Billy Bevan

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

201

Gender

Male

Birthday

1887-09-29

Day of death

1957-11-26 (70 years old)

Place of Birth

Orange, New South Wales, Australia

Billy Bevan

Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Billy Bevan (born William Bevan Harris, 29 September 1887 – 26 November 1957) was an Australian-born vaudevillian, who became an American film actor. He appeared in 254 American films between 1916 and 1950. Bevan was born in the country town of Orange, New South Wales, Australia. He went on the stage at an early age, traveled to Sydney and spent eight years in Australian light opera, performing as Willie Bevan. He sailed to America with the Pollard’s Lilliputian Opera Company in 1912 and later toured Canada. Bevan broke into films with the Sigmund Lubin studio in 1916. When the company disbanded, Bevan became a supporting actor in Mack Sennett movie comedies. An expressive pantomimist, Bevan's quiet scene-stealing attracted attention, and by 1922 Bevan was a Sennett star. He supplemented his income, however, by establishing a citrus and avocado farm at Escondido, California. Usually filmed wearing a derby hat and a drooping mustache, Bevan may not have possessed an indelible screen character like Charlie Chaplin but he had a friendly, funny presence in the frantic Sennett comedies. Much of the comedy depended on Bevan's skilled timing and reactions; the famous "oyster" routine performed on film by Curly Howard, Lou Costello, and Huntz Hall—in which a bowl of "fresh oyster stew" shows alarming signs of life and battles the guy trying to eat it—was originated on film decades earlier by Bevan in the short film Wandering Willies. By the mid-1920s Bevan was often teamed with Andy Clyde; Clyde soon graduated to his own starring series. The late 1920s found Bevan playing in wild marital farces for Sennett. The advent of talking pictures took their toll on the careers of many silent stars, including Billy Bevan. Bevan began a second career in "talkies" as a character actor and bit player in roles such as that of a bus driver in the 1929 film High Voltage, a hotel employee in the Mae Murray film Peacock Alley, and the supporting role of Second Lieutenant Trotter in Journey's End in 1930. His starring roles had come to an end, however, and for the next 20 years he often would play rowdy Cockneys (as in Pack Up Your Troubles with The Ritz Brothers), and affable Englishmen (as in Tin Pan Alley and Terror by Night). He played a friendly bus conductor opposite Greer Garson in one of the opening scenes of Mrs. Miniver. Bevan died in 1957 in Escondido, California, just before new audiences discovered him in Robert Youngson's silent-comedy compilations. (The Youngson films mispronounce his name as "Be-VAN"; Bevan himself offered the proper pronunciation in a Voice of Hollywood reel in 1930.)

Known For

  • Cavalcade

    Cavalcade

  • Suspicion

    Suspicion

  • The Ed Sullivan Show

    The Ed Sullivan Show

  • The Trespasser

    The Trespasser

  • Devotion

    Devotion

  • Tonight and Every Night

    Tonight and Every Night

  • Chances

    Chances

  • Terror by Night

    Terror by Night

  • Cluny Brown

    Cluny Brown

  • Piccadilly Jim

    Piccadilly Jim

  • Moss Rose

    Moss Rose

  • Be Reasonable

    Be Reasonable

  • Shock

    Shock

  • Confirm or Deny

    Confirm or Deny

  • Payment Deferred

    Payment Deferred

  • Stingaree

    Stingaree

  • I Married a Witch

    I Married a Witch

  • Me and My Gal

    Me and My Gal

  • Caravan

    Caravan

  • Musclebound Music

    Musclebound Music

  • Scotch

    Scotch

  • Fight Night

    Fight Night

  • Limehouse Blues

    Limehouse Blues

  • A Small Town Princess

    A Small Town Princess

  • National Velvet

    National Velvet

  • Galloping Bungalows

    Galloping Bungalows

  • Somebody's Widow

    Somebody's Widow

  • Looking Forward

    Looking Forward

  • His New Stenographer

    His New Stenographer

  • Wandering Waistlines

    Wandering Waistlines

  • Nip and Tuck

    Nip and Tuck

  • The Quack Doctor

    The Quack Doctor

  • Honeymoon Beach

    Honeymoon Beach

  • Hans Christian Andersen

    Hans Christian Andersen

  • Whispering Whiskers

    Whispering Whiskers

  • The Bicycle Flirt

    The Bicycle Flirt

  • The Lion's Whiskers

    The Lion's Whiskers

  • Born to Love

    Born to Love

  • Song and Dance Man

    Song and Dance Man

  • Distilled Love

    Distilled Love

  • Vanity Fair

    Vanity Fair

  • Giddap!

