Tom Tyler
Encyclopedia
Tom Tyler was an American actor in silent and sound motion pictures, best known for his portrayal of superhero Captain Marvel
in the acclaimed 1941 movie serial The Adventures of Captain Marvel.
, and was limited to occasional supporting roles. Nearly destitute, he returned to live with his sister in the Detroit area, dying there of heart failure at the age of 50 in 1954. He was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery
.
's Stagecoach and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
. He occasionally took "civilian" roles in feature films (he's the boxing referee in Abbott and Costello
's Buck Privates
), but the biggest part of Tyler's screen career was spent making low-budget B-movie westerns for modest salaries. Most of his budget westerns were made by Reliable Pictures for producers Bernard B. Ray and Harry S. Webb.
Larger studios cast the athletic Tyler in rugged roles. In 1940, he was the Mummy "Kharis" in The Mummy's Hand
, cast in large part because the producers thought his sharp features and dark eyes matched those of Boris Karloff enough that new footage of Tyler could be intercut with old footage of Karloff.
serial
The Adventures of Captain Marvel, and starred as one of The Three Mesquiteers
in Republic's series of western features.
's famous comic strip
. Tyler personified the role, looking especially striking in the character's familiar costume, and much of the serial's great success was due to Tyler himself. It was Tom Tyler's last major screen role. Columbia Pictures
intended to make a sequel to The Phantom for years, but by 1955 Tyler had died and the studio's rights to the "Phantom" property had lapsed. The story was hastily rewritten as The Adventures of Captain Africa
, starring John Hart
, although footage of Tom Tyler's Phantom does appear in some of the long shots.
Captain Marvel (DC Comics)
Captain Marvel is a fictional comic book superhero, originally published by Fawcett Comics and later by DC Comics. Created in 1939 by artist C. C. Beck and writer Bill Parker, the character first appeared in Whiz Comics #2...
in the acclaimed 1941 movie serial The Adventures of Captain Marvel.
Biography
He was born Vincent Markowski, into a Polish-American family. In the later part of his career Tyler was beset by rheumatoid arthritisRheumatoid arthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, systemic inflammatory disorder that may affect many tissues and organs, but principally attacks synovial joints. The process produces an inflammatory response of the synovium secondary to hyperplasia of synovial cells, excess synovial fluid, and the development...
, and was limited to occasional supporting roles. Nearly destitute, he returned to live with his sister in the Detroit area, dying there of heart failure at the age of 50 in 1954. He was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery
Mount Olivet Cemetery (Detroit)
Mt. Olivet Cemetery is a cemetery at 17100 Van Dyke Avenue in the city of Detroit in Wayne County, Michigan. It opened in 1888 and is owned and operated by the Mount Elliott Cemetery Association, a not-for-profit Catholic organization. At , it is the largest cemetery in Detroit.Notable people...
.
Career
Tyler had a long career in film, stretching from the 1920s to the 1950s, and appeared in many films, most of them westerns such as John FordJohn Ford
John Ford was an American film director. He was famous for both his westerns such as Stagecoach, The Searchers, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and adaptations of such classic 20th-century American novels as The Grapes of Wrath...
's Stagecoach and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon is a 1949 Western film directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne. The film was the second of Ford's trilogy of films focusing on the US Cavalry ; the other two films were Fort Apache and Rio Grande...
. He occasionally took "civilian" roles in feature films (he's the boxing referee in Abbott and Costello
Abbott and Costello
William "Bud" Abbott and Lou Costello performed together as Abbott and Costello, an American comedy duo whose work on stage, radio, film and television made them the most popular comedy team during the 1940s and 1950s...
's Buck Privates
Buck Privates
Buck Privates is the 1941 comedy/World War II film that turned Bud Abbott and Lou Costello into bonafide movie stars. It was the first service comedy based on the peacetime draft of 1940. The comedy team made two more service comedies before the United States entered the war...
), but the biggest part of Tyler's screen career was spent making low-budget B-movie westerns for modest salaries. Most of his budget westerns were made by Reliable Pictures for producers Bernard B. Ray and Harry S. Webb.
Larger studios cast the athletic Tyler in rugged roles. In 1940, he was the Mummy "Kharis" in The Mummy's Hand
The Mummy's Hand
The Mummy's Hand is a black-and-white horror film, produced by Ben Pivar for Universal Studios. Although it is sometimes claimed by fans as a sequel or follow-up to the 1932 film The Mummy, it does not continue the 1932 film's storyline, or feature any of the same characters, and its plot...
, cast in large part because the producers thought his sharp features and dark eyes matched those of Boris Karloff enough that new footage of Tyler could be intercut with old footage of Karloff.
Captain Marvel
In the first film adaptation of a comic-strip superhero, Tyler had the title role in the 1941 filmFilm
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
serial
Serial (film)
Serials, more specifically known as Movie serials, Film serials or Chapter plays, were short subjects originally shown in theaters in conjunction with a feature film. They were related to pulp magazine serialized fiction...
The Adventures of Captain Marvel, and starred as one of The Three Mesquiteers
The Three Mesquiteers
The Three Mesquiteers is the umbrella title for a series of 51 western B-movies released between 1936 and 1943, including 8 films starring John Wayne...
in Republic's series of western features.
The Phantom
In 1943, he starred in The Phantom, based on Lee FalkLee Falk
Lee Falk, born Leon Harrison Gross , was an American writer, theater director, and producer, best known as the creator of the popular comic strip superheroes The Phantom and Mandrake the Magician, who at the height of their popularity attracted over a hundred million readers every day...
's famous comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
. Tyler personified the role, looking especially striking in the character's familiar costume, and much of the serial's great success was due to Tyler himself. It was Tom Tyler's last major screen role. Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
intended to make a sequel to The Phantom for years, but by 1955 Tyler had died and the studio's rights to the "Phantom" property had lapsed. The story was hastily rewritten as The Adventures of Captain Africa
The Adventures of Captain Africa
The Adventures of Captain Africa is a Columbia serial starring John Hart. It was the third to last serial to be produced by Columbia.-Plot:Trapper Nat Coleman and government agent Ted Arnold come upon a plot to take over an African nation...
, starring John Hart
John Hart (actor)
John Hart was an American motion picture and television actor, born in Los Angeles, California. In his early career, he appeared mostly in Westerns...
, although footage of Tom Tyler's Phantom does appear in some of the long shots.