring Sid James and Alfie Bass...
(1951), Hell Drivers
Hell Drivers (film)
Hell Drivers is a 1957 British film directed by Cy Endfield starring Stanley Baker, Herbert Lom, Peggy Cummins, Patrick McGoohan and Sean Connery, produced by the Rank Organisation and Aqua Film Productions.-Plot:...
(1957), A Tale of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities (1958 film)
A Tale of Two Cities is a 1958 British film of the Charles Dickens novel A Tale of Two Cities. It starred Dirk Bogarde and Dorothy Tutin, and was directed by Ralph Thomas.-Cast:*Dirk Bogarde as Sydney Carton*Dorothy Tutin as Lucie Manette...
(1958) and Alfie (1966) starring Michael Caine
Michael Caine
Sir Michael Caine, CBE is an English actor. He won Academy Awards for best supporting actor in both Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules ....
and Shelley Winters
Shelley Winters
Shelley Winters was an American actress who appeared in dozens of films, as well as on stage and television; her career spanned over 50 years until her death in 2006...
. In the latter he played Harry Clamacraft, a man Alfie meets and befriends in a sanatorium
Sanatorium
A sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis before antibiotics...
.
He starred in Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski is a French-Polish film director, producer, writer and actor. Having made films in Poland, Britain, France and the USA, he is considered one of the few "truly international filmmakers."...
's vampire
Vampire
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
film The Fearless Vampire Killers
The Fearless Vampire Killers
The Fearless Vampire Killers is a 1967 comedy horror film directed by Roman Polanski, written by Gérard Brach and Polanski, produced by Gene Gutowski and co-starring Polanski with future wife Sharon Tate...
(1967) (British title The Dance of the Vampires) as innkeeper Yoine Shagal with his daughter Sarah played by Sharon Tate
Sharon Tate
Sharon Marie Tate was an American actress. During the 1960s she played small television roles before appearing in several films. After receiving positive reviews for her comedic performances, she was hailed as one of Hollywood's promising newcomers and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for...
. In the course of the film, he and his daughter become vampires. When a maid
Domestic worker
A domestic worker is a man, woman or child who works within the employer's household. Domestic workers perform a variety of household services for an individual or a family, from providing care for children and elderly dependents to cleaning and household maintenance, known as housekeeping...
tries to scare him off with a crucifix
Crucifix
A crucifix is an independent image of Jesus on the cross with a representation of Jesus' body, referred to in English as the corpus , as distinct from a cross with no body....
, he responds with "Oy, have you got the wrong vampire!".
Bass also appeared in the "Pride" segment of The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins
The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins
The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins is a 1971 British comedy film directed and produced by Graham Stark. Its title is a conflation of The Magnificent Seven and the seven deadly sins. It comprises a sequence of seven sketches, each representing a sin and written by an array of British comedy-writing...
(1971) and had a leading role in the 1977 sex comedy Come Play with Me. He has had many cameo roles, such as the Indian restaurant
Indian cuisine
Indian cuisine consists of thousands of regional cuisines which date back thousands of years. The dishes of India are characterised by the extensive use of various Indian spices, herbs, vegetables and fruit. Indian cuisine is also known for the widespread practice of vegetarianism in Indian society...
doorman in The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
' movie Help!
Help! (film)
Help! is a 1965 film directed by Richard Lester, starring The Beatles—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr—and featuring Leo McKern, Eleanor Bron, Victor Spinetti, John Bluthal, Roy Kinnear and Patrick Cargill. Help! was the second feature film made by the Beatles and is a...
(1965), as Clouseau's seafaring informant in Revenge of the Pink Panther
Revenge of the Pink Panther
Revenge of the Pink Panther is the sixth film in the Pink Panther film series. Released in 1978, Revenge of was the last entry featuring series star Peter Sellers, who died in 1980...
(1978), and in Moonraker
Moonraker (film)
Moonraker is the eleventh spy film in the James Bond series, and the fourth to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The third and final film in the series to be directed by Lewis Gilbert, it co-stars Lois Chiles, Michael Lonsdale, Corinne Clery, and Richard Kiel...
