The Thirteenth Chair
Encyclopedia
The Thirteenth Chair is a 1929 mystery film
directed by Tod Browning
. It is based on a 1916 play of the same name by Bayard Veiller
.
Mystery film
Mystery film is a sub-genre of the more general category of crime film and at times the thriller genre. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of a crime by means of clues, investigation, and clever deduction.The...
directed by Tod Browning
Tod Browning
Tod Browning was an American motion picture actor, director and screenwriter.Browning's career spanned the silent and talkie eras...
. It is based on a 1916 play of the same name by Bayard Veiller
Bayard Veiller
Bayard Veiller was an American screenwriter, producer and film director. He wrote for 32 films between 1915 and 1941...
.
Cast
- Conrad NagelConrad NagelConrad Nagel was an American screen actor and matinee idol of the silent film era and beyond. He was also a well-known television actor and radio performer.-Biography:...
as Richard Crosby - Leila HyamsLeila HyamsLeila Hyams was an American film actress. Her relatively short film career began in silent films, and ended in the mid 1930s.-Early life:...
as Helen 'Nellie' O'Neill - Margaret WycherlyMargaret WycherlyMargaret Wycherly was an English stage and film actress.-Early life:Wycherly was born Margaret De Wolfe in London, England of American parents, Dr. and Mrs. J. L. De Wolfe. She was married to writer Bayard Veiller in 1901. They had a son, Anthony Veiller , who also became a writer...
as Madame Rosalie La Grange - Helene Millard as Mary Eastwood
- Holmes HerbertHolmes HerbertHolmes Herbert was an English character actor who appeared in Hollywood films from 1915 to 1952.Born as 'Horace Jenner', Holmes Herbert emigrated to the United States in 1912. He was the first son of Ned Herbert , who worked as and actor/comedian in the English Theatre...
as Sir Roscoe Crosby - Mary ForbesMary ForbesMary Forbes was an English film actress. She appeared in over 130 films between 1919 and 1958....
as Lady Alice Crosby - Béla LugosiBéla LugosiBéla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó , commonly known as Bela Lugosi, was a Hungarian actor of stage and screen. He was best known for having played Count Dracula in the Broadway play and subsequent film version, as well as having starred in several of Ed Wood's low budget films in the last years of his...
as Inspector Delzante - John DavidsonJohn Davidson (actor)John Davidson was an American film actor. He appeared in 148 films between 1915 and 1963.He was born in New York, New York and died in Los Angeles, California.-Selected filmography:...
as Edward 'Ned' Wales - Charles QuatermaineCharles Quatermaine-Selected filmography:* The Lady Clare * Westward Ho! * The Face at the Window * A Man of Mayfair * Drake of England -External links:...
as Dr. Philip Mason (as Charles Quartermaine) - Moon Carroll as Helen Trent
- Cyril ChadwickCyril ChadwickCyril Chadwick was an English actor of the silent era. He appeared in 70 films between 1913 and 1938. He was born in Kensington, London.-Selected filmography:*Temple Tower * The Thirteenth Chair...
as Brandon Trent - Bertram Johns as Howard Standish
- Gretchen Holland as Grace Standish
- Frank Leigh as Professor Feringeea
- Clarence GeldartClarence GeldartClarence Geldart , was an American film actor. He appeared in 127 films between 1915 and 1936.He was born in New Brunswick, Canada and died in Calabasas, California.-Selected filmography:* The Squaw Man...
as Commissioner Grimshaw (as Clarence Geldert) - Lal Chand Mehra as Chotee the Crosby Servant
Trivia
- This film was one of many released in both a sound filmSound filmA sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades would pass before sound motion pictures were made commercially...
and a silent filmSilent filmA silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
version. The sound version of this film is known to survive. - Margaret WycherlyMargaret WycherlyMargaret Wycherly was an English stage and film actress.-Early life:Wycherly was born Margaret De Wolfe in London, England of American parents, Dr. and Mrs. J. L. De Wolfe. She was married to writer Bayard Veiller in 1901. They had a son, Anthony Veiller , who also became a writer...
, who was at one time married to the writer Bayard Veiller, appeared in the original 1916 play cast as well as in this film. - An earlier version of the film, starring Creighton HaleCreighton HaleCreighton Hale was an Irish-born American movie actor who worked in the silent film era.-Career:While starring in Charles Frohman's Broadway production of Indian Summer, Hale was spotted by a representative of the Pathe Film Company...
, was released in 1919 by Pathe ExchangePathéPathé or Pathé Frères is the name of various French businesses founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France.-History:...
. In 1937, the film was remadeRemakeA remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...
by MGM, starring Elissa LandiElissa LandiElissa Landi was an Italian born actress who was popular in Hollywood films of the 1920s and 1930s. Rumoured to be a descendant of Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria, she was noted for her aristocratic bearing....
and Dame May Whitty.