CHESTER MORRIS

Chester Morris was an actor from the 1910s to the 1970s. He was one of those great "square-jawed" leading men, but he did not start out that way! He made his first movie when he was 17, and he had some success in movies, but he went to Broadway, where he got some leading roles while still a teenager, and billed himself as "The youngest leading man in the country"! In 1923, he returned to Hollywood but did not have lots of success until movies started to talk, and he was nominated for the Best Actor Oscar for "Alibi" in 1929, his first talking picture. He had a major role in "The Big House" the following year, which made him a top star, which he remained through most of the 1930s. He successfully transitioned to supporting roles in the 1940s, but he had the lead role in the "Boston Blackie" series of movies in the early 1940s. He passed away in 1970 at the age of 69 after a battle with cancer.