{{short description|British actor (1871–1956)}} {{Other people}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2016}} {{Use British English|date=August 2016}} {{Infobox person | name = Henry Stephenson | image = Henry Stephenson in Little Lord Fauntleroy (1936).jpg | image_size = | caption = Stephenson in ''[[Little Lord Fauntleroy (1936 film)|Little Lord Fauntleroy]]'' (1936) | birth_name = Harry Stephenson Garraway | birth_date = {{Birth date|1871|04|16|df=y}} | birth_place = [[Grenada]], [[British West Indies]] | death_date = {{death date and age|1956|04|24|1871|04|16|df=y}} | death_place = [[San Francisco]], [[California]], U.S. | resting_place = | occupation = Actor | years_active = 1901–1952 | spouse = {{plainlist| *{{marriage|[[Roxy Barton]]|1906||reason=dissolved}} *{{marriage|[[Ann Shoemaker]]|1922}} }} | children = 1 }} '''Harry Stephenson Garraway'''{{Citation needed |date=March 2024}} (16 April 1871 – 24 April 1956) was a British actor. He generally portrayed amiable and wise [[Gentleman|gentlemen]] in many films of the 1930s and 1940s. Among his roles were [[Joseph Banks|Sir Joseph Banks]] in ''[[Mutiny on the Bounty (1935 film)|Mutiny on the Bounty]]'' (1935) and [[Mr. Brownlow]] in ''[[Oliver Twist (1948 film)|Oliver Twist]]'' (1948).
==Life and career== Stephenson was born to British parents in [[Grenada, British West Indies]], and educated in England. He started acting in his twenties.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20140414052256/http://www.matineeclassics.com/celebrities/actors/henry_stephenson/details/ "Henry Stephenson"]}}. . ''Matinee Classics''. Accessed 19 September 2014.</ref> He appeared on British and American stages and made his [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] debut in 1901, playing the messenger in ''A Message from Mars'' starring [[Charles Hawtrey (actor, born 1858)|Charles Hawtrey]]. In the following decades, he performed in more than 30 Broadway plays.<ref name="ibdb">{{IBDB name|68813}}</ref>
Stephenson made his film debut in 1917 and appeared in a few silent films, but made his mark mostly as an elderly man in sound films.{{Citation needed |date=July 2024}} Between 1931 and 1932, he appeared in the Broadway play ''Cynara''<ref name="ibdb" /> with over 200 performances. He came to Hollywood for the film version of ''[[Cynara (1932 film)|Cynara]]'', starring [[Ronald Colman]] and with Stephenson reprising his role of John Tring. In the same year, he played the tycoon C.B. Gaerste in ''[[Red-Headed Woman]]'', [[Leslie Howard (actor)|Leslie Howard]]'s father Rufus Collier in ''[[The Animal Kingdom (1932 film)|The Animal Kingdom]]'' and Doctor Alliot in ''[[A Bill of Divorcement (1932 film)|A Bill of Divorcement]]''. In 1933, he appeared as Mr. Laurence in ''[[Little Women (1933 film)|Little Women]]''. He specialized in portraying wise, dignified and congenial British gentlemen in supporting roles.{{Citation needed |date=July 2024}}
Stephenson appeared in 90 films from 1917 to 1951. He often played historical figures like [[Joseph Banks|Sir Joseph Banks]] in the Oscar-winning{{Citation needed |date=July 2024}} adventure film ''[[Mutiny on the Bounty (1935 film)|Mutiny on the Bounty]]'' (1935) and [[Florimond Claude, Comte de Mercy-Argenteau]] in ''[[Marie Antoinette (1938 film)|Marie Antoinette]]'' (1938).
