William H. Crane


William Henry Crane was an American actor.

Biography

Crane was born in Leicester, Massachusetts on April 30, 1845.
He made his first appearance at Utica, New York, in Donizetti's The Daughter of the Regiment in 1863. Later he had a great success as Le Blanc the Notary, in the burlesque Evangeline. He made his first hit in the legitimate drama with Stuart Robson, in The Comedy of Errors and other Shakespearian plays, and in The Henrietta by Bronson Howard. This partnership lasted for 12 years, and subsequently Crane appeared in various eccentric character parts in such plays as The Senator and David Harum.
In 1904 he turned to more serious work and played Isidore Izard in Business is Business, an adaptation from Octave Mirbeau's Les Affaires sont les Affaires.
In his 70s, Crane appeared in a number of films, notably in a reprise of his role in David Harum. He also appeared in MGM's Three Wise Fools, a film that was revived on Turner Classic Movies and is available on home video/DVD.
Crane died on March 5, 1928, at the age of 82 in the Hollywood Hotel.

Partial filmography