    Giddap!

  • Easy Pickings

    Easy Pickings

  • Fortunes of Captain Blood

    Fortunes of Captain Blood

  • The Beach Club

    The Beach Club

  • Gold Digger of Weepah

    Gold Digger of Weepah

  • Uncle Jake

    Uncle Jake

  • The Pearl of Death

    The Pearl of Death

  • Inbad the Sailor

    Inbad the Sailor

  • The Duck Hunter

    The Duck Hunter

  • Tin Pan Alley

    Tin Pan Alley

  • Mysterious Mr. Moto

    Mysterious Mr. Moto

  • Rebecca

    Rebecca

  • One Cylinder Love

    One Cylinder Love

  • One More River

    One More River

  • Transatlantic

    Transatlantic

  • Her Rustic Romeo

    Her Rustic Romeo

  • Temptation

    Temptation

  • Luxury Liner

    Luxury Liner

  • The Lost Patrol

    The Lost Patrol

  • The Extra Girl

    The Extra Girl

  • Let's Live a Little

    Let's Live a Little

  • This Above All

    This Above All

  • Peacock Alley

    Peacock Alley

  • Techno-Crazy

    Techno-Crazy

  • Mystery Woman

    Mystery Woman

  • Masked Mamas

    Masked Mamas

  • One Spooky Night

    One Spooky Night

  • Honeymoon Hardships

    Honeymoon Hardships

  • Trimmed in Gold

    Trimmed in Gold

  • The Swordsman

    The Swordsman

  • A Christmas Carol

    A Christmas Carol

  • The Secret Garden

    The Secret Garden

  • Jane Eyre

    Jane Eyre

  • Bringing Up Baby

    Bringing Up Baby

  • The Picture of Dorian Gray

    The Picture of Dorian Gray

  • The Invisible Man Returns

    The Invisible Man Returns

  • Don't Get Jealous

    Don't Get Jealous

  • Gymnasium Jim

    Gymnasium Jim

  • Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

    Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

  • Off His Trolley

    Off His Trolley

  • Dracula's Daughter

    Dracula's Daughter

  • Mrs. Miniver

    Mrs. Miniver

  • Alice in Wonderland

    Alice in Wonderland

  • Mr. Deeds Goes to Town

    Mr. Deeds Goes to Town

  • Penny Serenade

    Penny Serenade

  • Monte Carlo

    Monte Carlo

  • 30 Years of Fun

    30 Years of Fun

  • A Tale of Two Cities

    A Tale of Two Cities

  • Blond Cheat

    Blond Cheat

  • Rogues of Sherwood Forest

    Rogues of Sherwood Forest

  • Three Secrets

    Three Secrets

  • Cupid In Quarantine

    Cupid In Quarantine

  • Pink Pajamas

    Pink Pajamas

  • The Long Voyage Home

    The Long Voyage Home

  • High Voltage

    High Voltage

  • Hayfoot, Strawfoot?

    Hayfoot, Strawfoot?

  • The Invisible Man's Revenge

    The Invisible Man's Revenge

  • Pirates of the Air

    Pirates of the Air

  • It Had to Be You

    It Had to Be You

  • Captain Fury

    Captain Fury

  • The Black Arrow

    The Black Arrow

  • Slave Ship

    Slave Ship

  • Waterloo Bridge

    Waterloo Bridge

  • The Golf Nut

    The Golf Nut

  • The Last Outpost

    The Last Outpost

  • Pop's Pal

    Pop's Pal

  • The Lodger

    The Lodger

  • Private Number

    Private Number

  • The Man Who Wouldn't Die

    The Man Who Wouldn't Die

  • The Girl from Everywhere

    The Girl from Everywhere

  • The Earl of Chicago

    The Earl of Chicago

  • The Golden Age of Comedy

    The Golden Age of Comedy

  • Bombs and Bandits

    Bombs and Bandits

  • Tell It to the Judge

    Tell It to the Judge

  • Forever and a Day

    Forever and a Day

  • God's Country and the Woman

    God's Country and the Woman

  • The Return of the Vampire

    The Return of the Vampire

  • London Blackout Murders

    London Blackout Murders

  • Black Sheep

    Black Sheep

  • The Widow from Monte Carlo

    The Widow from Monte Carlo

  • The Big Squeal

    The Big Squeal

  • Let Freedom Ring

    Let Freedom Ring

  • A Study in Scarlet

    A Study in Scarlet

  • A Sea Dog's Tale

    A Sea Dog's Tale

  • The Young in Heart

    The Young in Heart

  • Another Dawn

    Another Dawn

  • The Best Man

    The Best Man

  • The Girl of the Golden West

    The Girl of the Golden West

  • Shining Victory

    Shining Victory

  • Lloyd's of London

    Lloyd's of London

  • Personal Property

    Personal Property

  • Over Thereabouts

    Over Thereabouts

  • Sky Devils

    Sky Devils

  • Vanessa: Her Love Story

    Vanessa: Her Love Story

  • Should Husbands Marry?