Stephenson worked with film star [[Errol Flynn]] in the films ''[[Captain Blood (1935 film)|Captain Blood]]'', ''[[The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936 film)|The Charge of the Light Brigade]]'', ''[[The Prince and the Pauper (1937 film)|The Prince and the Pauper]]'', and ''[[The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex]]'', often as Flynn's paternal friend and superior. He portrayed Sir Thomas Lancing in ''[[Tarzan Finds a Son!]]'' in 1939, and Sir Guy Henderson in ''[[Tarzan and the Amazons]]'' in 1945.
Stephenson seldom played dark figures; among the exceptions was the snobbish Mr. Bryant in ''[[Mr. Lucky (film)|Mr. Lucky]]'' in 1943. He also appeared in several literary adaptions, for example as the friendly lawyer Havisham in ''[[Little Lord Fauntleroy (1936 film)|Little Lord Fauntleroy]]'' (1936) and as [[Mr. Brownlow]] in [[David Lean]]'s film adaptation of ''[[Oliver Twist (1948 film)|Oliver Twist]]'' (1948). He made his last film in 1949, but appeared in two television series in 1951 before the end of his career. In 1950, after completing his role of Cardinal Gaspar de Quiroga in the play ''That Lady'', Stephenson retired from the stage.{{Citation needed |date=July 2024}}
==Personal life== He married the Australian-born actress [[Roxy Barton]] on 14 June 1906 at [[St Marylebone Parish Church]] in [[Marylebone]] in London.<ref>[https://www.ancestry.co.uk/interactive/1623/31280_197877-00385?pid=7314950&backurl=https://search.ancestry.co.uk/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv%3D1%26dbid%3D1623%26h%3D7314950%26tid%3D%26pid%3D%26usePUB%3Dtrue%26_phsrc%3Ddjv3630%26_phstart%3DsuccessSource&treeid=&personid=&hintid=&usePUB=true&_phsrc=djv3630&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&_ga=2.27041213.1274238280.1591301002-1197399642.1515349816 "London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1932 for Roxy Claudia May Barton: Westminster, St Marylebone, 1900-1912"]. ''Ancestry.com''. {{subscription required}}</ref> Their daughter was the actress Jean Harriet Stephenson. The marriage was later dissolved. He later wed the actress [[Ann Shoemaker]], who had a daughter, Anne Hall, the song lyricist, by a previous marriage. Henry Stephenson died in 1956, aged 85 from [[nephritis]].{{Citation needed |date=March 2024}}
==Filmography== [[File:Henry Stephenson in Marie Antoinette trailer.jpg|thumbnail|Henry Stephenson in ''Marie Antoinette'' (1938)]] [[File:Little Lord Fauntleroy (1936) 6.jpg|thumbnail|right|Henry Stephenson (middle) in ''Little Lord Fauntleroy'' (1936); with [[C. Aubrey Smith]] (left) and [[Walter Kingsford]] (right)]] [[File:Henry Stephenson in Little Women trailer.jpg|thumb|in the trailer for<br/>''[[Little Women (1933 film)|Little Women]]'' (1933)]] {{div col}} * ''[[The Spreading Dawn]]'' (1917) as Mr. LeRoy (film debut) * ''[[A Society Exile (1919 film)|A Society Exile]]'' (1919) as Sir Howard Furnival * ''[[The Tower of Jewels]]'' (1920) as David Parrish * ''[[The Black Panther's Cub]]'' (1921) as Clive, Earl of Maudsley * ''[[Men and Women (1925 film)|Men and Women]]'' (1925) as Arnold Kirke * ''[[Wild, Wild Susan]]'' (1925) as Peter Van Dusen * ''[[Red-Headed Woman]]'' (1932) as Gaerste * ''[[Guilty