David Newell (actor, born 1905)

David Newell
Newell in 1935
Born(1905-01-23)January 23, 1905
Carthage, Missouri, United States
DiedJanuary 25, 1980(1980-01-25) (aged 75)
Los Angeles, California, United States
Occupation(s)Actor, make-up artist
Years active1929–1961

David Newell (January 23, 1905 – January 25, 1980) was primarily known as an American character actor, whose acting career spanned from the very beginning of the sound film era through the middle of the 1950s. He made his film debut in a featured role in The Hole in the Wall, a 1929 film starring Edward G. Robinson and Claudette Colbert.[1]

Early in his career he had many featured roles, in such films as: RKO's The Runaway Bride in 1929, starring Mary Astor; 1931's Ten Cents a Dance, starring Barbara Stanwyck and directed by Lionel Barrymore; and White Heat in 1934. He would occasionally receive a starring role, as in 1930's Just Like Heaven, which co-starred Anita Louise. However, by the mid-1930s he was being relegated to mostly smaller supporting roles. Some of the more notable films he appeared in include: A Star is Born (1937), which stars Janet Gaynor and Fredric March; Blondie (1938); the Bette Davis vehicle, Dark Victory (1939); Day-Time Wife (1939), starring Tyrone Power and Linda Darnell; It's a Wonderful World (1939), with James Stewart and Claudette Colbert; Rings on Her Fingers (1942), starring Henry Fonda and Gene Tierney; the Danny Kaye and Dinah Shore film, Up in Arms (1944), which also stars Dana Andrews; 1947's Killer McCoy with Mickey Rooney, Brian Donlevy, and Ann Blyth; Homecoming (1948), starring Clark Gable, Lana Turner, and Anne Baxter; That Wonderful Urge (1949), starring Tyrone Power and Gene Tierney; David and Bathsheba (1951), starring Gregory Peck and Susan Hayward; and Cecil B. DeMille's 1952 blockbuster, The Greatest Show on Earth.[2] During his 25-year acting career, he appeared in over 110 films. His final appearance in film was in 1954's The Eddie Cantor Story, in which he had a small supporting role.[3]

In the late 1940s he also began working as a make-up artist, which he transitioned full-time to in 1955; this was due to injuries sustained during a car accident, which left him physically disfigured.[4] He retired from the film industry in 1961, although he continued to work in television through the beginning of the 1970s, his last position being the make-up artist on the television show, Lassie.

Newell died two days past his 75th birthday, on January 25, 1980.

  1. ^ "The Hole in the Wall: Detail View". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  2. ^ "David Newell". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  3. ^ "The Eddie Cantor Story: Detail View". American Film Institute. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  4. ^ "David Newell". Find a Grave. Retrieved December 15, 2014.