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People: Famous People born in the 1890s (1890-1899)

People in chronological context: The 1890s (pronounced "eighteen-nineties") was a decade of the Gregorian calendar that began on January 1, 1890, and ended on December 31, 1899. In American popular culture, the decade would later be nostalgically referred to as the "Gay Nineties" (Gay as in 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'). In the British Empire, the 1890s epitomised the late Victorian period. As European powers continued their colonial expansion, the decade saw the defeat of Edi (1890), Siam (1893), Morocco (1894), Dahomey (1894), Arab-Swahili warlords (1894), Lombork (1894), Pahang (1895), Merina (1895), Zanzibar (1896), Khaua and Mbandjeru (1896), Ashanti (1896), Matabeleland (1897), Pedir (1898), Sudan (1899), and various north-west Indian tribes and states. Whereas most colonial campaigns were successful, Italy faced a significant setback as it failed to conquer Ethiopia, being decisively defeated at Adwa (1896). Furthermore, the second half of the decade saw the final unravelling of Spanish America, which began with insurrections in Cuba (1895) and the Philippines (1896) and ended with the Spaniards' defeat at the hands of the United States in 1898. Following the sale of various Pacific islands to Germany in 1899, the Spanish colonial empire would be restricted to Africa. Further in the ea... ()

People born in year: 1890 | 1891 | 1892 | 1893 | 1894 | 1895 | 1896 | 1897 | 1898 | 1899

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1,260 people found (page 1/42):

Herbert Marshall(† 75)

Actor | London, England (GB)

Herbert Brough Falcon Marshall (23 May 1890 – 22 January 1966) was an English stage, screen and radio actor who, despite losing a leg during the First World War, starred in many popular and well-regarded Hollywood films in the 1930s and 1940s. After a successful theatrical career in the United Kingdom and North America, he became an in-demand Hollywood leading man, frequently appearing in romantic melodramas and occasional comedies. In his later years, he turned to character acting.

Known for: Foreign Correspondent, Murder!, Trouble in Paradise, The Little Foxes
* 05/23/1890

Fritz Lang(† 85)

Crew | Vienna (AT)

Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (German: [ˈfʁiːdʁɪç ˈkʁɪsti̯an ˈantɔn laŋ]; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), better known as Fritz Lang ([fʁɪt͡s laŋ]), was an Austrian-US-German film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States. One of the best-known émigrés from Germany's school of Expressionism, he was dubbed the "Master of Darkness" by the British Film Institute. He has been cited as one of the most influential filmmakers of all time. Lang's most celebrated films include the groundbreaking futuristic science-fiction film Metropolis (1927) and the influential M (1931), a film noir precursor. His 1929 film Woman in the Moon showcased the use of a multi-stage rocket, and also pioneered the concept of a rocket launch pad (a rocket standing upright against a tall building before launch having been slowly rolled into place) and the rocket-launch countdown clock. His other major films include Dr. Mabuse the Gambler (1922), Die Nibelungen (1924), and after moving to Hollywood in 1934, Fury (1936), You Only Live Once (1937), Hangmen Also Die! (1943), The Woman in the Window (1944), Scarlet Street (1945) and The Big Heat (1953). He became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1939.

Known for: Contempt, M, Metropolis, Scarlet Street
* 12/05/1890

Agatha Christie(† 85)

Crew | Torquay, Devon (GB)

Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English crime novelist, short story writer and playwright. She is best known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around her fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, a murder mystery, The Mousetrap, and six romances under the name Mary Westmacott. In 1971 she was made a Dame for her contribution to literature. Most of her books and short stories have been adapted for television, radio, video games and comics, and more than thirty feature films have been based on her work.

Known for: Witness for the Prosecution, Crooked House, Murder on the Orient Express, The Little Murders of Agatha Christie
* 09/15/1890

Sam Jaffe(† 93)

Actor | New York City, New York (US)

Shalom "Sam" Jaffe (March 10, 1891 – March 24, 1984) was an American actor, teacher, musician, and engineer. In 1951, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in The Asphalt Jungle (1950). He also appeared in The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) and Ben-Hur (1959), and is additionally known for his roles as the titular character in Gunga Din (1939) and as the "High Lama" in Lost Horizon (1937).