as Hell]]'' (1932) as Dr. Ernest S. Tindal * ''[[A Bill of Divorcement (1932 film)|A Bill of Divorcement]]'' (1932) as Dr. Alliot * ''[[The Animal Kingdom (1932 film)|The Animal Kingdom]]'' (1932) as Mr. Rufus Collier * ''[[Cynara (1932 film)|Cynara]]'' (1932) as John Tring * ''[[Tomorrow at Seven]]'' (1933) as Thornton Drake * ''[[Double Harness]]'' (1933) as Colonel Sam Colby * ''[[Blind Adventure]]'' (1933) as Maj. Archer Thorne * ''[[My Lips Betray]]'' (1933) as De Conti * ''[[Little Women (1933 film)|Little Women]]'' (1933) as Mr. Laurence * ''[[If I Were Free]]'' (1933) as Hector Stribling * ''[[Man of Two Worlds (film)|Man of Two Worlds]]'' (1934) as Sir Basil Pemberton * ''[[The Mystery of Mr. X]]'' (1934) as Sir Herbert Frensham * ''[[All Men Are Enemies]]'' (1934) as Scrope * ''[[Stingaree (1934 film)|Stingaree]]'' (1934) as Mr. Hugh Clarkson * ''[[Thirty Day Princess]]'' (1934) as King Anatol XII * ''[[One More River]]'' (1934) as Sir Laurence Mont * ''[[She Loves Me Not (1934 film)|She Loves Me Not]]'' (1934) as Dean Mercer * ''[[The Richest Girl in the World (1934 film)|The Richest Girl in the World]]'' (1934) as Connors * ''[[Outcast Lady]]'' (1934) as Sir Maurice * ''[[What Every Woman Knows (1934 film)|What Every Woman Knows]]'' (1934) as Charles Venables * ''[[The Night Is Young]]'' (1935) as [[Franz Joseph I of Austria|Emperor Franz Josef]] * ''[[Vanessa: Her Love Story]]'' (1935) as Barney Newmark * ''[[Reckless (1935 film)|Reckless]]'' (1935) as Col. Harrison * ''[[The Flame Within (film)|The Flame Within]]'' (1935) as Dr. Jock Frazier * ''[[O'Shaughnessy's Boy]]'' (1935) as Major Winslow * ''[[Rendezvous (1935 film)|Rendezvous]]'' (1935) as Ambassador * ''[[Mutiny on the Bounty (1935 film)|Mutiny on the Bounty]]'' (1935) as [[Joseph Banks|Sir Joseph Banks]] * ''[[The Perfect Gentleman (film)|The Perfect Gentleman]]'' (1935) as Bishop * ''[[Captain Blood (1935 film)|Captain Blood]]'' (1935) as Lord Willoughby * ''[[Little Lord Fauntleroy (1936 film)|Little Lord Fauntleroy]]'' (1936) as Havisham * ''[[Half Angel (1936 film)|Half Angel]]'' (1936) as Professor Jerome Hargraves * ''[[Hearts Divided]]'' (1936) as Chas. Patterson * ''[[Walking on Air (1936 film)|Walking on Air]]'' (1936) as Mr. Horace Bennett * ''[[Give Me Your Heart (film)|Give Me Your Heart]]'' (1936) as Edward - Lord Farrington * ''[[The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936 film)|The Charge of the Light Brigade]]'' (1936) as Sir Charles Macefield * ''[[Beloved Enemy]]'' (1936) as Lord Athleigh * ''[[When You're in Love (film)|When You're in Love]]'' (1937) as Walter Mitchell * ''[[The Prince and the Pauper (1937 film)|The Prince and the Pauper]]'' (1937) as [[Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk|the Duke of Norfolk]] * ''[[The Emperor's Candlesticks (1937 film)|The Emperor's Candlesticks]]'' (1937) as Prince Johann * ''[[Conquest (1937 film)|Conquest]]'' (1937) as Count Anastas Walewski * ''[[Wise Girl (film)|Wise Girl]]'' (1937) as Mr. Fletcher * ''[[The Baroness and the Butler]]'' (1938) as Count Albert Sandor * ''[[The Young in Heart]]'' (1938) as Mr. Anstruther * ''[[Marie Antoinette (1938 film)|Marie Antoinette]]'' (1938) as [[Florimond Claude, Comte de