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Joseph Cawthorn

Joseph Cawthorn

Known For Acting
Birthday Mar 27, 1868
Died Jan 21, 1949 (80)
Birthplace New York City, New York, USA
Popularity 0.1 (history)
Updated Aug 09, 2025
Entry Date Apr 13, 2024
Links TMDb IMDb
Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Joseph Cawthorn (March 29, 1868, New York City, New York – January 21, 1949, Beverly Hills, California) was an American stage and film comic actor. Cawthorn started out in show business as a child, debuting at Robinson's Music Hall in his hometown of New York ... in 1872. He appeared in minstrel shows and vaudeville as a "Dutch" comic, employing a thick German dialect. He later worked in British music halls and American touring companies. Cawthorn made his Broadway debut in 1895, 1897 or 1898, and embarked on a long career lasting over two decades. His first success was playing Boris in Victor Herbert's 1898 operetta The Fortune Teller. Other notable Broadway roles included the title character in Mother Goose (1903) and inventor Dr. Pill in the fantasy musical Little Nemo (1908). In the latter, he was called upon to ad lib to buy time during one performance. As "the scene called for him to describe imaginary animals he had hunted", he invented the "whiffenpoof" on the spot. Yale students in the audience appropriated it for the name of their glee club. When his Broadway stardom waned, Cawthorn moved to Hollywood in 1927 and started a second prolific career, appearing in over 50 films, the last in 1942. He played Gremio in the first sound adaptation of The Taming of the Shrew in 1929, starring Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks; Schultz in Gold Diggers of 1935; and Florenz Ziegfeld's father in The Great Ziegfeld (1936). Cawthorn died peacefully on January 21, 1949. He was survived by his wife, actress Queenie Vassar.

Known For

Filmography

The Postman Didn't Ring

The Postman Didn't Ring

1942

as Silas Harwood

So Ends Our Night

So Ends Our Night

1941

as Leopold Potzloch

Scatterbrain

Scatterbrain

1940

as Nicholas Raptis

Lillian Russell

Lillian Russell

1940

as Leopold Damrosch

Hot Money

Hot Money

1936

as Max Dourfuss

Brides Are Like That

Brides Are Like That

1936

as Fred Schultz

Crime Over London

Crime Over London

1936

as Mr. Sherwood / Reilly

Freshman Love

Freshman Love

1936

as Wilson, Sr.

The Great Ziegfeld

The Great Ziegfeld

1936

as Dr. Ziegfeld

One Rainy Afternoon

One Rainy Afternoon

1936

as Monique's Father

Smart Girl

Smart Girl

1935

as Karl Krausemeyer

Harmony Lane

Harmony Lane

1935

as Professor Henry Kleber

Bright Lights

Bright Lights

1935

as Oscar Schlemmer

Naughty Marietta

Naughty Marietta

1935

as Herr 'Schumie' Schuman

Sweet Music

Sweet Music

1935

as Sidney Selzer

Gold Diggers of 1935

Gold Diggers of 1935

1935

as August Schultz

Maybe It's Love

Maybe It's Love

1935

as Adolph Sr.

Page Miss Glory

Page Miss Glory

1935

as Mr. Freischutz

Young and Beautiful

Young and Beautiful

1934

as Herman Cline

The Human Side

The Human Side

1934

as Fritz Speigal

Sweet Adeline

Sweet Adeline

1934

as Oscar Schmidt

Twenty Million Sweethearts

Twenty Million Sweethearts

1934

as Herbert Brokman

Music in the Air

Music in the Air

1934

as Hans Uppman

Housewife

Housewife

1934

as Krueger (as Joe Cawthorne)

Lazy River

Lazy River

1934

as Mr. Julius Ambrose

The Last Gentleman

The Last Gentleman

1934

as Dr. Wilson

Broken Dreams

Broken Dreams

1933

as Pop

Best of Enemies

Best of Enemies

1933

as Gus Schneider

Whistling in the Dark

Whistling in the Dark

1933

as Barfuss

Blondie Johnson

Blondie Johnson

1933

as Jewelry Store Manager (as Joe Cawthorn)

Grand Slam

Grand Slam

1933

as Alex Alexandrovitch

Men Are Such Fools

Men Are Such Fools

1932

as Werner (as Joseph Cawthorne)

White Zombie

White Zombie

1932

as Dr. Bruner

They Call It Sin

They Call It Sin

1932

as Mr. Hollister

Love Me Tonight

Love Me Tonight

1932

as Dr. Armand de Fontinac

Kiki

Kiki

1931

as Alfred Rapp

A Tailor-Made Man

A Tailor-Made Man

1931

as Huber

The Runaround

The Runaround

1931

as Lou

Peach-o-Reno

Peach-o-Reno

1931

as Joe Bruno

Dixiana

Dixiana

1930

as Cornelius Van Horn, Carl's Father

Jazz Heaven

Jazz Heaven

1929

as Herman Kemple

The Taming of the Shrew

The Taming of the Shrew

1929

as Gremio

Dance Hall

Dance Hall

1929

as Bremmer

Street Girl

Street Girl

1929

as Keppel - Cafe Owner

Speakeasy

Speakeasy

1929

as Yokel

Hold 'Em Yale

Hold 'Em Yale

1928

as Professor George Bradbury

Two Girls Wanted

Two Girls Wanted

1927

as Philip Hancock

Very Confidential

Very Confidential

1927

as Donald Allen

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Organization Category Movie
Television Credits

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