Known for: The Asphalt Jungle, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Ben-Hur
* 03/10/1891

Groucho Marx(† 86)

Actor | New York City, New York (US)

Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx (October 2, 1890 – August 19, 1977) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer who performed in film and vaudeville and on television, radio, and the stage. He was a master of quick wit and is considered one of America's greatest comedians. He made 13 feature films as a team with his brothers, who performed under the name the Marx Brothers, of whom he was the third born. He also had a successful solo career, primarily on radio and television, most notably as the host of the game show You Bet Your Life. His distinctive appearance, carried over from his days in vaudeville, included quirks such as an exaggerated stooped posture, spectacles, cigar, and a thick greasepaint mustache (later a real mustache) and eyebrows. These exaggerated features resulted in the creation of one of the most recognizable and ubiquitous novelty disguises, known as Groucho glasses: a one-piece mask consisting of horn-rimmed glasses, a large plastic nose, bushy eyebrows and mustache.

Known for: A Night at the Opera, Duck Soup, A Day at the Races, Horse Feathers
* 10/02/1890

Madge Kennedy(† 96)

Actress | Chicago (US)

Madge Kennedy (April 19, 1891 – June 9, 1987) was a stage, film and television actress whose career began as a stage actress in 1912 and flourished in motion pictures during the silent film era. In 1921, journalist Heywood Broun described her as "the best farce actress in New York".

Known for: Marathon Man, The Fair Pretender
* 04/19/1891

Clarence Brown(† 97)

Crew | Clinton, Massachusetts (US)

Clarence Brown was an American film director.

Known for: Anna Karenina, The Human Comedy, A Free Soul
* 05/10/1890

Stan Laurel(† 74)

Actor | Ulverston, Lancashire, England (GB)

Stan Laurel (LORR-əl; born Arthur Stanley Jefferson; 16 June 1890 – 23 February 1965) was an English comic actor, writer and film director who was one half of the comedy duo Laurel and Hardy. He appeared with his comedy partner Oliver Hardy in 107 short films, feature films and cameo roles. Laurel began his career in music hall, where he developed a number of his standard comic devices, including the bowler hat, the deep comic gravity and the nonsensical understatement, and developed his skills in pantomime and music hall sketches. He was a member of "Fred Karno's Army", where he was Charlie Chaplin's understudy. He and Chaplin arrived in the United States on the same ship from the United Kingdom with the Karno troupe. Laurel began his film career in 1917 and made his final appearance in 1951. He appeared with his comic partner Oliver Hardy in the film short The Lucky Dog in 1921, although they did not become an official team until late 1927. He then appeared exclusively with Hardy until retiring after his comedy partner's death in 1957. In April 1961, at the 33rd Academy Awards, Laurel was given an Academy Honorary Award for his pioneering work in comedy, and he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7021 Hollywood Boulevard. Laurel and Hardy were ranked top among best double acts and seventh overall in a 2005 UK poll to find the Comedians' Comedian. In 2019, Laurel topped a list of the greatest British comedians compiled by a panel on the television channel Gold. In 2009, a bronze statue of the duo was unveiled in Laurel's hometown of Ulverston.

Known for: Saps at Sea, Sons of the Desert, The Bohemian Girl, The Devil's Brother
* 06/16/1890

Victor Kilian(† 88)

Actor | Jersey City, New Jersey (US)

Victor Arthur Kilian (March 6, 1891 – March 11, 1979) was an American actor who was blacklisted by the Hollywood movie studio bosses in the 1950s.

Known for: The Ox-Bow Incident, Only Angels Have Wings, Air Hawks, Dr. Cyclops
* 03/06/1891

Verna Felton(† 76)

Actress | Salinas, California (US)

Verna Arline Felton (July 20, 1890 – December 14, 1966) was an American actress who provided voices for numerous Disney animated films. She also provided the voice for Fred Flintstone's mother-in-law, Pearl Slaghoople in Hanna-Barbera's The Flintstones (1962–1963) and had roles in live-action films. However, she was most active in radio programs, where her characters were known for their husky voices and no-nonsense attitudes. Two of her most famous roles were as Dennis Day's mother, Mrs. Day on both radio and television versions of The Jack Benny Program (1939–1962) and as Hilda Crocker on December Bride (1952–1959). Felton's television appearances included The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show, I Love Lucy, Where's Raymond?, Pete and Gladys and Dennis the Menace.

