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Edmund Lowe

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Edmund Lowe
Lowe on theBlue Network's radio seriesThree Thirds of a Nation(1942)
Born
Edmund Sherbourne Lowe

(1890-03-03)March 3, 1890
DiedApril 21, 1971(1971-04-21)(aged 81)
Resting placeSan Fernando Mission Cemetery
Alma materSanta Clara University
OccupationActor
Years active1915–1960
Spouses
Esther Miller
(div.1925)
(m.1925; died 1934)
Rita Kaufman
(m.1936;div.1950)

Edmund Sherbourne Lowe(March 3, 1890 – April 21, 1971) was an American actor.[1]His formative experience began invaudevilleandsilent film.

Biography

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Lowe's childhood home was at 314 North 1st Street, San Jose. He attendedSanta Clara Collegeand entertained the idea of becoming a priest before starting his acting career. He died inWoodland Hills, California,oflung cancerand is buried atSan Fernando Mission Cemetery,Mission Hills, California.[2]

Quirt and Flagg

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Lowe in 1925

Lowe's career included over 100 films, beginning in 1915. He became established as a popular leading man in silent films. He is best remembered for his role as Sergeant Harry Quirt, smart-mouthed buddy of the equally abrasive Captain Jimmy Flagg (Victor McLaglen) in the 1926 silent featureWhat Price Glory?directed byRaoul Walsh.

The popularity of Quirt and Flagg virtually guaranteed Edmund Lowe's success in the new talking pictures: audiences could hardly wait to hear the salty Quirt and Flagg insulting each other in spoken dialogue. During the sound era, amusical comedyremakeand twosequelswere produced, all starring Lowe and McLaglen, with the first two also directed by Raoul Walsh. Lowe reprised his role from the movies in the radio programCaptain Flagg and Sergeant Quirt,broadcast on theBlue NetworkSeptember 28, 1941 - January 25, 1942, and onNBCFebruary 13, 1942 - April 3, 1942.[3](The radio show probably resulted from Lowe and McLaglen reuniting as battling buddies Harry and Jimmy in the military movie comedyCall Out the Marines.)

Lowe worked steadily as a leading man throughout the 1930s, freelancing at various Hollywood studios. He portrayed the young doctor trying to get out of an affair withWallace Beery's character's wife, played byJean Harlow,inDinner at Eight(1933).

Later career

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A look at Edmund Lowe's screen resumé would indicate that he descended to "Poverty Row"productions in 1942 and his career never recovered. In fact, Lowe's career was stalling as early as 1938, when the actor was too mature to play most romantic leads. His last such role was in 1937'sEvery Day's a Holiday,in which the 48-year-old Lowe played opposite the 44-year-oldMae West.Lowe shifted gears and began playing strong supporting roles in major films and leads in minor films.

Lowe's friendWilliam K. Howard,a top director of the 1920s, was attempting a comeback at the low-budgetMonogram Picturesin 1942. As a favor to Howard, Lowe took the leading role inKlondike Fury.Lowe's loyal gesture took a toll on his professional standing: the small, independent Monogram studio was firmly in Hollywood's minor league. As actorBill Kennedytold authorScott MacGillivray,"If you were an actor on the way up, like Robert Mitchum or Alan Ladd, working at Monogram was okay -- no stigma.But-- if you were already a star at a big studio like Fox or Paramount andthenwent to Monogram, a la Edmund Lowe, it was the kiss of death. "[4]

Lowe's work inKlondike Furywon him an invitation fromColumbia Picturesto star in three comedy-mysteries. Lowe also kept working at Monogram, notably in the 1945 crime thrillerDillinger,a surprise hit. Lowe's last starring movie role was in Monogram'sThe Strange Mr. Gregory(1945).

In 1951-52 Lowe starred in 38 episodes of the television showFront Page Detectiveand appeared as the elderly lead villain in thefirst episodeofMaverickoppositeJames Garnerin 1957. Lowe appeared occasionally in major motion pictures through 1960.

Marriages

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After his first marriage to Esther Miller ended in early 1925, Lowe metLilyan Tashmanwhile filmingPorts of Call.Lowe and Tashman were married on September 21, 1925, before the release of the film. The two had homes in Beverly Hills and Malibu. They were married until Tashman's death from cancer at age 37 in 1934.[citation needed]

Seventy years after Tashman's death, author E.J. Fleming claimed Lowe was a homosexual and Tashman was a lesbian.[5]If the claims were true, fan magazine writers and newspaper columnists made no mention of them during Tashman's lifetime or for 70 years after her death.[6]

Lowe's third wife was costume designer Rita Kaufman. They were married from 1936 to 1950.[citation needed]

Filmography

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Lowe withDolores del RíoandVictor McLagleninWhat Price Glory?(1926)

References

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  1. ^"Edmund Lowe".Movies & TV Dept.The New York Times.2008. Archived fromthe originalon March 27, 2008.
  2. ^Wilson, Scott.Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons,3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 28770-28771). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition.
  3. ^Dunning, John(1998).On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio(Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. pp. 136–137.ISBN978-0-19-507678-3.RetrievedSeptember 14,2019.
  4. ^MacGillivray, Scott (2009).Laurel & Hardy: From the Forties Forward(Second Edition, Revised and Expanded ed.). New York: iUniverse. p. 194.ISBN978-1-4401-7237-3.
  5. ^The Fixers: Eddie Mannix, Howard Strickling and the MGM Publicity Machine By E.J. Fleming p.104
  6. ^The Fixers: Eddie Mannix, Howard Strickling and the MGM Publicity Machine By E.J. Fleming p.104
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