    Should Husbands Marry?

  • The Wrong Road

    The Wrong Road

  • Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back

    Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back

  • Counter-Espionage

    Counter-Espionage

  • Arrest Bulldog Drummond

    Arrest Bulldog Drummond

  • Too Much Harmony

    Too Much Harmony

  • On Patrol

    On Patrol

  • Gertie's Gasoline Glide

    Gertie's Gasoline Glide

  • Peg o' My Heart

    Peg o' My Heart

  • Happy Times and Jolly Moments

    Happy Times and Jolly Moments

  • Champagne Charlie

    Champagne Charlie

  • We Are Not Alone

    We Are Not Alone

  • Love and Doughnuts

    Love and Doughnuts

  • Pack Up Your Troubles

    Pack Up Your Troubles

  • The Sheik Steps Out

    The Sheik Steps Out

  • Butter Fingers

    Butter Fingers

  • Hubby’s Quiet Little Game

    Hubby’s Quiet Little Game

  • A Small Town Idol

    A Small Town Idol

  • Ice Cold Cocos

    Ice Cold Cocos

  • Hubby's Weekend Trip

    Hubby's Weekend Trip

  • The Way to Love

    The Way to Love

  • Pitfalls of a Big City

    Pitfalls of a Big City

  • East of the Water Plug

    East of the Water Plug

  • Shadows Over Shanghai

    Shadows Over Shanghai

  • Journey's End

    Journey's End

  • Motorboat Mamas

    Motorboat Mamas

  • The Iron Nag

    The Iron Nag

  • The Slappiest Days of Our Lives

    The Slappiest Days of Our Lives

  • The Hollywood Kid

    The Hollywood Kid

  • The Girl from Nowhere

    The Girl from Nowhere

  • Super-Hooper-Dyne Lizzies

    Super-Hooper-Dyne Lizzies

  • Astray from the Steerage

    Astray from the Steerage

  • The Crossroads of New York

    The Crossroads of New York

  • Calling Hubby's Bluff

    Calling Hubby's Bluff

  • The Silent Witness

    The Silent Witness

  • Wall Street Blues

    Wall Street Blues

  • Riley the Cop

    Riley the Cop

  • Three Foolish Weeks

    Three Foolish Weeks

  • Circus Today

    Circus Today

  • For the Love o' Lil

    For the Love o' Lil

  • Wandering Willies

    Wandering Willies

  • Flirty Four-Flushers

    Flirty Four-Flushers

  • The Secret Of St. Ives

    The Secret Of St. Ives

  • Lizzies of the Field

    Lizzies of the Field

  • From Rags to Britches

    From Rags to Britches

  • Little Robinson Corkscrew

    Little Robinson Corkscrew

  • Hoboken to Hollywood

    Hoboken to Hollywood

  • Are Married Policemen Safe?

    Are Married Policemen Safe?

  • Bright Eyes

    Bright Eyes

  • Peaches and Plumbers

    Peaches and Plumbers

  • The Sky Hawk

    The Sky Hawk

  • Cured in the Excitement

    Cured in the Excitement

  • Who's Who in the Zoo

    Who's Who in the Zoo

  • Love, Honor and Behave

    Love, Honor and Behave

  • Should Sleepwalkers Marry?

    Should Sleepwalkers Marry?

  • Thundering Taxis

    Thundering Taxis

  • Around the Town: British Film Stars and Studios

    Around the Town: British Film Stars and Studios

  • The White Sin

    The White Sin

  • When Summer Comes

    When Summer Comes

  • Sneezing Beezers

    Sneezing Beezers

  • Weak But Willing

    Weak But Willing

  • The Cannon Ball Express

    The Cannon Ball Express

  • Married Life

    Married Life

  • His Unlucky Night

    His Unlucky Night

  • The Bull Fighter

    The Bull Fighter

  • She Whoops To Conquer

    She Whoops To Conquer