Known for: Sleeping Beauty, Alice in Wonderland, Lady and the Tramp, Cinderella
* 07/20/1890

James Bell(† 81)

Actor | Suffolk, Virginia (US)

James Harlee Bell (December 1, 1891 – October 26, 1973) was an American film and stage actor who appeared in about 150 films and television shows through 1964. Bell was born in Suffolk, Virginia, and graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute in 1911 with a degree in electrical engineering. In 1920, he made his theatrical debut as Venustiano in The Bad Man. He worked steadily on Broadway through 1941. Bell's first film role was in I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang in 1932. He appeared in the films I Walked with a Zombie and The Leopard Man, both of which were directed by Jacques Tourneur, produced by Val Lewton, and released in 1943. Among his television appearances were four guest roles on the legal drama series Perry Mason. In 1958, he played murder victim J.J. Stanley in the episode "The Case of the Green-Eyed Sister", and murderer P.E. Overbrook in "The Case of the Lazy Lover." In 1960, he played murderer Zack Davis in "The Case of the Frantic Flyer", and murder victim Silas Vance in "The Case of the Lavender Lipstick". That same year, Bell appeared as Dr. Malcolm Allen in the Western TV series Laramie, in the episode "Street of Hate".

Known for: I Walked with a Zombie, The Spiral Staircase, Blind Spot, All the Brothers Were Valiant
* 12/01/1891

Charles Bickford(† 76)

Actor | Cambridge, Massachusetts (US)

Charles Ambrose Bickford (January 1, 1891 – November 9, 1967) was an American actor known for supporting roles. He was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for The Song of Bernadette (1943), The Farmer's Daughter (1947) and Johnny Belinda (1948). His other roles include Whirlpool (1950), A Star Is Born (1954) and The Big Country (1958).

Known for: A Star Is Born, The Song of Bernadette, Brute Force, The Farmer's Daughter
* 01/01/1891
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Robert Armstrong(† 82)

Actor | Saginaw, Michigan (US)

Robert William Armstrong (November 20, 1890 – April 20, 1973) was an American film and television actor remembered for his role as Carl Denham in the 1933 version of King Kong by RKO Pictures. He delivered the film's famous final line: "It wasn't the airplanes. It was beauty killed the beast."

Known for: King Kong, The Son of Kong, Penguin Pool Murder, 'G' Men
* 11/20/1890

Harry Shannon(† 74)

Actor | Saginaw, Michigan (US)

Harry Shannon (June 13, 1890 – July 27, 1964) was an American character actor. He often appeared in Western films.

Known for: Citizen Kane, High Noon, Executive Suite, Touch of Evil
* 06/13/1890

Al Bridge(† 66)

Actor | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (US)

Al Bridge was an American character actor, a fixture both in Westerns and in the comedies of Preston Sturges.Although frequently billed as Alan Bridge, he was born Alfred Morton Bridge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1891 (not as Alford Bridge in 1890, as his tombstone erroneously states).Following service as a corporal in the U.S. Army infantry in the first World War, Bridge joined a theatrical troupe. He dabbled in writing and in 1930 sold a script to a short film, Her Hired Husband (1930). He followed this with a B-Western script, God's Country and the Man (1931), in which he made his film debut as an actor.For the next quarter century, he managed the atypical achievement of maintaining a career in both B-Westerns and in bigger dramatic and comedy features. Ten films for director Preston Sturges represent probably his most familiar contribution to Hollywood history. Bridge also appeared frequently on television until his death in 1957 at 66.

Known for: Sullivan's Travels, The Sin of Harold Diddlebock, The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek, Hail the Conquering Hero
* 02/26/1891

Stanley Holloway(† 91)

Actor | Manor Park, London, England (GB)

