Continuing my Thirties and Forties Hollywood supporting actors series, I offer Sir C Aubrey Smith, a grand Sussex export.
Tall, majestic and looking every inch an empire builder, I often felt he could have stood beside royalty and not felt the least bit intimidated. He was wonderful as Colonel Zapt in The Prisoner Of Zenda (1937) with David Niven, Douglas Fairbanks Jnr, Raymond Massey and the lilting-voiced Ronald Colman.
A Sussex county cricketer, Smith was nick-named Round the Corner Smith because of his bowling action. I believe he also played football for the county as well.
He featured in more than 100 films, including The Four Feathers (1939), Rebecca (1940) and Waterloo Bridge (1940). What a good idea for Nigel Davenport play him in his life story - a distinct likeness, in my view.
The picture is a scene from Morning Glory (1933).
-Gordon Dean, St Lukes Road, Brighton
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