Oscar-winning American actor Wallace Beery is best remembered for his part in “The Champ.” His portrayals of Pancho Villa in “Viva Villa!” and Long John Silver in “Treasure Island” are both notable. Over the course of a lengthy career that lasted 36 years, he was a frequent performer who made appearances in almost 250 films. As a young lad, the son of a police officer became interested in acting. He attended Chase School in Kansas City, but lacked much intellectual interest. He left home as a teenager in quest of adventure since he was tired of his monotonous life. He was employed by Ringling Brothers Circus for two years as an assistant elephant trainer. He subsequently moved on to different experiences and started singing in musical variety programs in New York. He was blessed with a lovely voice and enjoyed great success as a baritone in humorous opera. The movie industry quickly followed the theater, and the advent of talkies gave him numerous opportunities to demonstrate his strong voice and competent acting. Even though he was adept at portraying a range of parts, in his latter years he became more well-known for his humorous performances, particularly when Marie Dressler was his co-star.
Early Childhood & Life
Noah Webster Beery and Frances Margaret Fitzgerald welcomed Wallace Fitzgerald Beery into the world on April 1, 1885, in Clay County, Missouri, in the United States. His two older brothers were men. His father worked for the police.
He went to Kansas City’s Chase School. He studied the piano since he was interested in music. He showed no interest in academics from an early age and had dreams of a career in show business.
At the age of 16, he fled his home and began employment at the Ringling Brothers Circus as an assistant elephant trainer. He spent two years working there before being attacked by a leopard and leaving.
Wallace’s Career
Wallace Beery, who had a good voice, relocated to New York City in 1904 to seek a singing career. As a baritone, he was hired for comedic opera and started performing on Broadway. In 1907, he played one of his earliest parts in “The Yankee Tourist.”
In 1913, he finally relocated to Chicago to work for Essanay Studios. One of his illustrious early performances was as Sweetie, the Swedish Maid, a male character in drag.
In the 1920s, his career took off. The Last of the Mohicans (1920), Old Ironsides (1926), Now We’re in the Air (1927), and Beggars of Life (1928) are just a few of the silent movies he acted in (1928).
He was given the opportunity to play Butch, a brutal career criminal, in the 1930 film “The Big House,” which catapulted his acting career to greater heights and garnered him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role.
Wallace Beery’s performance as Andy “Champ” Purcell, a retired alcoholic boxer in the movie “The Champ,” helped him rise to become one of Hollywood’s Top 10 box office stars in the 1930s. He received the Best Actor Oscar for his performance.
He and Marie Dressler co-starred in the 1933 film “Tugboat Annie” as a pair of humorously argumentative middle-aged people. His coupling with Dressler was particularly well-liked, and the two actors worked together on a number of financially successful films.
He played Pancho Villa in “Viva Villa!” a fictitious biography of the Mexican Revolutionary general, and Long John Silver in “Treasure Island” in 1934. In “Ah, Wilderness!” he appeared in cinema alongside Lionel Barrymore, Eric Linden, Cecilia Parker, Spring Byington, and Mickey Rooney (1935).
Despite continuing to star in movies like “Salute to the Marines” (1943), “Bad Bascomb” (1946), and “The Mighty McGurk,” his career slowed down a little in the 1940s (1947).
Beery’s Bigger Works
In the drama “The Champ,” Wallace Beery portrayed Andy “Champ” Purcell, a former heavyweight world champion who had a drinking problem. The movie was a critical and financial triumph, elevating Beery to the position of one of Hollywood’s top actors.
Another one of his iconic roles was the clever and opportunistic pirate Long John Silver in the movie adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s well-known 1883 novel “Treasure Island.”
Recognition & Achievements
He shared the Best Actor Oscar in 1932 with Fredric March for “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” in the movie “The Champ.”
In 1934, for “Viva Villa!,” he took up the Best Actor prize at the Venice Film Festival.
Personal Legacy & Life
In contrast to the endearing personalities he portrayed on screen, Wallace Beery was known to be an irritable and challenging person in real life. In 1916, he wed Gloria Swanson. Later, she alleged that he had sexually assaulted her on the wedding night and forced her to take an abortion drug when she fell pregnant. The union disintegrated in 1919.
He also divorced Rita Gilman, his second wife, in 1924. The couple adopted a girl during their marriage.
In 1939, he adopted a baby girl on his own.
He had a heart attack on April 15, 1949, when he was 64 years old.
At 7001 Hollywood Boulevard, Wallace Beery received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Estimated Net Worth
Wallace is one of the wealthiest and most well-known actors in Hollywood. Wallace Beery’s net worth is estimated to be $1.5 million based on our analysis of data from sources including Wikipedia, Forbes, and Business Insider.
Trivia
This Hollywood star became the best-paid actor in the world after receiving a $1 raise at MGM over all other contract players.