Stanley Augustus Holloway (1 October 1890 – 30 January 1982) was an English actor, comedian, singer and monologist. He was famous for his comic and character roles on stage and screen, especially that of Alfred P. Doolittle in My Fair Lady. He was also renowned for his comic monologues and songs, which he performed and recorded throughout most of his 70-year career. Born in London, Holloway pursued a career as a clerk in his teen years. He made early stage appearances before infantry service in the First World War, after which he had his first major theatre success starring in Kissing Time when the musical transferred to the West End from Broadway. In 1921, he joined a concert party, The Co-Optimists, and his career began to flourish. At first, he was employed chiefly as a singer, but his skills as an actor and reciter of comic monologues were soon recognised. Characters from his monologues such as Sam Small, invented by Holloway, and Albert Ramsbottom, created for him by Marriott Edgar, were absorbed into popular British culture, and Holloway developed a following for the recordings of his many monologues. By the 1930s, he was in demand to star in variety, pantomime and musical comedy, including several revues. Following the outbreak of the Second World War, Holloway made short propaganda films on behalf of the British Film Institute and Pathé News and took character parts in a series of films including Major Barbara, The Way Ahead, This Happy Breed and The Way to the Stars. In the decade after the war, he appeared in the film Brief Encounter and made a series of films for Ealing Studios, including Passport to Pimlico, The Lavender Hill Mob and The Titfield Thunderbolt. In 1956 he was cast as the irresponsible and irrepressible Alfred P. Doolittle in My Fair Lady, a role that he played on Broadway, the West End and in the film version in 1964. The role brought him international fame, and his performances earned him nominations for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical and an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. In his later years, Holloway appeared in television series in the UK and the US, toured in revues, appeared in stage plays in Britain, Canada, Australia and the US, and continued to make films into his eighties. Holloway was married twice and had five children, including the actor Julian Holloway.

Known for: My Fair Lady, Brief Encounter, The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, The Lavender Hill Mob
* 10/01/1890

George Merritt(† 86)

Actor | London, England (GB)

Frederick George Merritt (10 December 1890 – 27 September 1977) was an English theatre, film and television actor, often in authoritarian roles. He studied German theatre in Magdeburg, Germany, and taught at the Berlitz School at the outbreak of the First World War, when he was held as a British Civil Prisoner of War, and interned at Ruhleben, 1914–1918. He was involved in over 50 plays at Ruhleben. He lived for many years in Lissenden Gardens, Parliament Hill, north west London.

Known for: Q Planes, A Canterbury Tale, Dracula, The Persuaders!
* 12/10/1890

Ann Codee(† 71)

Actress | Antwerp (BE)

Ann Codee (born Anna Marie Vannuefflin, 5 March 1890 – 18 May 1961) was a Belgian actress with numerous hit films on her résumé, such as Can-Can, Kiss Me Kate, and Interrupted Melody. Born in Antwerp, Belgium, her name was sometimes found in newspapers as Anna Cody.

Known for: Kiss Me Kate, So Dark the Night, Can-Can, Captain Caution, One Step Beyond
* 03/05/1890

Harry Cheshire(† 76)

Actor | Emporia, Kansas (US)

Harry V. Cheshire (August 16, 1891 – June 16, 1968), originally from Emporia, Kansas, was an American character actor who appeared in over 100 films, mostly playing small roles. He was also a stage actor and performed on a St. Louis radio station's musical program. He may be best known for playing Judge Ben Wiley on Buffalo Bill, Jr.

Known for: Impact, The First Traveling Saleslady, Dangerous Mission, Air Hostess
* 08/16/1891

Ted Lewis(† 81)

Actor | Circleville (US)

Theodore Leopold Friedman (June 6, 1890 – August 25, 1971), known as Ted Lewis, was an American entertainer, bandleader, singer, and musician. He fronted a band and touring stage show that presented a combination of jazz, comedy, and nostalgia that was a hit with the American public before and after World War II. He was known by the moniker "Mr. Entertainment" or Ted "Is Everybody Happy?" Lewis. He died of lung failure in August 1971.

Known for: Seabiscuit, You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, Hold That Ghost, Here Comes the Band
* 06/06/1890

Frank Morgan(† 59)

Actor | New York City, New York (US)

Francis Phillip Wuppermann (June 1, 1890 – September 18, 1949), known professionally as Frank Morgan, was an American character actor. He was best known for his appearances in films starting in the silent era in 1916, and then numerous sound films throughout the 1930s and 1940s, with a career spanning 35 years mostly as a contract player at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, with his most celebrated performance playing the title role of The Wizard in the MGM movie The Wizard of Oz (1939). He was also briefly billed early in his career as Frank Wupperman and Francis Morgan.

Known for: The Wizard of Oz, The Shop Around the Corner, Tortilla Flat, Trouble for Two
* 06/01/1890

Judith Lowry(† 86)

Actress | Fort Sill, Oklahoma (US)

Judith Carter Lowry (née Ives; July 27, 1890 – November 29, 1976) was an American actress.

