George Bancroft is a well-known actor who was born in the legendary “City of Brotherly Love”. However, throughout his life, as it appears at first look, he developed a reputation as an isolated and insensitive individual. So his colleagues described him as one of the hardest and most demanding actors they had ever worked with in Hollywood. Find out more about George’s complicated life story, including what he went through and what he accomplished, at philadelphiaski.com.
Service in the Navy and the beginning of an acting career
George Bancroft was born on September 30, 1882, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The future famous Hollywood actor once earned money serving in the Navy. When he was a young man, George frequently sailed the seas on a merchant ship unnoticed by the crew. When the latter was discovered, he got his punishment, but this did not stop the enthusiast from trying a new trick.
When Bancroft grew up and graduated from the United States Naval Academy, he finally had the legal right to sail. His long service in the U.S. Navy has powerfully hardened his character for life. The man even participated in the Battle of Manila Bay in 1900. There he served as a gunner aboard the USS Baltimore cruiser. There is also an intriguing and controversial fact about him that has many doubters. We’re talking about the aforementioned naval company, in which the gunner from Philadelphia took part. A US Navy cruiser crashed with a rock along the coast, and a brave man swam under the ship’s hull to assess the damage. According to historical sources, George was promoted to a higher-ranking post for his courage and skill.
Even while serving in the United States Navy, the man did his first steps in his acting career. Although, at the time, it was more of an entertainment program for sailors who had been away from land for an extended period of time. George Bancroft, equipped with naval talent, constructed movable stages on the deck and served as an impresario in a variety of performances.
Career and success in the film industry
After a long career in the US Navy, he made a fateful decision to change his vocation. A man, feeling stuck and seeking fresh emotions, decided to try himself in a variety of roles on stage.
With a background in theatrical plays and musicals, in 1922, he received an offer to star in a film. In the future, the amateur actor got noticed by the well-known James Cruze, who assisted him with participation in the film “The Pony Express” in 1925. So, little by little, a minor success in one film led to subsequent roles in large-scale movies, and he eventually became a Hollywood celebrity. George’s career was defined by his unique skills to play any character, both negative and positive.
His colleagues, in particular, remarked on how easily he portrayed both good and bad characters on the screen from one picture to the next.
At the time, George Bancroft was widely regarded as one of the finest silent-film performers. During his rather brief film career, he was remembered by audiences in the following movies: “The Pony Express”, “Underworld”, “The Wolf of Wall Street”, “Mr. Deeds Goes To Town”, “Submarine Patrol” and so on. During the Second World War, he acted in the beautiful picture “Whistling in Dixie,” which was the final work in his career. In the final years of his life, he earned money as a sociology teacher at Southwest Missouri State College.
The actor died in Santa Monica at the age of 74 after an extensive illness. There weren’t many fellow actors or friends who came to say their final goodbyes to a silent film veteran. Because of George’s harsh nature, many of his acquaintances still had hard feelings. Two of his wives attended the funerals as well: his first wife the actress Edna Brothers, and his second Octavia Broske, a former musical comedy star. It was the latter who remained by his side till his death. Mr. Bancroft also had a daughter with his second wife.
