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Francis L. Sullivan

Francis L. Sullivan

Known For Acting
Birthday Jan 06, 1903
Died Nov 19, 1956 (53)
Birthplace Wandsworth, London, England, UK
Popularity 0.2 (history)
Updated Aug 10, 2025
Entry Date Apr 13, 2024
Links TMDb IMDb
Biography

Francis Loftus Sullivan (6 January 1903, Wandsworth, London - 19 November 1956, New York City) was an English film and stage actor. He attended Stonyhurst, the Jesuit public school in Lancashire, England whose alumni include Charles Laughton and Arthur Conan Doyle. A heavily built man with a striki ... ng double-chin and a deep voice, Sullivan made his acting debut at the Old Vic aged 18 in Shakespeare's Richard III and appeared in his first film in 1932. Some of his notable film roles include Mr. Bumble in Oliver Twist (1948) and Phil Nosseross in the film noir Night and the City (1950). Sullivan also played the part of Jaggers in two versions of Charles Dickens's Great Expectations - in 1934 and 1946. He appeared in a fourth Dickens film, the 1935 Universal Pictures version of The Mystery of Edwin Drood, in which he played Crisparkle. In 1938, he was featured in The Citadel, starring Robert Donat, and a decade later, he played the role of Pierre Cauchon in the technicolor version of Joan of Arc, starring Ingrid Bergman. Also in 1938 he starred in a revival of the Stokes' brothers play Oscar Wilde at London's Arts Theatre. Sullivan also acted in light comedies, notably My Favorite Spy (1951), starring Bob Hope and Hedy Lamarr, in which he played an enemy agent, and the comedy Fiddlers Three (1944), portraying Nero. He also played the role of Pothinus in the 1945 film version of George Bernard Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra. The film was directed by Gabriel Pascal, and was the last film personally supervised by Shaw himself. Sullivan later reprised the role in a stage revival of the play. Sullivan, who eventually became a naturalized US citizen, won a Tony Award in 1955 for the Agatha Christie play Witness for the Prosecution. Earlier, he had played Hercule Poirot at the Embassy Theatre (London) in the Christie play, Black Coffee (1930). He died of a heart attack, aged 53 (some sources claim he died from an unspecified "lung ailment"). Description above from the Wikipedia article Francis L. Sullivan, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Known For

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Filmography

Hell's Island

Hell's Island

1955

as Barzland

The Prodigal

The Prodigal

1955

as Bosra

Drums of Tahiti

Drums of Tahiti

1954

as Commissioner Pierre Duvois

Sangaree

Sangaree

1953

as Dr. Bristol

Plunder of the Sun

Plunder of the Sun

1953

as Thomas Berrien

Pontius Pilate

Pontius Pilate

1952

as Herod Antipas

Caribbean

Caribbean

1952

as Andrew McAllister

My Favorite Spy

My Favorite Spy

1951

as Karl Brubaker

Behave Yourself!

Behave Yourself!