Known for: Cold Turkey, The Anderson Tapes, Phyllis
* 07/27/1890

George Marshall(† 83)

Crew | Chicago, Illinois (US)

George E. Marshall (December 29, 1891 – February 17, 1975) was an American actor, screenwriter, producer, film and television director, active through the first six decades of film history. Relatively few of Marshall's films are well-known today, with Destry Rides Again (1939), The Ghost Breakers (1940), The Blue Dahlia (1946), The Sheepman (1958), and How the West Was Won (1962) being the biggest exceptions. John Houseman called him "one of the old maestros of Hollywood ... he had never become one of the giants but he held a solid and honorable position in the industry." In the 1930s, he established a reputation for comedy, directing Laurel and Hardy in three classic films, and also working on a variety of comedies for Fox, though many of his films at Fox were destroyed in a vault fire in 1937. Later in his career he was particularly sought after for comedies. He did around half a dozen films each with Bob Hope and Jerry Lewis, and also worked with W. C. Fields, Jackie Gleason, and Will Rogers.

Known for: How the West Was Won, Pack Up Your Troubles, The Goldwyn Follies, Battle Of Broadway
* 12/29/1891

Jonathan Hale(† 74)

Actor | Hamilton, Ontario (CA)

Jonathan Hale (born Jonathan Hatley; March 21, 1891 – February 28, 1966) was a Canadian-born film and television actor.

Known for: The Saint's Double Trouble, The Saint In Palm Springs, Strangers on a Train, The Saint Strikes Back
* 03/21/1891

Pierre Bertin(† 92)

Actor | Lille, Nord (FR)

Pierre Victor Théophile Bertin (24 October 1891 – 13 May 1984) was a French stage and film actor. In 1948, he starred in the film The Lame Devil under Sacha Guitry. He was the librettist of the opéra-comique La Gageure imprévue after Sedaine with music by Henri Sauguet, first performed at the Paris, Opéra-Comique in 1944, and for the radio opera Les Deux Rendez-vous (after Nerval) by Claude Arrieu first broadcast in 1951. Pierre Bertin was born in Lille and died in Paris.

Known for: The Good Girls, Cyrano de Bergerac, Dr. Knock, Sins of Youth
* 10/24/1891

H.P. Lovecraft(† 46)

Crew | Providence, Rhode Island (US)

Howard Phillips Lovecraft was an American-born horror writer, best known for creating the “Cthulhu Mythos” —a series of short stories and novellas concerning ancient gods and unspeakable horrors that threaten to destroy humanity. He became one of most influential authors of the 20th century despite never finding significant critical or financial appreciation in his own short lifetime.

Known for: Color Out of Space, Re-Animator, From Beyond
* 08/19/1890

Adolphe Menjou(† 73)

Actor | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (US)

Adolphe Menjou was an American actor, his screen career spanning both silent films (with credited roles from 1916 onward) and talkies. Among the many well-known films Menjou had prominent roles in are The Sheik, A Woman of Paris, Morocco, A Farewell to Arms, A Star is Born, Stage Door, Paths of Glory, and Pollyanna. Menjou was nominated for a Best Lead Actor Academy Award for 1931's The Front Page.

Known for: Paths of Glory, The Front Page, A Star Is Born, The Grand Duchess and the Waiter
* 02/18/1890

Lisa Golm(† 72)

Actress

- No description / details available yet. -

Known for: Anna Lucasta, The Hoodlum, Underground, The Twilight Zone
* 04/10/1891

Wilhelm Thiele(† 85)

Crew | Wien (AT)

Wilhelm Thiele, also William Thiele (1890–1975) was an Austrian screenwriter and film director. He directed over 40 films between 1921 and 1960.

Known for: The Madonna's Secret, Madame has an exit, Carl Michael Ziehrers Märchen aus Alt-Wien
* 05/09/1890

Edward Arnold(† 66)

Actor | New York City, New York (US)

Edward Arnold was born as Gunther Edward Arnold Schneider in 1890, on the Lower East Side of New York City, the son of German immigrants, Elizabeth (Ohse) and Carl Schneider. Arnold began his acting career on the New York stage and became a film actor in 1916. A burly man with a commanding style and superb baritone voice, he was a popular screen personality for decades, and was the star of such film classics as Diamond Jim (1935) (a role he reprised in Le roman de Lillian Russell (1940)) Arnold appeared in over 150 films and was President of The Screen Actors Guild shortly before his death in 1956.

Known for: You Can't Take It with You, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, All That Money Can Buy, Meet John Doe
* 02/18/1890
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