Matheson Alexander Lang (May 15, 1879 – April 11, 1948) was a Canadian-born stage and film actor and playwright. He is best remembered for his theatrical performances in Great Britain in Shakespeare plays.
Matheson Alexander Lang (May 15, 1879 – April 11, 1948) was a Canadian-born stage and film actor and playwright. He is best remembered for his theatrical performances in Great Britain in Shakespeare plays.
Lang was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, the son of Rev. Gavin Lang of Inverness, Scotland, and a cousin of Cosmo Gordon Lang, who would later become Archbishop of Canterbury. [1]
Lang was educated at Inverness College and the University of St Andrews. [2] He made his stage debut in 1897. He became known for his Shakespearean roles in such plays as Hamlet, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet. He also appeared in plays by Henrik Ibsen and George Bernard Shaw. He performed in the theatrical companies of Sir Frank Benson, Lillie Langtry, and Ellen Terry.
In 1903 he married actress Nelly Hutin Britton in London. In 1906 he played Tristram in Joseph Comyns Carr's play Tristram and Iseult at the Adelphi Theatre, with Lily Brayton as Iseult and Oscar Asche as King Mark; Lang's wife played Arganthael. Asche afterwards usually referred to Lang as "Tristram".
Lang and his wife subsequently formed their own company, which toured India, South Africa, and Australia from 1910 to 1913 performing Shakespeare. In 1913, Lang returned to England and created one of his most memorable roles, the title character in Mr. Wu. He reprised this part in a 1919 silent film, and became so identified with the role that he titled his 1940 memoirs Mr. Wu Looks Back. In 1914, he and Britton successfully produced The Taming of the Shrew, The Merchant of Venice, and Hamlet at the Old Vic.
In 1916, Lang became one of the first major theatre stars to act on film, as Shylock in The Merchant of Venice, with his wife as Portia. He went on to appear in over 30 films and was one of Britain's leading movie stars of the 1920s. Among his memorable roles were Guy Fawkes (1923), Matthias in The Wandering Jew (1923) (which also featured his wife as Judith), Henry IV in Henry, King of Navarre (1924), and Henry V in Royal Cavalcade (1935).
Lang also wrote the plays Carnival (1919) and The Purple Mask (1920), both of which were produced on Broadway and made into films. The film The Chinese Bungalow (1940 film), was adapted from his play of the same name, in which he had, in his turn, played the lead of Yuan Sing, in the first film adaptation, in 1926, and again, in 1930.
In 1940 the Langs were staying with their old friend Dornford Yates and his wife at their house near Pau in France when France surrendered. The Langs had to escape from the advancing Germans through Spain to Portugal. [3]
Matheson Lang died in Bridgetown, Barbados, at age 68.
The Merchant of Venice is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan taken out on behalf of his dear friend, Bassanio, and provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock, with seemingly inevitable fatal consequences.
Cecil William Mercer, known by his pen name Dornford Yates, was an English writer and novelist whose novels and short stories, some humorous, some thrillers, were best-sellers during the Interwar Period.
Tristan, also known as Tristram, Tristyn or Tristain and similar names, is the hero of the legend of Tristan and Iseult. In the legend, he is tasked with escorting the Irish princess Iseult to wed Tristan's uncle, King Mark of Cornwall. Tristan and Iseult accidentally drink a love potion during the journey and fall in love, beginning an adulterous relationship that eventually leads to Tristan's banishment and death. The character's first recorded appearance is in retellings of British mythology from the 12th century by Thomas of Britain and Gottfried von Strassburg, and later in the Prose Tristan. He is featured in Arthurian legends, including the seminal text Le Morte d'Arthur, as a skilled knight and a friend of Lancelot.
Mark of Cornwall was a sixth-century King of Kernow (Cornwall), possibly identical with King Conomor. He is best known for his appearance in Arthurian legend as the uncle of Tristan and the husband of Iseult who engages with Tristan in a secret liaison, giving Mark the epithet "Cuckold King".
