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Douglass Rupert Dumbrille (October 13, 1889 – April 2, 1974) was a Canadian actor and one of the Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood.
In 1913, the East Coast film industry was flourishing and that year he appeared in the film What Eighty Million Women Want, but it would be another 11 years before he appeared on screen again.
In 1924, he made his Broadway debut and worked off and on in the theatre for several years while supplementing his income by selling such products as car accessories, tea, insurance, real estate, and books.
During the Great Depression, Dumbrille moved to the West Coast of the U.S., where he specialized in playing secondary character roles alongside the great stars of the day. His physical appearance and suave voice equipped him for roles as slick politician, corrupt businessman, crooked sheriff, or unscrupulous lawyer.
He was highly regarded by the studios and was sought out by Cecil B. DeMille, Frank Capra, Hal Roach and other prominent Hollywood filmmakers. A friend of fellow Canadian-born director Allan Dwan, Dumbrille played Athos in Dwan’s 1939 adaptation of The Three Musketeers.
Dumbrille had roles in more than 200 motion pictures and, with the advent of television, made numerous appearances in the 1950s and 1960s. He had the ability to project a balance of menace and pomposity in roles as the "heavy" in comedy films, such as those of the Marx Brothers or Abbott and Costello.
Known For
The Ten Commandments
(1956)
Jannes
Baby Face
(1933)
Brody
Julius Caesar
(1953)
Lepidus
Scaramouche
(1952)
Assembly President
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
(1936)
John Cedar
Virginia City
(1940)
Maj. Drewery
The Buccaneer
(1958)
Collector of the Port
Road to Zanzibar
(1941)
Slave trader
A Day at the Races
(1937)
Morgan
Treasure Island
(1934)
Pirate of the Spanish Main
Buccaneer's Girl
(1950)
Capt. Martos
Ride 'Em Cowboy
(1942)
Jake Rainwater
The Big Store
(1941)
Mr. Grover
I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang
(1932)
District Attorney (uncredited)
Tell No Tales
(1939)
Matt Cooper (as Douglas Dumbrille)
Peter Ibbetson
(1935)
Colonel Forsythe
Full Filmography
Acting
The Door Knocker
(1931)
Gangster
His Woman
(1931)
Alisandroe
Blondie of the Follies
(1932)
Murchenson
The Pride of the Legion
(1932)
McMahon
I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang
(1932)
District Attorney (uncredited)
That's My Boy
(1932)
Coach "Daisy" Adams
The Wiser Sex
(1932)
Chauffeur - aka The Wop
The Symphony Murder Mystery
(1932)
Giuseppe Benito
Baby Face
(1933)
Brody
Lady Killer
(1933)
Spade Maddock
Laughter in Hell
(1933)
Ed Perkins
Hard to Handle
(1933)
District Attorney (uncredited)
The World Changes
(1933)
Buffalo Bill Cody
The Working Man
(1933)
Lawyer Hammersmith (uncredited)
King of the Jungle
(1933)
Ed Peters
The Man Who Dared
(1933)
Judge Collier
Female
(1933)
George Mumford
Heroes for Sale
(1933)
Chief Engineer Jim (uncredited)
The Way to Love
(1933)
Agent Chapusard
The Rustler's Roundup
(1933)
Bill Brett (as Douglas Dunbrile)
I Loved a Woman
(1933)
U.S. Attorney Brandt (uncredited)
Elmer, the Great
(1933)
Stillman (uncredited)
Smoke Lightning
(1933)
Sam Edson
Harold Teen
(1934)
H.H. Snatcher (as Douglas Dumbrille)
Broadway Bill
(1934)
Eddie Morgan
Operator 13
(1934)
General Stuart
Journal of a Crime
(1934)
Cartier (as Douglas Dumbrille)
Fog Over Frisco
(1934)
Joshua Mayard
Hi, Nellie!
(1934)
Dawes
The Secret Bride
(1934)
Breeden
Treasure Island
(1934)
Pirate of the Spanish Main
Crime and Punishment
(1935)
Grilov
Naughty Marietta
(1935)
Prince de Namours de la Bonfain, Marietta's Uncle
The Lives of a Bengal Lancer
(1935)
Mohammed Khan
Peter Ibbetson
(1935)
Colonel Forsythe
The Public Menace
(1935)
Mario Tonelli
Air Hawks
(1935)
Victor Arnold
The Lone Wolf Returns
(1935)
Morphew
Love Me Forever
(1935)
Miller
The Calling of Dan Matthews
(1935)
Jeff Hardy
Unknown Woman
(1935)
The Princess Comes Across
(1936)
Lorel
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
(1936)
John Cedar
You May Be Next!
