1901-10-13 ( 123 years old ) in Harrogate, Yorkshire, England, UK
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Edward Chapman (13 October 1901 - 9 August 1977) was an English actor who starred in many films and television programmes, but is chiefly remembered as "Mr. Wilfred Grimsdale", the officious superior and comic foil to Norman Wisdom's character of Pitkin in many of his films from the late 1950s and 1960s.
Chapman was born in Harrogate, Yorkshire, England. On leaving school he became a bank clerk but later began his stage career with Ben Greet's Company in June 1924 at the Repertory Theatre, Nottingham, playing Gecko in George du Maurier's Trilby. He made his first London stage appearance at the Court Theatre in August 1925 playing the Rev Septimus Tudor in The Farmer's Wife. Among dozens of stage roles that followed, he played Bonaparte to Margaret Rawlings's Josephine in Napoleon at the Embassy Theatre in September 1934. In 1928 he attracted the attention of Alfred Hitchcock, who gave him the role of "The Paycock" in the 1930 film, Juno and the Paycock. In the same year he also made an appearance in Caste (of which no prints are known to exist). He had a role in The Citadel in 1938 and appeared alongside George Formby in the Ealing Studios comedy Turned Out Nice Again in 1941.
During the Second World War he took a break from acting and joined the Royal Air Force. After training he was posted to 129 (Mysore) Squadron as an intelligence officer. This Spitfire squadron was based at Westhampnett and Debden. The squadron was heavily engaged in combat during this period and many of Chapman's fellow squadron mates were killed in action.
Chapman first starred alongside Wisdom in 1957's Just My Luck in the role of Mr. Stoneway, but the next year in The Square Peg he appeared as Mr. Grimsdale for the first time opposite Wisdom's character of Norman Pitkin. In 1960 he and Wisdom acted together again in The Bulldog Breed, playing the roles of Mr. Philpots and Norman Puckle - Mr. Grimsdale and Pitkin in all but name. Wisdom appeared alone as Norman Pitkin in On the Beat in 1962, while Chapman branched out, starring in the Danish folktale Venus fra Vestø, but Grimsdale and Pitkin were reunited for 1963's A Stitch in Time. Their final performance together was in The Early Bird in 1965, Wisdom's first film in colour. In all, he appeared alongside Norman Wisdom in five films.
After Sir John Gielgud was arrested for "persistently importuning male persons for immoral purposes", Chapman started a petition to force him to resign from Equity. Sir Laurence Olivier reportedly threw Chapman out of his dressing room when he solicited his signature for the petition.
From 1965 Chapman played mostly characters roles on television. His final role was as Mr. Callon for nine episodes of the BBC's seafaring melodrama The Onedin Line between 1971 and 1972. Chapman died of a heart attack in Brighton, East Sussex, England at the age of 75.
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Movies
The Man Who Haunted Himself
1970-09-17
The Early Bird
1965-11-30
Joey Boy
1965-01-01
Hide and Seek
1964-06-21
A Stitch in Time
1963-12-01
Venus fra Vestø
1962-12-21
The Big Deal
1961-03-03
The Bulldog Breed
1960-12-13
Oscar Wilde
1960-05-29
School for Scoundrels
1960-03-24
The Square Peg
1958-12-04
Innocent Sinners
1958-03-25
The Young and the Guilty
1958-01-01
Just My Luck
1957-11-14
Doctor at Large
1957-03-26
X the Unknown
1956-09-21
Lisbon
1956-08-17
Bhowani Junction
1956-05-01
The Love Match
1955-02-01
A Yank in Ermine
1955-01-01
The Crowded Day
1954-10-01
The End of the Road
1954-01-01
A Day to Remember
1953-11-10
The Intruder
1953-10-18
Folly to Be Wise
1952-12-04
The Ringer
1952-11-24
Mandy
1952-07-29
The Card
1952-02-25
His Excellency
1952-01-22
The Magic Box
1952-01-01
The Cocktail Party
1952-01-01
Gone to Earth
1950-11-06
Night and the City
1950-06-15
The Spider and the Fly
1949-12-01
Man on the Run
1949-05-20
The History of Mr. Polly
1949-02-08
Mr. Perrin and Mr. Traill
1948-09-27
It Always Rains on Sunday
1947-11-28
The October Man
1947-08-28
They Flew Alone
1942-06-29
Ships with Wings
1941-11-10
Jeannie
1941-09-06
Turned Out Nice Again
1941-08-01
Inspector Hornleigh Goes to It
1941-05-17
Eating Out with Tommy Trinder
1941-02-21
Convoy
1940-09-28
The Briggs Family
1940-09-07
Law and Disorder
1940-07-06
The Proud Valley
1940-04-06
Now You're Talking
1940-03-01
Inspector Hornleigh on Holiday
1939-12-01
Poison Pen
1939-07-03
There Ain't No Justice
1939-06-17
The Four Just Men
1939-06-01
The Nursemaid Who Disappeared
1939-03-01
Marigold
1938-11-03
The Citadel
1938-10-29
Who Killed John Savage?
1938-06-05
Premiere
1938-01-20
Rembrandt
1936-11-06
Someone at the Door
1936-09-28
The Man Who Could Work Miracles
1936-07-23
Things to Come
1936-03-31
The Divine Spark
1935-06-01
The Church Mouse
1934-12-10
Girls Will Be Boys
1934-10-29
The Queen's Affair
1934-03-01
Mister Cinders
1934-01-01
Blossom Time
1934-01-01
Happy Ever After
1932-09-23
The Flying Squad
1932-07-20
Tilly of Bloomsbury
1931-04-29
The Skin Game
1931-02-26
Caste
1930-09-01
Murder!
1930-07-31
Juno and the Paycock
1930-06-29
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