1951

as Fat Freddy

Night and the City

Night and the City

1950

as Philip Nosseross

Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus

1949

as Francisco de Bobadilla

The Red Danube

The Red Danube

1949

as Colonel Humphrey 'Blinker' Omicron

Joan of Arc

Joan of Arc

1948

as Pierre Cauchon, Count-Bishop of Beauvais

Broken Journey

Broken Journey

1948

as Anton Perami

Oliver Twist

Oliver Twist

1948

as Mr. Bumble

The Winslow Boy

The Winslow Boy

1948

as Attorney General

Take My Life

Take My Life

1947

as Prosecuting Counsel

The Man Within

The Man Within

1947

as Mr. Braddock

Great Expectations

Great Expectations

1946

as Mr. Jaggers

Caesar and Cleopatra

Caesar and Cleopatra

1945

as Pothinus

Fiddlers Three

Fiddlers Three

1944

as Nero

The Butler's Dilemma

The Butler's Dilemma

1943

as Leo Carrington

The Lady from Lisbon

The Lady from Lisbon

1942

as Minghetti

The Day Will Dawn

The Day Will Dawn

1942

as Kommandant Ulrich Wettau

The Foreman Went to France

The Foreman Went to France

1942

as French Skipper

'Pimpernel' Smith

'Pimpernel' Smith

1941

as General von Graum

21 Days Together

21 Days Together

1940

as Mander

The Four Just Men

The Four Just Men

1939

as Leon Poiccard

Young Man's Fancy

Young Man's Fancy

1939

as Blackbeard, Vincent St George

Kate Plus Ten

Kate Plus Ten

1938

as Lord Flamborough

The Ware Case

The Ware Case

1938

as Attorney General

The Drum

The Drum

1938

as Governor

The Citadel

The Citadel

1938

as Ben Chenkin

Climbing High

Climbing High

1938

as Madman

Non-Stop New York

Non-Stop New York

1937

as Hugo Brant

Dinner at the Ritz

Dinner at the Ritz

1937

as Brogard

Action for Slander

Action for Slander

1937

as Sir Quinton Jessops (as Francis Sullavan)

Spy of Napoleon

Spy of Napoleon

1936

as Chief of Police

Her Last Affaire

Her Last Affaire

1935

as Sir Julian Weyre

The Mystery of Edwin Drood

The Mystery of Edwin Drood

1935

as Rev. Mr. Septimus Crisparkle

The Return of Bulldog Drummond

The Return of Bulldog Drummond

1934

as Carl Peterson

The Fire Raisers

The Fire Raisers

1934

as Stedding

What Happened Then?

What Happened Then?

1934

as Richard Bentley, Prosecution Counsel

Cheating Cheaters

Cheating Cheaters

1934

as Dr. George Brockton

Strange Wives

Strange Wives

1934

as Bellamy

The Warren Case

The Warren Case

1934

as Prosecuting Counsel (uncredited)

Great Expectations

Great Expectations

1934

as Jaggers

Chu Chin Chow

Chu Chin Chow

1934

as The Caliph

The Right to Live

The Right to Live

1933

as Roger Stoneham

Called Back

Called Back

1933

as Kaledin

F.P.1

F.P.1

1933

as A Sailor

Red Wagon

Red Wagon

1933

as Cranley

The Wandering Jew

The Wandering Jew

1933

as Juan de Texada (Phase IV)

When London Sleeps

When London Sleeps

1932

as Rodney Haines

The Missing Rembrandt

The Missing Rembrandt

1932

as Baron von Guntermann

The Chinese Puzzle

The Chinese Puzzle

1932

as Herman Strumm

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Organization Category Movie
Television Credits

Studio One

as Herod Antipas

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Nov 07, 1948

Lux Video Theatre

as Detective Yates

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 02, 1950

General Electric Theater

as Captain William Bligh

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Feb 01, 1953

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

as Garman

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 05, 1951

Studio One

as Long John Silver

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Nov 07, 1948

Sure As Fate

Episodes: 20

First Aired: Jul 04, 1950

Suspense

Episodes: 3

First Aired: Jan 06, 1949

Lights Out

Episodes: 2

First Aired: Jul 19, 1949

General Electric Theater

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Feb 01, 1953

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 05, 1951

The Philco Television Playhouse

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 03, 1948

Robert Montgomery Presents

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Jan 30, 1950

Cavalcade of America

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Oct 01, 1952

The Ed Sullivan Show

as Self

Episodes: 1

First Aired: Jun 20, 1948

Destiny

Episodes: 0

First Aired: Unknown

Popularity Metrics

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2024 6 5 9 3
2024 7 8 15 3
2024 8 6 12 2
2024 9 4 11 1
2024 10 4 10 1
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2024 12 3 6 1
2025 1 2 5 1
2025 2 3 6 1
2025 3 1 2 1
2025 5 1 2 1
2025 6 1 1 1
2025 7 0 0 0
2025 8 1 7 0
2025 9 0 0 0
2025 10 0 0 0

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