Origins & Early Life

Wallace Fitzgerald Beery (April 1, 1885 – April 15, 1949) was an American film and stage actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Bill in Min and Bill (1930) opposite Marie Dressler, as General Director Preysing in Grand Hotel (1932), as the pirate Long John Silver in Treasure Island (1934), as Pancho Villa in Viva Villa! (1934) for which he won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor, and his title role in The Champ (1931), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Beery appeared in some 250 films during a 36-year career.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

His contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer stipulated in 1932 that he would be paid $1 more than any other contract player at the studio. This made Beery the highest-paid film actor in the world during the early 1930s. He was the brother of actor Noah Beery and uncle of actor Noah Beery Jr. For his contributions to the film industry, Beery was posthumously inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. Beery was born the youngest of three boys on April 1, 1885, in Clay County, Missouri, near Smithville.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The Beery family left the farm in the 1890s and moved to nearby Kansas City, Missouri, where his father was a police officer. A fourth brother, Charles...

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

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• Ahmed Zaki (actor) — Contemporary (Born in 1949) (1949): Iconic Egyptian actor celebrated for intense dramatic performances.
• Alan Menken — Contemporary (Born in 1949) (1949): Award-winning American composer celebrated for Disney film scores and Broadway musicals.
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• Abbé Prévost — Shared historical date (04-01 · Born) (1697): French novelist, best known for the highly popular romance, Manon Lescaut.
• Abraham Maslow — Shared historical date (04-01 · Born) (1908): Pioneering American psychologist known for the Hierarchy of Needs and self-actualization theory.
• Abraham Lincoln — Shared historical date (04-15 · Died) (1865): 16th President of the United States; guided the nation through the Civil War.
• Adolphe Thiers — Shared historical date (04-15 · Born) (1797): Influential French statesman, historian, and President of the Third Republic.
• 1885 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1885
• April 1 (04-01) On This Day — Historical birthdays and events on April 1
• 1949 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1949
• April 15 (04-15) On This Day — Historical events and memorials on April 15