Tristan and Iseult, also known as Tristan and Isolde and other names, is a medieval chivalric romance told in numerous variations since the 12th century. Based on a Celtic legend and possibly other sources, the tale is a tragedy about the illicit love between the Cornish knight Tristan and the Irish princess Iseult in the days of King Arthur. It depicts Tristan's mission to escort Iseult from Ireland to marry his uncle, King Mark of Cornwall. On the journey, Tristan and Iseult ingest a love potion, instigating a forbidden love affair between them.
Sir Francis Robert Benson was an English actor-manager. He founded his own company in 1883 and produced all but two of Shakespeare's plays. His thirty-year association with the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre and the annual Shakespeare Festival in Stratford-upon-Avon laid down foundations for the creation of the Royal Shakespeare Company after his death.
John Stange(r) Heiss Oscar Asche, better known as Oscar Asche, was an Australian actor, director, and writer, best known for having written, directed, and acted in the record-breaking musical Chu Chin Chow, both on stage and film, and for acting in, directing, or producing many Shakespeare plays and successful musicals.
Sir Godfrey Seymour Tearle was a British actor who portrayed the quintessential British gentleman on stage and in both British and US films.
Elizabeth "Lily" Brayton was an English actress and singer, known for her performances in Shakespeare plays and for her nearly 2,000 performances in the First World War hit musical Chu Chin Chow.
Maurice Elvey was one of the most prolific film directors in British history. He directed nearly 200 films between 1913 and 1957. During the silent film era he directed as many as twenty films per year. He also produced more than fifty films – his own as well as films directed by others.
Joseph William Comyns Carr, often referred to as J. Comyns Carr, was an English drama and art critic, gallery director, author, poet, playwright and theatre manager.
Nelly Hutin Britton, usually credited as Hutin Britton was an English actress. She was best known for her performances in Shakespeare roles early in the 20th century. She also appeared in leading roles in two silent British films.
Carnival is a 1931 British drama film in black and white with colour sequences directed by Herbert Wilcox and produced by his British & Dominions Film Corporation, starring Matheson Lang, Joseph Schildkraut, Kay Hammond and Chili Bouchier. During a performance of Othello a jealous actor attempts to strangle his wife who he believes has committed adultery. It was a remake of the 1921 film Carnival. The French musician Alfred Rode appears with his band.
The Great Defender is a 1934 British mystery film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring Matheson Lang, Margaret Bannerman and Arthur Margetson. Its plot concerns a top barrister who conducts the defence of an artist facing the death penalty for allegedly murdering his model, while himself battling with serious illness.
Mr. Wu is a 1919 British drama film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Matheson Lang, Roy Royston, Lillah McCarthy and Meggie Albanesi. It was based on a 1913 play Mr. Wu by Maurice Vernon and Harold Owen. During the filming Albanesi became infatuated with Lang. The picture was made by Stoll Pictures, and was one of their first major successes. Lon Chaney played the title role in a 1927 remake. The screenplay concerns a Chinese Mandarin who murders his daughter.
Carnival is a 1921 British silent drama film directed by Harley Knoles and starring Matheson Lang, Ivor Novello and Hilda Bayley. During a production of William Shakespeare's Othello in Venice, an Italian actor suspects his wife of having an affair and plans to murder her on stage. It was based on a stage play of the year before, of which Matheson Lang was one of the writers. The film was a popular success, and was re-released the following year. In 1931, it was remade as a sound film, Carnival, directed by Herbert Wilcox.
Henry Baynton was a British Shakespearean actor and actor-manager of the early 20th century who in a stage career lasting 40 years is credited with playing Hamlet over 2,000 times.
The Wandering Jew is a 1923 British silent fantasy film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Matheson Lang, Hutin Britton and Malvina Longfellow. It was based on a play by E. Temple Thurston. It was remade in 1933.
The Merchant of Venice is a 1916 British silent drama film directed by Walter West and starring Matheson Lang, Hutin Britton, Ernest Caselli. It is an adaptation of William Shakespeare's play The Merchant of Venice.
Charles Doran was an Irish actor, one of the last of the touring actor-managers in the tradition of Frank Benson, John Martin-Harvey and Ben Greet. Among those who joined his company at the start of their careers were Cecil Parker, Ralph Richardson, Francis L Sullivan and Donald Wolfit.
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