(1979). Bass had a small part in I Was Monty's Double
I Was Monty's Double (film)
I Was Monty's Double is a 1958 film made by Associated British Picture Corporation . It was directed by John Guillermin, from a screenplay adapted by Bryan Forbes.- Plot :...
in a non-speaking passenger on a train.
Television and radio
Bass appeared as a poacher rescued by Robin in the first episode of The Adventures of Robin HoodThe Adventures of Robin Hood (TV series)
The Adventures of Robin Hood is a popular British television series comprising 143 half-hour, black and white episodes. It starred Richard Greene as the outlaw Robin Hood and Alan Wheatley as his nemesis, the Sheriff of Nottingham. The show aired weekly between 1955 and 1959 on ITV in London in the...
starring Richard Greene. He appeared in The Army Game
The Army Game
The Army Game is a British sitcom that aired on ITV from 1957 to 1961. Made in black-and-white, it is about National Service conscription to the post-war British Army. It was created by Sid Colin...
(1957–61), a British TV comedy series, as Private Montague 'Excused Boots' Bisley, and its sequel Bootsie and Snudge
Bootsie and Snudge
Bootsie and Snudge was a British television situation comedy series written, in the early days, by Barry Took and Marty Feldman, later writers were John Antrobus, Jack Rosenthal, ventriloquist Ray Alan and Harry Driver. The show featured Clive Dunn, more famous as Corporal Jones in Dad's Army, as...
from 1960-63 (there was also a one series revival in colour in 1974) working at a Gentleman's Club with Bill Fraser
Bill Fraser
-External links:* *...
as Snudge and Clive Dunn
Clive Dunn
Clive Robert Benjamin Dunn OBE is a retired English actor, comedian and author, best known for his role as Lance-Corporal Jack Jones in the BBC sitcom Dad's Army.-Early life:...
. Bass also acted in the 1950s Landmark BBC Radio SF Series Journey Into Space
Journey Into Space
Journey Into Space is a BBC Radio science fiction programme, written by BBC producer Charles Chilton. It was the last radio programme in the UK to attract a bigger evening audience than television...
as Lemuel "Lemmy" Barnet.
He continued working until the turn of the 1980s. Later work included roles in the TV series Till Death Us Do Part, Minder
Minder (TV series)
Minder is a British comedy-drama about the London criminal underworld. Initially produced by Verity Lambert, it was made by Euston Films, a subsidiary of Thames Television and shown on ITV...
, and Are You Being Served?
Are You Being Served?
Are You Being Served? is a British sitcom broadcast from 1972 to 1985. It was set in the ladies' and gentlemen's clothing departments of Grace Brothers, a large, fictional London department store. It was written mainly by Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft, with contributions by Michael Knowles and John...
as Mr. Goldberg, the second in a series of replacements for Arthur Brough
Arthur Brough
Arthur Brough was a British actor, best known for portraying the character of senior menswear salesman Mr...
's Mr. Grainger character (the first being James Hayter's Mr. Tebbs). As in the Mr. Goldberg role, he often emphasised his Jewish background in on-screen characterizations. He played a memorable Silas Wegg in the BBC's 1976 adaptation of Dickens's Our Mutual Friend.
He also guest starred in two episodes of the British comedy television The Goodies
The Goodies (TV series)
The Goodies is a British television comedy series of the 1970s and early 1980s. The series, which combines surreal sketches and situation comedy, was broadcast by BBC 2 from 1970 until 1980 — and was then broadcast by the ITV company LWT for a year, between 1981 to 1982.The show was...
, in which he appeared as the "Town Planner" in Camelot
Camelot (Goodies episode)
Camelot is an episode of the British comedy television series The Goodies— a BAFTA-nominated series for Best Light Entertainment Programme.As always, the episode was written by members of The Goodies.-Plot:...
, and as the Giant in The Goodies and the Beanstalk.
Death
Bass died of a heart attackMyocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
on 15 July 1987 in Barnet
London Borough of Barnet
The London Borough of Barnet is a London borough in North London and forms part of Outer London. It has a population of 331,500 and covers . It borders Hertfordshire to the north and five other London boroughs: Harrow and Brent to the west, Camden and Haringey to the south-east and Enfield to the...
, Greater London
Greater London
Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...
. His last home was in Well End, a suburb of Borehamwood
Borehamwood
-Film industry:Since the 1920s, the town has been home to several film studios and many shots of its streets are included in final cuts of 20th century British films. This earned it the nickname of the "British Hollywood"...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
.
