Thomas Bentley
Encyclopedia
Thomas Bentley was a British
film director. He directed 68 films between 1912
and 1941
. He directed three films in the early DeForest Phonofilm
sound-on-film process, The Man in the Street (1926), The Antidote (1927), and Acci-Dental Treatment (1928).
Bentley was born in London and originally trained as an engineer, but went on to become a vaudeville
performer well-known for impersonating the characters from the novel
s of Charles Dickens
on stage. His directing career in silent films began in 1910 with his adaptations of a number of Dickens' novels to film. After his retirement from directing in 1941 he became technical advisor to the British Film Council.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
film director. He directed 68 films between 1912
1912 in film
The year 1912 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*Mack Sennett, who had previously worked as an actor and comedy director with D. W. Griffith, formed a new company with New York City entrepreneur Adam Kessel called Keystone Studios...
and 1941
1941 in film
The year 1941 in film involved some significant events.-Events:Citizen Kane, consistently rated as one of the greatest films of all time, was released in 1941.-Top grossing films :-Academy Awards:...
. He directed three films in the early DeForest Phonofilm
Phonofilm
In 1919, Lee De Forest, inventor of the audion tube, filed his first patent on a sound-on-film process, DeForest Phonofilm, which recorded sound directly onto film as parallel lines. These parallel lines photographically recorded electrical waveforms from a microphone, which were translated back...
sound-on-film process, The Man in the Street (1926), The Antidote (1927), and Acci-Dental Treatment (1928).
Bentley was born in London and originally trained as an engineer, but went on to become a vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
performer well-known for impersonating the characters from the novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s of Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
on stage. His directing career in silent films began in 1910 with his adaptations of a number of Dickens' novels to film. After his retirement from directing in 1941 he became technical advisor to the British Film Council.
Selected filmography
- David CopperfieldDavid Copperfield (1913 film)David Copperfield is a 1913 British black-and-white silent film based on the novel David Copperfield by Charles Dickens. It is the second-oldest known film adaptation of the novel....
(1913) - MilestonesMilestones (film)Milestones is a 1916 British silent drama film directed by Thomas Bentley. As of August 2010, the film is missing from the BFI National Archive, and is listed as one of the British Film Institute's "75 Most Wanted" lost films.-Cast:...
(1916) - The Adventures of Mr. PickwickThe Adventures of Mr. PickwickThe Adventures of Mr. Pickwick is a 1921 British silent comedy film directed by Thomas Bentley based on the novel The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens...
(1921) - A Romance of MayfairA Romance of MayfairA Romance of Mayfair is a 1925 British romance film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Betty Faire, Henry Victor and Molly Johnson. The love affair between the heir to a Duke and a young actress is almost ruined because of the gulf in class between them.-Cast:* Betty Faire - Mary Lawrence*...
(1925) - White Heat (1926)
- The Silver LiningThe Silver Lining (1927 film)The Silver Lining is a 1927 British silent drama film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Marie Ault, Patrick Aherne and Moore Marriott. Two brothers fight over a girl, leading one to frame the other for robbery. Later, guilt-ridden, he confesses and arranges his own death.-Cast:* Marie Ault -...
(1927) - Not Quite a LadyNot Quite a LadyNot Quite a Lady is a 1928 British comedy film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Mabel Poulton, Janet Alexander and Barbara Gott. Unhappy with her son's choice of fiancee a wealthy woman holds a boring house party to try to put her off marrying into the family.-Cast:* Mabel Poulton - Ethel...
(1928) - The American PrisonerThe American Prisoner (film)The American Prisoner is a 1929 British drama film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Carl Brisson, Madeleine Carroll and Cecil Barry. It was adapted from the 1904 novel The American Prisoner by Eden Phillpotts. An American sailor imprisoned on Dartmoor during the Napoleonic Wars manages to...
(1929) - Young Woodley (1930)
- Compromising DaphneCompromising DaphneCompromising Daphne is a 1930 British comedy film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Jean Colin, Phyllis Konstam, C.M. Hallard and Viola Compton. It was also released as Compromised! and was based on a play by Edith Fitzgerald.-Cast:...
(1930) - Hobson's ChoiceHobson's Choice (1931 film)Hobson's Choice is a 1931 British comedy drama film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring James Harcourt, Viola Lyel, Frank Pettingell and Herbert Lomas. A coarse bootshop owner is outraged when his eldest daughter decides to marry a meek cobbler...
(1931) - Keepers of YouthKeepers of YouthKeepers of Youth is a 1931 British drama film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Garry Marsh, Ann Todd and Robin Irvine. It was based on the 1929 play Keepers of Youth by Arnold Ridley.-Cast:* Garry Marsh - Knox* Ann Todd - Millicent...
(1931) - After Office HoursAfter Office HoursAfter Office Hours is a 1935 film starring Clark Gable and Constance Bennett and directed by Robert Z. Leonard.-Plot:Jim Branch , news editor, falls for Sharon Norwood while trying to uncover a murder mystery.-Cast:...
