While watching old films on television, my dad would occasionally point out some minor character and announce "That's my uncle Leo". I presumed Uncle Leo must be connected in some way to Ethel McCann. But nothing I have found in the archives so far relates to anyone called Leo.
In particular, dad identified one of the three bearded avaitors in the Marx Brothers' "A Night at the Opera" as Leo. So I checked the internet movie database website and this identified Leo White as an aviator. I then followed the link to his imdb biography http://imdb.com/name/nm0925118/bio
This gives us the biographical details - born November 10, 1882 in Graudenz, West Prussia (now Germany), died September 20, 1948 in Glendale, California.
It also shows that his first wife was called Blanche White and they had two children. My sister remembers hearing that Ethel adopted the stage name Blanche White. So it now looks as if Peter and Jack were Leo's children and Bob/Bobo was Ethel's second husband/"significant other". Blanche's imdb entry is here http://imdb.com/name/nm0924527/ (Note. This blog was primarily set up for sharing genealogical information. "Ethel McCann" is generally used as an index label rather than "Blanche White".)
I have updated my tree in GenesReunited, but of course there is always the possibility that Leo White is a stage name.
I also made an image search for Leo White. These are links to stills from Charlie Chaplin movies on the BFI website.
http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/resources/bfi/filmog/film_thumb.php?fid=59446&resource=Stills
Stills from "A Night Out"
http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/resources/bfi/filmog/film_thumb.php?fid=59403&resource=Stills
Still from "The Champion"
http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/resources/bfi/filmog/film_large.php?fid=59426&enlargement=bfi-00n-hqf.jpg
Still from "A Jitney Elopement"
http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/resources/bfi/filmog/film_large.php?fid=58582&enlargement=bfi-00m-z7y.jpg
Still from "Work"
http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/resources/bfi/filmog/film_large.php?fid=58393&enlargement=bfi-00n-j49.jpg
Still from "A Woman"
http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/resources/bfi/filmog/film_large.php?fid=59395&enlargement=essanay_section1.jpg
Cast of "The Bank"
http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/resources/bfi/filmog/film_large.php?fid=59401&enlargement=bfi-00n-jbv.jpg
Still from "Charlie Chaplin's Burlesque on Carmen"
http://chaplin.bfi.org.uk/resources/bfi/filmog/film_thumb.php?fid=59450&resource=Stills
Stills from "Police". Leo played one of the policemen
There are others if you look for them.
The false moustache gets in the way, but does anybody else think there is a family resemblance between Leo, Peter and Jack?
Here are some biographical links, but internet searches reveal often contradictory information. More is to follow.
Wikipedia has an entry for him http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_White (dates match those given in IMDB)
Answers.com tells he was born in 1880, has him dying one day later than is stated in most other sorces and refers to "his native England" http://www.answers.com/topic/leo-white?cat=entertainment [Update. The answers.com link is a secondary source. Data is actually drawn from the All Movie Guide http://www.allmovie.com ]
Did Leo and Ethel meet and marry in the States, or did they know each other in England?
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1 comment:
There is a 1921 motion picture trade manual on line that has biographical info on many actors, supplied by the actors or the studio. This lists White as being born in Manchester, UK; also The Hollywood Book Of Death, by highly respected writer Robert Parish, gives an 1882 birthdate and a death on 9/21/1948.
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