(1936)
Beau Gardner
M'Liss
(1936)
Lou Ellis
The Witness Chair
(1936)
Stanley Whittaker
Counterfeit Lady
(1936)
August Marino
End of the Trail
(1936)
Bill Mason
The Music Goes 'Round
(1936)
Bishop
A Day at the Races
(1937)
Morgan
The Firefly
(1937)
Marquis de Melito
The Emperor's Candlesticks
(1937)
Mr. Korum, a Conspirator
Ali Baba Goes to Town
(1937)
Prince Musah
Woman in Distress
(1937)
Jerome Culver
Storm Over Bengal
(1938)
Ramin Khan
The Buccaneer
(1938)
Governor William C.C. Claiborne
Kentucky
(1938)
John Dillon - 1861
Fast Company
(1938)
Arnold Stamper (as Douglas Dumbrille)
Stolen Heaven
(1938)
Klingman
The Mysterious Rider
(1938)
Pecos Bill aka Ben Wade
Sharpshooters
(1938)
Count Maxim
Crime Takes a Holiday
(1938)
J.J. Grant
Charlie Chan at Treasure Island
(1939)
Stewart Salsbury, alias Thomas Gregory
City in Darkness
(1939)
B. Petroff (as Douglas Dumbrille)
Mr. Moto in Danger Island
(1939)
Comdr. La Costa
Thunder Afloat
(1939)
District Commander
Tell No Tales
(1939)
Matt Cooper (as Douglas Dumbrille)
Slightly Honorable
(1939)
George Taylor
The Three Musketeers
(1939)
Athos (as Douglas Dumbrille)
Rovin' Tumbleweeds
(1939)
Stephen Holloway
Captain Fury
(1939)
Preston
Michael Shayne: Private Detective
(1940)
Benny Gordon (as Douglas Dumbrille)
South of Pago Pago
(1940)
Williams
Virginia City
(1940)
Maj. Drewery
Road to Zanzibar
(1941)
Slave trader
The Big Store
(1941)
Mr. Grover
Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime
(1941)
John Matthews
Murder Among Friends
(1941)
Carter Stevenson
Washington Melodrama
(1941)
District Attorney Donnelly
The Roundup
(1941)
Capt. Bob Lane
Castle in the Desert
(1942)
Paul Manderley
A Gentleman After Dark
(1942)
Enzo Calibra
Ride 'Em Cowboy
(1942)
Jake Rainwater
I Married an Angel
(1942)
Baron Szigethy
Ten Gentlemen from West Point
(1942)
Gen. William Henry Harrison
King of the Mounties
(1942)
Harper
Stand by for Action
(1942)
Capt. Ludlow
Du Barry was a Lady
(1943)
Willie / Duc de Rigor
False Colors
(1943)
Mark Foster
Lumberjack
(1944)
Daniel J. Keefer
Forty Thieves
(1944)
Tad Hammond
Gypsy Wildcat
(1944)
Baron Tovar
Jungle Woman
(1944)
District Attorney
Uncertain Glory
(1944)
Police Commissioner LaFarge
Lost in a Harem
(1944)
Nimativ
The Frozen Ghost
(1945)
Inspector Brant
A Medal for Benny
(1945)
General
Jungle Queen
(1945)
Lang
Pardon My Past
(1945)
Uncle Wills
The Daltons Ride Again
(1945)
Sheriff Hoskins
Flame of the West
(1945)
Marshal Tom Nightlander
Road to Utopia
(1946)
Ace Larson
Under Nevada Skies
(1946)
Courtney
Spook Busters
(1946)
Dr. Coslow
The Catman of Paris
(1946)
Henry Borchard
Night in Paradise
(1946)
High Priest
The Cat Creeps
(1946)
Tom McGalvey
Christmas Eve
(1947)
Dr. Bunyan
The Fabulous Texan
(1947)
Luke Roland
Blonde Savage
(1947)
Mark Harper
Dishonored Lady
(1947)
District Attorney O'Brien
Dragnet
(1947)
Frank Farrington
Beyond Our Own
(1947)
E.W. Osborne
It's a Joke, Son!
(1947)
Big Dan Healey
Last of the Wild Horses
(1948)
Charlie Cooper
Riders of the Whistling Pines
(1949)
Henry Mitchell
The Lone Wolf and His Lady
(1949)
John J. Murdock
Alimony
(1949)
Burton Crail
Dynamite
(1949)
Hank Gibbons
Joe Palooka in the Counterpunch
(1949)
Captain Lance
Tell It to the Judge
(1949)
George Ellerby
Buccaneer's Girl
(1950)
Capt. Martos
Riding High
(1950)
Eddie Howard
The Kangaroo Kid
(1950)
Vincent Moller
Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion
(1950)
Sheik Hamud El Khalid
The Savage Horde
(1950)
Col. Price
A Millionaire for Christy
(1951)
J.C. Thompson
Son of Paleface
(1952)
Sheriff McIntyre
Apache War Smoke
(1952)
Maj. Dekker
Sky Full of Moon
(1952)
Rodeo Official
Sangue sul sagrato
(1952)
W.C. Hutton
Scaramouche
(1952)
Assembly President
Plunder of the Sun
(1953)
Consul (as Douglas Dumbrille)
Captain John Smith and Pocahontas
(1953)
Powhatan (as Douglas Dumbrille)
Julius Caesar
(1953)
Lepidus
World for Ransom
(1954)
Insp. McCollum
The Lawless Rider
(1954)
Marshal Brady (as Douglas Dumbrille)
A Life at Stake
(1955)
Gus Hillman
Jupiter's Darling
(1955)
Scipio
Allen in Movieland
(1955)
Self- Lawyer
The Ten Commandments
(1956)
Jannes
Shake, Rattle and Rock!
(1956)
Eustace Fentwick III
Jungle Safari
(1956)
Lang
Mobs, Inc.
(1956)
Leland Cameron James
The Buccaneer
(1958)
Collector of the Port
Air Patrol
(1962)
Millard Nolan
Johnny Cool
(1963)
Complicated Women
(2003)
Self (archive footage)