(1932) - Sleepless Nights (1932)
- The Love NestThe Love Nest (1933 film)The Love Nest is a 1933 British comedy film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Gene Gerrard, Camilla Horn and Nancy Burne. On the eve of his own woman, a man offers shelter to a runaway wife with whom he strikes up an unexpected bond.-Cast:...
(1933) - Hawley's of High StreetHawley's of High StreetHawley's of High Street is a 1933 British comedy film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Leslie Fuller, Judy Kelly, Francis Lister and Moore Marriott. A butcher and a draper stand for election to the local council...
(1933) - The Scotland Yard MysteryThe Scotland Yard MysteryThe Scotland Yard Mystery is a 1934 British crime film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Gerald du Maurier, George Curzon, Grete Natzler, Belle Chrystall and Wally Patch...
(1934) - Those Were the DaysThose Were the Days (1934 film)Those were the Days is a film primarily remembered as Will Hay's first major film role. It was based on the farce The Magistrate written by playwright Sir Arthur Wing Pinero, and was the first of two Hay movies that were based Pinero's plays, the other being Dandy Dick...
(1934) - The Great DefenderThe Great DefenderThe Great Defender is a 1934 British mystery film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Matheson Lang, Margaret Bannerman and Arthur Margetson...
(1934) - The Old Curiosity ShopThe Old Curiosity Shop (1934 film)The Old Curiosity Shop is a 1934 British drama film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Elaine Benson, Ben Webster and Hay Petrie. It is an adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel The Old Curiosity Shop.-Cast:* Elaine Benson - Nell...
(1934) - Royal CavalcadeRoyal CavalcadeRoyal Cavalcade is a 1935 British, black-and-white, drama film directed by six separate directors: Thomas Bentley , Herbert Brenon, Norman Lee, Walter Summers, Will Kellino and Marcel Varnel. The film features Marie Lohr, Hermione Baddeley, Owen Nares, Robert Hale, Austin Trevor, James Carew,...
(1935) - Music Hath CharmsMusic Hath CharmsMusic Hath Charms is a 1935 British musical film directed by Thomas Bentley. Walter Summers, Arthur B. Woods and Alexander Esway, and starring Henry Hall, Carol Goodner and Arthur Margetson.-Cast:* Henry Hall - Himself* W.H. Berry - Basil Turner...
(1935) - She Knew What She WantedShe Knew What She WantedShe Knew What She Wanted is a 1936 British musical comedy film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Albert Burdon, Claude Dampier and Googie Withers. An amoral young dancer falls in love with the bander leader.-Cast:* Albert Burdon - Dugsie...
(1936) - The AngelusThe Angelus (film)The Angelus is a 1937 British crime film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Anthony Bushell, Nancy O'Neil and Garry Marsh. A Nun leaves her convent to hunt down a murderer.-Cast:* Anthony Bushell - Brian Ware* Nancy O'Neil - June Rowland...
(1937) - Silver BlazeSilver Blaze (film)Silver Blaze is a 1937 British, black-and-white, crime and mystery, directed by Thomas Bentley, starring Arthur Wontner as Sherlock Holmes, Ian Fleming as Dr. Watson and Ronald Shiner as Simpson the Stable Boy / Jockey...
(1937) - The Last ChanceThe Last ChanceThe Last Chance is a 1945 Swiss war film directed by Leopold Lindtberg. It was entered into the 1946 Cannes Film Festival and won the Grand Prize of the Festival .-Cast:* Ewart G...
(1937) - Night Alone (1938)
- Marigold (1938)
- Me and My PalMe and My Pal (1939 film)Me and My Pal is a 1939 British comedy film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Dave Willis, Patricia Kirkwood and George Moon. Two lorry drivers become mixed up with criminals who trick them into an insurance swindle that ends up with them being sent to prison.It was the second and last...
(1939) - Lucky to Me (1939)
- Dead Man's ShoesDead Man's Shoes (1939 film)-Cast:* Leslie Banks as Roger de Vetheuil* Joan Marion as Viola de Vetheuil* Geoffrey Atkins as Paul de Vetheuil* Wilfrid Lawson as Lucien Sarrou* Judy Kelly as Michelle Allain* Nancy Price as Madame Pelletier* Walter Hudd as Gaston Alexandri...
(1939) - The Middle WatchThe Middle Watch (1940 film)The Middle Watch is a 1940 British, black-and-white, comedy film, directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Ronald Shiner as the Ship's Mechanic or Engineer, Jack Buchanan, Greta Gynt, Fred Emney and Kay Walsh. It was produced by Associated British Picture Corporation...
(1940) - Old Mother Riley's CircusOld Mother Riley's CircusOld Mother Riley's Circus is a 1941 British comedy film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Arthur Lucan, Kitty McShane and John Longden. Old Mother Riley takes over a struggling circus and makes a huge success of it.-Cast:* Arthur Lucan – Mrs...
(1941)