Mercy-Argenteau|Count de Mercey]] * ''[[Suez (film)|Suez]]'' (1938) as Count [[Mathieu de Lesseps]] * ''[[Dramatic School (film)|Dramatic School]]'' (1938) as Pasquel Sr. * ''[[Tarzan Finds a Son!]]'' (1939) as Sir Thomas Lancing * ''[[The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (film)|The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes]]'' (1939) as Sir Ronald Ramsgate * ''[[The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex]]'' (1939) as [[William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley|Lord Burghley]] * ''[[Little Old New York (1940 film)|Little Old New York]]'' (1940) as [[Robert Le Roy Livingston|Chancellor Robert L. Livingstone]] * ''[[It's a Date]]'' (1940) as Capt. Andrew * ''[[Spring Parade]]'' (1940) as Emperor Franz Joseph * ''[[Down Argentine Way]]'' (1940) as Don Diego Quintana * ''[[The Man Who Lost Himself (1941 film)|The Man Who Lost Himself]]'' (1941) as Frederick Collins * ''[[Lady from Louisiana]]'' (1941) as General Anatole Mirbeau * ''[[Rings on Her Fingers]]'' (1942) as Colonel Harry Prentiss * ''[[This Above All]]'' (1942) as General Cathaway * ''[[Halfway to Shanghai]]'' (1942) as Colonel Algernon Blimpton * ''[[The Mantrap]]'' (1943) as Sir Humphrey Quilp * ''[[Mr. Lucky (film)|Mr. Lucky]]'' (1943) as Mr. Bryant * ''[[Two Girls and a Sailor]]'' (1944) as John Dyckman Brown I * ''[[The Hour Before the Dawn]]'' (1944) as Gen. Hetherton * ''[[Secrets of Scotland Yard]]'' (1944) as Sir Reginald Meade * ''[[Reckless Age]]'' (1944) as J. H. Wadsworth * ''[[Tarzan and the Amazons]]'' (1945) as Sir Guy Henderson * ''[[The Green Years (film)|The Green Years]]'' (1946) as Prof. Rattray Blakely * ''[[Heartbeat (1946 film)|Heartbeat]]'' (1946) as Minister * ''[[Night and Day (1946 film)|Night and Day]]'' (1946) as Omar Cole * ''[[Of Human Bondage (1946 film)|Of Human Bondage]]'' (1946) as Dr. Tyrell * ''[[Her Sister's Secret]]'' (1946) as Mr. Dubois * ''[[The Return of Monte Cristo (1946 film)|The Return of Monte Cristo]]'' (1946) as Prof. Duval * ''[[The Locket (1946 film)|The Locket]]'' (1946) as Lord Wyndham * ''[[Time Out of Mind (1947 film)|Time Out of Mind]]'' (1947) as Wellington Drake * ''[[The Homestretch]]'' (1947) as Don Humberto Balcares * ''[[Dark Delusion]]'' (1947) as Dr. Evans Biddle * ''[[Ivy (1947 film)|Ivy]]'' (1947) as Judge * ''[[Song of Love (1947 film)|Song of Love]]'' (1947) as [[Albert, King of Saxony|King Albert]] * ''[[Oliver Twist (1948 film)|Oliver Twist]]'' (1948) as [[Mr. Brownlow]] * ''[[Julia Misbehaves]]'' (1948) as Lord Pennystone * ''[[Enchantment (1948 film)|Enchantment]]'' (1948) as General Fitzgerald * ''[[Challenge to Lassie]]'' (1949) as Sir Charles Loring (final film) {{div col end}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons}}
* {{IMDb name|0827261}} * {{IBDB name|68813}} * {{Find a Grave|10784431}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephenson, Henry}} [[Category:1871 births]] [[Category:1956 deaths]] [[Category:English male film actors]] [[Category:English male silent film actors]] [[Category:English male stage actors]] [[Category:20th-century English male actors]] [[Category:British expatriate male actors in the United States]] [[Category:British expatriates in Grenada]]