Selected filmography
- Brief EncounterBrief EncounterBrief Encounter is a 1945 British film directed by David Lean about the conventions of British suburban life, centring on a housewife for whom real love brings unexpectedly violent emotions. The film stars Celia Johnson, Trevor Howard, Stanley Holloway and Joyce Carey...
(1945) - JassyJassy (film)Jassy was a 1947 British film melodrama, based on a novel by Norah Lofts. It was a Gainsborough melodrama, the only one to be made in technicolour.-Plot:...
(1947) - Man on the RunMan on the RunMan on the Run is a 1949 British drama film directed by Lawrence Huntington and starring Derek Farr, Joan Hopkins, Edward Chapman, Kenneth More and Laurence Harvey.-Synopsis:...
(1949) - The Lavender Hill MobThe Lavender Hill MobThe Lavender Hill Mob is a 1951 comedy film from Ealing Studios, written by T.E.B. Clarke, directed by Charles Crichton, starring Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway and featuring Sid James and Alfie Bass...
(1951) - Derby DayDerby Day (1952 film)Derby Day is a 1952 British drama film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Anna Neagle, Michael Wilding, Googie Withers, John McCallum and Alfie Bass. An ensemble piece, it portrays several characters on their way to the Derby Day races at Epsom Downs Racecourse...
(1952) - The Square RingThe Square RingThe Square Ring is a 1953 British film directed by Basil Dearden and made at Ealing Studios. It stars Jack Warner, Robert Beatty and Bill Owen...
(1953) - The Angel Who Pawned Her HarpThe Angel Who Pawned Her HarpThe Angel Who Pawned Her Harp is a 1956 British black and white part-fantasy comedy film directed by Alan Bromly and starring Felix Aylmer as a second hand store owner, and Diane Cilento as the Angel....
(1954) - Murder by ProxyMurder by ProxyMurder by Proxy is a 1954 crime film directed by Terence Fisher. It stars Dane Clark and Belinda Lee.-Cast:* Dane Clark as Casey Morrow* Belinda Lee as Phyllis Brunner* Betty Ann Davies as Mrs...
(1954) - To Dorothy a SonTo Dorothy a SonTo Dorothy a Son is a 1954 British comedy film directed by Muriel Box and starring Shelley Winters, John Gregson and Peggy Cummins. It is also known as Cash on Delivery. It is based on a play by Roger MacDougall...
(1954) - SvengaliSvengali (1954 film)Svengali is a 1954 British drama film directed by Noel Langley and starring Hildegard Knef, Donald Wolfit and Terence Morgan. A svengali hypnotises an artist's model into becoming a great opera singer, but she struggles to escape from his powers. It was based on a novel by George Du Maurier.-Cast:*...
(1954) - Jumping for JoyJumping for JoyJumping for Joy is a 1956 British comedy film directed by John Paddy Carstairs and starring Frankie Howerd, Stanley Holloway, Joan Hickson and Lionel Jeffries...
(1956) - A Touch of the SunA Touch of the Sun (1956 film)A Touch of the Sun is a 1956 British comedy film directed by Gordon Parry and starring Frankie Howerd, Ruby Murray and Dennis Price. A hall porter is left a large inheritance by one of the residents...
(1956) - Hell DriversHell Drivers (film)Hell Drivers is a 1957 British film directed by Cy Endfield starring Stanley Baker, Herbert Lom, Peggy Cummins, Patrick McGoohan and Sean Connery, produced by the Rank Organisation and Aqua Film Productions.-Plot:...
(1957) - I Only Arsked!I Only Arsked!I Only Arsked! is a 1958 British comedy film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Bernard Bresslaw, Michael Medwin and Alfie Bass. It was based on the television series The Army Game and was made by Hammer Films.-Cast:...
(1958) - Alfie (1966)
- Up the Junction (1968)
- The Magnificent Seven Deadly SinsThe Magnificent Seven Deadly SinsThe Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins is a 1971 British comedy film directed and produced by Graham Stark. Its title is a conflation of The Magnificent Seven and the seven deadly sins. It comprises a sequence of seven sketches, each representing a sin and written by an array of British comedy-writing...
(1971)